Battery storage has long held the promise of eventually replacing the costliest, most-polluting fossil-fuel fired generators that are used to meet surging electricity demand on the grid. That day may now be upon us as costs of batteries plummet and as state regulators from Massachusetts to Arizona weigh new incentives for the technology.
The New York Department of Public Service on July 1 released a unit-by-unit study of replacing or repowering peaking units, which are fossil‐fuel generators that typically operate during high demand periods. The analysis identified at least 275 megawatts, representing about 6 percent of the state’s peaking fleet, as potential candidates for substitution with 6-hour batteries…
The California state Assembly approved a measure requiring the Public Utilities Commission to earmark 10 percent of the 2020 funds from the Self Generation Incentive Program to install battery storage and distributed energy systems, in order to back up critical infrastructure in areas facing high wildfire risks. The allocation would amount to $16.6 million funded…
New Hampshire lawmakers have approved legislation that allows municipalities and counties to aggregate retail electric customers who do not opt out of a program. Currently, community choice is allowed only for residents who consent to being included in a program. The bill allows municipalities to operate energy efficiency and clean energy districts adopted with the…
State renewable portfolio standards are a key driver behind the torrid expansion of wind and solar generation across the U.S., responsible for about half of the nation's deployment of the clean energy sources over the last couple of decades.
The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection and the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority initiated a proceeding to examine the value of distributed energy resources, according to a July 3 notice. The move stems from legislation enacted in June directing the agencies to launch a joint study and report their findings to the joint standing…
The Public Service Company of New Mexico, a unit of PNM Resources Inc., asked the Public Regulation Commission to approve its plan to retire 497 megawatts of the San Juan Generating Station coal-fired plant in 2022 after the current coal supply and operating agreements expire, according to a July 1 filing. The company evaluated four…
The Tennessee Valley Authority on June 28 released its 2019 integrated resource plan, which calls for up to 14 gigawatts of new solar and 5.3 gigawatts of battery storage to meet the electricity needs of the seven-state region through 2038. The utility said that the plan is designed to facilitate a more flexible power generation…
State renewable portfolio standards are a key driver behind the torrid expansion in wind and solar, responsible for about half of the nation’s deployment of the clean energy sources over the last couple of decades. More than three dozen states plus the nation’s capital have compliance standards or voluntary targets and stronger ones are being…...
State legislatures from Maryland to Colorado are finding bigger is better when it comes to community solar gardens, and have passed bills to expand the size of eligible projects or to even eliminate the cap on the number of residents that can subscribe to the facilities.
Democratic Governor Janet Mills signed a measure on June 26 establishing a climate council tasked with developing an action plan to achieve emissions reductions of 45 percent by 2030 and 80 percent by 2050, relative to 1990 levels. Mills also signed a bill that strengthens the state’s renewable portfolio standard to 80 by 2030 and…
The California Public Utilities Commission on June 28 finalized the procurement levels required under the state’s renewable portfolio standard program for years beginning in 2021 that were revised by Senate Bill 100 enacted last year. The law requires 60 percent of electricity retail sales to come from renewable resources by 2030. The agency revised the…