California sets 50MW target for grid energy storage

California has just set a big new target for energy storage on the grid – 50 megawatts of it, to be exact. That’s how much energy storage capacity the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) is asking Southern California Edison to procure over the next 8 years, according to a final decision issued Wednesday. It’s not a lot, compared to the total of 1,400 to 1,800 megawatts CPUC is asking the massive Southern California utility to procure between now and 2021 – but it's still among the first, if not the first, state regulatory ruling that puts grid storage at center stage.

Global wind capacity increased almost 20% in 2012 to 282 gigawatts

While global investment in clean energy fell by 11 percent in 2012, the dip still left last year as the second most successful year ever for the sector. And despite the speed bump, the planet’s installed capacity to generate wind power shot up from 238 gigawatts to slightly more than 282 gigawatts last year, according to numbers compiled by the Global Wind Energy Council. The increase was driven by China and the United States, which both installed roughly 13 gigawatts a pop, bringing their cumulative totals to 75.6 gigawatts and 60 gigawatts, respectively.

House GOP to put wind power credit under microscope

The wind production tax credit will be the subject of oversight this Congress, Rep. James Lankford told The Hill last week. Congress, with a strong push from the White House, extended the credit for one year in a January deal to avoid the “fiscal cliff.” With it came an alteration that allowed wind projects to collect the credit once developers commence construction, rather than when turbines begin producing power. It’s a change that will allow more projects to qualify over the next year – and one that’s raising eyebrows on Capitol Hill.

In first test, U.S. military's SPIDERS microgrid uses 90% renewable energy

The SPIDERS Microgrid Project is a $30 million project lead by Sandia National Laboratories, under a partnership between the Department of Defense and the Department of Energy that involves numerous other federal laboratories, agencies and military commands. SPIDERS stands for Smart Power Infrastructure Demonstration for Energy Reliability and Security, and one thing it clearly demonstrates is that the “drill baby, drill” framework is a rather primitive response to the national security challenges of today. SPIDERS, which has the eventual aim of widespread adoption in the civilian sector, is designed to keep critical military facilities in operation in case of grid outages while inserting a healthy dose of clean, locally sourced energy into the picture.

California Governor names two appointees to California Energy Commission

Gov. Edmund G. Brown Jr. has announced two new appointees to the California Energy Commission. Both bring to the commission extensive experience in the renewable energy sector. The first new appointee, David Russell Hochschild, served as vice president of external relations at Solaria Corp. from 2007 to 2012, as well as a San Francisco public utilities commissioner from 2007 to 2008. The second appointee, Janea Ashanti Scott, has been deputy counselor for renewable energy and special assistant to the counselor at the U.S. Department of the Interior's, Office of the Secretary since 2009. She has also served in multiple positions at the Environmental Defense Fund from 2000 to 2009, including senior attorney and staff attorney.

DOE launches report on environmental effects of marine energy development

As part of an international collaboration with the International Energy Agency, the Energy Department has launched a new database that includes results of environmental monitoring and research efforts on wave, tidal, and current energy development worldwide.

Another record falls in the Texas wind

A cold front that blew through Texas late last week helped push Texas wind power generation to a record, the state’s main grid operator reported Wednesday. Wind turbines in the state generated 9,481 megawatts of power at 7:08 p.m. Saturday, according to the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, surpassing the previous record of 8,667 megawatts on Jan. 29. When it reached the new record Saturday, wind generated almost 28 percent of the system’s total load at that point, the grid operator said.