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07.02.20 Grid Edge 16

4 Things PG&E Must Do to Survive and Thrive as It Exits Bankruptcy

California’s largest utility has escaped from bankruptcy after 18 months. Its next challenges are the same ones that put it there in the first place.

by Jeff St. John

07.01.20 Grid Edge 15

Hitachi ABB Power Grids will combine high-voltage transmission with distributed energy assets and digital control systems.

Hitachi Completes Acquisition of ABB Power Grids to Tackle Renewable Energy’s Rise

The deal, worth up to $7.8 billion, follows moves by rivals GE and Siemens to refocus on clean energy integration and distributed energy digitization.

by Jeff St. John

06.30.20 Energy 11

Democrats unveiled a big climate policy plan with influences of the Green New Deal.

House Democrats Spell Out Climate, Clean Energy Priorities in Sweeping Plan

The net-zero-by-2050 roadmap calls for clean energy tax credits, transmission expansion and a more resilient grid.

by Emma Foehringer Merchant

06.30.20 Grid Edge 8

Downtown Phoenix: APS plans to ditch coal over the next decade, but quitting gas will be tougher.

Arizona Public Service Lays Out Its Options for Reaching Zero-Carbon Energy by 2050

How quickly Arizona’s largest utility will be able to ditch gas will depend on the cost curve for batteries and unproven technologies like hydrogen.

by Jeff St. John

06.30.20 5

GM's new Ultium battery pack was designed with second-life applications in mind. (Image: GM)

Second Life: Carmakers and Storage Startups Get Serious About Reusing Batteries

Batteries still have a lot of life in them after being swapped out of EVs. Why not use them on the grid?

by Julia Pyper

06.29.20 Energy 34

Tucson Electric Power is exiting its stake in coal-fired plants including the now-closed Navajo Generating Station.

2 More Western Utilities Move to Close Coal Plants Early, Shifting to Renewables and Storage

Unlike Colorado, Arizona has no clean energy or carbon mandates. Its utilities are ditching their coal plants anyway.

by Jeff St. John

06.29.20 Energy 33

So, What Exactly Is Green Hydrogen?

For a colorless gas, hydrogen gets described in very colorful terms. A new GTM series helps explain the weird and wonderful world of clean energy.

by Jason Deign

06.25.20 Energy 4

Luma Energy plans to train lineworkers in Puerto Rico and hire some employees from PREPA.

Puerto Rico Selects New Grid Manager, Prompting Concerns

A new joint venture out of Canada and the mainland U.S. will manage and operate Puerto Rico’s grid.

by Emma Foehringer Merchant

06.24.20 Grid Edge 1

Sunrun will use AutoGrid's software to enable behind-the-meter battery fleets from California and Hawaii to New York and Massachusetts.

Sunrun Taps AutoGrid to Optimize Grid Services for Its Growing Fleets of Home Batteries

The leading U.S. residential solar installer turns to a Silicon Valley startup for expertise in coordinating behind-the-meter energy flexibility.

by Jeff St. John

06.24.20 Grid Edge 6

Self-metering EV chargers cut costs for Baltimore Gas & Electric's time-of-use pilot program with EnergyHub

Bring-Your-Own-Batteries and EV Chargers: The Future of Distributed Energy Integration?

How EnergyHub and utility partners are opening up customer-owned batteries, inverters and EV chargers for grid use.

by Jeff St. John

06.22.20 Grid Edge 2

The U.S. DER landscape by 2025 will consist of nearly 400 gigawatts of capacity ranging from solar and storage to EVs and smart thermostats.

5 Major Trends Driving the $110B US Distributed Energy Resources Market Through 2025

A new Wood Mackenzie forecast describes the emerging U.S. markets for distributed solar, batteries, flexible loads and electric vehicles as grid assets.

by Jeff St. John

06.19.20 Grid Edge 46

A 90% Clean Grid Can Be Achieved Quickly. What’s Holding It Back?

This week on The Energy Gang, we review a new report that describes how to decarbonize the grid more rapidly than we thought possible.

by Stephen Lacey

06.18.20 Grid Edge 5

Cumulative U.S. DER investments will eclipse $110 billion between 2020 and 2026.

Research Spotlight

What the Coming Wave of Distributed Energy Resources Means for the US Grid

EV infrastructure, batteries and grid-interactive water heaters will drive DER spending to a new peak in 2025, Wood Mackenzie says.

by Ben Kellison and Fei Wang

06.15.20 Grid Edge 4

A new decision for California's resource adequacy rules pits community choice groups against utilities.

California Hands Control Over Resource Adequacy to Utilities, Angering Community Choice Groups

Regulators say centralization is necessary to protect grid reliability. Community choice groups worry that big utilities won’t value local clean energy projects.

by Jeff St. John

06.11.20 Grid Edge 23

A debate is raging over California's budget for behind-the-meter battery incentives.

California Faces Battle Over Budgets for Backup Battery Incentives

California allocated more than $600 million to help its most vulnerable citizens install batteries. Is the policy doing more harm than good?

by Jeff St. John

06.10.20 Batteries, Storage & Fuel Cells 15

The Strange Hype Around Nikola Motor

This week on The Interchange, we try to make sense of Nikola’s claims.

by Stephen Lacey

06.10.20 Grid Edge 36

UK Struggles With Sagging Power Demand and Surging Renewables

Curtailment of U.K. wind farms surged as COVID-19 lockdowns depressed power demand. More batteries on the grid would help, but how?

by John Parnell

06.02.20 Grid Edge 41

California will rely heavily on mobile diesel generators to keep the lights on during this year's wildfire season.

Natural Gas Microgrids Do What Solar and Batteries Alone Can’t for California Resiliency, Report Says

California utilities face resistance to deploying natural-gas generators. But the alternative may be dirtier diesel.

by Jeff St. John

05.27.20 Solar 5

Southern Company is building the only new U.S. nuclear capacity under construction, in Georgia.

Southern Company Commits to Net-Zero Carbon by 2050, but Seeks New Gas Plants for Now

Another major U.S. utility joins Duke, Dominion and Xcel Energy in looking to net out its emissions by midcentury — and this one is building nuclear capacity.

by Jeff St. John

05.21.20 Grid Edge 5

Smoky air over San Francisco Bay. PG&E will look for a longer-term solution to its blackout problem in 2021.

PG&E’s Plan to Mitigate Blackouts This Wildfire Season: Lots More Diesel Generators

Stymied in its attempts to build gas-backed microgrids and running out of time, the California utility will again turn to a low-tech solution.

by Jeff St. John

05.21.20 Energy 12

Equinor and Eidesvik Offshore will retrofit the Viking Energy supply vessel to run on ammonia fuel cells. (Credit: Eidesvik Offshore/Equinor)

Marine Sector Turns to Ammonia to Decarbonize Shipping

Ammonia produced with renewables is rising above hydrogen and synthetic diesel as the best route to decarbonization.

by Jason Deign

05.18.20 Energy Storage 3

Individual Voltpack Mobile units can be grouped into hubs to achieve megawatt scale. (Credit: Northvolt)

Northvolt and Vattenfall Launch Mobile Battery System Capable of Patching Up Grids

Volkswagen-backed Northvolt unveils Voltpack Mobile System as it rolls ahead with Swedish “gigafactory.”

by John Parnell

05.12.20 Grid Edge 2

Span's smart electrical panel adds circuit-by-circuit control for homes with batteries. (Photo: Span)

Span Raises $10M to Scale Up Deployments of Smart Electrical Panels

Led by a Tesla alum, the California startup looks to tap growing demand for solar and storage in key markets of California and Hawaii.

by Jeff St. John

05.01.20 Grid Edge 7

California's wildfire season is approaching. (Credit: Wikicommons/Peter Buschmann, USDA)

California’s Plan to Equip Vulnerable Citizens With Batteries Stumbles Out of the Gate

Another wildfire season is approaching, and little progress has been made installing batteries for those most at risk from blackouts.

by Jeff St. John

04.23.20 Efficiency 8

New York's famous buildings account for 70 percent of the city's greenhouse gas emissions.

After Pandemic, New York’s Buildings Face Daunting Decarbonization Mandate

Multimillion-dollar fines. Cap-and-trade for buildings. How will New York decarbonize its famous skyline?

by Justin Gerdes

How Cheap and Abundant Can Clean Power Get?

Climate Fintech Startup Atmos Financial Puts Savings to Work for Clean Energy

Could Chile’s Auction Help Save CSP From Oblivion?

What the Coming Wave of Distributed Energy Resources Means for the US Grid

Extreme Weather Keeps Maxing Out the Grid

A Wartime Plan for Electrifying America

An Island’s Path to 100% Renewables

Are Batteries at a Turning Point?

Storage Integrator FlexGen Gains New Leadership at Crucial Time

Vestas Ventures Makes First Investment With Stake in Wooden Tower Start-Up

Vestas Launches World’s Largest Turbines as 'Big 3' Competition Ramps Up

BP, RWE and EnBW Win Big in UK Offshore Wind Leasing Round

How Cheap and Abundant Can Clean Power Get?

Climate Fintech Startup Atmos Financial Puts Savings to Work for Clean Energy

Could Chile’s Auction Help Save CSP From Oblivion?

Batteries

4 Things PG&E Must Do to Survive and Thrive as It Exits Bankruptcy

Hitachi Completes Acquisition of ABB Power Grids to Tackle Renewable Energy’s Rise

House Democrats Spell Out Climate, Clean Energy Priorities in Sweeping Plan

Arizona Public Service Lays Out Its Options for Reaching Zero-Carbon Energy by 2050

Second Life: Carmakers and Storage Startups Get Serious About Reusing Batteries

2 More Western Utilities Move to Close Coal Plants Early, Shifting to Renewables and Storage

So, What Exactly Is Green Hydrogen?

Puerto Rico Selects New Grid Manager, Prompting Concerns

Sunrun Taps AutoGrid to Optimize Grid Services for Its Growing Fleets of Home Batteries

Bring-Your-Own-Batteries and EV Chargers: The Future of Distributed Energy Integration?

5 Major Trends Driving the $110B US Distributed Energy Resources Market Through 2025

A 90% Clean Grid Can Be Achieved Quickly. What’s Holding It Back?

What the Coming Wave of Distributed Energy Resources Means for the US Grid

California Hands Control Over Resource Adequacy to Utilities, Angering Community Choice Groups

California Faces Battle Over Budgets for Backup Battery Incentives

The Strange Hype Around Nikola Motor

UK Struggles With Sagging Power Demand and Surging Renewables

Natural Gas Microgrids Do What Solar and Batteries Alone Can’t for California Resiliency, Report Says

Southern Company Commits to Net-Zero Carbon by 2050, but Seeks New Gas Plants for Now

PG&E’s Plan to Mitigate Blackouts This Wildfire Season: Lots More Diesel Generators

Marine Sector Turns to Ammonia to Decarbonize Shipping

Northvolt and Vattenfall Launch Mobile Battery System Capable of Patching Up Grids

Span Raises $10M to Scale Up Deployments of Smart Electrical Panels

California’s Plan to Equip Vulnerable Citizens With Batteries Stumbles Out of the Gate

After Pandemic, New York’s Buildings Face Daunting Decarbonization Mandate