A large portion of the cost of electricity comes from a very small portion of hours out of the year. As a result, utilities, electricity grid operators and private companies alike are finding innovative solutions to these infrequent but substantial electricity costs. One product in particular that has already proven to be successful throughout the country is demand response.
In this week’s Solar News Roundup, learn about two exciting new developments concerning solar batteries: an international company acquisition and a plan for nearly a gigawatt of new solar and storage resources in Arizona.
Solar energy is not a “one size fits all” investment. Depending on your needs, you’ll have to choose between several types of solar power systems for your property – grid-tied, grid-tied with storage, and off-grid solar systems.
The electrical grid is designed with redundancy in mind. In order to avoid any consumers losing power, and especially any prolonged drops in power, utilities and the grid operators have designed backup plans and backups to those backups. Although very rarely, if ever, necessary, the last of those backup plans is perhaps the most important of all: black start resources.
In this week’s Solar News Roundup, one of the country’s largest utilities makes an exciting commitment to solar, plus a case study on the transition from fossil fuels to solar energy.
There are a number of important steps along the path to installing solar: obtaining quotes, choosing your equipment, selecting an installer, and the actual installation itself. Arguably the most important step is connecting your solar energy system to the utility grid, commonly known as solar interconnection.
Across the country, utilities are beginning to introduce innovative rate structures for residential energy consumers. These rate structures–from time-of-use rates to demand charges to real-time-pricing–all have a common goal: to incentivize customers to consume energy during times when the cost of generating electricity is cheap, and to disincentive energy consumption when the cost of generating electricity is high. As a result, understanding the ins and outs of a time-of-use rate can help you reduce your monthly cost of energy.
Solar panels and smart thermostats are two of the most powerful technologies available to help you take control of your home’s energy consumption. By installing solar and a smart thermostat in your home, you can minimize your environmental impact and maximize your clean power use. Here’s why solar panels and smart thermostats are the best way to turn your home into a 21st-century eco-friendly house.
The New York Public Services Commission (PSC) has introduced measures to ensure that distributed energy technologies like rooftop solar panels remain affordable for all New Yorkers. As part of the state’s forward-thinking Reforming the Energy Vision (REV) initiative, state utilities will be barred from owning distributed generation equipment (such as your solar panel system). According to Governor Andrew Cuomo, the new rules will empower state residents to take control of their electricity usage – and reduce their power bills.
The key focus of the REV program is to bring New York’s electricity system into the modern era by improving network efficiency and introducing more renewable energy sources. As Governor Cuomo points out in the announcement of the new rule last month, New York’s approach to electricity infrastructure has undergone little change since the first grid was introduced in lower Manhattan back in 1884. “This state is in need of a modern and efficient energy system, and we are proud to take the steps to build a sustainable way to deliver energy to every home in New York,” he said. Continue reading
According to the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), the price consumers in New York are paying for electricity today is 40 percent more than it was a decade ago. At the same time the price of natural gas, the basic fuel that is most often used to produce energy in the state has fallen by 39 percent. So why are New Yorkers paying more for their power? The WSJ postulates that utilities have been spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on updates to the grid in order to raise rates and make more money. Continue reading
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