April 30
Duke Plans to Triple Renewable Energy Output by 2030
Top consumer smart energy news hand-selected and brought to you by the Smart Energy Consumer Collaborative.
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Duke Energy expects to triple the amount of renewable energy it produces by the end of this decade, according to its annual Sustainability Report, which reports on environment, social and governance issues. Currently, about seven percent of Duke Energy’s electrical output comes from wind, solar and hydroelectric plants. That figure is projected to more than triple to 23 percent by 2030.
EPRI and several of its member utilities are collaborating with VIA on a project that seeks to uncover how smart meter data can be managed better while being made more accessible. The participating utilities include Con Edison, American Electric Power, Électricité de France and Pacific Gas & Electric. Recent regulations in the European Union as well as several U.S. states have mandated more open access to AMI data to support an accelerated transition to clean energy.
While electrifying heating is an important step in decarbonization, increased electrical load in the winter is a new challenge many energy providers will have to face. Most utilities are prepared for summer peaks, but winter peaks can last over several days where summer ones typically only last a few hours. And power outages or shortages in the winter can put people’s health and safety at risk – even making homes inhabitable in very cold temperatures.
The cost of wind energy is expected to decline by as much as 35 percent by 2035 and by almost 50 percent by 2050, according to a survey conducted by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. The experts responding to the Berkeley Lab survey estimated median reductions in the levelized cost of energy for wind power of 17 to 35 percent by 2035 and of 37 to 49 percent by 2050.
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Industry News
This week, the U.S. Department of Energy announced the availability of up to $8.25 billion in loans from its Loan Programs Office and the Western Area Power Administration for efforts to expand and improve the nation’s transmission grid. The money is available to support the Biden Administration’s commitment to modernize the nation’s power grid and infrastructure and deliver 100-percent clean energy to businesses and homeowners by 2035.
The Biden Administration unveiled a series of actions intended to accelerate deployment of electric vehicles and chargers. The Department of Transportation announced the fifth round of “Alternative Fuel Corridors” designations. This program, created by the FAST Act in 2015, recognizes highway segments that have infrastructure plans to allow travel on alternative fuels, including electricity, a White House fact sheet noted.
Energy company Avista has set a goal of being carbon neutral by 2045, with a 30 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. “We are proud to continue our commitment to environmental stewardship and sustainability,” Dennis Vermillion, President and CEO of Avista, said. “We set an ambitious renewable electric energy goal in 2019 – to serve our customers with 100-percent clean electricity by 2045 and to have a carbon-neutral supply of electricity by 2027.
Tesla deployed 445 MWh of battery storage in the first quarter of 2021 as demand for the company’s Powerwall battery unit outstripped its production rate, company executives said on Monday's Q1 earnings call. The deployment total represented a 71-percent increase compared to Q1 of the previous year, although storage was down over the previous two quarters.
