Too much solar? How California found itself with an unexpected energy challenge

NBC News – July 7

As California works toward its ambitious clean energy vision, an almost counterintuitive challenge has emerged: The state is, at times, generating more solar energy than it can handle. According to data from California’s Independent System Operator, in recent years, the amount of renewable energy curtailed, or wasted, has skyrocketed from both oversupply and so-called congestion, when there’s more electricity than the transmission lines in some areas can handle. So far this year, the state has lost out on nearly 2.6 million MWh of renewable energy — most of it solar.

News

California approves $475M for port upgrades

ReNEWS – July 4

California lawmakers have approved a $10 billion piece of climate bond legislation Senate Bill 867, which includes $475 million to invest in upgrades to make the state’s ports floating wind-ready. The upgrade investments will be crucial to help the state’s goals to develop 5 GW of offshore wind by 2030 and 25 GW by 2045.

Nearly 5 GW of new offshore wind power approved for the U.S. Northeast

Power – June 17

Over the past week, the offshore wind power sector in the U.S. received two major federal approvals that could add nearly 5 GW to the grid. On July 1, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management approved a construction and operations plan for Avangrid’s 791 MW New England Wind 1 project and 1,080 MW New England Wind 2 project. On July 2, the agency announced a joint record of decision for Shell New Energies and EDF Renewables North America’s 2.8 GW Atlantic Shores South wind energy project offshore New Jersey.

Projects

FERC approves capacity solicitation plan for $2.4B RioSol transmission project

Utility Dive – July 9

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has approved a plan to sell capacity on the $2.4 billion RioSol transmission project, set to run about 550 miles between New Mexico and Arizona. FERC also granted Southwestern Power Group, or SWPG, the project’s developer, the right to sell capacity at negotiated rates on the roughly 1,600 MW merchant line, which would run next to the under-construction SunZia transmission line.

Solar project approved near Ukiah, CA

Mendofever – July 7

The Mendocino County Planning Commission has approved an application for a major use permit for a 4 MW, 20-acre solar farm, northeast of Ukiah, California. Renewable Properties, a San Francisco-based firm specializing in small-scale solar farms, submitted the project application.

Pacifico Power nets financing for solar+storage assets

Solar Industry Magazine – June 27

Pacifico Power has partnered with Sumitomo Corporation of Americas (SCOA) to finance a portfolio of solar photovoltaic plus battery energy storage system projects. Pacifico secured $40 million in project tax equity funding from SCOA for a portfolio consisting of six projects totaling 27 MW of solar PV and 25 MWh of battery storage located in California and Massachusetts.

The U.S. is about to get its first solar-covered canal

Canary Media – July 8

The first canal-based solar project in the U.S. is nearing completion on tribal lands south of Phoenix, Arizona. Native Americans have been using canals to irrigate the Gila River Valley for thousands of years, starting with the Huhugam people. Now at least a small slice of the modern-day system of canals that winds through the area will double as a location for generating solar energy for the Pima and Maricopa tribes.

Avangrid sells part of Kitty Hawk offshore wind lease to Dominion Energy

The Maritime Executive – July 8

Dominion Energy and Avangrid have agreed to the terms of a deal that would sell a portion of the Kitty Hawk offshore lease area to a division of Dominion for potential future development. Under the terms, Avangrid would sell the smaller north portion of its lease, which is located about 25 miles south of Dominion’s Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project, which began offshore construction about six weeks ago.