utilitydive.com - by Herman K. Trabish - March 14, 2017
Beyond simply contracting for solar, utilities are increasingly investing in the sector to ‘position themselves to be the utility of the future'
Solar energy is becoming a generation resource so ubiquitous that utilities are looking beyond simply contracting for new capacity and are increasingly moving into the sector themselves.
Solar added a record-breaking 14,762 MW of capacity in 2016, nearly doubling its 2015 growth. The resource added 39% of all new U.S. generation capacity in the year, making it the leader among all resources for the first time.
Growth was dominated by utility investment in 2016, a trend that’s expected to continue, according to a new report from the Solar Energy Industries Association and GTM Research.
John Goodenough, coinventor of the lithium-ion battery, heads a team of researchers developing the technology that could one day supplant it. Photo: Cockrell School of Engineering
spectrum.ieee.org - by Mark Anderson - March 3, 2017
Electric car purchases have been on the rise lately, posting an estimated 60 percent growth rate last year. They’re poised for rapid adoption by 2022, when EVs are projected to cost the same as internal combustion cars. However, these estimates all presume the incumbent lithium-ion battery remains the go-to EV power source. So, when researchers this week at the University of Texas at Austin unveiled a new, promising lithium- or sodium-glass battery technology, it threatened to accelerate even rosy projections for battery-powered cars.
microgridknowledge.com - October 28th 2016 - Elisa Wood
New York energy advisors unveiled a new, more granular way to price distributed energy resources and transition away from net metering, in a proposal released yesterday.
The report, issued by the Department of Public Services staff, said that current pricing methods fail to take into account the full value of distributed energy.
State regulators had called for the report as part of Reforming the Energy Vision (REV), New York’s strategy to create a decentralized power grid. (VIEW COMPLETE ARTICLE)
BOSTON - U.S. Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz and U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell today announced the publication of a collaborative strategic plan to continue accelerating the development of offshore wind energy in the United States, the National Offshore Wind Strategy: Facilitating the Development of the Offshore Wind Industry in the United States, which could help enable 86 gigawatts of offshore wind in the United States by 2050. The strategy details the current state of offshore wind in the United States, presents the actions and innovations needed to reduce deployment costs and timelines, and provides a roadmap to support the growth and success of the industry.
utilitydive.com - by Robert Walton - July 26, 2016
Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser (D) has signed legislation to push the nation's capital towards 50% renewable energy within the next 15 years, a goal she says will increase residents' access to clean energy while also creating jobs and new businesses.
The goal includes promises to serve 100,000 low-income residents with solar energy by 2032 and reduce their power bills by 50%.
To meet anticipated demand for solar energy, the city has partnered on a jobs program to provide District young adults with paid training in solar panel installation, energy efficiency, and basic safety and construction skills.
Image: The blockchain was developed as a means of creating digital property without the need for a central authority keeping track of who owns what. Photograph: Jacob Carter/Rex/Shutterstock
theguardian.com - July 7th 2016 - Alex Hern
Have you heard the good news? The blockchain is here – and it’s going to save everything.
If you aren’t tied to the tech community, you might not have picked up on this salvation rhetoric.
. . The Administration is announcing new executive actions and 33 state and private sector commitments that will accelerate the grid integration of renewable energy and storage. Together, these announcements are expected to result in at least 1.3 gigawatts of additional storage procurement or deployment in the next five years. .
The South Fork Clean Energy Forum, a free public event we are hosting at LTV Studios in Wainscott.
This educational forum will serve to discuss the challenges and opportunities of building a renewable and resilient energy system for the South Fork. Participants are invited from the towns and hamlets of East Hampton and Southampton townships, community organizations and leaders, as well as energy experts and industry representatives.
East Hampton Town Supervisor Larry Cantwell is a confirmed speaker, and we are inviting Southampton Town officials. Members from both town’s energy and sustainability advisory committees will be participating. The event is co-sponsored by the Town of East Hampton, Town of Southampton Sustainability Committee, and the East End Resilience Network.
There will be informative presentations, panel discussions and plenty of opportunity for Q & A.
The event is open to the public and free of charge.
RSVPs are recommended as space is limited. Stay tuned for further updates and a list of speakers.
The East Hampton Star - Letter to the Editor 06.09.16 - by Linda James
Return of Wind Power - East Hampton - June 6, 2016
Dear David,
Last week, the U.S. Interior Department, following a presidential directive, announced it would lease 81,000 ocean acres off New York’s coastline for wind development. Announcing this new leasing auction, in a release by Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Sally Jewell, secretary of the Interior, was quoted: “In addition to providing clean power, offshore wind energy marks a new frontier in renewable energy development, creating the path for sustainable electricity generation, job creation, and strengthening our nation’s economic competitiveness.”
John Goodenough, coinventor of the lithium-ion battery, heads a team of researchers developing the technology that could one day supplant it. Photo: Cockrell School of Engineering
Image: The blockchain was developed as a means of creating digital property without the need for a central authority keeping track of who owns what. Photograph: Jacob Carter/Rex/Shutterstock 
submitted by Gordian Raacke
