Focus
California hits milestones toward 100% clean energy — but has a long way to go
CalMatters – August 19
California has given America a glimpse at what running one of the world’s largest economies on renewable energy might look like. The state recently hit a milestone: 100 days this year with 100% carbon-free, renewable electricity for at least a part of each day, as tracked by Stanford University engineering Professor Mark Z. Jacobson. The state notched the milestone while — so far — avoiding blackouts and emergency power reductions this year, even with the hottest July on record. That progress is largely due to the substantial public and private investments in renewable energy — particularly batteries storing solar power to use when the sun isn’t shining, according to energy experts.
News
Federal government grants first floating offshore wind power research lease to Maine
Associated Press – August 19
The federal government has issued the nation’s first floating offshore wind research lease to the state of Maine, comprising about 23 square miles in federal waters. The state requested the lease from the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management for a floating offshore wind research array with up to a dozen turbines capable of generating up to 144 MW of renewable energy in waters southeast of Portland, Maine.
EIA projects 42.6 GW of new capacity additions in the U.S. during second half of 2024
Power Engineering – August 19
42.6 GW of utility-scale electric generating capacity are expected to come online in the U.S. during the second half of 2024, more than the total added in all of 2023, according to the latest reporting from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). During the first half of 2024, 20.2 GW came online, 3.6 GW (or 21%) more than the capacity added during the first six months of 2023. Solar continued to lead all U.S. generating capacity additions in the first half of 2024, representing 59% of all additions.
Projects
Turning California’s oil fields into energy storage sites
The San Diego Union-Tribune – August 15
On a 560-acre plot of land in a dusty portion of the San Joaquin Valley, Premier Resource Management LLC has partnered with some of the nation’s top energy laboratories on a pilot program to take an abandoned oil reservoir and convert it to a geothermal power plant that can also store renewable energy underground for weeks at a time, instead of just a few hours. The process, called Geological Thermal Energy Storage, or GeoTES, would use a combination of techniques both above and below ground such as solar power, heat, and injecting and extracting water from wells.
BOEM awards offshore wind leases to Equinor, Dominion
Utility Dive – August 15
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s (BOEM) latest offshore wind auction in the central Atlantic provisionally awarded a lease with around 2 GW of potential capacity to Equinor, and a lease with 2 GW to 4 GW of potential capacity to Dominion Energy. In July, Dominion acquired another nearby lease, agreeing to buy the 40,000-acre Kitty Hawk Wind North lease area from Avangrid and announcing that if the deal goes through, that lease area will be renamed CVOW South.
National Renewable Solutions breaks ground on 140 MW solar-plus-storage plant on tribal land in New Mexico
PV-Tech – August 19
Renewables developer National Renewable Solutions has started construction on a 140 MW solar-plus-storage project in New Mexico. The Shallow Basket Energy project is built on land leased from the Jicarilla Apache Nation and includes a 50 MW dedicated battery energy storage system. It is expected to be operational in 2025. According to the Jicarilla Apache Nation, the project represents one of the largest renewable energy plants on tribal land in the U.S.
SolarBank to develop 7 MW in New York
Solar Industry Magazine – August 15
SolarBank will develop Oak Orchard, a 7 MW ground-mount solar power project on a 23-acre closed landfill site located in Clay, New York. The project is expected to be eligible for incentives under the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority’s NY-Sun Program.
Enel inks largest solar grazing contract
Renewable Energy World – August 15
Enel North America has announced a partnership with Texas Solar Sheep Company to deploy more than 6,000 sheep to feast on greenery sprawling eight Texas solar sites. It is the largest known solar grazing agreement executed in the U.S., per the companies.
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