News
BOEM finishes environmental assessment of Morro Bay Wind Energy Area in California
North American Windpower – October 5
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) has completed its environmental review of potential impacts from offshore wind energy leasing activities in the Morro Bay Wind Energy Area (WEA), off the coast of San Luis Obispo County. The Morro Bay WEA, if developed, could bring up to 3 GW of clean energy to the grid, enough to power more than one million homes. Based on the analysis in the EA, BOEM has issued a finding of no significant impacts to environmental resources.
CAISO calls for near-term power procurement, even with possible Diablo Canyon extension
Utility Dive – October 11
The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) should reject calls to delay adding new power supplies in the state even though the Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant’s impending retirement may be put on hold, according to the California Independent System Operator (CAISO). The agency also supports a recommendation from the CPUC’s Public Advocates Office that the commission authorize immediate procurements to address system needs from 2026 through 2030, the grid operator said in comments it filed at the commission last week.
U.S. wind and solar tripled over the past decade: analysis
The Hill – October 6
The United States generated three times as much renewable electricity from the sun and wind last year in comparison to 2012, a new analysis has found. Seven states alone now produce enough electricity from these sources, as well as geothermal energy, to cover half of their consumption, according to the Renewables on the Rise 2022 dashboard. California, Texas, and Florida exhibited the most growth in solar power and battery storage from 2012 to 2021, while Texas, Oklahoma, and Iowa ranked highest for wind power growth.
Startup partners with Sunrun to recycle and re-use millions of outdated solar panels
CNBC – October 3
Solar panels may be the epitome of green hardware, but as the technology advances and more powerful panels take over the market, older panels are turning into harmful waste. Now one California-based startup, SolarCycle, is taking advantage of that waste by recycling components of the panels and selling them off for profit. SolarCycle claims it can inexpensively extract about 95% of the high-value materials in solar panels, like silver, silicon, copper, and aluminum. Those can then be repurposed or returned to the supply chain, creating a circular solar economy.
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Projects
AES adds 908 MWh of battery energy storage in California
Power Engineering – October 11
AES dedicated two new battery storage sites in Lancaster: the Luna (100 MW/400 MWh) and Lancaster Area (127 MW/508 MWh) battery storage facilities. Clean Power Alliance is under contract to buy power from Luna, and Pacific Gas & Electric is contracted for capacity from the Lancaster facility.
Schneider and partners to pilot innovative EV microgrid in Oakland
Microgrid Knowledge – October 12
As electric vehicles and microgrids each grow in market share, their paths are intertwining, offering a vision of how together they will change power delivery. With $3.2 million in funding from the California Energy Commission, a pilot project by Schneider Electric and several partners will demonstrate the value of bidirectional electric vehicle charging to make what project partners call a vehicle-to-building resilience hub at the West Oakland branch of the Oakland Public Library. Electric buses, owned and operated by AC Transit, will store and discharge electricity to power filtered air conditioning and critical services at the library.
Trico turns on solar plant north of Tucson
Arizona Daily Star – October 7
Trico Electric Cooperative has switched on a new solar farm with battery storage near Catalina, Arizona. The Chirreon Solar and Battery Storage Facility has a generating capacity of 10 MW of photovoltaic power and 15 MW of battery storage, and it is projected to produce more than 30,000 MWh of energy each year or enough to power about 3,000 average residential homes.
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