Focus

U.S. pledges to slash solar energy costs by 60% in a decade

U.S. News & World Report – March 25

The Biden administration on Thursday set a goal to cut the cost of solar energy by 60% over the next decade as part of an ambitious plan to decarbonize the country’s power sector by 2035. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) said the goal accelerates its previous utility-scale solar cost target by five years. For the U.S. power grid to run entirely on clean energy within 15 years, solar energy will need to be installed as much as five times faster than it is today, DOE said. To get there, the agency committed to spending $128 million on technologies including perovskite solar cells, which are regarded as a promising more affordable alternative to the silicon cells that dominate the market.

News

2021 Land Use, Environmental & Natural Resources Update

Allen Matkins – March 25

With the end of the first quarter of 2021 approaching, we thought it timely to issue an update on selected recent developments and proposed changes in law and policy touching environmental, land use, and natural resource issues. At the national level, with the new Biden administration, federal policies already have undergone a significant sea-change from those of the Trump administration. And the Golden State continues to lead with a protective agenda on land use, environmental, and natural resources legislation and regulation. We present here a diverse set of selected snapshots on the federal and state of California policies, laws, regulations, and judicial opinions that have been adopted and issued in 2020 through the first quarter of this year on these topics.

Reversing course, FERC clears path for hybrid facilities to qualify for PURPA benefits

S&P Global – March 19

In a split decision, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) on March 18 reversed an earlier order that denied a proposed hybrid facility located in Yellowstone County, Montana, recertification as a small power production qualifying facility under the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978. Over the objections of now-Chairman Richard Glick, FERC in September found that generating facilities such as solar-plus-storage resources could not meet the 80-MW statutory limit for power production capacity by relying on inverters as a limiting element on output.

Los Angeles now has a road map for 100% renewable energy

Los Angeles Times – March 24

In a first-of-its-kind study released this Wednesday, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory concluded that L.A. is capable of achieving 98% clean energy within the next decade and 100% by 2035. And it can do so without causing blackouts or disrupting the economy, the federal research lab found.

For green energy and water savings, put solar panels on California Aqueduct

Courthouse News Service – March 18

According to a new study released by researchers from UC Santa Cruz and UC Merced this Wednesday, covering California’s 3,945 miles of canals with solar panels could produce an enormous amount of clean energy every year while slowing the evaporation of water. The steel trusses and cables used to suspend solar panels over waterways are more expensive than traditional ground or roof mounting solutions, but the cost of land is much cheaper. The authors set out to determine whether the latter can offset the former and bring down the price per kilowatt of energy produced.

Top U.S. gas utility sets net zero emissions goal for 2045

Reuters – March 23

Southern California Gas Co (SoCalGas), the largest U.S. gas distribution utility, on Tuesday set a target to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2045, aligning with the state’s target to become carbon-neutral within 25 years. SoCalGas, a unit of Sempra Energy, said it expects to meet its goal in part by supplying its nearly 22 million customers increasingly with gas produced from organic waste and hydrogen. But it did not rule out the use of fossil fuels as part of its 2045 fuel mix.

Oregon representative introduces bill to develop floating offshore wind

North American Windpower – March 22

Oregon State Representative David Brock Smith, a Republican, has introduced a bill to the Oregon Legislative Assembly calling for the development of 3 GW of commercial-scale floating offshore wind energy within federal waters off Oregon’s coast by 2030. The proposed legislation says a federal leasing process led by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management is currently being conducted to determine the development potential for floating offshore wind energy off of the Oregon and California coasts.

Projects

Public Utilities Commission of Nevada approves NV Energy Greenlink transmission initiative

Solar Industry Magazine – March 23

The Public Utilities Commission of Nevada (PUCN) has approved the first phase of NV Energy’s Greenlink Nevada transmission and renewable energy initiative. The initiative will allow for the development of approximately 5,000 MW of renewable energy projects throughout Nevada.

Wind and solar farm proposed in Arizona’s Coconino County

U.S. News & World Report – March 24

NextEra Energy Resources plans to build a renewable energy farm with dozens of wind turbines and hundreds of acres of solar panels on a mix of private property and state trust land in rural Coconino County. The Babbitt Ranch Energy Center would include 61 turbines, up to 600 acres of solar panels, and a battery storage facility.

Leprino plans 10-MW solar farm in Kings County

Kingsburg Recorder – March 18

Lemoore’s largest employer, Leprino Cheese Co, has filed plans to build a 10-MW solar farm just west of their plant in Kings County, California. The city Planning Commission recently approved the application that will help cut the power bill at one of the largest cheese manufacturing facilities in the U.S.