Category Archive

The Aloha State’s GEM$ program enables renters and low-income households to install solar and energy-saving equipment with no upfront costs. Hawaii may have a solution for the energy efficiency industry’s perennial landlord-tenant split incentive dilemma. The problem: Landlords won’t reach into their own pockets for energy-saving improvements if their tenants are paying the utility bills; for their part, tenants aren’t …

A compact solar-powered device can make hydrogen fuel at a record-setting rate. Power generation fuelled by hydrogen emits only pure water, but producing hydrogen cleanly and quickly has posed a challenge. In the photo-electrochemical (PEC) approach, materials similar to those used in solar panels are immersed in a water-based electrolyte. Sunlight striking the materials drives a reaction that splits water …

Tesla CEO Elon Musk says that the automaker is working on a new battery pack to come out next year which will last 1 million miles. When talking about the economics of Tesla’s future fleet of robotaxis at the Tesla Autonomy Event yesterday, Musk emphasized that the vehicles need to be durable in order for the economics to work: “The cars currently …

Last Friday, tens of thousands of school students went on “strike”, imploring politicians to finally Get Serious about climate change policies, and urging a switch to 100 per cent renewable energy by 2030. Can’t be done, they were told. Readers may remember, however, that ANU researchers Andrew Blakers and Matt Stocks in February said that if Australia continued at its current rate …

Eversource advanced plans to install a 25 MW / 38 MWh lithium-ion batteryin Provincetown, Massachusetts, after residents approved a lease for the project last week, the utility announced on Friday. Provincetown, on the northern tip of Cape Cod, has faced an increasing number of power outages as climate change has caused more severe storms, according to an Eversource official. The battery will help maintain power during power …

The New Mexico legislature has passed the Energy Transition Act (SB 489), a bill that will make electricity generation 100% carbon-free by 2045 from the state’s investor-owned utilities. The bill, first introduced in February, passed the state Senate last week. The House of Representatives passed the bill 43-22. Pending Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s signature on this legislation, New Mexico will join California and Hawaii …

Massachusetts’ new energy efficiency program adds batteries to the mix. Clean Energy Group’s project director breaks down the new policy and next steps. Energy storage has been the coming thing for years. Now, it has arrived – as an efficiency measure. When the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities (DPU) approved the state’s new three-year energy efficiency plan, known by many …

No matter how abundant or renewable, solar power has a thorn in its side. There is still no cheap and efficient long-term storage for the energy that it generates. The solar industry has been snagged on this branch for a while, but in the past year alone, a series of four papers has ushered in an intriguing new solution. Scientists …

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Non-wires alternatives, or NWAs, represent one of the most exciting opportunities for the transformation of U.S. utility business models. NWA projects can use distributed energy resources—including energy efficiency, demand response, solar, storage and microgrids—as least-cost energy solutions. By using NWAs, some utilities are delaying or deferring the need for comparably more expensive infrastructure, such as transmission and …

judge has ruled that the County of San Diego’s climate action plan must be set aside and redone, a decision that could have far-reaching implications for the housing industry. San Diego Superior Court Judge Timothy Taylor said the plan, adopted earlier this year by the Board of Supervisors, violates the county’s Gener al Plan because it allows developers to purchase …