Boosting the energy transition: why the European Commission should support independent aggregators
Aggregators continuously monitor the needs of the electricity grid on one side and the energy consumption of a large number of distributed assets on the other. When the grid is stressed or out of balance, aggregators adjust the consumption or production of those distributed energy assets to help the grid restore balance. These services either lead to direct compensation from a transmission system operator (TSO), or a reduction in the total energy bill of the owner of the distributed asset.
Five pro-renewable energy actions to expect from President-Elect Joe Biden
As the U.S. economy continues to recover from its Covid-19-induced recession, it’s likely that Congress and the president will put together a multi-trillion dollar relief package, similar to the one that lifted the economy out of its doldrums following the 2008 economic crisis.
US start-up pursues roll-to-roll printing of perovskite on flexible glass
A Rochester-based firm aims to print perovskite and other PV layers on a flexible glass substrate using a roll-to-roll machine Kodak has used to produce photographic film.
CSP startup Heliogen scores $39 million for CO2 project
Heliogen, which was founded by serial entrepreneur Bill Gross, aims to revitalize concentrated solar power with sCO2 tech to cut costs, water use, and plant footprints in industrial applications not suited to solar PV.
US system operator has 57 GW of solar in queue
The Midcontinent Independent System Operator’s renewables mix is set for a shift from wind to solar, if it can confront the challenge of transmission costs.
Can CIGS thin-film PV manufacturing return in the US?
A scientist familiar with First Solar’s earlier efforts in CIGS makes the case for the CdTe pioneer to return to the technology.
Politicians talk a green game, but do they have solar on their home rooftops?
The Solar Power Challenge website aims to identify the politicians who support solar and have the rooftop panels at home to prove it. The results will not surprise you.
Trump pulls tariff exemption for bifacial panels – again
The U.S. president issued a proclamation on Oct. 10 that cites the impact of imported bifacial panels on U.S. solar manufacturing, while also raising the scheduled fourth-year tariff rate from 15% to 18%.
US corporate solar market reaches 8 GW
The new Solar Means Business report by the Solar Energy Industries Association indicates that low prices and climate change commitments are driving corporate interest in solar and storage. Apple, Amazon and Walmart lead the list of top players.
What is distributed generation’s real worth for the grid?
A thought experiment by UC Berkeley energy economist Severin Borenstein suggests how much rooftop solar could reduce transmission and distribution costs in the United States.
