Policy

Hanwha Solutions becomes the largest shareholder of REC Silicon and, pending passage of SEMA, commits to a multi-phase, multi-billion-dollar expansion across the full solar energy supply chain. March 23, 2022 Hanwha Solutions announces stepped up efforts to supply customers with “Made-in-America” products. Hanwha, the Korean company that owns Q CELLS, launched this effort by becoming …

Hanwha commits to US manufacturing across the supply chain Read More »

The story of how the three-year battle was fought and won, at least for now, was shared with members of Puerto Rico’s solar trade group. March 23, 2022 A proposed surcharge on customers with rooftop solar power in Puerto Rico, to fund repayment of the utility PREPA’s debt, is now off the negotiating table, due …

Puerto Rico solar tax has been defeated Read More »

The International Renewable Energy Agency forecasts that the cumulative end-of-life waste from PV in the US in 2030 is projected to be between 0.17 and 1 million tons. For perspective, there are 200 million tons of solid waste, excluding recycled and composted materials, generated in the United States each year. Although 95% of a cadmium …

Greening solar energy with end-of-life plan Read More »

Sen. Ed Markey’s CHARGE Act requires forward-looking transmission planning by utilities to lower prices and improve reliability. Among other sweeping changes, the bill requires hourly operational and greenhouse gas emissions reporting in a timely manner. March 18, 2022 Senator Ed Markey (D-MA) introduced a bill, Connecting Hard-to-reach Areas with Renewable Energy (CHARGE), that is set …

Federal legislation introduced to build renewable energy “superhighway” Read More »

The goal of the SEPA Tiers of Decarbonization project is to clarify terms and contexts to allow organizations to accelerate their progress towards a carbon-free energy future. March 17, 2022 The United States’ government has set a goal to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2050 accounts for approximately 25% of total US greenhouse …

Watch: SEPA offers actions and strategies for utilities and other organizations to meet carbon reduction goals Read More »

“Advanced conductors” can deliver more electricity than conventional transmission lines, using existing transmission towers. Renewables trade group ACORE calls for greater use of advanced conductors, “to accelerate low-cost decarbonization.” March 16, 2022 Replacing 5,000 miles of transmission wires each year with “advanced conductors” would make room for 27GW more renewable generation per year, says a report from …

Upgrading transmission lines could enable 27GW more renewable power per year Read More »

Ethanol emits more greenhouse gasses than the gasoline it is supposed to replace. Additionally, ethanol (corn) farms greatly under-utilize one of the greatest resources we have – land. Of the ~92 million acres of corn planted in the US each year, roughly 40 million acres (1.6% of the nation’s land) are primarily used to feed …

Solar+food in ethanol fields could fully power the United States Read More »

Without important federal measures like the Build Back Better reconciliation bill, the investment tax credit long-term extension, and US manufacturing support, Wood Mackenzie and the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) said the US will fall short of goals. March 10, 2022 SEIA and Wood Mackenzie issued a call to the federal legislature to move quickly …

Without federal support, US would only reach 39% of carbon-free energy sector by 2035, said Wood Mackenzie Read More »

Global energy-related carbon dioxide emissions rose by 6% in 2021 mostly due to increased coal use, but renewable energy sources and nuclear power provided a higher share of global electricity generation than coal in 2021, according to IEA report. March 9, 2022 As global economies rebounded from the Covid-19 crisis, the increase in coal use …

In 2021 renewable energy use reached an all-time high, but so did CO2 emissions Read More »

A Vibrant Clean Energy study commissioned by Vote Solar found that GW-scale investments in distributed solar and storage would yield the lower cost between two approaches studied for Michigan to achieve economy-wide carbon neutrality by 2050. March 8, 2022 The average Michigan customer could save $773 per year through 2050 compared to current utility plans, …

3GW distributed solar and 2.1GW distributed storage in Michigan by 2035, under a low-cost scenario Read More »