Why are solar PPA prices creeping upward? It’s complicated, experts say. Prices for solar PPAs in North America rose 2.6% during the first quarter of 2021 compared to the prior quarter, according to data from LevelTen Energy’s PPA marketplace. But the rise wasn’t part of any sudden shift — according to LevelTen, solar PPA prices have been creeping upward now
UC Berkeley economics and energy researchers studied the growing “electrify everything” movement, which aims to transition utility customers from natural gas toward electricity. As regulated monopolies, natural gas utility distribution companies recover fixed costs by spreading fees across their customer base. Researchers found that utilities that lose customers historically maintain pipeline infrastructure even as the customer base financing operations shrinks.
Record wildfire threats like winds, drought, and heat take the wildfire fight much farther that utilities, forcing California to pick when and where to fight utilities. Since 2017, California has had 13 of its 20 most destructive fires , seven of its 20 deadliest fires , average temperature is up almost 3°F and it’s eight warmest years have been since 2010, North Carolina Institute for Climate
According to panelists at the US Department of Energy’s Better Buildings summit, energy service providers offering off-balance sheet efficiency products have seen rapid growth in the number of deals signed each year. A 2017 market report by Navigant estimated Energy Efficiency as a Service could become a $221 billion market by 2026, up from about $50 billion in 2017. Panelists
New ideas include income-based rates, publicly-funded infrastructure, utility entrepreneurship, and customer-funded wildfire insurance. California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) President Marybel Batjer says the state will not let skyrocketing electricity rates threaten reliability or the state’s policy goals. But affordability is a growing concern as California works toward a “future grid” and a dynamic new power system to meet the
As you know, Demand Response plays a vital role in supporting cleaner and more reliable electricity across California as our grid evolves. Previously, schools with backup generators were not eligible to enroll these assets in Demand Response. However, with recent updates, we believe that the vast majority of school, college and other public agencies facilities on the PG&E, SoCal Edison,
Schools are evaluating new protocols to keep their indoor environment, students, and staff safe from pathogens. UV-C disinfection is an alternative to other disinfection regimes, such as spraying that have their own costs and dangers. R-Zero’s Arc has been shown in studies to kill 99.99% of pathogens and can disinfect a 1,000 square foot room in seven minutes. Low touch
The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) will host a public workshop on the operations and performance of Pacific Gas & Electric, San Diego Gas & Electric and another utility company during 2020 preventive power shutoffs, also known as Public Safety Power Shutoffs (PSPS). At this workshop, each utility will provide information on their 2020 PSPS performance, including lessons learned and
If is considering commencing any solar energy projects in the next two years, please review this status report regarding impending revisions to net energy metering (NEM) rules. Executive Summary: Anyone planning new solar should strongly consider submitting interconnection applications prior to November 2021, to secure 20 years of grandfathering under current NEM rules that are more solar-friendly than the rules to
A recent article regarding the February 2021 Texas electricity crisis of makes some interesting points about Texas that are pertinent to California. The article is “The Texas Power Crisis, New Home Construction, and Electric Heating,” 2/22/2021, by Lucas Davis, a Professor at the Haas School of Business, UC Berkeley, https://energyathaas.wordpress.com/2021/02/22/the-texas-power-crisis-new-home-construction-and-electric-heating/ Professor Davis points out that Texas has massively increased new home
