Opinion:
¶ “The Untold Grassroots History of Iowa’s Clean Energy Transformation” • In 2006, 75% of Iowa’s electricity already came from coal and more coal was planned. Now, Iowa-based utility MidAmerican says it will be 85% wind power by 2020, without raising electricity rates. [Huffington Post]
Winter Windmills in Iowa. Photo by Tony Webster.
CC BY-SA 3.0 unported. Wikimedia Commons.
¶ “Do Voters In States Suing Over CPP Actually Oppose The
Plan?” • According to Bloomberg Philanthropies, polling found widespread support for the Clean Power Plan and attorneys general that filed the legal challenge are out of step with their constituents. [North American Windpower]
World:
¶ Next Kraftwerke, a German virtual power plant operator, aggregates small producers and sells their output in lucrative “balancing” markets. The firm stands to place more than 10 TWh of volumes on power exchanges this year, up from 9 TWh in 2015 and 5.3 TWh in 2014. [Reuters]
A small power producer in Germany. Photo by Molgreen.
CC BY-SA 4.0 international. Wikimedia Commons.
¶ London-based Powervault bills itself as manufacturing the UK’s “first fully-integrated solar energy storage system for the home.” The start-up, which was launched back in 2012, announced on Wednesday the introduction of its new range of smart home energy storage products. [CleanTechnica]
¶ The Australian Capital Territory government, which had a 90% renewable energy target by 2020, said it will in fact get 100% of its electricity from renewable energy by that date. ACT’s climate change minister said the switch to 100% renewables is achievable and affordable. [RenewEconomy]
Canberra Lake George wind farm
¶ Gamesa announced on its website that it had received a new order for the supply of 65 of its G114-2.1 MW turbines to the Babilonia wind complex being developed in the Brazilian town of Morro do Chapéu, in Bahia state. Operation is expected to start in the second half of 2018. [CleanTechnica]
¶ Thermal energy management solutions company Viking Cold Storage announced the launch of Solar Energy Storage at Hannover Messe trade fair. The system can reduce peak demand for electricity by up to 90%, saving customers money and helping to balance the grid. [Renewable Energy Magazine]
US:
¶ A home energy storage partnership deal has been inked between California-based Verengo Solar and battery provider Swell Energy. The deal is intended to establish a(nother) one-stop home energy storage and backup power solution for the residential market. [CleanTechnica]
Solar panel installation. Image via Shutterstock
¶ A community solar project in Halfmoon, New York will allow more than 100 local residents to participate in generating solar energy, even if they can’t have their own private PV systems. The PV installation for the shared solar project in Halfmoon, NY will generate 741,230 kWh annually. [pv magazine]
¶ Duke Energy, the utility ranking third in the US for adding new solar projects for its customers, has increased its renewable energy target by 33% in light of recent growth and successes in the sector. The North Carolina-based firm will seek to reach 8 GW of installed clean power by 2030. [pv magazine]
Duke Energy
¶ Renewable energy advocates and business interests launched a new campaign focused on steering the statewide energy debate toward renewable energy opportunities in the face of weakening demand for Montana coal. Called “Charge,” the campaign’s slogan is “A Boom That Won’t Bust.” [Montana Standard]
¶ The developer of the 468-MW Cape Wind project off Nantucket has gone to the Supreme Judicial Court in a bid to keep key transmission line approvals. The developer is appealing a Massachusetts Energy Facilities Siting Board rejection of its application for permit extensions. [SeeNews Renewables]
Nantucket Sound image by Ernest McGray, Jr. License: Creative Commons, Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic.
¶ Since the Supreme Court’s stay of the Clean Power Plan, states have operated under uncertainty and have taken different approaches the rule. Here is a timeline of the events to date, a summary of the different legal arguments, and a brief overview of different state approaches on the CPP. [JD Supra]
¶ Consumption of steam coal for electricity generation in the US fell 29% from its peak of 1,045 million short tons (MMst) in 2007 to an estimated 739 MMst in 2015. Consumption fell in nearly every state, rising only in Nebraska and Alaska over that period. [Hellenic Shipping News Worldwide]
Source: US Energy Information Administration, Power Plant Operations Report Form EIA-923
¶ Federal regulators have approved a key permit for construction of a new nuclear reactor in New Jersey, at Artificial Island along the Delaware River in Lower Alloways Creek Township. It is not the final permit, however. Many federal, state and local approvals are still needed. [NJ.com]
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