Tennessee – pv magazine USA

In case you missed it: Five big solar stories in the news this week

pv magazine — Fri, 28 Jun 2024 22:00:30 +0000

pv magazine USA spotlights news of the past week including market trends, project updates, policy changes and more.

Dissecting a $600,000 tax credit transfer In the past, even the smallest projects that attracted tax equity investors required $1 to $2 million in tax benefits to offset the $75,000 in fees. That landscape is now evolving.

1.2 MW Gainesville, Florida solar farm.

Image: Basis Climate

Top solar panel brands in reliability, quality, and performance Solar modules are evaluated in the Renewable Energy Test Center annual PV Module Index. Overall top performers (in alphabetical order): Astronergy, ES Foundry, Gstar, JA Solar, Longi Solar, Runergy, SolarSpace, Trina Solar, and Yingli Solar.

Maine may design a distribution system operator to advance distributed energy resources The Pine Tree State has hired a consulting firm to evaluate whether forming a distribution system operator could speed deployment of distributed energy resources and support other state goals. Consultants are reviewing how the approach is used in five other countries.

City of Detroit to install solar in mostly vacant neighborhoods Three Detroit neighborhoods were chosen as sites for solar facilities. The City plans to build 33 MW of solar to power its municipal buildings.

See where solar manufacturing is planned in North America on Sinovoltaics’ Supply Chain map The up-to-date map provides details on 95 factories producing PV modules, cells, wafers, ingots, polysilicon, and metallurgical-grade silicon in Mexico, Canada, and the United States, up from 81 in the first quarter.

In case you missed it: Five big solar stories in the news this week

pv magazine — Fri, 21 Jun 2024 22:00:25 +0000

pv magazine USA spotlights news of the past week including market trends, project updates, policy changes and more.

Final guidance is in on IRA’s prevailing wage and apprenticeship requirements According to the Treasury Department, taxpayers developing clean energy projects may be able to claim an increased credit equal to five times the base incentive.

Another residential solar installer closes up shop Titan Solar Power, a residential solar installer founded in 2013 in Arizona, sent an email to its employees informing them it has failed to sell the company to prospective buyers and will close its doors permanently.

Nextracker has acquired foundation specialist Ojjo in an all-cash transaction for approximately $119 million Ojjo is a California-based renewable energy company specializing in unique truss systems that uses half the steel of a conventional foundation and a design that reportedly minimizes grading requirements in utility-scale projects.

Arizona’s largest energy storage project closes $513 million in financing The 1,200 MWh Papago Storage project will dispatch enough power to serve 244,000 homes for four hours a day with the e-Storage SolBank high-cycle lithium-ferro-phosphate battery energy storage solution.

Longi claims 34.6% efficiency for perovskite-silicon tandem solar cell The European Solar Test Installation (ESTI) confirmed Longi’s achievement of a world record-breaking efficiency rating of 34.6% for a perovskite-silicon tandem solar cell.

Longi solar module.

Image: Longi

Solar visionaries form ReCreate, bringing 5 GW solar module and cell manufacturing to Tennessee

Anne Fischer — Fri, 14 Jun 2024 13:31:10 +0000

Dean Solon and Hamlet Tunyan, two solar industry leaders, have partnered on a new venture that will bring 5 GW of solar cells and 5 GW of solar modules to U.S. and EU markets.

Dean Solon, founder, CEO and president of Create Energy and Shoals Technologies Group, together with Hamlet Tunyan, CEO of RECOM Technologies, announced the launch of ReCreate. This new venture will establish a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Tennessee with planned production of up to 5 GW of modules and 5 GW of cells for the North American and European markets.

The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) of 2022 has stimulated solar manufacturing in the U.S. with production tax credits for manufacturers and investment tax credits for project developers using domestic content. Wood Mackenzie estimates 144 GW of announced module manufacturing capacity, 71 GW of cell manufacturing capacity and 61 GW of wafer manufacturing capacity by 2027. Compare this to the 26 GW of module capacity we have today, along with little or no wafer or cell production, and the 5 GW of both cells and modules anticipated from ReCreate will significantly bolster supply.

The facility is located at Create Energy’s manufacturing facility in Portland, Tennessee. Create is a U.S.-based renewable energy company founded by Solon that produces products ranging from transformers, switchgear, PV, BESS, and EV solutions as well as full turnkey EPC services. Solon is renowned for his creative leadership in the renewable energy industry, bringing over 30 years of experience driving engineering, innovation and manufacturing growth in both the U.S. and global markets.

“We’re excited to ignite the rocket engines on this new venture and deliver high-quality, American-made solar solutions,” said Solon. “At Create Energy, our mission is to ReCreate the renewables market and offer comprehensive solutions for solar, BESS, and eMobility projects. ReCreate will set the standard for the solar module and cell markets.”

Tunyan, well known in the European renewables sector, has decades of expertise in clean-tech manufacturing, project investments and development. RECOM Technologies is a module, cell, inverter, hybrid storage systems, batteries, and electrical vehicle (EV) charger manufacturer. The company integrates R&D, manufacturing and distribution, with an annual production capacity exceeding 3.2 GW and sales in over 110 countries.

Speaking on the partnership with Solon, Tunyan said, “This project represents a significant advancement in our commitment to renewable energy and innovation. By manufacturing in the USA, we are supporting the local economy and setting new industry standards. Partnering with Dean Solon, whose expertise and vision are unparalleled, enhances our capacity to deliver exceptional solar solutions and drive meaningful change in the energy sector.”

Solar market update: Southeast U.S.

Ryan Kennedy — Mon, 22 Apr 2024 19:47:42 +0000

State-by-state insights shared at the RE+ Southeast conference held in Atlanta this month.

At the RE+ Southeast regional renewable energy conference held in Atlanta this month, panelists shared that nationwide, solar installations heated up to a record 13 GW deployed in Q4, 2023. The United States is setting the stage for an energy transition carried largely by solar and energy storage, with over 670 GW of cumulative solar installations expected by 2034, multiplying the nation’s current total of less than 200 GW.

Growing power demand and decarbonization goals continue to push solar adoption, and subsidies made available from the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 are sweetening the pot on both the supply and demand side.

The U.S. Southeast, though not typically a leader in renewables investment, stands to see considerable growth in solar, energy storage, and other emissions-free technologies. Below are state-by-state insights shared by expert speakers at the RE+ conference.

Virginia

Virginia’s solar economy is propelled forward in part by its 2021 Clean Economy Act, which mandated a renewable portfolio standard (RPS) and clean energy public interest policies. The RPS requires the state to achieve 100% renewable energy by 2045.

The RPS also requires that 75% of renewable energy credits (REC) procured by the state’s largest utility, Dominion, must be sourced from in-state resources, starting in 2025. Dominion is also required to meet a distributed generation carve-out for projects 1 MW and smaller, which are often rooftop solar installations. The carve-out increases 1% per year.

The RPS creates a long runway for growth in the state, as it declares over 16 GW of solar and wind capacity to be in the public interest. It also declares 2.7 GW of energy storage to be in the public interest and includes a 10% behind-the-meter carve out for distributed storage. Virginia also has an active net metering program for rooftop solar arrays and is developing a shared solar program in its legislative sessions.

Robin Dutta, executive director of Chesapeake Solar and Storage Association, said that changes are needed to ensure the state’s Clean Economy Act is effective. He highlighted that the state lacks a policy infrastructure to establish a tradeable renewable energy credit (REC) market.

Dutta recommended the state approve an introduced bill, HB 638, to increase the distributed generation carveout and limit utility capture of the energy transition through competitive private procurement requirements.

Georgia

Georgia has a strong position in the solar market, ranking seventh in total installed capacity among the states. About 6% of its electricity comes from solar, and over 5,000 people are employed in solar in Georgia.

Numerous requests for proposals (RFP) have been filed in the state, including two RFP for just over 1 GW each in late 2023 and 2025. The Public Service Commission approved a 193 MW distributed solar RFP.

The state’s utility, Georgia Power Company, said it would be 6.6 GW short of capacity over the next 10 years, and submitted a request to the Public Service Commission requesting to source its power predominantly from fossil fuels and utility Mississippi Power. It has also committed to adding 4 GW of renewable energy by 2035.

On the legislative landscape, the conference panelists highlighted several bills to watch in the state, including:

HB 300 “Decommissioning Act”
SB 210 / HB 1152 “Georgia Homegrown Solar Act”
HB 1312 extends Public Service Commission terms and requires elections for PSC members

Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi

The Gulf has among the lowest adoption of solar, but in recent years growth has expanded considerably. Projects are stacking up in regional grid operators’ grid interconnection queues, an approval process that is creating significant bottlenecks for development in the region.

In Louisiana, over 18 GW of standalone solar projects and 5.6 GW of hybrid solar and storage projects are awaiting approval in interconnection queues for the MISO region, and very little in the SPP region.

Mississippi has over 7 GW of standalone solar and nearly 6 GW of hybrid solar projects in queues for the MISO region, and in the TVA region, over 2 GW of solar and 1.7 GW of hybrid projects are in the queues.

Alabama has the least amount of solar on the way in the Gulf region. About 1.7 GW of solar and 1.4 GW of hybrid solar-storage in the Southern region awaits interconnection, while TVA has less than 1 GW in queues for standalone solar.

The panelists recommended watching the following potential policy changes in the Gulf:

Louisiana HB 893 – Solar buffer laws
Louisiana SB 108 – Transmission expropriation
Mississippi Special SB 2001 – Amazon data centers
Alabama – Lawrence County local zoning laws

Order 2023 interconnection reform, passed in July 2023, is expected to help alleviate the sluggish interconnection process in the Gulf region that has been a major damper on development, said the RE+ panelists.

The Carolinas

North Carolina has the nation’s fourth-highest solar capacity, with about 4.8 GW installed, while South Carolina is 16th highest, with about 2.5 GW installed. The panelists said lawmakers’ attitudes towards solar are mostly favorable, with goals to balance costs and benefits to all customers.

North Carolina has one of the nation’s longest-standing renewable portfolio standards, established in 2007. It is one of the largest beneficiaries from incentives in the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 and plays a major role in the $7 billion Solar for All program.

Both states have an established net metering program, and a community solar market that has largely been adopted by electric co-ops and municipalities, but not by investor-owned utilities.

Regional utility Duke Energy Carolinas plans to retire operational coal plants by 2035 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. Recent filings have expanded the utility’s load forecast to 33.5 GW as the region’s population grows quickly, and the utility has shifted away from nuclear and towards solar in its roadmap to meet demand.

Tennessee

Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) has committed to about 2.4 GW of solar installations, with about 1 GW currently operating.

While solar is historically not a large part of TVA’s generation mix, it now represents over half of the projects awaiting approval in its grid interconnection queue. Of the nearly 30 GW of projects awaiting approval, 34% are solar, 20% are solar and storage hybrid projects.

The RE+ panelists said land-use issues are becoming a major focal point for solar development in the Tennessee valley. Other major policy developments have centered around FERC 2023 interconnection, issues with project origination, RFP processes, and power purchase agreement terms, valuation of battery energy storage systems, NEPA reform and the establishment of virtual power plants.

Citizens groups criticize TVA’s decision to build a 1.5 GW gas plant

William Driscoll — Fri, 05 Apr 2024 15:00:53 +0000

TVA decided not to choose solar and storage despite 15 GW of such projects in its interconnection queue. TVA’s board of directors could overturn the gas plant decision, said an environmental law group spokesperson.

TVA has announced it will build a fossil gas plant with at least 1.5 GW of capacity at the site of the Kingston coal plant in eastern Tennessee. The federally owned utility rejected the option of building solar and battery storage to replace the coal plant.

TVA said that although 15 GW of solar or solar-plus-storage projects are waiting in its transmission interconnection queue, “to maintain stability on TVA’s transmission system, TVA would need to accommodate the decreased influx of generated power” from the Kingston coal plant “as well as ensure that the multiple (15+) solar generating locations can be connected without impacting the existing grid for the areas surrounding the new solar sites.”

The TVA board, six of whose nine members were appointed by President Biden, “still has the power to reverse this reckless decision,” said Eric Hilt, a senior communications manager with the Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC). “We hope federal leaders will urge board members to scrap this proposed gas plant and invest in cleaner and cheaper energy options. As for SELC and our partners, we are evaluating our legal options.”

Gaby Sarri-Tobar, a campaigner with the Center for Biological Diversity’s (CBD’s) energy justice program, said “TVA CEO Jeff Lyash’s approval of yet another costly, climate-killing” gas plant that would “jack up utility costs” and an associated 122-mile gas pipeline is “beyond reckless.” She added that TVA’s board “should fire” the CEO.

Citizens groups

Citizens groups have long advocated for TVA to transition to clean energy.

SELC early last year called for TVA’s board, with its new Biden appointees, to pause TVA’s plans to add gas generation.

CBD then co-sponsored a study by Synapse Energy Economics that found that 50 GW of solar and storage for TVA by 2035, plus electric vehicles, could save customers about $200 billion through 2050.

QCells USA Corporation joined citizens groups in signing a letter to TVA’s board last June calling for greater public engagement in the utility’s 2024 resource planning process.

The Southern Alliance for Clean Energy (SACE) last August called on the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to evaluate replacing TVA’s Kingston coal plant not with gas but with renewables, energy efficiency and storage, as part of the commission’s review of a proposed gas pipeline for the proposed gas unit.

CBD followed up by co-sponsoring a clean energy plan for TVA, again conducted by Synapse, which found that TVA could reach 100% clean energy by 2035 by adding 35 GW of solar and 13 GW of wind capacity. The plan was presented at a citizens hearing, and CBD and SACE called for TVA’s board to ensure that TVA reached the 100% target.

Just days before TVA’s Kingston gas plant announcement, SACE flagged that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) had notified TVA that the utility’s final environmental impact statement for the Kingston gas plant had “serious deficiencies,” including a lack of transparency around the planning and decision-making processes.

A joint news release from SELC and Appalachian Voices about TVA’s gas plant decision said that EPA had raised additional “substantial concerns,” including underestimating climate and air pollution impacts, failing to reasonably consider clean energy alternatives, and preparing an unlawfully “inadequate” analysis. EPA also warned the gas plant could lead to higher power bills across the region, the groups said.

Eric Hilt with SELC said, however, that “it is our understanding that the window for EPA to refer the Kingston decision to the Council on Environmental Quality has closed.”

In their release, SELC and Appalachian Voices said that “recently, the public learned” that TVA’s board of directors “made a backroom deal to return final decision-making authority” on the proposed Kingston gas plant “back to the TVA CEO.” The groups added “the board’s abdication of decision-making power was buried in a general budget resolution that was not made public until months later and came shortly after the board publicly voted to take back authority over the Kingston decision.”

Gabi Lichtenstein, Tennessee energy democracy field coordinator at Appalachian Voices quoted in the release, posed the question: “Why is CEO Jeff Lyash, the highest paid federal employee in the country, making a decision that could cost ratepayers over a billion dollars more than the alternative?”

TVA serves 10 million customers across Tennessee, substantial portions of Kentucky, Mississippi, and Alabama, and parts of three other states.

DOE awards $5 million for clean energy workforce development through minority-supporting institutions

Anne Fischer — Wed, 27 Mar 2024 17:03:38 +0000

The funding will go to Tennessee State and University of Texas, El Paso, to help train students in the skills needed to succeed in solar and other clean energy careers.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and MSI STEM R&D Consortium announced $5 million in funding to train students for careers in clean energy industries.

The funding will be directed to two minority-serving universities to help train students in the skills needed to succeed in solar and other clean energy careers. MSI Stem R&D is a consortium that partners with more than 60 minority-serving research institutions, industry and government partners, such as DOE.

According to a report by the Interstate Renewable Energy Council (IREC), full-time jobs in the U.S. solar energy and energy storage industries grew in 2022 and demand will only increase in the future. IREC notes that the solar industry expects total U.S. installations will multiply fivefold in the next 10 years, from 141 GW in 2022 to over 700 GW in 2033. SEIA optimistically predicts the total number of solar jobs could more than double, reaching 538,000 by 2032.

The reality, however, is that the tight labor market in the U.S. continues to create hiring challenges. The report notes that in 2022, 44% of solar industry employers said it was “very difficult” to find qualified applicants—the highest such percentage ever recorded in the Solar Jobs Census.

New workforce-related requirements were put into place by the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) that aims to address training, pay, diversity and job development in underserved areas.

The new initiative driven by DOE in conjunction with MSI Stem R&D supports the Justice40 Initiative that strives to ensure that 40% of the overall benefits of certain federal investments go to disadvantaged communities by helping to build a diverse science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) pipeline to support the transition to clean energy.

“Achieving equitable energy transitions across the country is not possible without a workforce that reflects the diversity of America,” said Susan Hamm, director of the Integrated Strategies Office, EERE. “That’s why DOE provides minority serving institutions with the funding and support they need to educate, develop, and inspire the clean energy workforce of tomorrow. Innovation accelerates when there’s people with a variety of perspectives and backgrounds working together towards a common goal,”

The two universities selected to receive funding for their workforce development projects:

Tennessee State University, Nashville, Tennessee

Tennessee State University’s workforce development program will serve as a pathway to STEM degrees and equip African American, Hispanic and Native American students with the skills needed for entry-level positions in the clean energy sector.

The project will offer an online training using virtual reality coupled with in-person workshops in solar energy (including design, installation, and energy storage). The project also has an entrepreneurship component, encouraging students to develop clean energy businesses to increase the number of clean energy businesses run by minorities.

University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, Texas

The Hispanic Alliance for Clean Energy Education and Research project aims to train students and build the workforce development capacity in Texas, New Mexico and Puerto Rico. To support workforce development capacity building, six institutions in the Alliance will share expertise and collaborate on research, course materials and jointly mentor junior faculty members. There’s also a plan to expand the project’s reach beyond the six institutions to promote a growing workforce for the clean energy transition.

For more details on EERE’s STEM diversity and workforce development work, visit the Why Clean Energy Matters page.

Shoals to invest $80 million in Tennessee manufacturing expansion

Ryan Kennedy — Thu, 22 Feb 2024 17:53:42 +0000

The electrical balance of systems provider serving the solar industry will move its manufacturing and distribution center to a new, larger facility.

Shoals Technologies Group was joined by Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee, Department of Economic and Community Development (TNECD) Commissioner Stuart C. McWhorter to announce an expansion of its Portland, Tennessee manufacturing operations.

Shoals will invest $80 million to move its Tennessee operations to a new, larger location. It is expected to add 550 new jobs at the facility, bringing the total employment in the region to approximately 1,400 people. The new 638,000 square-foot plant will be at 1500 Shoals Way, Portland, Tennessee.

The electrical balance of systems (EBOS) provider serves the solar, energy storage, and electric mobility industries. It said increased demand for solar EBOS products drove the expansion decision.

“Portland is excited to once again be a destination for investment and industry. Shoals has already been a vital community partner, and now, with $80 million of new capital and hundreds of jobs, they will be a top employer in the region as well,” said Mayor Mike Callis.

Shoals said its total manufacturing capacity is now 35 GW, with the ability to expand to 42 GW at existing sites. At current capacities, Shoals can serve demand well into 2025, said the company.

Shoals joined the NASDAQ exchange in January 2021 with a $1 billion initial public offering. It is set to report earnings on February 28, 2024.

In its last earnings report, Shoals posted a record quarter with $132.2 million in revenue. This represents a year-over-year growth of 48% for Q3. The revenue total came in slightly below Wall Street expectations.

Backlog and newly awarded orders reached $633.3 million, growing 34% year-over-year. Adjusted EBITDA grew 81% year-over-year to $48 million. Shoals said its growth was primarily driven by domestic demand for solar EBOS. Shoal’s balance sheet showed total assets of $840.1 million, with current assets at $214.2 million. The company’s total liabilities totaled $315.5 million, while stockholders’ equity was $524.6 million.

Shoals provides big lead assemblies, interconnection components, combiner boxes, transition boxes, service and design and more for solar projects.

Groups call on TVA’s board to pursue 100% clean energy

William Driscoll — Tue, 20 Feb 2024 14:09:16 +0000

The federally owned utility TVA has not held a public hearing on its resource planning process, so advocacy groups held their own hearing, presenting a plan for TVA to reach 100% clean energy by 2035. Two groups called for TVA’s board to ensure the utility reaches that target.

The utility TVA would add 35 GW of solar and 13 GW of wind capacity to reach 100% clean energy by 2035 under a resource plan presented by clean energy groups at a nongovernmental public hearing in Nashville. The federally owned utility now has 1 GW of wind capacity and less than 1 GW of solar capacity.

The hearing was modeled after a regulatory proceeding, with testimony from expert witnesses and comments from citizens, and was moderated by former Chairman of the Arkansas Public Service Commission Ted Thomas.

The clean energy groups convened the hearing after their June 2023 letter to TVA’s board of directors calling for greater public engagement in the utility’s 2024 resource planning process yielded an “insufficient response,” and a follow-up “petition to intervene” yielded no response, said a post-hearing brief.

Synapse Energy Economics developed the 100% clean energy plan for TVA. The nonprofit consultancy GridLab and the Center for Biological Diversity sponsored Synapse’s analysis.

TVA’s board of directors was invited to participate in the Nashville hearing, but when the chairman called the proceeding to order, “no one representing TVA responded,” said the post-hearing brief.

The TVA board is scheduled to vote this summer on whether to approve the utility’s final resource plan, which TVA staff are drafting in consultation with a utility working group, said Gabriela Sarri-Tobar, energy justice campaigner with the Center for Biological Diversity.

The board has the power to reject a plan that is not aligned with the Biden administration’s federal climate and clean energy goals for 100% clean energy by 2035, she said.

TVA’s board, “and especially the six board members nominated by the president,” should “make it a priority to align TVA’s energy planning with federal climate targets,” Sarri-Tobar said, citing the “tremendous” financial and public health benefits of transitioning to 100% clean power as shown by the Synapse study. TVA’s board has nine members.

Asked about the engagement of the Biden-appointed TVA board members, Bryan Jacob, solar program director for the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy (SACE), said “TVA is out of sync with reality and out of step with the Biden Administration’s direction and commitments. It doesn’t matter which president originally nominated the Board members. If they ultimately endorse a resource plan that includes new gas resources now, it will ensure that the nation’s largest public power utility fails to achieve 100% clean energy by 2035 and will increase the risks of high bills and grid failures for the people of the Valley for decades to come.”

Maggie Shober, research director at SACE, made the case that TVA is using a National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process as a “stand-in” for “genuine” public and stakeholder engagement to inform its resource planning process. “NEPA was not intended to be used that way,” she wrote in a post, and “it falls far short of what is needed for the public to be able to interact with and inform key decisions that will impact our lives for decades.”

Peter Hubbard, a clean energy advocate with the Georgia Center for Energy Solutions, testified at the hearing that TVA “must account” in its resource planning “for the remarkably poor track record of failure” for carbon capture and storage projects “such as Southern Company’s failed Kemper project in Mississippi and NRG’s failed Petra Nova project in Texas, when accounting for the possibility that this troubled technology could work for TVA.”

Groups signing the petition to intervene were Appalachian Voices, Center for Biological Diversity, Energy Alabama, Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, Sunrise Movement Nashville and Vote Solar.

Those groups also signed the June 2023 letter along with three other entities: QCells USA Corporation, Sierra Club and the Southern Renewable Energy Association.

TVA serves 10 million customers across Tennessee, substantial portions of Kentucky, Mississippi, and Alabama, and parts of three other states.

Shoals posts 48% year-over-year growth in record quarter

Ryan Kennedy — Thu, 09 Nov 2023 16:39:42 +0000

The electrical balance of systems company’s gross margins shrank, leading to a net loss of $9.8 million. It has an ongoing legal case in which it is seeking damages from a wire insulation provider.

Shoals Technologies Group, a provider of electrical balance of system (EBOS) solutions, announced its Q3 2023 earnings, posting a record quarter with $132.2 million in revenue. This represents a year-over-year growth of 48% for Q3. The revenue total came in slightly below Wall Street expectations.

Shoals provides big lead assemblies, interconnection components, combiner boxes, transition boxes, service and design and more for solar projects.

Despite the record quarter, wire insulation shrinkback expenses led to lowered gross margins and a net loss of $9.8 million. Its stock share price is down roughly 15% in trading sessions following the report.

“While the domestic utility scale solar market is currently experiencing slower growth, we believe our strong value proposition and the emerging strength from our international business will continue to drive order growth,” said Brandon Moss, chief executive officer, Shoals. “We are pleased that international now represents more than 10% of our backlog and awarded orders.”

Shoal’s balance sheet showed total assets of $840.1 million, with current assets at $214.2 million. The company’s total liabilities totaled $315.5 million, while stockholders’ equity was $524.6 million.

The company noted the complete ramp-up of its third Tennessee manufacturing facility. The Tennessee facilities have added 15 GW of manufacturing capacity to its 2022 year-end total of 20 GW. Shoals said its total manufacturing capacity is now 35 GW, with the ability to expand to 42 GW at existing sites. At current capacities, Shoals can serve demand well into 2025, said the company.

The company had $50.2 million in wire insulation shrinkback expenses. Shoals said it was able to offset some of the cost impact with lower raw materials costs, increased leverage on fixed costs, and operational efficiencies.

In-quarter, Shoals filed a lawsuit against Prysmian Cables and Systems USA, seeking damages for the wire shrinkback issue.

Shoals is seeking compensatory and punitive damages, recovery of all costs and expenses incurred by the Company in connection with the identification, repair and replacement of the defective wire, and other legal and equitable relief. The outcome of this case and potential impact on financial results remains uncertain.

For full-year 2023, Shoals Technologies Group posted the following guidance:

Revenue to be in the range of $485 million to $495 million
Adjusted EBITDA to be in the range of $165 million to $175 million
Adjusted net income to be in the range of $110 million to $120 million
Interest expense to be in the range of $22 million to $26 million
Capital expenditures to be in the range of $8 million to $12 million

Read more pv magazine USA coverage of Shoals Technologies Group here.

Aqua Metals, 6K plan first circular supply chain for lithium batteries in the U.S.

Kavya Balaraman — Fri, 13 Oct 2023 13:24:22 +0000

The two companies have signed a multi-part memorandum of understanding, and are planning a co-located facility at a site in Jackson, Tennessee.

Lithium-ion battery recycler Aqua Metals and 6K Energy plan to create the first “truly sustainable circular supply chain” for domestic lithium-ion battery manufacturing in the U.S.

The two companies have signed a multi-part memorandum of understanding, and are planning a co-located facility at a site in Jackson, Tennessee. This facility will be the first of its kind, producing low-carbon cathode active materials for batteries, using raw materials from domestically-sourced batteries that are at the end of their life, as well as scrap materials from manufacturing partners.

The company expects to construct the co-located facility starting in 2026, as 6K Energy ramps up their cathode manufacturing operations and demand for critical battery metals, Steve Cotton, president and CEO of Aqua Metals told pv magazine USA.

“In the interim, we are building out our first commercial scale recycling campus in Tahoe-Reno, capable of processing 10,000 tonnes per year of battery material when at full capacity, and this facility will supply recycled materials for low-carbon cathode active material (CAM) manufacturing,” Cotton added.

At the shared facility, Aqua Metals will transform spent batteries and manufacturing scraps into raw materials for 6K Energy’s proprietary cathode active materials manufacturing process. The former’s technology is based on using electricity to recover critical materials from end-of-life lithium-ion batteries, a process it estimates will reduce landfill waste from current battery recycling processes by 95%.

The companies’ partnership will foster domestic job growth, technological advancement, and a sustainable footprint in the global lithium battery market, building a robust supply chain for the technologies critical to combating climate change at a lower cost than China, said Sam Trinch, group president at 6K Energy.

The American lithium battery recycling industry is just getting started, and Aqua Metals is one of only two operational lithium battery recyclers today. But this model of meeting the growing demand for low-carbon battery materials with a modular recycling technology is highly replicable and can be scaled to fit other battery manufacturing plants, according to Cotton. There are many benefits to co-locating recycling operations right alongside other facilities in the battery supply chain, he added.

“One of the main sources of material for recycling in the coming decade will be manufacturing scraps and out of spec batteries – and eliminating the distance these materials travel is a significant cost and emissions savings,” he said. Integrated facilities like these also offer operational efficiencies, lowering production costs and reducing carbon emissions even further, Cotton said.

In September, battery supplier Dragonfly Energy announced it had manufactured a lithium-based battery cell using lithium hydroxide pulled by Aqua Metals from recycled batteries. The lithium hydroxide was recovered from a mixture of crushed and shredded battery cells – called “black mass” – which contains valuable raw materials, including lithium. The two companies are working on clothing the “lithium loop” in Nevada, a state that is believed to have the largest source of lithium in North America, as well as a quickly growing market for electric vehicles and energy storage systems.

Sunrise brief: Educating customers essential to scaling residential solar

pv magazine — Mon, 28 Aug 2023 12:47:54 +0000

Also on the rise: El Niño threatens U.S. winter solar generation. Sunlight Financial struggles for survival. And more.

SunPower survey finds education is essential to scaling residential solar Fewer than 5% of domestic homes are solar-powered today, as consumers list cost and confusion about IRA benefits as primary deterrents to installing energy efficient appliances and solar panels at home.

Driving down cost of solar, key to unlocking a green hydrogen future Reducing the cost of solar electricity will be the key to unlocking the next chapter of the energy transition: a green hydrogen economy, according to Jim Tyler, CEO of solar technology company Erthos.

El Niño threatens U.S. winter solar generation In a new weekly update for pv magazine, Solcast, a DNV company, predicts that El Niño will likely bring lower than normal solar power production through winter in the United States. Its analysis is based on data collected from previous El Niño events.

Sunlight Financial struggles for survival In its recent quarterly earnings report, Sunlight Financial disclosed nearly $550 million in underwater residential solar loans, after which it executed a 20:1 reverse split to bolster their stock price, aiming to maintain it above $1/share to avert delisting.

Agrivoltaics may be one answer to solar buildout in Tennessee Researchers at the University of Tennessee found that operational and contracted utility-scale solar installations in the state will require up to nearly 15,000 acres of land. To meet Tennessee Valley Authority’s goal of adding 10 GW by 2035, another 100,000 acres of land will be needed.

Agrivoltaics may be one answer to solar buildout in Tennessee

Anne Fischer — Fri, 25 Aug 2023 20:05:49 +0000

Researchers at the University of Tennessee found that operational and contracted utility-scale solar installations in the state will require up to nearly 15,000 acres of land. To meet Tennessee Valley Authority’s goal of adding 10 GW by 2035, another 100,000 acres of land will be needed.

Researchers at the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture recently completed a study to determine Tennessee’s current and projected land use for utility-scale solar energy production and possible impacts on the state’s farmland.

The study, Evaluating Potential Land Use of Utility-Scale Photovoltaics (Solar Panels) on Farmland in Tennessee, sought to determine the amount of land needed to accommodate the increase in solar installations in Tennessee. The researchers found that Tennessee’s current operational and contracted utility-scale facilities would generate 1.4 GW of energy and require between 8,197 to 14,743 acres of land, equating up to 0.056% of the state’s total land mass or up to 0.137% of the state’s agricultural lands. Most of these utility-scale solar facilities are in the western portion of the state.

Last year the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), a federally owned utility, stated goals of targeting up to 10 GW of solar by 2035. TVA serves 10 million people across an 80,000 square mile territory in the southeast U.S., a territory that spans seven states.

While some of that 10 GW of growth could come from small-scale and rooftop installations, Tennessee lacks support for distributed rooftop solar for small and medium businesses and homeowners. Instead, the state’s small solar exposure is largely characterized by large-scale projects built for corporations in pursuit of environmental and social governance goals (ESG).

With TVA installing utility-scale solar, its operating and contracted solar capacity grew 77% in FY 2021. The first TVA-built utility-scale solar and battery projects are underway and expected to be online by 2024 to 2025. The utility expects to have about 2.8 GW of solar in TVA operation by 2024.

The Tennessee study finds that an additional 10 GW of solar would require another 55,600 to 100,000 acres of land. In theory this solar capacity could be spread across all seven states in the TVA territory, but if it were located in Tennessee exclusively, the additional land use would represent from 0.21% to 0.38% of the state’s total land mass or 0.52% to 0.93% of Tennessee’s farmland.

When so much land is considered for massive solar installations, looking at a dual-use application, such as agrivoltaics is an option. The study looked at the extent to whichTennessee farmland has already been lost to urban and residential uses, finding that from 1997 to 2017, Tennessee’s land in farms decreased from 11.99 million acres to 10.87 million acres. The reduction of 1.11 million acres amounts to about 9% of Tennessee’s farmland. The study indicates that a growing population is the main reason for loss of farmland, and it the losses are expected to continue. The American Farmland Trust ranks Tennessee third among all U.S. states in terms of acres of nationally significant agricultural land projected to be converted to urban and highly developed residential uses by 2040.

In looking at the potential for agrivoltaics, which is when land is used for both solar generation as well as crop production, the study noted that “the simultaneous use of land for both agriculture and solar energy production can provide mutual benefits and ease concerns over the removal of productive land from agriculture.”

Silicon Ranch’s Providence Solar Farm in Denmark, Tennessee includes adaptively managed sheep to restore pre-grazing erosion.

Image: Cabriejo Ranch, LLC.

Solar installations within an agrivoltaic project can be constructed at a height that allows for equipment and workers to pass underneath, while also allowing room for crop growth. The Tennessee study cites other research that outlines advantages to agrivoltaics, such as reducing the amount of water needed for crops, but it indicates that future research could examine soil quality specifically of Tennessee land being used for solar.

One challenge to citing agrivoltaics on existing farmland is proximity to electric infrastructure such as substations and high voltage power lines. Infrastructure may have to be enhanced in order to make existing farmland amenable to agrivoltaics, however, the study notes other research that indicates gains in both productivity and cost savings when farming operations are paired with solar power generation.

The University of Tennessee study was funded by the Tennessee Solar Energy Industries Association, with support from GreenGo Energy U.S. and the Solar Energy Industries Association.

TerrePower opens solar remanufacturing facility to refurbish and reuse solar and batteries

Anne Fischer — Fri, 09 Jun 2023 15:01:46 +0000

A division of automotive aftermarket leader BBB Industries, TerrePower sets up shop in Tennessee where it can recycle over 125,000 solar modules a year.

TerrePower’s remanufacturing facility is up and running in a 20,000 square foot facility in Sparta, Tenn., where the company says it will refurbish solar modules and EV batteries for re-use.

“The holy grail of responsible resource management has always prioritized reuse over recycling,” said Duncan Gillis, chief executive officer of BBB Industries. “We are selling every solar panel we can remanufacture and expect to triple the size of our solar panel remanufacturing business in the next two years.”

Established in 2021, TerrePower is incorporating BBB Industries’ global automotive aftermarket experience by remanufacturing used solar panels to enable them to be sold as a more affordable solution for commercial or residential installation, or replacement use. TerrePower recycles materials from panels and EV batteries it cannot remanufacture and enables the reuse of raw materials to avoid landfill disposal. The company reports that remanufacturing used panels can cut carbon emissions by about 35% over original production.

“We apply over 30 years of remanufacturing experience to our solar panels, which can provide a high-quality alternative source to new (panels),” said John Boyer, president of TerrePower. “In many cases, we can use newer, superior components.”

In its battery remanufacturing process, TerrePower identifies weak battery pack components and replaces them with tested components to improve performance for vehicle reuse. Underperforming battery modules that can no longer be used in vehicles are repurposed into less energy demanding stationary energy storage units for a second life.

TerrePower is embracing the opportunity to recycle the expected surge of retired modules in the fast-growing U.S. solar industry. Solar modules have a typical lifespan of 25 to 30 years. The company believes that their reuse can decrease supply-chain dependence on imports, and lower costs for solar and other manufacturers.

To build a truly sustainable facility, TerrePower installed second-life solar panels on its Tennessee facility, meeting an average of 39% of its monthly power needs. The onsite solar facility reduces the plant’s scope 2 emissions, avoiding over 22 metric tons of emissions, the equivalent of taking 655,000 miles off the road from cars or avoiding the emissions of 50 homes’ electricity for a whole year. Furthermore, the panels are directly connected to a sustainably manufactured energy storage system made of second-life EV batteries.

TerrePower also manufactures both EV batteries and solar power systems under the Ontility brand, including modules and inverters. The company is ramping up its EV operations across plants in four U.S. states.

Sunrise brief: Domestic content guidance loses sight of goal to invest in American energy independence

pv magazine — Fri, 19 May 2023 11:14:13 +0000

Also on the rise: Hot topics at RE+ Southeast renewable energy conference. Electrification could cost California up to $50 billion if loads are not managed. And more.

Nextracker manufacturing low-carbon steel components in Memphis In collaboration with MSS Steel Tubes USA, the operation will provide low-carbon steel components to support the company’s recent 3 GW multi-year agreement with Silicon Ranch for its projects in the Tennessee Valley and greater Southeast.

Hot topics at RE+ Southeast renewable energy conference pv magazine USA traveled to Atlanta, Georgia for a regional conference convening leaders in the energy transition.

Canadian Solar ships 6.1 GW of modules in Q1 2023 This record volume of shipments was a 68% increase over the same quarter last year.

The domestic content guidance loses sight of the goal to invest in American energy independence We need a domestic content standard that would draw distinctions between panels made entirely here and those with imported components.

Qcells builds pilot line for perovskite-silicon tandem PV cells in South Korea Qcells says it is building a pilot line for perovskite-silicon tandem solar cells that will start operations later this year in South Korea. It is working closely with its team in Germany, where it has already established another pilot line for tandem cells.

Electrification could cost California up to $50 billion if loads are not managed If California infrastructure needs for high electrification were met exclusively with distribution assets, without real-time dynamic rates and flexible load management strategies, the cost could reach $50 billion by 2035, a study by Kevala found.

Flirting with fossils: the faux crusade for ‘responsible solar’ An ostensibly fossil-friendly group has been quietly orchestrating faux concern campaigns to disrupt the renewable energy landscape. We outline the history and apparent motives of Citizens for Responsible Solar, and its growing network of affiliates.

Meta to power Idaho data center with 200 MW rPlus solar project Developer rPlus Energies announced the signing of a long-term power purchase agreement with investor-owned utility Idaho Power to install the 200 MW Pleasant Valley Solar project in Ada County, Idaho.

Nextracker manufacturing low-carbon steel components in Memphis

Anne Fischer — Thu, 18 May 2023 13:11:41 +0000

In collaboration with MSS Steel Tubes USA, the operation will provide low-carbon steel components to support the company’s recent 3 GW multi-year agreement with Silicon Ranch for its projects in the Tennessee Valley and greater Southeast.

The commissioning of a manufacturing facility in Memphis underscores the Tennessee Valley’s growth as a regional manufacturing hub for the Southeast, as well as Nextracker’s commitment to use low-carbon, U.S.-made steel components in its solar tracker systems.

The Memphis facility, announced by Nextracker and MSS Steel Tubes USA, will manufacture Nextracker low-carbon steel components, create 129 jobs and generate millions of dollars in local investment, Nextracker reports. Portuguese industrial company Metalogalva Group and Brazilian steelmaker Soufer Group formed MSS Steel Tubes USA to reconfigure a vacant industrial building to manufacture for Nextracker.

“We chose Memphis for our first U.S. plant to support Nextracker’s utility-scale solar demand across the Southeast,” said António Pedro Antunes, CEO of Metalogalva Group. “Memphis has the transportation, infrastructure, and capable workforce necessary to support a solar manufacturing program like this.”

Nextracker’s dedicated tube mill will support Silicon Ranch’s projects in Kentucky, South Carolina, Virginia, Mississippi, and Georgia. Last year Nextracker and Silicon Ranch announced a 1.5 GW supply agreement, and the two companies are now announcing an additional 3 GW agreement.

The two companies share a commitment to increase domestic supply and to implement lower-carbon production processes. The emphasis on securing American-made products enables the companies to support U.S. manufacturing and job creation, improve the carbon footprint of its supply chain, and reduce volatility and logistics risks.

Products produced by this facility are also expected to qualify for the 10% adder under the new IRS guidelines that state that steel products must be 100% U.S.-made. Nextracker indicated that the facility will be using 100% green, American-made EAF steel by the end of this year. EAF steel is made in electric arc furnaces, a “next-generation” process for steel fabrication, which can lead to electric arc furnace facilities being up to 75% less carbon-intensive than traditional blast furnaces.

“Nextracker’s new Tennessee tube mill not only helps us maintain our 100% track record for successful project delivery but also enables us to support additional investments in American manufacturing while lowering carbon production processes of our supply chain, and reducing volatility and logistics risks, all from our home state,” said Reagan Farr, co-founder and CEO of Silicon Ranch.

“This is what energy security looks like: New U.S. manufacturing jobs using American-made steel to produce affordable clean energy,” said Dan Shugar, Founder and CEO of Nextracker. “Customers want domestic, low-carbon technologies like solar power. We are excited to inaugurate a new dedicated Nextracker manufacturing line in Memphis with MSS Steel Tubes USA, and to continue to team with Silicon Ranch with a new 3 GW multi-year agreement to provide the Tennessee Valley and greater Southeast with our high performing systems.”

Nextracker and MSS Steel Tubes reently dedicated the steel tube line in partnership with Silicon Ranch. The event was attended by Tennessee Commissioner of Economic Development, Stuart McWhorter, Abigail Ross Hopper, CEO of Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), and David Burritt, CEO of U.S. Steel.

Sunrise brief: Maryland now the 10th state with an energy storage procurement goal

pv magazine — Wed, 12 Apr 2023 11:14:00 +0000

Also on the rise: Robots may help with the solar workforce challenge. Flipping the switch on the Vanderbilt I Solar Farm. And more.

Maryland passes energy storage target of 3 GW in 10 years It is now the 10th U.S. state to set a goal for energy storage procurement.

Robotic solution designed to address solar installer shortage A robotic PV construction solution from Sarcos delivers, detects, lifts, and places PV modules in large-scale solar plants. It has recently field tested and validated the prototype solution in a pilot project funded by the U.S. Department of Energy.

Dominion Energy acquires utility-scale pollinator solar project in Virginia The Longroad Energy’s 108 MW Foxhound Solar Project to be acquired by Dominion Energy was the first utility-scale solar project to receive Virginia Pollinator-Smart biodiversity certification.

50 states of solar incentives: Kansas Kansas is expected to ramp up its solar buildout considerably over the next five years. The state sources much of its clean energy through the operation of wind turbines.

Flipping the switch on the Vanderbilt I Solar Farm Developed and owned by Silicon Ranch, the solar facility is a significant step by Vanderbilt University toward its goal to power its campus entirely through renewable energy and become carbon neutral by 2050.

Flipping the switch on the Vanderbilt I Solar Farm

Anne Fischer — Tue, 11 Apr 2023 17:02:33 +0000

Developed and owned by Silicon Ranch, the solar facility is a significant step by Vanderbilt University toward its goal to power its campus entirely through renewable energy and become carbon neutral by 2050.

In 2020, Vanderbilt, located in Nashville, Tennessee, announced two pioneering agreements with the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) and Nashville Electric Service to procure renewable energy from a solar farm being built by Silicon Ranch Corp. The switch has now been flipped on the Vanderbilt I Solar Farm, a 35 MW facility in Bedford County, Tennessee.

Silicon Ranch Corporation, which is also based in Nashville and is one of the nation’s largest independent power producers, developed and funded the project and hired more than 250 workers during construction. The company will also serve as the long-term owner and operator. The project is expected to generate millions of dollars in new tax revenue for Bedford County to support local infrastructure and schools, among other community-identified priorities.

“The Vanderbilt I Solar Farm demonstrates what is possible when we work together with a shared vision for the region, and Silicon Ranch is grateful to Vanderbilt for its leadership and to TVA for its strong support of this meaningful renewable energy investment in Bedford County,” said Matt Kisber, co-founder and chairman of Silicon Ranch.

The solar facility is a significant step by Vanderbilt University toward its goal, announced in 2019, to power its campus entirely through renewable energy and become carbon neutral by 2050. The renewable generation from the Vanderbilt I Solar Farm will offset approximately 70% of Vanderbilt University’s annual Scope 2 greenhouse gas emissions, or enough to power more than 6,000 homes for one year.

“The Vanderbilt I Solar Farm not only represents a major step toward our own goals at Vanderbilt, but also provides a model of collaborative, forward-thinking solutions that we hope other higher educational institutions will adopt and replicate across this country,” said Daniel Diermeier, chancellor of Vanderbilt University. “We look forward to the educational and research opportunities this project and our pursuit of carbon neutrality will yield for our faculty and students at Vanderbilt. We thank Silicon Ranch, NES, and TVA for supporting us on this bold journey.”

TVA, serves 10 million people across an 80,000 square mile territory in the southeast U.S., extending beyond its home state borders. The company stated goals of targeting up to 10 GW of solar by 2035, and more than 200,000 EVs on roadways by 2028. The utility expects to have about 2.8 GW of solar in TVA operation by 2024.

Silicon Ranch said that the Vanderbilt I Solar Farm is the result of a landmark agreement as the first project contracted under TVA’s nationally recognized Green Invest program, which matches demand for green power from diverse commercial, industrial, and institutional customers with new utility-scale solar projects located in the Tennessee Valley. TVA said its Green Invest program has led to nearly $3 billion in solar investments since 2018. A large driver of growth in this program is through contracts with large corporations like Google, Meta (Facebook), and others.

Sunrise brief: Robot dogs monitor for faults at solar plants

pv magazine — Wed, 22 Mar 2023 11:14:07 +0000

Also on the rise: Solar project updates in California, Texas, Arkansas, Tennessee. Transferability, or selling tax credits, top of mind at SEIA Finance. And more.

Iberdrola using dogs, robots to monitor solar plants Iberdrola is using a springer spaniel in a solar park to smell electrical problems that could lead to power cuts. It is also using a robotic dog to detect and analyze faults in substations.

Researchers evaluate viability of ‘direct’ green hydrogen fuel production Rather than using solar or wind to power electrolysis, researchers are testing the competitiveness of photoelectrochemical cells for producing emissions-free hydrogen fuels.

Transferability, or selling tax credits, top of mind at SEIA Finance One provision awaiting clarity to proceed is transferability, or the sale of tax credits. This week at the SEIA Finance, Tax and Buyers Seminar, guidance surrounding transferability was the most anticipated topic of discussion for the near-capacity conference audience.

RMI’s virtual power plant partnership expands CPower joins RMI, Google Nest, Ford, General Motors, and others to scale the market for virtual power plants.

Solar project updates in California, Texas, Arkansas, Tennessee pv magazine USA provides solar project updates along the U.S. energy transition. Projects range from 3 MW to 240 MW and include high profile offtakers like Meta (Facebook).

Global study highlights potential of floating solar An international group of researchers has calculated the potential for floating solar across the world. The results show a generation potential of 9,434 TWh per year across 114,555 global reservoirs, with 30% of their area covered. The United States leads with 1,911 TWh per year of potential, followed by China at 1,107 TWh per year and Brazil at 865 TWh per year.

SEG Solar to set up 2 GW of solar panel production in U.S. SEG Solar says it will invest $60 million in a new U.S. factory. It currently produces panels at factories in Vietnam and Indonesia.

Solar project updates in California, Texas, Arkansas, Tennessee

Ryan Kennedy — Tue, 21 Mar 2023 18:10:07 +0000

pv magazine USA provides solar project updates along the U.S. energy transition. Projects range from 3 MW to 240 MW and include high profile offtakers like Meta (Facebook).

The energy transition is well underway, with solar marching in front. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) shared that solar, wind, and battery energy storage technologies are now 82% of new capacity additions actively planned to come online.

Utility-scale solar is still quite young, as substantial capacity additions did not come online until 2010. Now, as of January 2023, 73.5 GW of utility-scale solar is online, about 6% of U.S. generating capacity. Just over half of planned U.S. generation to be added to the grid is solar. If all planned projects come online as expected this year, 2023 will mark the most capacity added to the grid for solar yet.

By 2030, the Department of Energy expects 350 GW to 750 GW of solar and wind capacity to be added. This progress is impossible without the hard work of those that develop, construct, and maintain projects like the ones listed below.

Texas 240 MW for Facebook

Avangrid announced the signing of a power purchase agreement (PPA) with Meta (Facebook) for a 240 MW solar facility in Falls County, Texas. This project was Avangrid’s first to be located in the booming market of Texas, though it currently operates more than 1.2 GW of onshore wind in the state.

The project is expected to reach commercial operations in early 2025, delivering over $40 million in property taxes over its first 25 years. Construction of the project is expected to create over 200 local jobs.

With more than 8.6 GW of installed renewable capacity, including 1.1 GW of solar projects operating and under construction, Avangrid is the third largest renewable energy operator in the U.S. It has a pipeline of over 25 GW of solar, wind, and battery energy storage under development.

California 117 MW plus batteries

EDF Renewables North America announced a 20-year PPA with the Southern California Public Power Authority (SCPPA) for energy and renewable attributes tied to the 117 MWac Sapphire Solar project. The project includes a 59 MWac, 4-hour battery energy storage system.

Sapphire Solar will deliver power to SCPPA’s participating members of Anaheim, Pasadena, and Vernon by the end of 2026. Construction is expected to bring 250 temporary construction jobs and generate over $253 million in new tax revenues over the operational life of the project.

The project is expected to generate 375,800 MWh of clean energy per year, enough to meet the consumption of over 58,000 average California homes. This is equal to mitigating over 266,000 metric tons of carbon emissions annually, representing annual emissions from over 57,000 cars.

EDF Renewables has over 35 years of experience and 16 GW of solar, wind, and storage projects developed.

Arkansas 20 MW microgrid for rice mill

CS Energy and KORE Power have teamed up to deliver a 20 MW solar, 20 MW/ 41 MWh battery energy storage system for Producers Rice Mill, which operates four rice mills, 12 storage facilities, and 2,000 farmer members across 350,000 acres of rice.

The microgrid is the largest commercial and industrial project in Arkansas, and among the largest microgrids in the United States. The solar and energy storage system will allow the mill to continue operations uninterrupted during periods of electrical curtailment by the local utility. About 67% of the mill’s electricity needs will be met by the solar microgrid.

Rapid response from KORE Power’s microgrid controller system is designed to mitigate power quality issues and intermittent stoppages at the plant. The installation will make use of KORE’s Mark 1 lithium-ion batteries and U.S.-manufactured EPC inverters.

“Designing and constructing a solar + energy storage system that ensures more reliable power helped us solve our customer’s challenges and ensures Producers can cleanly and reliably process their members’ harvest,” said Jesse Lieberman, director of operations at CS Energy. “That’s good news for the farmers here in the United States, and it’s good news for consumers across the world.”

Tennessee 3 MW REAP loan

Silicon Ranch Corporation, a leading renewable energy provider, activated a new 3.25 MW solar facility in Hardeman County, Tennessee, providing power for Bolivar Energy Authority (BEA). The facility will provide enough electricity to power more than 500 homes and is expected to help keep rates lower for BEA’s 11,000 customers.

The project was approved by utility Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA). TVA is enabling us and LPCs across the Valley to do just that through its generation flexibility program, by providing our community with the opportunity to partner with dependable, renewable energy providers like Silicon Ranch to procure local energy solutions,” said Tony Kirk, president, BEA.

The Bolivar Solar Farm was supported by the USDA through its Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) initiative, which provides guaranteed loan financing and grant funding to support agricultural producers and rural small businesses with renewable energy systems and energy efficiency improvements. Available to agricultural producers with at least 50% of their gross income coming from agricultural operations, and small businesses in eligible rural areas with populations less than 50,000, the program funds various renewable energy technologies, including solar.

The REAP program offers loan guarantees on loans up to 75 % of total eligible project costs, grants for up to 40% of total eligible project costs, and combined grant and loan guarantee funding up to 75% of total eligible project costs. REAP loans approved in Fiscal Year 2023 will receive an 80% loan guarantee. Grants are capped at $1 million for renewable energy and $500,000 for energy efficiency.

Duke Energy reports Q4 loss, pending job cuts

Michael Schoeck — Fri, 10 Feb 2023 14:32:59 +0000

Duke’s five-year capital plan of $65 billion is focused on energy transition investments, which it says is a considerable increase over previous budgets, while its current budget removes almost $3 billion of capital it would have invested into the utility solar and distributed generation business.

Duke Energy reported a $531 million loss in Q4 2022 as it wrote down the value of its commercial renewable energy business currently on the auction block. The utility also announced plans to cut $300 million in expenses in 2023, partly through layoffs out of its Charlotte, N.C. headquarters.

During its Q4 2022 earnings call, chief financial officer Brian Savoy did not say how many jobs are being cut, but said the measure includes a “modest” number of staff as well as external contractors and consultants.

The investor-owned utility reported FY22 earnings per share of $3.33, considerably lower than reported EPS of $4.94 in FY21. Its reported earnings per share (EPS) is down based on the impairment on the sale of the commercial renewable energy business.

“Our path forward is clear and underpinned by the strength of our regulated businesses, a disciplined approach to cost management and a robust (five-year) $65 billion capital plan,” said Lynn Good, chief executive office of Duke. “We’re well positioned to earn solidly within our 5% to 7% growth rate through 2027.”

In November 2022, Duke Energy launched an auction for its commercial renewable energy platform, which is expected to close in the second half of 2023. Good said the utility is “on track to exit both the utility scale and the distributed energy businesses” this year.

Duke’s five-year capital plan of $65 billion is focused on energy transition investments, which Savoy said was considerable increase over previous multi-year budgets, while its current budget removes almost $3 billion of capital it would have invested in the utility solar and distributed generation business. In other words, the utility is increasing its regulated business spending by $5 billion, for which Duke says will result in a 7.1% earnings-based CAGR growth rate through 2027.

Savoy defended the company’s book value of the commercial renewables portfolio platform at $3 billion, despite the utility writing down a $1.3 billion impairment charge since the sale process launched in Q3 2022. This led analysts to deduce the renewables platform will see proceeds of less than $1.7 billion.

Duke’s Q4 2022 results was marred by severe weather from winter storms hitting the southeast region, which forced its primary utility business Duke Energy Carolinas to issue a curtailment and power conservation notice during the Christmas week. Earlier in the month, up to 45,000 residents were in the dark in Moore County, N.C., due to a reported shooting incident at two sub-stations that were under investigation by the FBI, regional and local law enforcement.

Duke Energy initiated a sale process for its commercial renewables business, which includes a 3.5 GW wind and solar portfolio, in September 2022. In November the company said the value for the renewables business could exceed a book value of $4 billion. Media outlets including Infralogic reported the utility is being advised by Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo Securities for the review of its renewables platform.

Duke’s common shares traded at $97.55 per share today, up 4.65% from $93.22 per share on Nov. 2, when it reported Q3 2022 earnings. The utility has a $75.1 billion market capitalization and provides electric services to 8.2 million customers in six states, and gas services to 1.6 million customers in five states.

The utility has a 2030 goal of achieving net zero natural gas fleet emissions and a 50% reduction in gas emissions from its electric business, with full net zero emissions by 2050. The company continues to invest in grid enhancements including energy storage, hydrogen and advanced nuclear technologies.

Last week, the utility completed construction on a 2 MW solar and 4.4 MWh storage project in Hot Springs, N.C., an Appalachian town with population of just 500. The microgrid uses lithium batteries from Wärtsilä Energy and provides grid reliability services to the electric grid, such as frequency and voltage regulation and ramping support and capacity during system peak power usage.

“Duke Energy has numerous smaller microgrids on our system, but this is our first microgrid that can power an entire small town if its main power line experiences an outage,” said Jason Handley, general manager of Duke Energy’s Distributed Energy Group.

Sunrise brief: IRA to drive $114 billion in U.S. renewable energy investments by 2031

pv magazine — Fri, 20 Jan 2023 13:08:12 +0000

Also on the rise: Is NEM 3.0 based on flawed modeling? Virginia governor kills Ford-CATL battery plant, calling it a “front for the Chinese Communist Party”. And more.

IRA to drive $114 billion in U.S. renewable energy investments by 2031, report says The advanced manufacturing production (AMPC) credit and domestic content requirement (DCR) are key to spurring a more rapid U.S. renewable energy economy, Wood Mackenzie notes.

Virginia governor kills Ford-CATL battery plant, calling it a “front for the Chinese Communist Party” In recent weeks Glenn Youngkin nixed a Virginia Ford facility after he was informed that companies had decided to invest.

50 states of solar incentives: Michigan Michigan’s Healthy Climate Plan put the state near the top in renewable expectations, but it is currently planted squarely in the middle as far as how much solar is installed.

Southern Environmental Law Center calls for new TVA board to pause TVA’s gas plans With six new TVA board members appointed by President Biden, the board should pause TVA’s plans to add gas generation, the group says, and direct the utility to evaluate cleaner and lower-cost alternatives.

Three groups appeal to CPUC to reconsider NEM 3.0 The California Public Utilities Commission should redo its analysis because NEM 3.0 is based on flawed modeling, the groups said.

Duke acquires 175 MW Colorado municipal utility solar project Under the agreement, Juwi will continue to develop, and provide O&M support to Duke for the municipal project.

U.S. Patent Trial and Appeal Board rules in favor of Q Cells in patent dispute with REC The Board issued a favorable decision for Hanwha Q Cells over REC Solar’s patent claims. The court has ruled that the contested claims of REC’s U.S. patent were not patentable. The decision is similar to those in courts in China and Europe, according to Q Cells.

Southern Environmental Law Center calls for new TVA board to pause TVA’s gas plans

William Driscoll — Thu, 19 Jan 2023 14:30:25 +0000

With six new TVA board members appointed by President Biden, the board should pause TVA’s plans to add gas generation, the group says, and direct the utility to evaluate cleaner and lower-cost alternatives.

TVA, a utility owned by the federal government that generates about 4% of its power from solar and wind, and about 48% from fossil-fired units, has proposed nearly 5 GW of gas units since mid-2021, according to a lawsuit filed by the Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC).

An executive order from President Biden directs the federal government to “lead by example” to achieve clean electricity by 2035, yet TVA’s proposed gas plants would “continue to emit greenhouse gases long past that deadline,” SELC said in a statement.

That disconnect could be on the agenda for TVA’s next board meeting, set for February 16, when Biden’s six new TVA board appointees will take their seats and constitute a majority of the nine-person board.

Board powers

TVA’s board “must not allow these reckless gas plans to go unchecked, and should push TVA to invest in cleaner and cheaper power options,” said SELC Tennessee Office Director Amanda Garcia. “TVA’s gas plans will threaten local communities, worsen climate change, and force customers to pay higher monthly power bills to account for rising fossil fuel prices.”

Board responsibilities under the TVA Act, said an SELC spokesperson, include ensuring that TVA is following the law and acting in the best interests of ratepayers. To meet those responsibilities, the spokesperson said, the current TVA board must revoke the TVA CEO’s power to make decisions regarding the gas buildout, a power that the board granted to the CEO in 2021.

Once that power is revoked, the spokesperson said, the board will have approval power over TVA’s decisions, and board members can vote not to fund or approve projects.

Three gas projects

A number of citizens’ groups, as well as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, have challenged TVA’s plans for three gas generation projects.

SELC’s lawsuit challenges a proposed 550 MW of gas units at TVA’s Johnsonville site in Tennessee, claiming that TVA failed to comply with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The Sierra Club and other organizations had shown, the lawsuit says, that solar, storage and demand response could provide “the same reliable, cost-effective energy” as the gas units. The federal lawsuit asks the court to enjoin further construction and operation of the project until TVA has met the NEPA requirements.

A proposed 1450 MW gas unit to replace one of two coal units at TVA’s Cumberland coal plant in Tennessee, greenlighted earlier this month by TVA CEO Jeff Lyash, still depends on approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) for a proposed 32-mile gas pipeline that would deliver fuel to the site.

The Southern Alliance for Clean Energy (SACE) has asked FERC to evaluate whether that pipeline is needed, by using current data to evaluate whether solar, wind, energy efficiency and storage would be a better option for replacing the existing coal plant. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, SACE reported, similarly recommended in its comments to FERC that TVA “transparently disclose its modeling methodologies and assumptions to better enable a comparison between the alternatives.”

SELC calls for TVA’s board to stop plans for the Cumberland gas project until TVA fulfills its legal requirements under NEPA, including giving fair consideration to clean energy alternatives, said a spokesperson.

TVA had not yet begun planning to solicit construction proposals for the Cumberland gas project as of last week, according to reporting by Dave Flessner for the Chattanooga Times Free Press.

The Center for Biological Diversity is tracking another proposed 1450 MW gas plant at TVA’s Kingston site in Tennessee, that is “following the same trajectory” as the Cumberland project, and would require a 117-mile pipeline, said Gabriela Sarri-Tobar, an energy justice campaigner with the organization. TVA has not yet released a draft environmental review for the Kingston project.

TVA announced 1500 MW of new gas capacity in 2021 to replace retiring gas units at sites in Alabama and Kentucky, Sarri-Tobar said. TVA issued a “carbon-free” RFP for up to 5,000 MW of generating capacity last July, she added.

Concerns over TVA’s planned gas additions date back at least to 2019, when SACE contested TVA’s modeling for its most recent resource plan that used high projected costs for solar and low costs for methane gas, and capped modeled solar installations at 500 MW per year.

Looking ahead

Last June, the Center for Biological Diversity, anticipating new Biden appointees to TVA’s board, published a “roadmap” showing how board members could “drive the nation’s largest public power provider to 100% renewable energy.” Beyond retiring coal plants and ceasing development of gas plants, the report advises immediately launching TVA’s next resource planning process, and partnering with the U.S. Department of Energy to expand renewable and distributed energy resources.

TVA’s next board meeting on February 16 is expected to be open to public attendance and live-streamed as well, said Sarri-Tobar with the Center. For recent meetings, the TVA board has held an in-person listening session at a location in TVA’s service area shortly prior to the board meeting.

TVA provides electricity for 153 local power companies serving 10 million people in Tennessee and parts of six surrounding states, as well as directly to 58 large industrial customers and federal installations.

Sunrise brief: Researchers develop solar-powered waste-to-fuel system

pv magazine — Tue, 10 Jan 2023 11:26:52 +0000

Also on the rise: Community solar on New Jersey self-storage facility benefits low-income residents. Solar4America begins module production at California factory with wafer plans announced. And more.

Researchers develop solar-powered waste-to-fuel system The University of Cambridge developed a device that converts plastics and greenhouse gases to usable fuels and products.

Tennessee manufacturer to power operations with 526 kW rooftop solar array Solar Alliance completed the design, engineering, and installation. Plus, REAP grants help rural small businesses save on solar.

New York approves siting for upstate solar projects with 309 MW output Two EDF Renewables projects with 219 MW of capacity will be deployed in Jefferson County, where National Grid has identified the need for additional distributed generation resources. One AES project with 100 MW capacity was approved.

Photocatalytic water splitting with 9.2% solar-to-hydrogen efficiency A U.S. research team developed a new technique to produce hydrogen from sunlight and water. It works in an indoor environment and uses pure water, concentrated solar light, and an indium gallium nitride photocatalyst.

Solar4America begins module production at 2.4 GW Sacramento factory Initial production of 700 MW of American-made modules will ramp to 2.4 GW later this year. The site includes production lines for 410 W and 550 W modules.

Community solar on New Jersey self-storage facility benefits low-income residents Solar Landscape plans a total of ten installations on Extra Space Storage sites, bringing reduced-cost energy to over 700 low- and moderate-income New Jersey residents.

Sun-tracking vs. fixed vehicle-integrated PV European researchers have evaluated the electricity generation, levelized cost of electricity (LCOE), and payback period of vehicle-integrated PV in EVs.

Tennessee manufacturer to power operations with 526 kW rooftop solar array

Ryan Kennedy — Mon, 09 Jan 2023 16:53:25 +0000

Solar Alliance completed the design, engineering, and installation. Plus, REAP grants help rural small businesses save on solar.

Solar Alliance, a residential and commercial solar provider, announced it has completed design, engineering, and installation of a 526 kW rooftop solar array. The project was developed on the roof of a manufacturing site for advanced seal manufacturer AESSEAL.

Once activated, the Rockford, Tennessee rooftop solar installation is expected to provide on-site renewable energy that AESSESAL said will meet the power demand of a large portion of the assembly, quality control, engineering, and customer service divisions. The project is a step along the way toward the company’s goal of achieving net-zero emission.

Commercial rooftop arrays can call for a variety of engineering solutions to best fit the mounting surface. In this design, Solar Alliance used a combination of ballasted and flush mounts to secure the solar modules to the roof. The array is among the largest rooftop installations in the region.

AESSEAL also designs water management systems, that along with seals, help conserve billions of gallons of water and millions of dollars for their customers.

“Water management is another way to meet sustainability goals,” said Chris Staackmann, operations manager, AESSEAL. “We’re committed to our customers; we’re committed to the environment.

Solar Alliance provided the engineering and electrical support for the project, as well as coordination with its East Tennessee based construction crew to install the system, which covers most of the 50,000 square foot facility.

Since it was founded in 2003, Solar Alliance has developed $1 billion of renewable energy projects that provide enough electricity to power 150,000 homes. It has served a wide array of customer sites, including homes, farms, manufacturing sites, professional buildings, data centers, retail centers and utility installations. The company operates primarily in Tennessee and Kentucky, along with North and South Carolina and Illinois.

REAP the benefits

Solar Alliance has developed several projects that qualify for the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Energy for America (REAP) Grants. The REAP grant provides grants and low-interest loans for small business owners in rural areas.

The REAP program awards grants between $2,500 and $500,000 for solar projects, energy efficiency grants of $1,500 to $250,000, and a loan and grant combination with an amount exceeding $1,500 for the grant portion. The maximum incentive one can receive within this range is 25% of the total project cost and is anticipated to increase in the near future to 50% of allowable project costs per updated federal programs.

The program is available not just to farmers and small agricultural practices, but to small businesses as defined by the Small Business Administration. Solar Alliance said businesses with 500 or fewer employees have qualified for REAP grants. Eligibility starts with location and is focused on rural areas where 50,000 or fewer people live.

REAP grants help small businesses lower the cost of investing in solar. Image: Solar Alliance

“I think the mission of the grant is very straightforward: Lower your operating costs, become more competitive, sell more products at an equal or improved value, create more jobs, create a larger tax base, grow the community” said Harvey Abouelata, vice president, Solar Alliance.

“I can’t emphasize enough how important it is to spread the word about the grant availability. If the money does not get used in your state, it goes back to the federal fund to get redistributed to other states around the country. This is your tax money; keep it at home working for you,” said Abouelata.

Longtime Loudon County family business Wampler’s Farm Sausage has utilized REAP to support its development of several energy efficiency and solar energy projects. Wampler has since become an ambassador for the benefits of REAP and working with a developer like Solar Alliance.

“It’s important when you have a partner that’s going to come in and do a project for you, that they know not just the technical side of how to install but dealing with the tax credits and the accelerated depreciation, and all the things that are involved in helping you justify the project and know what the payback’s going to be,” said Wampler.

Solar Energy Loan Fund surpasses $30 million of residential loans

Michael Schoeck — Fri, 06 Jan 2023 15:08:50 +0000

The non-profit green bank has sourced credit to clientele of which 74% are low-to-moderate income homeowners.

The Solar Energy Loan Fund (SELF), a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization providing unsecured financing solutions to Florida and Southeast U.S. residents adding solar and home improvements, recently surpassed $30 million of cumulative loans.

As a green bank and Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI), to date SELF has provided loan products to historically underserved and underbanked low-to-moderate income (LMI) communities such as retirees, working class families, veterans, disabled homeowners and those with poor credit background.

SELF has issued more than 3,000 green home loans, which average about $10,000 per loan but can range up to $50,000, for rooftop solar, high efficiency air conditioners, roofing repairs and other residential sustainable improvements.

“SELF is an implementation tool to retrofit and build new resilient, affordable housing while fostering green jobs, energy equity, resilience, and clean energy for all,” said Doug Coward, executive director of SELF. “LMI homeowners are the most susceptible population to climate change, heat waves, and severe weather, and they have participated and benefited the least from the fast-emerging clean energy economy.”

Fort Pierce, Florida-based SELF was formed in 2010 with $3 million in seed grants from the Department of Energy. The non-profit prides itself as being the first local national green bank. In recent years SELF expanded outside of Florida into Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee and Alabama, and has partnerships with the cities of Orlando, St. Petersburg and the Atlanta (Georgia) Housing Authority.

Unlike traditional banks, SELF knocks down traditional barriers by advancing financial inclusion and filling key gaps that have historically set back LMI communities from accessing small loans for home improvements, including solar.

SELF has two dozen investors, including crowdfunding platform, KIVA.org, while 900+ contractors throughout the Southeast are able to assist customers with loan accessibility through SELF. The non-profit has leveraged the original DOE grant by a 13:1 margin and provided financial assistance to more than 9,000 people.

Maria Duanne Andrade, chief financial officer of SELF, created the agency’s inclusive underwriting process based on the homeowner’s ability to repay the loan balance, rather than a credit score-based rating system. Its credit system enabled the launch of its flagship Green Home Loan program for LMI homeowners with less than 2% default rates.

“Green banks have the power to unlock economic, environmental, and social benefits, especially in underserved communities,” said Andrade. “Financial systems are overly reliant on credit scores, and traditional underwriting methods leave too many people behind.”

SELF-originated loans are primarily funded by either crowd-funding or a mix of local banks, impact funds and faith-based institutions such as churches.

Port St. Lucie, Fla. resident Ed Agliardo received SELF and St. Lucie County PACE financing for a solar system.

SELF loan financial terms:

Renewable Energy Projects: 8 to 9.5% APR with 5 to 10-year loan term
Energy Efficiency Projects: 8 to 9.5% APR with 3 to 5-year term
KIVA crowdfunded loans: 5% fixed interest with 3 to 5-year terms

Residential projects eligible for financing include:

Weatherization and insulation
Replacement of inefficient air-conditioning systems
Solar thermal and solar photovoltaic systems
Roofs, windows, doors, and hurricane shutters
disability products and aging in place

SELF finances various home sustainability projects.

Green Bank meets Fintech

In recent years, SELF’s Andrade has put the loan originator into adjacent markets, providing green loan products to minorities, small building landlords and developers of affordable housing buildings, as well as a septic to sewer loan product.

Meanwhile, the organization has been pivoting to keep up with the emergence of financial technology applications that provide rapid access to small loan products. In December, SELF’s plug-and-play fintech platform received a $3 million grant from JP Morgan Chase in order to provide capital to minority and novice affordable housing developers.

According to EnergySage, other providers of secured and unsecured solar loans in Florida and the southeast region include Climate First Bank, Dividend Finance, Sungage, Sunlight Financial, Sunnova Energy, Mosaic, GreenSky Credit and EnerBank USA.

According to Wood Mackenzie, the solar loan market grew 37% from 2021 to 2022. Homeowners see the greatest monthly savings on 25-year loans, which also match a residential solar installation’s warranty period.

Interest in residential solar financing will continue to grow now that the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) extended the solar investment tax credit at 30% for another 10 years.

Silicon Ranch brings in $600 million of new equity investments

Michael Schoeck — Thu, 05 Jan 2023 20:11:44 +0000

The Southeast-focused solar developer is on track to cap a $1 billion full-year equity raise with a $225 million round over the next quarter.

Silicon Ranch, a Nashville-based solar developer, capped 2022 with a $375 million equity raise completed at the end of the calendar year, with the developer intending to disclose an additional $225 million add-on round in the coming weeks.

The utility-scale solar and storage developer capped off $775 million raised over the last year with $1 billion in total funding to be used for construction of its contracted pipeline, new project development, entering new state markets, hiring efforts, as well as new strategic partnerships and acquisitions, Matt Beasley, chief commercial officer, told pv magazine USA.

Additional funding will support the operations and maintenance of its growing operating portfolio consisting of 150 solar projects with 2.3 GW of generation capacity in 15 states, and accelerate its growth strategy with the development of new projects to meet customer needs in markets across the country. The company is on track to double its operational portfolio by late 2025, Beasley said.

The developer’s latest $375 million round was led by existing shareholders which include Manulife Investment Management, TD Greystone Infrastructure Fund, a unit of TD Asset Management, and Mountain Group Partners. The company spokesman said the company’s $225 million round will come from existing shareholders, but declined to mention which investors will fund its last fund raise of the 2022 fiscal year.

“Silicon Ranch has an important role to play in the energy transition, but what makes the work we do so rewarding is to witness the positive impact of our significant investments in communities all across this country,” said Reagan Farr, co-founder and chief executive officer of Silicon Ranch.

For 2023, the developer is nearing completion on two near-term solar facilities for social media giant Meta, the 125 MW_AC DeSoto I Solar Farm in Lee County, Georgia, and the 70 MW_AC McKellar Solar Farm in Madison County, Tennessee.

Meta is partnered with Silicon Ranch on 16 solar projects in Georgia and Tennessee with total generating capacity of 1.5 GW_AC. Eight of the projects are operational generating 630 MW_AC of power. Each of the Meta projects uses Silicon Ranch’s Regenerative Energy agrivoltaics model of land management, a solar design and construction approach that co-locates renewable energy production with regenerative agriculture practices.

Silicon Ranch said its agrivoltaic business model is combined with Clearloop, which allows customers to reclaim their carbon footprint in various applications such as farming, commercial or industrial use.

In 2022, despite global supply constraint headwinds affecting the U.S. utility-scale solar market’s importing of solar panels, the company circumnavigated global constraints by signing supply agreements for U.S.-made components from First Solar, Nextracker and SOLARCYCLE.

Silicon Ranch is procuring 4.7 GW of First Solar thin-film cadmium telluride (CdTe) modules as well as 1.5 GW of Nextracker solar trackers for the next few years. In September, the company also partnered with SOLARCYCLE as the Oakland, California-based solar module recycling company’s first utility-scale customer.

“While Silicon Ranch’s long-term strategy was already projecting significant growth in the years ahead, the passage of the IRA should present additional opportunities in the decade to come,” said Beasley. “For example, the extension of the investment tax credit does provide a longer runway and more long-term visibility into the ITC, and Silicon Ranch recognizes opportunities to build a meaningful pipeline– through both greenfield development and acquisitions– over the next few years with an eye toward delivery well beyond 2025,” he said.

Silicon Ranch was formed in 2011 by former Tennessee governor Phil Bredesen and Matt Kisber, now the company’s chairman. To date the company has raised $1.55 billion from equity investors including TD, Manulife and Shell New Energies, its majority shareholder from a January 2018 acquisition of a 43.83% stake in the company.

The company partners with utilities and regional cooperatives such as Mississippi Power, the United Power Cooperative, Walton Electric Membership Corporation and the Tennessee Valley Authority, with Silicon Ranch typically owning the assets on its balance sheet upon completion. Corporate PPA offtakers of the company include Meta, Nike, Aerojet Rocketdyne, Volkswagen, and Green Power EMC

North American EV battery production forecast to reach 1 TWh annually by 2030

Michael Schoeck — Thu, 05 Jan 2023 14:59:51 +0000

Rust Belt states of the Midwest have estimated production capacity of 30 GW to over 100 GW per year of EV batteries, with California and Ontario adding capacity as well.

Electric vehicle battery manufacturing capacity in North America is projected to increase to 1,000 GWh/year by 2030, representing a 20 times increase from 55 GWh/year of manufacturing capacity in 2021, thanks primarily to stimulus funding from the Inflation Reduction Act.

The majority of new EV battery plants are scheduled to begin production between 2025 and 2030. By then, production capacity will be capable of supporting the manufacture of roughly 10 to 13 million fully electric vehicles per year.

In a report by the Department of Energy in conjunction with Argonne National Laboratory, planned battery capacity production is seeing the highest penetration rate in the Midwest and Southeast, with historic Rust Belt states across the Midwest having facilities devoted to battery production. To optimize supply chain logistics, many battery facilities will be co-located within existing automotive plants.

Michigan, Kentucky and Georgia have the highest estimated battery production capacity through 2030, at 97 GW per year to 136 GW/y, followed by Ohio, Kansas, Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee and California, with 46 GW/y to 97 GW/y of estimated battery production.

By existing vehicle production locations, the Midwest has a good number of existing facilities for battery use, at 25 facilities, while surprisingly Ontario has nine facilities and Mexico has 30 facilities that are flagged for planned EV battery capacity.

In addition to vehicle facility co-locations for EV battery production, the concentration of 2030 battery plant announcements broadly correlates to states in the same region seeing the highest rate of new EV registrations. Southeast states like Georgia and Florida, which tallied 128,000 new EV registrations, are seeing a manufacturing uptick across the historic manufacturing hub of Alabama, Mississippi and Georgia. West Coast states of California (878,000) and Washington (91,000) seeing a high EV registration are broadly seeing production capacity coming online in the next few years in California, Arizona and Nevada.

A few states with existing vehicle assembly plants such as Illinois, Missouri, and Mississippi, have not telegraphed plans for additional 2030 goal EV battery production capacity, despite having five existing vehicle assembly locations.

Since the landmark Inflation Reduction Act passed in August, auto makers and battery companies have announced $11 billion in new investments into the North American EV battery supply chain. Panasonic opened a $4 billion factory in Kansas and is now eyeing Oklahoma, Toyota increased its commitment to a North Carolina battery production facility from $1.3 billion to $3.8 billion, and Statevolt intends to spend $4 billion on a factory in California.

EV Trends

Through late 2021, 2.3 million vehicles or just over 4% of North American vehicles on the road were EVs or plug-in hybrid EVs, with 630,000 EVs sold in 2021 alone, representing sales growth of 92% compared to 457,000 of sales in 2020.

Since 2010, 65% of EVs sold in the U.S. have been assembled here, and over 110 GWh of lithium-ion batteries have been installed in those vehicles to date. The average range for EVs reached 290 miles in 2021, with 2.5 billion gallons of gasoline cumulatively saved since 2010, reducing consumer fuel costs by $1.3 billion in 2021. EVs drove 19.1 billion miles in 2021 using 6,100 GWh of electricity, saving 700 million gallons of gasoline.

As of December 2021, Tesla (42.9%), General Motors (11.6%), Toyota (8%), Ford (6.8%) and Nissan (7.1%) generated more than 75% of total EV sales in North America, with four Tesla models, the Nissan Leaf, Chevrolet Bolt/Volt, Ford Fusion Energi and Toyota Prius making up some of the 14 most popular EV models by sales of over 30,000 units apiece in 2021.

California, Washington D.C., Hawaii, Washington, Oregon, Vermont and Colorado all have total EV shares above 1% relative to total cars on the road, with California holding more than 3% ratio of EVs to conventional vehicles on the road for late 2021, with Hawaii and West Coast states to Colorado following the Sunshine State.

The rate of electric vehicle adoption will likely increase substantially in coming years as states issue EV mandates.

Additional data and reports can be accessed from the DOE here. The research report was authored by Argonne’s David Gohlke, Yan Zhou, Xinyi Wu and Calista Courtney.

U.S. Senate confirms six Biden appointees to TVA board

William Driscoll — Fri, 23 Dec 2022 13:30:31 +0000

With the new appointments, Biden appointees constitute the majority of the TVA board of directors. Key decisions on TVA's generating mix are in the works.

The U.S. Senate has confirmed six Biden Administration appointees to the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) board of directors. Under TVA’s by-laws, the board consists of nine members.

While TVA board members have historically approved new energy projects, earlier this year board members delegated that authority to Jeff Lyash, TVA’s CEO & president, said the Clean Up TVA Coalition.

TVA, a federally owned utility, has announced its intention to replace its Cumberland coal plant with a 1,450 MW combined cycle gas turbine (CCGT) facility that requires a new gas pipeline interconnection. The Southern Alliance for Clean Energy (SACE) asked the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to evaluate replacing the coal unit with solar, wind, energy efficiency and storage, rather than gas generation and its associated pipeline.

The utility is also deciding how to replace its Kingston coal plant. “We’d like to see any decision about building new gas plants at Cumberland, as well as at the Kingston plant, to be held until the new directors have a chance to review this decision,” said SACE Executive Director Stephen Smith.

TVA is planning its generation mix over the next 20 years, with an integrated resource planning (IRP) process starting next year. The IRP process “could be an opportunity for the federal utility to align its objectives with President Biden’s mandate of 100% carbon-free electricity by 2035,” said the Clean Up TVA Coalition.

The Center for Biological Diversity has recommended eight steps for the new TVA board members to take, for TVA to reach 100% renewable generation by 2035.

The coalition provided biographical information for the six new TVA board members:

· Beth Geer is former chief of staff to former Vice President Al Gore.

· Michelle Moore is founder of Groundswell and led sustainability and infrastructure teams in the Obama Administration.

· Robert Klein served as international vice president of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

· William Renick is former chair of the Commission on the Future of Northeast Mississippi.

· Adam Wade White served as Lyon County judge/executive in Kentucky.

· Joe Ritch, an attorney, formerly served as TVA Board Chair from 2013-2017.

Separately in Memphis this week the board of the municipal utility voted against accepting TVA’s offered “never-ending contract,” which would have limited the utility from seeking lower-cost renewable power from other sources.

TVA serves 10 million customers in Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Kentucky, Georgia, North Carolina and Virginia.

The Clean Up TVA Coalition says that it works to “to propel” TVA into a just, equitable, and fossil-fuel-free energy future by 2030.

Tracking solar policy winners and losers in the Southeast

Ryan Kennedy — Thu, 22 Dec 2022 16:39:49 +0000

The Southern Environmental Law Center shares its review of policies slowing down or speeding up the adoption of solar in the South.

The Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC) completed its fifth year of tracking solar policies of major utilities in the Southern U.S., identifying the “makers” that have encouraged solar adoption, and the “brakers” that are slowing it down.

“No path to widespread solar adoption can bypass the South,” said Jill Kysor, senior attorney and leader of solar initiatives for SELC. “Many utilities have implemented good solar policies that lower customer electricity bills, create local jobs and advance the clean energy economy. Others have opted for punitive policies that hurt their customers and the entire region by leaving solar potential untapped.”

Called Rates of Solar and launched in 2018, the SELC project tracks ~10 GW installed or committed solar capacity. Now in its fifth year, the SELC project tracks over 23 GW of capacity across the region. Approximately 25,000 homes and businesses had rooftop solar in the project’s six-state study region in 2018, and now that number has quadrupled to over 100,000 homes and businesses.

SELC said Southern states have a lot to gain from improving policies to make solar more accessible to customers and embrace the solar industry, which has grown at an average annual rate of 33% over the last decade. Solar represents a strong economic engine that could help a region with higher poverty rates than most of the U.S., and an opportunity for ratepayers to save on their utility bills.

Net metering policy has emerged as one of the central indicators of whether a utility region is a “maker” or “braker,” said SELC.

The organization’s Rates of Solar tool allows users to understand how much their utility company charges (or pays) when you adopt solar.

Brakers

Alabama is a prime example of a solar “braker,” with only around 500 residential solar customers, said SELC. Since 2013, utility Alabama Power has imposed some of the nation’s highest monthly fees on rooftop solar customers of any regulated utility. Every year, the average rooftop solar system of 5 kW accrues $300 of additional fees imposed by the state’s largest utility, totaling more than $9,000 in fees over a system’s lifespan.

Another state with low solar buildout is Tennessee, which has under 3,000 residential customers. With a lack of net metering and low and inconsistent export rates, it is very difficult to estimate potential savings of a system.

Georgia is a state that has made some incremental progress, introducing net metering in 2020, but leaving a low participation cap of 5,000 spots for over 2.5 million customers. The program filled up in less than four years.

Recently, utility regulators voted against expanding the popular net metering program in Georgia and instead adopted a new solar export rate that falls just below 7 cents per kWh. The new policy offers a slight improvement on the existing rock bottom rates, regulators missed an opportunity to do more, said SELC.

Makers

SELC said North and South Carolina “lead the pack” in solar policy. North Carolina leads the six-state region with over 35,000 installations to date. The state implemented a net metering policy in 2005 for its two major utilities, Duke Energy Carolinas and Duke Energy Progress. The state has also gotten a boost from a rebate program implemented from 2017 to 2022. Revisions to the current net metering and rebate framework have been proposed but are still pending with state regulators.

South Carolina has the highest per capita solar installation rate and over 29,000 customers have gone forward to date. The state has active net metering policies that were established in 2008 and distributed energy resource programs that helped jumpstart the market in 2015. New time-of-use based net metering policies were adopted in early 2022.

SELC said Virginia is catching up to the Carolinas quickly following the passage of the Clean Economy Act of 2020, which lifted the state net metering cap from 1% to 6% of the utility’s peak lead forecast. Net metering has been active in the state since 2020.

RFP alert: AEP unit seeks solar and wind projects in PJM and ERCOT territories

Michael Schoeck — Fri, 16 Dec 2022 20:04:27 +0000

In PJM, AEP is seeking solar and wind PPA proposals from 10 to 15 years, while in Texas it's seeking solar REP agreements of 12 years or less.

AEP Energy Partners, a subsidiary of American Electric Power, is soliciting a request for proposal (RFP) process for off-take agreements from new and existing solar and wind projects in the PJM Interconnection market and solar projects in ERCOT to support the company’s growing retail and wholesale loads in Ohio and Texas, respectively.

In PJM, AEP’s offtake procurement include’s the city of Columbus, Ohio’s community choice aggregation program. PJM is a regional transmission organization (RTO) that coordinates the movement of wholesale electricity in a large Mid-Atlantic and Midwest region that extends from New Jersey to Illinois, and stretches as far south as the outer banks of North Carolina.

AEP is seeking RFPs for 10, 12 and 15-year power purchase agreements (PPAs) for new PJM located solar or wind projects, as well as 5 to 15-year agreements for existing projects (including repowering wind projects) in PJM.

In Texas, AEP is seeking renewable energy purchase (REP) agreements of 12 years or less for new ERCOT solar projects.

View full details about the AEP Energy Partners RFP process.

Notice of intent to bid must be received by AEP on or before Dec. 30, 2022. Proposal packages are due by 5 p.m. EST on Jan. 13, 2023. Proposals are due by email to Jennifer Williams (jewilliams@aepes.com) and Sean Handel (sthandel@aepes.com).

Further RFP details are available here or by contacting Jennifer Williams at (614) 716-2426 or Sean Handel at (419) 345-9634.

AEP Energy will release a shortlist of winning recipients in February, with official REP execution to come in Q2 2023.

As a competitive retail and wholesale electricity and natural gas supplier, AEP Energy serves more than 700,000 residential and business customers in 28 service territories in six states and Washington, D.C.

It also sells renewable energy through long-term contracts with utilities, electric cooperatives, municipalities, and corporate customers. The business unit currently owns more than 1,900 MW of solar, wind, and energy storage on both a utility- and distributed-scale basis in 26 states.

Columbus, Ohio-based American Electric Power is a $48.3 billion market cap regulated utility with 5.5 million customers across 11 states. Effective January 2023, AEP will have exited the Kentucky market through the recent sale of Kentucky Power to Liberty Utilities, an affiliate of Algonquin Power, for $2.64 billion.

Meta procures 720 MW of solar for southeast data centers from Silicon Ranch

Michael Schoeck — Thu, 15 Dec 2022 14:46:45 +0000

Silicon Ranch will build, own, operate and maintain seven solar facilities, bringing significant investment to rural communities throughout the region.

Facebook owner Meta Platforms will power additional data center operations around the Southeast with 720 MW of new solar developments in Georgia and Tennessee with Silicon Ranch.

Silicon Ranch is partnering with the Walton Electric Membership Corporation and the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) to supply power from seven new solar facilities to power Meta’s data centers in the two Southeast states, respectively.

In Georgia, Walton EMC signed contracts with Silicon Ranch for three solar projects with 560 MW_AC to be constructed over the next three years.

In Tennessee, TVA signed agreements with the developer for four projects with 160 MW_ACthat will be built over the next three years for the social media company. The TVA projects are included in the regional electric cooperative’s Green Invest program, a Tennessee Valley solar procurement program designed for corporate and industrial clients.

Including the seven projects, Meta is partnered with Silicon Ranch on 16 solar projects in Georgia and Tennessee with total capacity of 1.50 GW. Eight of the projects are operational generating 630 MW of power.

Silicon Ranch, a Nashville-based utility-scale solar developer backed by Shell, said it is nearing completion on two near-term Meta solar facilities, the 125 MW_AC DeSoto I Solar Farm in Lee County, Georgia, and the 70 MW_AC McKellar Solar Farm in Madison County, Tennessee.

Each of the Meta projects uses Silicon Ranch’s transformative Regenerative Energy agrivoltaics model of land management, a solar design and construction approach that co-locates renewable energy production with regenerative agriculture practices.

“Meta’s commitment to support their operations with 100% renewable energy is directly responsible for our own commitment to invest more than $2.3 billion across more than a dozen rural communities in Georgia, Tennessee, and Kentucky,” said Reagan Farr, president and chief executive officer of Silicon Ranch. “As a company that calls this region home, we look forward to being active members of each community for decades to come.”

“TVA is building the energy system of the future, and this public-private partnership with Meta and Silicon Ranch demonstrates the strength of TVA’s public power model to attract capital investment and high-quality jobs into the communities we serve while helping businesses meet their sustainability goals,” said Doug Perry, senior vice president of commercial energy solutions for TVA.

The southeastern solar projects highlight Meta’s renewable energy leadership, as highlighted by the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) in its recent Solar Means Business 2022 report. According to SEIA, Meta has procured more solar since 2020 than any other U.S. company.

TVA serves 10 million people across an 80,000 square mile territory in the southeast U.S., extending beyond its home state borders. The company stated goals of targeting up to 10 GW of solar by 2035, and more than 200,000 EVs on roadways by 2028. The utility expects to have about 2.8 GW of solar in TVA operation by 2024.

According to TVA’s 2021 sustainability report, the regional utility cooperative owns just 1 MW of operational solar capacity. TVA instead has developers such as Silicon Ranch play the role of owner-operator, so that they can access the federal investment tax credit incentive, an option that TVA, as a government entity, cannot access.

TVA said its Green Invest program has led to nearly $3 billion in solar investments since 2018. A large driver of growth in this program is through contracts with corporations like Google, Meta, and others.

In total, the SEIA said Tennessee has 609 MW of installed solar capacity through Q3 2022. The state employs over 4,109 people in solar, and there has been an estimated $900 million in solar investment in the state.

Sunrise brief: Preventing cyberattacks on distributed energy resources

pv magazine — Wed, 09 Nov 2022 12:55:00 +0000

Also on the rise: SunPower adds 23k new customers and doubles earnings in record Q3. College students compete in simulated cyber attack on a solar installation. And more.

Preventing cyberattacks on distributed energy resources As cyber risks rise with increasing deployment of distributed energy resources, the government and industry are defining the steps needed to ensure cybersecurity.

SunPower adds 23k new customers and doubles earnings in record Q3 The residential solar and storage integrator continues to see more customers turning to solar as U.S. retail energy prices rise 14.3% year over year.

50 states of solar incentives: Tennessee There is a dearth of solar policy in Tennessee, and development has been relatively dead in the water since 2019. While distributed rooftop solar has little support, corporate-backed utility-scale solar is expected to rise.

College students compete in simulated cyberattack on a solar installation The 2022 CyberForce Competition promotes cybersecurity careers that protect the nation’s energy systems.

Ohio town to retool solar restrictions after community advocacy Granville, Ohio is set to reconsider its local solar regulations after industry and commu ity engagement drummed up support for more solar-friendly law.

Hover Energy’s 36 kW rooftop-mounted microgrid combines wind, solar and energy storage

Michael Schoeck — Fri, 04 Nov 2022 18:31:56 +0000

Hover's first 36 kW installation survived the recent Hurricane Ian storm system that ravaged southwest Florida.

Hover Energy, a Dallas-based wind power technology company, will begin commercial scale production in January 2023 of its residential and commercial 36 kW wind-powered microgrid that includes solar and energy storage. Production will take place the company’s facility in Memphis, Tennessee.

The company’s Hover Array System is a rooftop-mounted microgrid combining wind, solar and energy storage with the company’s Integrated Energy Management System (IEMS) software platform. The IEMS system integrates energy generated by both wind (alternating current) and solar (direct current) into a unified 480 volt, 3-phase direct drive power system to provide back-up power to building owners and residential customers.

Hover’s consumer wind turbine is mounted along the windward-facing edges of the rooftop, able to generate continuous power during the day. The company said it produces a multiple of power per square foot that is considerably more than a comparably sized rooftop solar system. The wind technology uses an “aerodynamic design that uses the building as a sail” to deliver commercial scale power.

The company’s complementary on-site solar panels are meanwhile mounted on the rooftop center, away from the shadow of the turbine’s parapet, generating sufficient solar power during a majority of the daily peak afternoon hours.

Initial testing of the Hover Array System shows that the 36 kW system can offset 100% of a building’s power consumption in the majority of cases, although as with any microgrid system, daily time of use is the only setback to providing continuous power around the clock.

“Hover spent nearly 8 years in R&D, followed by two years of rigorous testing at our installation site,” said Chris Griffin, Hover’s president and CEO. “We know of no other wind technology that has survived two hurricanes (i.e. Ian) and is still functioning properly.”

The company is partnered with RealTime Group since 2021 and Jabil since 2017 to test the array system and for the supply of components used in the Hover Array System, respectively. Hover installed its first array system on Jabil’s Strategic Development building in St. Petersburg, Florida in 2021.

The company holds 22 issued or allowed patents to its wind-powered microgrid technology out of 32 U.S. and international patents, and to date has installed microgrids in the U.S., Canada and Caribbean markets.

Formed in 2015, Hover has been funded by its management and $710,000 in debt financing it raised in April 2019. Prior to Hover, Chris Griffin was CEO of formed Regenedyne, also a wind turbine start-up, and before that spent 15 years in corporate finance at various Wall Street firms.

A late-stage Hover Array System being installed on a commercial rooftop.

Image: Hover Energy

Sunrise brief: National Solar Jobs Census finds that solar jobs increased 9% nationwide in 2021

Anne Fischer — Wed, 27 Jul 2022 10:00:22 +0000

Also on the rise: New home battery can provide backup power as well as smart time of use charging/discharging. Connecticut to allow distributed resources to compete with distribution grid upgrades. And more.

Solar jobs increased 9% nationwide in 2021 According to the National Solar Jobs Census 2020, employment in the solar industry looked favorable in 2021 compared to fossil fuel industries, but solar employers have some work to do on increasing diversity.

Connecticut to allow distributed resources to compete with distribution grid upgrades Connecticut would join five other states in enabling distributed storage, solar and other non-wires alternatives to compete with traditional distribution system capacity upgrades, under a program being finalized by Connecticut regulators.

Perovskite solar cell defect characterization during manufacture for improved stability A novel electrochemical robotic arm is under development at the University of Arizona to identify perovskite defects during manufacturing rather than after to improve durability.

Vehicle-integrated photovoltaics for low-speed electric vehicles Canadian startup Capsolar claims its flexible solar modules can be adapted to any type of low-speed electric vehicle with no extra modification and custom work. The panels have an efficiency of 21.3% and rely on 24%-efficient solar cells provided by US manufacturer SunPower.

Electriq Power residential batteries beat the heat with backup power, smart time of use A home battery paired with rooftop solar can provide backup power during rolling blackouts, shift power usage schedules to avoid peak demand charges, among other benefits.

GM and LG receive $2.5 billion DOE loan to build three battery manufacturing plants Battery manufacturing facilities will be built in Tennessee, Ohio and Michigan to produce EV batteries under the Ultium Cell name.

GM and LG receive $2.5 billion DOE loan to build three battery manufacturing plants

Anne Fischer — Tue, 26 Jul 2022 17:43:23 +0000

Battery manufacturing facilities will be built in Tennessee, Ohio and Michigan to produce EV batteries under the Ultium Cell name.

The US Energy Department intends to loan Ultium Cells LLC, a joint venture of General Motors Co. and LG Energy Solution, $2.5 billion to help finance construction of new lithium-ion battery cell manufacturing facilities in Ohio, Tennessee, and Michigan.

The loan comes from the government’s Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing (ATVM) loan program, which has $17.7 billion in loan authority to support the manufacture of eligible light-duty vehicles and qualifying components, authorized by the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007.

In January of this year, LG Energy Solution announced a commitment to construct a $2.1 billion battery manufacturing plant in Lansing, Michigan with General Motors to mass produce 50 GWh of EV batteries under the Ultium Cell brand.

Ultium devices are unique due to their large-format, pouch-style cells that can be stacked vertically or horizontally inside a battery pack, enabling engineers to optimize energy storage and layout for each vehicle design.

“With a shared vision, GM and LG Energy Solution pioneered the EV sector by seizing new opportunities in the market well before anyone else did,” LG Energy Solution chief executive Young-Soo Kwon said. “Our third battery manufacturing plant, fittingly located in America’s automotive heartland, will serve as a gateway to charge thousands, and later, millions of EVs in the future.”

GM and LG are investing more than $7 billion via the venture to build three battery plants, according to a Reuters article. The Warren, Ohio plant is currently employing 700 workers and is planned to begin production next month. The Tennessee plant will start production in late 2023 and the Michigan plant in 2024, according to the Reuters report.

The DOE also recently announced a separate $60 million in funding to support second-life applications for batteries once used to power EVs, as well as new processes for recycling materials back into the battery supply chain. These funding opportunities are part of the government’s strategy to bolster America’s supply chain and reduce the reliance on competing nations.

Currently China is the leader in the global lithium-ion battery production market, according to a Wood Mackenzie report. And while the United States is supporting its battery industry, China is investing heavily to build out more manufacturing facilities to extend its dominance. Secondarily, these initiatives support the President’s goal of electric vehicles making up half the vehicle sales in North America by 2030.

“Positioning the United States front and center in meeting the growing demand for advanced batteries is how we boost our competitiveness and electrify our transportation system,” said US Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm. “President Biden’s historic investment in battery production and recycling will give our domestic supply chain the jolt it needs to become more secure and less reliant on other nations—strengthening our clean energy economy, creating good paying jobs, and decarbonizing the transportation sector.”

Sunrise brief: Americans beginning to correlate extreme weather with a climate crises, but purse strings are still tight

pv magazine — Thu, 14 Jul 2022 08:02:17 +0000

Also on the rise: Solar panels power the James Webb telescope. Tennessee Valley Authority seeks 5 GW of carbon-free energy. And more.

Solar panels power the James Webb telescope Our deepest view into the universe is powered by PV. NASA was one of the earliest adopters of solar technology, and it continues to be an important feature of spacecraft today.

RFP alert: Tennessee Valley Authority seeks 5 GW of carbon-free energy In its quest to be net-zero by 2050, TVA plans to bring an additional 10 GW of solar energy online by 2035.

People on the Move: Leeward Renewable Energy, KORE Power, Madison Energy Investments, and more Job moves in solar, storage, cleantech, utilities, and energy transition finance.

Role of UV in solar cell degradation US scientists have tested a range of modern cell designs under strong ultraviolet light and have found that many of them, including p-type PERC and n-type heterojunction cells, are more susceptible to degradation than older back surface field designs. They noted that the rear side of bifacial cells may be particularly vulnerable.

US and Australia sign energy agreements to mitigate over-reliance on China Speaking at the Sydney Energy Forum, leaders from the United States and Australia have highlighted the importance of not only transitioning to renewables, but of ensuring the supply chains used to make the technologies do not remain as concentrated as they are today.

Americans beginning to correlate extreme weather with a climate crises, but purse strings are still tight A recent poll found that 70% of Americans see climate change as a crisis or major problem. And while 78% of Americans reported being personally affected by extreme weather, only 39% are willing to take on costs to prevent it.

Energy Toolbase launches PPA generator platform for solar and storage Commercial, industrial, and non-profit solar developers can now generate power purchase agreements via Sustainable Capital Finance on the company’s developer platform.

RFP alert: Tennessee Valley Authority seeks 5 GW of carbon-free energy

Anne Fischer — Wed, 13 Jul 2022 13:57:27 +0000

In its quest to be net-zero by 2050, TVA plans to bring an additional 10 GW of solar energy online by 2035.

In what the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) says is one of the largest clean energy procurement efforts in the nation, the utility has issued a request for proposals (RFP) for up to 5 GW of carbon-free energy.

“We are taking this bold, decisive action because TVA is uniquely positioned to lead in reducing carbon emissions for the region and the nation,” said Jeff Lyash, TVA president and chief executive officer. “This announcement is a clear signal to our industry, our partners, and our nation that we need to move further and faster, together, to make a cleaner future a reality.”

The RFP is seeking to procure up to 5 GW of carbon-free energy resources with commercial operation dates from 2023 through 2029. Those resources can include solar, wind (offshore or land based), hydro, geothermal, biomass, nuclear, and green gas. The utility is also seeking proposals for battery energy storage systems (BESS) paired with clean energy resources, standalone BESS, and hybrid combinations. All projects will be contracted under a power purchase agreement, and all the applicable associated environmental attributes (renewable energy credits/certificates, etc.) will be transferred to TVA. Resources must be located in the TVA service territory or delivered to TVA’s interface with neighboring transmission systems.

TVA’s plan is to reduce carbon from 2005 levels by 70% by 2030, 80% by 2035, and to be net-zero by 2050. This recent request follows an RFP in 2020 that resulted in the addition of 964 MW of solar with 130 MW of battery storage. The utility plans to bring on an additional 10 GW of solar capacity by 2035.

While TVA has not been the most solar-friendly entity historically, it has found success with its Green Invest program, which is a platform for businesses that have set specific renewable generation and carbon reduction goals to be matched with local renewable energy projects. Through a lowest-cost competitive bidding program, TVA negotiates project terms on behalf of the customer. TVA reports that since 2018, the Green Invest program has generated over $3 billion in investment across its seven-state region.

Lyash said last year about 270 companies selected the Tennessee Valley to do business because of TVA’s low-cost, reliable and clean energy. In April, Envision AESC, an electric vehicle battery company, announced a 2,000 job, $2 billion investment to build a new battery factory in Bowling Green, KY, reportedly because of TVA’s renewable energy programs.

RFP proposals must be submitted by October 19, 2022. Review the RFP and submit bids at tva.com/Information/Doing-Business-with-TVA. Project selection will be announced in Spring 2023.

Issuing a Request for Proposals? Email editors@pv-magazine.com.

Sunrise brief: Polysilicon prices rise over 200% in 2022 amid supply shortages

pv magazine — Thu, 07 Jul 2022 11:29:26 +0000

Also on the rise: Entergy seeks to grow renewables up to 2500% over next decade. A zinc-based alternative to lithium-ion batteries. And more.

Polysilicon prices rise over 200% in 2022 amid supply shortages Polysilicon, a key material in the creation of solar panels, has undergone steady price climbs as output has been cut for a variety of reasons.

People on the Move: OYA Solar, SEIA, GridBeyond, and more Job moves in solar, storage, cleantech, utilities, and energy transition finance.

A zinc-based alternative to lithium-ion batteries Salient Energy developed the water-based zinc-ion battery to have the same power, performance, and footprint as lithium-ion systems without the safety risk

New TVA solar projects will power DENSO’s Tennessee operations The company has signed on for 10.5 MW of capacity through TVA’s Flexibility Program, as well as additional capacity under TVA’s Green Invest program.

Onward Energy purchases 1.1 GW operational solar portfolio In its largest single investment in renewables, the independent power producer acquired 100% of the cash equity interests in the portfolio from Global Atlantic.

Nelnet acquires GRNE Solutions The acquisition expands Nelnet into engineering, procurement, and construction services, with additional offerings in battery backup, electric vehicle charging, energy monitoring, and operations and maintenance services.

Entergy seeks to grow renewables up to 2500% over next decade The power company has issued 2022 RFPs for 3 GW of new capacity, while projecting up to 17 GW of new renewable capacity by 2031.

New TVA solar projects will power DENSO’s Tennessee operations

Tim Sylvia — Wed, 06 Jul 2022 14:18:32 +0000

The company has signed on for 10.5 MW of capacity through TVA's Flexibility Program, as well as additional capacity under TVA's Green Invest program.

DENSO, a supplier of electrification systems, powertrain systems, thermal systems, mobility electronics, and advanced devices in the mobility center, announced that the company has signed on to receive a portion of the electricity generated by an four-project portfolio of solar installations being developed for the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) by Silicon Ranch.

The deal was secured by the City of Maryville, Tennessee, where DENSO has manufacturing operations, which announced at its July 5 meeting that it approved three contracts between the City of Maryville Electric Department and Silicon Ranch for a total of 10.5 MW of solar energy under TVA’s Generation Flexibility program, a portion of which will serve DENSO’s local operations.

TVA’s Flexibility Program, launched in 2019, allows member utilities the flexibility to meet 5% of their power needs through local generating sources, like wind, solar, and natural gas, as long as they have a 20-year long term partnership agreement in place with TVA.

“TVA’s Generation Flexibility program offered us the right vehicle to serve the needs of Maryville’s largest employer while attracting significant capital investment to our community,” said City of Maryville Public Utilities Director Baron Swafford. “This cooperative effort is reflective of the goals of City leadership to support and assist our customers in successfully achieving their objectives.”

Green Invest

In addition to its role in the three solar projects under TVA’s Generation Flexibility program, DENSO will also participate in TVA’s Green Invest program through a fourth Silicon Ranch facility. According to DENSO, Silicon Ranch will fund, construct, own, operate, and maintain each of the four solar power plants for the long-term.

TVA’s Green Invest program is a platform for businesses that have set specific renewable generation and carbon reduction goals to be matched with local renewable energy projects that help to meet those goals. Through a lowest-cost competitive bidding program, TVA negotiates project terms on behalf of the customer.

While TVA has not been the most solar-friendly entity historically, it has found success with its Green Invest program. TVA has increased its contracted solar capacity by 60% since October 2020, with the Green Invest program. The energy provider’s 2020 Request for Proposals for solar capacity resulting in the addition of 964 MW of contracted solar and 130 MW of battery storage to the TVA system.

TVA plans to have more than 2 GW of solar operating by the end of 2023, expanding that figure to 7 to 10 GW of solar energy by 2040.

Sunrise brief: New record for solar cell efficiency – 39.5% – built upon quantum wells

pv magazine — Tue, 24 May 2022 11:30:01 +0000

Also on the rise: Enphase Energy microinverter receives first UL interconnection certification. Arkansas judge upholds full rate net metering. Renewable energy advocate, Glick, nominated for another FERC term. And more.

TVA completes 150 MW solar project for Meta The 150 MW Elora Solar project was developed by NextEra Energy Resources and will power operations at Meta’s datacenter hub in northwest Huntsville, Tennessee.

New record for solar cell efficiency – 39.5% – built upon quantum wells Using highly specialized materials that capture electrons in quantum wells, NREL set a new solar cell efficiency record.

Renewable energy and storage advocate, Glick, nominated for another FERC term President Biden’s nomination of the chairman, popular among renewable energy advocates, comes as the commission looks to finalize major reforms to its electric regional transmission planning and cost allocation requirements.

In a big win for solar, Arkansas judge upholds full rate net-metering and denies a grid fee In the Land of Opportunity, the Arkansas Court of Appeals ruled in favor of solar companies by upholding net metering compensation and simplified approval process for small systems.

Museum to spread solar energy savings to local nonprofits The Discovery Museum in Acton, Massachusetts installed an oversized solar parking canopy, which will deliver 50% of its generation to the museum, and 50% will be sold to local nonprofits at a discount.

Enphase Energy microinverter receives first UL interconnection certification The Enphase IQ8 Microinverter system certified to the new North American safety and grid interconnection standards for connecting solar inverters, energy storage systems, and distributed energy resources to the grid.

TVA completes 150 MW solar project for Meta

Tim Sylvia — Mon, 23 May 2022 17:40:47 +0000

The 150 MW Elora Solar project was developed by NextEra Energy Resources and will power operations at Meta's datacenter hub in northwest Huntsville, Tennessee.

The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) said that it has reached commercial operations on a 150 MW solar project, developed in partnership with Meta to power operations at Meta’s datacenter hub in northwest Huntsville, Tennessee, northwest of Knoxville.

Development of the 150 MW Elora Solar project, which was led by NextEra Energy Resources, began in 2019, while construction efforts to build the center, which contains more than 500,000 solar modules, lasted 17 months and created approximately 250 construction jobs.

In November 2021, a unit of NextEra Energy Resources agreed to sell a 50% non-controlling interest in a 2.52 GW portfolio of long-term contracted renewable assets, including the Elora Solar Project, to the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board for $849 million, while the remaining 50% interest was sold by NextEra Energy Resources to NextEra Energy Partners for almost $850 million.

The project also provides a significant boost to the capacity of solar operating under TVA. TVA itself owns 1 MW of operable solar capacity and reports no ownership of wind energy assets, as of its FY 2021 report. TVA instead has developers play the role of owner-operator, so that they can access the federal investment tax credit incentive, an option that TVA, as a government entity, cannot access. A company spokesperson told pv magazine that, as of February 1, TVA has 642 MW operating solar, which means the Elora project will bring TVA just under 800 MW of solar capacity, and the entity has visons of up to 10 GW of solar by 2035, and more than 200,000 EVs on TVA roadways by 2028.

TVA currently has 5.38 GW of renewable energy capacity, nearly all of which is hydropower.

Sunrise brief: Sunrun signs on to recycle solar panels with Solarcycle

pv magazine — Fri, 06 May 2022 08:55:46 +0000

Also on the rise: Utility TVA targets 10 GW of solar by 2035, currently owns 1 MW in operation. Maxeon unveils whole home energy management system SunPower One. Washington DC outpacing its own solar goals, for now. AES to supply Microsoft with 110 MW of solar, 220 MWh of storage. Self-healing perovskite solar PV cells can withstand fierce cosmic radiation. Porsche AG leads $400 million series C funding of US high-performance battery cell fabrication.

Utility TVA targets 10 GW of solar by 2035, currently owns 1 MW in operation The Tennessee-based utility shared it has reduced emissions by 57% from 2005 levels in its FY 2021 sustainability report. It has stated heavy solar targets, but currently only has 1 MW in operable capacity, according to its disclosures.

Sunrun signs on to recycle solar panels with Solarcycle Startup Solarcycle is using second-life panels from Sunrun to develop new ways to test, reuse and upcycle the retired solar panels in Sunrun’s project portfolio.

D.C. is outpacing its own solar goals, for now The District’s 2021 RPS Compliance Report shows a significant expansion of RPS-certified solar facilities, with capacity additions outpacing program mandates.

Self-healing perovskite solar PV cells can withstand fierce cosmic radiation The development of a set of testing protocols for perovskite solar cells intended for use outside Earth’s atmosphere could lead to the devices being installed permanently, and even manufactured, on the moon.

Porsche AG leads $400 million series C funding of US high-performance battery cell fabrication Cellforce Group, a Porsche subsidiary, is named as a Group14 customer of materials to supply its production of high-performance lithium-silicon battery cells for Porsche EV models.

AES to supply Microsoft with 110 MW of solar, 220 MWh of storage The capacity will be used to support Microsoft’s data centers in California and builds on an earlier supply agreement between the two companies in Virginia.

Predictive, proactive, whole home energy management system SunPower One unveiled Maxeon Solar Technologies released an integrated home energy management system, designed to engage with solar PV, batteries, heating and cooling, appliances, and more.

Utility TVA targets 10 GW of solar by 2035

Ryan Kennedy — Thu, 05 May 2022 18:30:11 +0000

The Tennessee-based utility shared it has reduced emissions by 57% from 2005 levels in its FY 2021 sustainability report.

Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), which serves 10 million people across an 80,000 square mile territory in the southeast US, released its fiscal year (FY) 2021 report on sustainability, revealing progress towards climate goals and high targets for carbon-free generation through the next decade.

“The vitality and growth of our region is underpinned by low-cost, reliable and clean energy. Over the past five years, TVA has worked with state and local partners to deliver about 350,000 jobs and $45.9 billion in capital investments,” wrote president and CEO Jeff Lyash in opening remarks on the report.

Lyash stated goals of targeting up to 10 GW of solar by 2035, and more than 200,000 EVs on TVA roadways by 2028. Operating and contracted solar capacity grew 77% in FY 2021, and the first TVA-built utility-scale solar and battery projects are underway and expected to be online by 2024-2025. The utility expects to have about 2.8 GW of solar in TVA operation by 2024.

However, the sustainability report disclosures reveal that TVA owns 1 MW of operable solar capacity and reports no ownership of wind energy assets, as of the FY 2021 report. This is largely due to the fact that TVA is unable to access the federal investment tax credit dedicated to solar projects. To secure the best rate for solar in its territory, TVA instead has developers play the role of owner-operator, so that the incentive can be utilized and customer rates can remain low. A company spokesperson told pv magazine as of February 1, TVA has 642 MW operating solar.

Renewable energy capacity owned and in operation by TVA has decreased slightly each year since 2019, according to the report. Currently, TVA has 5,386 MW of renewable energy capacity, nearly all of which is hydropower. In addition to the hydropower production, TVA reports it purchased 7,269 MW of renewable energy from outside sources in FY 2021.

Image: TVA

“We have a plan to achieve a 70% reduction in carbon emissions by 2030 and a path to about 80% by 2035. We aspire to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050,” wrote Revecca Tolene, TVA’s chief sustainability officer.

TVA has already reduced emissions by 57% since 2005. Much of that has come from the retirement of coal plants and the activation of more nuclear power, which grew from a 26% share to 41%. Coal shrank from 57% of operations to 16% over that period. Solar and wind energy were not meaningfully represented in the 2005 figures, and now hold just 3% of the energy mix.

Solar investment programs

The utility said it has committed nearly $3 billion in solar investments through its Green Invest program since 2018. A large driver of growth in this program is through contracts with large corporations like Google, Meta (Facebook), and others.

The federally owned utility contracted for 1,178 MW of utility-scale solar generation by the end of FY 2020. It also implemented the Green Connect program in FY21, creating a qualified solar contractor network. The program has achieved 19 qualified installers, over 1000 customers registered, about 200 installations submitted, 65 installations verified, and over $7.5M of customer spending on systems within the Green Connect network.

TVA runs another program called Green Switch, which provides customers with 100% renewable energy at a small premium. The utility said contracts can be signed for as low as $2 per month, and customers can match some or all their current electricity use with a mix of solar, wind and biomass generation sources located in the Valley. In FY 2021, the mix was approximately 70% solar, 20% wind and 10% biomass sources.

The utility said it has invested over $2 billion in transmission system improvements through 2025, perhaps paving the way for the interconnection of 10 GW of solar by 2035.

Construction begins for Meta (Facebook) $90 million solar project

Ryan Kennedy — Mon, 28 Mar 2022 16:00:20 +0000

The 70MW project is under development by Silicon Ranch and was launched through utility Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) Green Invest program. Plus, pv magazine examines the work of "Solar Protocol" to bring attention to the fact that the internet is not as ethereal as it seems.

Another solar project built to meet the needs of Meta (Facebook) operations is underway, with a 70MW project in Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) territory breaking ground recently. Silicon Ranch is the project developer, a firm that has partnered with the tech giant on numerous renewable energy projects in the past.

The project, called McKellar Solar Farm, was launched through TVA’s Green Invest program. The program is a platform for corporations looking to meet their environmental and climate goals by investing in renewables projects in TVA territory. Under the program, corporations typically sign a contract to purchase the project’s solar energy for 20 years.

Tennessee’s own Silicon Ranch will fund, own, operate, and maintain the solar project, which has an estimated cost of $90 million.

“TVA is the nexus for reliable, economical renewable energy solutions, and we have already committed $3 billion to bring more than 2,000 MW of new solar to the Valley since 2018. This public-private partnership with Meta and Silicon Ranch demonstrates the strength of TVA’s community energy model to attract capital investment and high-quality jobs into the communities we serve while helping businesses meet their sustainability goals.” Doug Perry, TVA senior vice president, commercial energy solutions

The Metaverse is real

Last April, Facebook announced it supported 100% of its operations with renewable energy by the end of 2020. Now, it targets net-zero across all value chains by 2030. Over the last three years, the social media giant cut its greenhouse gas emissions by 94%, exceeding its initial 75% reduction goal.

Facebook is no stranger to participating in large solar projects. It partnered with Silicon Ranch on three projects in Georgia with a combined capacity of 287MW, another 120MW in Utah, 160MW of solar in Virginia, and has 475MW in total PV projects contracted under TVA’s Green Invest program.

Facebook’s aggressive renewable energy sourcing is an environmentally responsible decision, but the high level of procurement brings attention to an important point: the internet is not free. While we use words like the “cloud” or “Metaverse” describe where internet and data operations take place, there are real-world, physical and energy related costs to these services. It is estimated by the environmental organization Climate Care that servers are responsible for as much emissions as the global airline industry.

This idea of the internet as a physical thing constrained to natural resources was demonstrated in a Mozilla award winning concept project called Solar Protocol. The project connected a series of small data servers across the globe that are directly connected with solar PV and energy storage. When the sun shines in a given region on the planet, that region is activated as the host site for the cloud servers.

The project maps the solar availability of the globally dispersed datacenters.
Image: Solar Protocol

“How data is collected, managed, and trains AI systems has an impact on billions of lives. But that impact is often invisible. Creative Media Awards like Solar Protocol make the invisible visible,” said Kofi Yeboah, awards program officer at Mozilla.

This carbon intensity is only increasing with the advent of blockchain technology. One transaction of the cryptocurrency Ethereum is equivalent to the carbon impact of over 300,000 credit card transactions

“Solar Protocol is a great opportunity for us as artists to foreground issues of climate change and how technology is driving it,” said Tega Brain, an NYU professor and project lead. “The project has catalyzed conversations about AI and automation, as in-network user traffic is decided by solar energy. We are using intelligence from natural and dynamic versus a data-driven machine learning model… Why not think of planetary limits as intelligence? After all, they will shape the future of life on Earth whether we like it or not.”

Facebook has been able to rapidly accomplish its goals by becoming one of the largest corporate buyers of renewable energy in the world, contracting for around 1 GW of projects in 2020 alone. The company was the second-largest corporate procurer of renewable energy in 2019. It currently ranks third in the world on the list of renewable energy corporate buyers based on cumulative power purchase agreements since 2000, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance.

Sunrise brief: California’s solar market is now a battery market

pv magazine — Mon, 14 Mar 2022 07:30:57 +0000

Also on the rise: Indiana ruling paves the way for HOAs to allow solar. Shoals opens manufacturing facility in Tennessee. NASA announces advances in space solar and thin films. Majority of homeowners want solar but need help with upfront financing. Rocket Lab unveils space solar cell with 33.3% efficiency.

California’s solar market is now a battery market A look at the interconnection queue of California’s grid operator shows that the state’s market has already shifted to batteries—sometimes with solar, and sometimes without.

Indiana makes it harder for HOAs to ban solar House Bill 1196 establishes a process for residents of HOAs with existing bylaws against solar installations to petition for a system in a fashion that cannot be denied once a certain level of community support has been attained.

PV balance of system provider Shoals opens manufacturing facility, reports Q4 earnings Shoals manufactures balance of system components for solar, energy storage, and EV charging solutions. The company opened a Tennessee facility and posted record revenues and gross profits in 2021.

Rocket Lab unveils space solar cell with 33.3% efficiency The new device is based on an inverted metamorphic multi-junction (IMM) cell technology developed by Rocket Lab’s unit Solaero. The cell can be used in applications in the civil, military, and commercial space markets.

Survey said a majority of homeowners want to go solar, but up-front costs are a deterrent Rocket Homes found that 66.5% of homeowners surveyed would like to go solar–and they know it saves on the electric bill and increases resale value–but they need financial incentives to handle costs.

The Solar Tech Check: PV in space, and thin films stride forward This week has seen NASA announce the completion of a new folding array set to power a mission deep into our solar system, while scientists continue to work on new applications to take such explorations even further from the sun. New measurements also promise routes to higher efficiency in cadmium-telluride PV, and details emerge of one of thinnest solar cells seen so far.

PV balance of system provider Shoals opens manufacturing facility, reports Q4 earnings

Ryan Kennedy — Fri, 11 Mar 2022 16:10:48 +0000

Shoals manufactures balance of system components for solar, energy storage, and EV charging solutions. The company opened a Tennessee facility and posted record revenues and gross profits in 2021.

Shoals Technologies Group, a provider of electrical balance of systems (BOS) systems for solar, storage, and electric vehicles (EV) charging announced the opening of a manufacturing facility in Tennessee. The 219,000 square foot facility is expected to reach operations in Q2 2022.

The facility is expected to double the company’s manufacturing capacity. It said the new space will allow it to introduce new innovations to the BOS space.

“Our new facility will allow us to optimize our manufacturing lines to increase operational efficiency, expand production capacity and bring new innovations to market to deliver even more value to our customers,” said Jason Whitaker, CEO of Shoals Technologies Group. “Furthermore, the new facility gives us a significant footprint for the growth of new product lines, especially our Fuel by Shoals® eMobility solutions for electric vehicle charging, which deliver a more simple, reliable, and scalable way to deploy EV charging systems.”

Shoals posted its Q4 2021 results, showing record profits and gross margin. Full-year gross margin for 2021 was 38.8%, and orders nearly doubled year-over-year to a record $299 million. Revenues for its systems solutions increased 29% year-over-year for Q4 2021.

Revenue and gross profit grew 21% and 24% respectively over 2020’s reported figures. Adjusted EDBITA grew modestly, as the company made investments in human capital, international expansion, and a new EV business unit.

“While demand for our products is accelerating, the current environment is dynamic and we are closely monitoring our supply chain, labor costs, materials costs and logistics availability,” said Whitaker.

Fourth quarter revenues totaled $48 million, up from $38.8 million in the previous year’s quarter. Income from operations was $2.2 million, and net loss was $2.2 million. This compares to the previous Q4 income from operations of $7.2 million and a net gain of $4.2 million. The figures are not directly comparable, as because prior to its IPO, the Company was organized as a tax flow-through partnership rather than a corporation and did not record income taxes. Basic and diluted loss per share was $(0.04).

Shoals said at least half of the solar energy projects installed in the US in 2020 used its products.

RFP Alert: Appalachian Power seeks 150MW of West Virginia solar

Ryan Kennedy — Thu, 17 Feb 2022 17:43:19 +0000

The company is accepting project bids that are at least 50MW in capacity. Battery energy storage may be included.

West Virginia utility Appalachian Power released an RFP requesting 150MW of solar capacity in the state. Eligible projects must be at least 50MW in capacity, with the option to include a battery-energy storage system.

The RFP was issued as part of provisions set by West Virginia Senate Bill 583, a 2020 law focused on boosting renewable energy in the state. Project bids that are located on eligible sites as defined by Bill 583 will be given preference, said Appalachian Power. The sites include previous electrical generation facilities, industrial, manufacturing, or mining sites, brownfields, closed landfills, or hazardous waste sites.

Proposals are due by March 31st, 2022. The projects must be interconnected with the PJM regional transmission organization and operational by no later than December 15, 2025, to qualify for the federal investment tax credit.

This is the second large-scale procurement of solar onset by Bill 583, with the first resulting in a 50MW solar project in Berkeley County. “We are ready and eager to build on that success,” said Chris Beam, Appalachian Power president and COO.

Appalachian Power operates 5.9GW of renewable energy capacity. It has 1 million customers spanning Virginia, West Virginia, and Tennessee.

As part of its long-range plan to meet the renewable energy targets established by the Virginia Clean Economy Act (VCEA), the utility also intends to add approximately 3,300 MW of solar, 2,600 MW of energy storage and nearly 3,000 MW of onshore wind to its current portfolio by 2040. The VCEA requires all utilities operating within the commonwealth to file an annual plan with the Virginia State Corporation Commission (SCC) outlining how it will meet key mandates as it reaches 100% carbon-free status by 2050.

Earlier this year, Appalachian Power acquired the Firefly Energy solar project in Virginia, a 150MW project, and the utility’s largest to date. The project was developed by Recurrent Energy. Pending local and state permits and other regulatory approvals, construction of the project is expected to start in early 2023 and reach commercial operation in 2024.

U.S. House Committee questions TVA on “hindering” distributed solar

William Driscoll — Fri, 14 Jan 2022 17:41:37 +0000

The Committee’s letter added that TVA’s customers “pay too much for electricity.” President Biden’s nominees for TVA directors could govern the utility by May, contingent on Senate confirmations.

The Tennessee Valley Authority is “hindering” the deployment of renewable energy by its commercial and residential customers, says a letter to the utility from the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce. The letter questions TVA’s 2018 “maneuver” to reduce its wholesale rate while simultaneously imposing a fixed fee on local power companies, several of which then passed on the fixed fee to their customers.

Internal TVA documents show that TVA believed the fixed fee “would curtail the deployment of solar energy projects by 40%,” says the letter. TVA has also permitted local power companies to impose new fees on distributed solar, says the letter, citing TVA documents that state its goal of limiting “the potential decrease in TVA load that may occur through the adoption of [behind the meter] generation.”

The Committee is also concerned that renewable deployment in the region under the federal PURPA law is discouraged by TVA’s avoided cost and contract terms, which “are inadequate to finance and construct qualifying facilities.”

Citing President Biden’s Executive Order 14008, which seeks to achieve an electricity sector free of carbon pollution by 2035, the Committee said it is “greatly concerned” that TVA has deployed little solar and wind energy, while “considering” new gas units totaling 1.5 GW. The Committee asks whether TVA’s next integrated resource plan (IRP) will “comply with President Biden’s executive order,” noting that the Tennessee Valley Authority Act requires TVA to engage in least-cost planning, including energy conservation, efficiency and renewable energy.

Tennessee Valley residents have electric bills that exceed the national average, “which particularly impacts low-income households in Tennessee,” the letter says, calling out TVA’s “decision” to deprioritize energy efficiency and impose fixed fees that “keep rates low but cost ratepayers money.”

President Biden has nominated four TVA directors to fill openings, who await Senate confirmation. Two more vacancies on the nine-member TVA board will open up in May, creating the possibility for Biden-appointed directors to govern the utility.

“The Senate needs to get to work,” said Daniel Tait, COO of Energy Alabama. “We have four good nominees and every day spent waiting is another in which the people of the Tennessee Valley are getting the short end of the stick.”

The U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce letter poses 16 questions to TVA, and requests responses by February 2. TVA is the nation’s largest public utility, serving customers in seven states.

People on the Move: Encore Renewable Energy, The Brattle Group, ACORE, and more

Tim Sylvia — Wed, 12 Jan 2022 13:00:55 +0000

Job moves in solar, storage, cleantech, utilities, and energy transition finance.

Encore Renewable Energy, a leading full-service community-scale renewable energy development company, announced three exciting hires to kick off the new year.

Lauren Glickman is joining the team as Vice President of Marketing, where she’ll manage strategic marketing and communications to elevate Encore’s leadership across the industry. Lauren brings to Encore deep marketing and communications expertise and a tremendous network of contacts throughout the renewable energy industry having spent the last decade as a communications consultant for leading renewable energy businesses and as a Managing Partner for RenewComm and WindyGlick Communications.

Chris Clement is joining the team as Chief Financial Officer and Chief Investment Officer where he will be responsible for the Company’s project finance, corporate finance and investment activities. Chris brings over a decade of experience as a sustainable finance professional working to catalyze investment and innovation in the transition to a broadly prosperous, low-carbon economy.

Bill Barnes is joining the team as Director of Clean Energy Solutions, where he’ll be spearheading business development activities targeting businesses, institutions and utilities looking to secure the economic, environmental, and social benefits that renewable energy can offer these larger customers. He will also be integral in supporting Encore’s increased focus on grid-scale energy storage solutions. Bill brings over 30 years experience in the energy industry. He has originated and supported more than 9 GW of power generation projects in the U.S., Europe, and Africa.

The Brattle Group has welcomed economist Ann Bulkley to its Boston office as a Principal with the firm’s Regulatory Economics, Finance & Rates practice. Ms. Bulkley brings over 25 years of consulting experience working with electricity, natural gas, and water utilities. She specializes in regulatory economics, including rate of return, cost of equity, capital structure, valuation of regulated assets, and municipalization.

The American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE), a national nonprofit that unites finance, policy and technology to accelerate the transition to a renewable energy economy, today announced its new Board class for 2022.

Five new members have joined the ACORE Board of Directors: Will Conkling, Head of Data Center Energy – Americas, Google; Marcus Krembs, Head of Sustainability, USA and Canada, Enel North America; Anthony Oni, Managing Partner, Elevate Future Fund, Energy Impact Partners; and Meghan Schultz, Executive Vice President, Finance and Capital Markets, Invenergy.In addition, Kristal Hansley, CEO and Founder of WeSolar, was elected by the inaugural members of ACORE’s Accelerate program to represent them on the ACORE Board of Directors effective January 1.The following current Board members were elected or appointed to new three-year terms: Vikas Agrawal, Goldman Sachs; Frank Armijo, Lockheed Martin Corporation; Mona Dajani, Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP; Board Chair Kevin Gresham, RWE Renewables Americas, LLC; Shannon Kellogg, Amazon; and Ben Pratt, Ørsted.

Clean Energy Group, a national nonprofit focused on advancing an equitable and inclusive clean energy future, announced the completion of a successful leadership transition as Seth Mullendore stepped into the role of President and Executive Director on January 1st. Mullendore succeeds CEG founder Lewis Milford, who retired at the end of 2021 after 23 years of leading the organization.

Mullendore first joined CEG in 2014, serving most recently as Vice President. Over the past seven years, he has led the organization’s successful Resilient Power Project, which is focused on enabling greater access to the benefits of solar photovoltaics and battery storage for low-income communities and communities of color.

New Energy Equity, a national developer and financier of community and commercial solar projects, has welcomed Ahmar Zaman to its leadership team as Chief Financial Officer. Ahmar will be responsible for supporting rapid growth by managing the internal and external finance functions of New Energy and its subsidiaries.

Ahmar has been involved in the solar industry for more than 15 years and brings valuable insight having experienced the entirety of the industry’s evolution, through various cycles. Most recently, he served as CFO of one of the largest US PV/Storage O&M service firms, which he helped grow from a single vertical to covering four industry verticals while tripling assets under management.

Solar One is pleased to announce the appointment of Stephen Levin as Chief Executive Officer. Stephen joins Solar One after 12 years as a member of the New York City Council for District 33, serving neighborhoods of Brooklyn including Greenpoint, parts of Williamsburg, Vinegar Hill, Dumbo, Brooklyn Heights, Downtown Brooklyn, Boerum Hill, and parts of Bedford-Stuyvesant.

During his tenure as a Councilmember, and as Chair of the New York City Council’s General Welfare Committee, Stephen focused on ensuring homeless families and individuals have access for permanent housing and guaranteeing long term support for those in the foster care system.

Additional job moves, courtesy of: Energeiaworks

Monica Scantlan appointed Director of Recruitment for EnergeiaWorks
Neerav Jashnani is being promoted to Vice President of Investments at Greenbacker Capital
Rich Tiu is starting a new position as Chief Executive Officer at Esdec USA
Ryan Davies is starting a new position as Director of Sales at Yotta Energy
Philip Steinmetz is starting a new position as Renewables Associate Director at Tokyo Gas America Ltd.

Celebrating 10 Years as North America’s leading renewable energy executive search and staffing firm.

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As Project Developer you will originate solar and battery project development and seek power purchase agreement with off-takers while helping acquire and maintain information on market, industry, economic, competitive conditions, and trends for utility solar and energy storage, identify opportunities for developing utility scale solar and battery storage projects or battery only projects, and set up siting strategy for the projects to maximize the revenue of the projects and reduce the cost.

You will lead land acquisition and regulatory compliance, qualify new origination with disciplined due diligence to eliminate early stage fatal flaws, set up and forecast the development budget plan, determine appropriate points of interconnection with electric utility grid resources and determine interconnection feasibility, including easements for interconnecting lines, and identify energy off-take opportunities for PPAs, RFPs, and prepare for bidding.

Additionally you will lead to conduct Due Diligence on early project development opportunities for acquisition, learn local solar development rules and regulation including solar legislation, tax issues and solar program guidelines, support the finance team to set up financial modeling of projects with the goal of achieving comprehensive and realistic financial expectations, keep senior management apprised on any changes in solar programs, or new opportunities, develop competitive market intelligence on competing solar developers in development territory, and develop knowledge of and relationships with third party supporting service providers for solar facilities activities (e.g: consulting engineers, legislative consultants, site evaluation services, etc.)

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Appalachian Power purchases Firefly Energy solar project in Virginia

Anne Fischer — Wed, 05 Jan 2022 14:19:43 +0000

Recurrent Energy completed the sale of the 150 MWac to Appalachian Power, the utility’s largest solar energy acquisition to date.

Canadian Solar Inc. announced its wholly owned subsidiary, Recurrent Energy, LLC completed a purchase and sale agreement with Appalachian Power for Recurrent’s Firefly Energy solar project located in Pittsylvania County, Virginia. Firefly Energy is expected to be operational in the 2nd quarter of 2024.

Firefly Energy has a capacity of 150 MWac, Appalachian Power’s largest solar energy acquisition to date. Once completed Firefly Energy will help the utility meet its clean energy requirements under the Virginia Clean Economy Act (VCEA).

Passed in 2020 by the Virginia General Assembly, the VCEA seeks to end carbon dioxide emissions from the utility industry in Virginia. The Act establishes renewable portfolio standards for Applachian Power calling for the utiity to be 100% carbon free by 2050. SEIA estimates that in 2020 Virginians were receiving 3.25% of energy needs from solar and the state was ranked 9th in the nation for solar installations, with nearly 6000 MW forecast over the next five years. The Act establishes that 16,100 MW of solar and onshore wind is “in the public interest.” The law also expands net metering and requires Virginia’s largest energy companies to construce or acquire more than 3,100 Mw of energy storage capacity. Appalachian Power intends to meet its VCEA targets primarily through future investments in solar, wind, energy storage, and energy efficiency measures.

The Firefly Energy solar project will be developed and constructed by Recurrent under a Build Transfer Agreement (BTA). Once construction is completed, Appalachian Power, which has 1 million customers in Virginia, West Virginia and Tennessee (as AEP Appalachian Power, will be the long-term owner of the project. Pending local and state permits and other regulatory approvals, construction of the project is expected to start in early 2023 and reach commercial operation in 2024.

“This will be our largest solar project yet in our journey to deliver clean, reliable power to our customers,” said Chris Beam, Appalachian Power president and chief operating officer.

Recurrent received approval on its Siting Agreement for the Firefly project last month from the Pittsylvania County Board of Supervisors. The agreement provides $2.25 million in upfront payments to Pittsylvania County in addition to long-term revenue for public services over the life of the project.