November 3
All 50 States Took Grid Modernization Steps in Q3
Top consumer smart energy news hand-selected and brought to you by the Smart Energy Consumer Collaborative.
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A new report finds that all 50 states, as well as the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, took actions related to grid modernization during Q3 2023, with the greatest number of actions relating to energy storage deployment (57), utility business model reforms (42), distribution system planning (31), interconnection rules (25) and smart grid deployment (25).
Arizona Public Service and Tucson Electric Power expect to add about 16 GW and 4 GW, respectively, of renewable energy, energy storage and other resources over the next 15 years, according to integrated resource plans filed Wednesday with the Arizona Corporation Commission. Under its resource planning roadmap, APS expects to add more than 6,000 MW of solar and wind power, coupled with about 2,000 MW of battery storage, by 2027.
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) released a report that examines the cost of installed solar photovoltaic (PV) and battery storage systems. The report – called the U.S. Solar Photovoltaic System and Energy Storage Cost Benchmarks, With Minimum Sustainable Price Analysis: Q1 2023 – found that benchmark prices declined for residential systems and increased for utility-scale systems.
Most Americans are aware of electric alternatives to fossil fuel-powered household appliances, such as heat pumps, electric water heaters and induction cooktops, but few have yet to make the switch, according to a new survey from the Smart Energy Consumer Collaborative (SECC), a nonprofit organization that studies the needs and wants of today’s energy consumers.
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Industry News
Last year, Dan Fulop faced a problem. The 46-year-old computational biologist had inherited a used gas clothes dryer with his newly purchased Boston-metro townhouse — and the appliance was leaking fuel. He and his family could smell the gas lingering in the air. So Fulop, who plans to decarbonize his whole home, was thrilled last September when he was able to chuck the faulty fossil-fueled appliance for an uber-efficient electric heat-pump dryer.
Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) incentives have the potential to reduce building greenhouse gas emissions through 2035 more than emissions in any other end-use sector, according to a recent report from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). IRA incentives are expected to help cut building emissions 52-70 percent from 2005 levels, a median decline of 66 percent, by 2035.
Renewables are clearly the future of the energy system. One only needs to look at the logjammed interconnection queue to know there is only one outcome for transforming our generation stack. Renewables have a double-edged sword for how they interact with the grid; they often produce amazing and abundant low-cost electrons. However, sometimes when they do so, they can overwhelm the grid.
The rooftop solar industry is booming, but far too few lower-income Americans are benefiting as a result. It’s a “modern version of redlining,” according to Joe Evans of the Kresge Foundation. Now an increasing number of charitable foundations are stepping up to redress that injustice, using a range of approaches to bring the benefits of solar to the communities that need it most.
