solar

  • WFW advises Noy Fund on acquisition of 421 MW Spanish PV portfolio

    February 13, 2020 — Watson Farley & Williams (“WFW”) has advised Noy Infrastructure & Energy Investment Fund (“Noy Fund”) on the acquisition of a majority stake in a photovoltaic (“PV”) portfolio of two plants with a total installed capacity of 421 MW from Hive Energy and White Light Energy. It represents Noy Fund’s first investment in […]

  • California Official: Solar’s Future Bright, but Clouds Persist

    The technology behind solar power is changing rapidly. Researchers at the University of California, Davis have said so-called “anti-solar” panels could even generate power at night. But even as solar deployments grow worldwide, more innovative solar products are launched, and more governments enact clean energy mandates, political headwinds threaten to slow the progress of the […]

  • Endesa to Close Two Giant Spanish Coal Plants

    Endesa on Dec. 27 formally moved to shutter two massive coal-fired power plants—the 1.4-GW As Pontes plant in A Coruña, Galicia, which is the biggest coal-fired power plant in Spain, and the 1.16-GW

  • India’s Energy Market Overhaul—Infrastructure, Renewables, and Keeping Coal in the Mix

    India wants to reform its power generation sector, including upgrades to energy infrastructure, and plans to introduce new technology to make its electricity supply more reliable and resilient. It’s part of

  • The POWER Interview: Benefits of a Smarter Grid

    The smart grid is transforming the way utilities communicate with their customers. Smart grid technology, including control systems and automation that help new technologies work together, supports a power grid that can respond digitally to quickly changing electricity demand. The smart grid enables electricity producers to enhance reliability, availability, and efficiency. It can provide cost […]

  • Qatar Will Boost Middle East Solar with 800-MW Project

    Qatar’s energy minister on Jan. 19 said the country will build an 800-MW solar power project that will push the country far beyond its announced goal for solar energy. That goal of 100 MW of solar generation was established when Qatar in December 2010 was awarded rights to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup tournament. […]

  • Small business, big impact: E.ON extends 100% renewables-backed electricity offer to small business customers

    January 20, 2020 — E.ON today announced it would be extending its 100% renewables-backed electricity supply to eligible small business customers across Britain – committing to source electricity matched with wind, solar and other sources for 100,000 or more small businesses over the next 12 months. E.ON already provides its residential customers electricity supply backed […]

  • Sunflower Finally Scraps Plans for 895-MW Kansas Coal Plant

    Sunflower Electric Power Corp. has abandoned plans to build the $2.8 billion Holcomb Expansion after its partner on the 895-MW coal-fired power plant project in Kansas, Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association, announced it would no longer pursue the project. Sunflower said on Jan. 15 it will allow the project’s air permit, for which it once […]

  • Report: Investment in Renewables Hit Record High in 2019

    Financial support for installations of offshore wind projects helped investment in renewable energy capacity hit a record high in 2019, according to data from research company BloombergNEF (BNEF) released Jan. 16. The group said worldwide investment in renewables was $282.2 billion last year, up 1% from $280.2 billion in 2018. Financing of offshore wind projects, […]

  • EIA: Renewables Will Surge Past Coal, Nuclear to 22% of U.S. Power Mix in 2021

    The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) in its first forecast for 2021 suggests the share of renewables in the utility-scale U.S. power generation mix will surge to 22%, up from 17% last year, while coal and nuclear’s shares will be further diminished. According to the agency’s latest Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO), released Jan. 14, coal’s […]

  • Ceremonial Groundbreaking Kicks Off Construction Of Sunpin Solar’s 98 MW Titan Solar 1 Project

    IRVINE, Calif., Jan. 14, 2020 —  Sunpin Solar, a California-based solar developer, held a groundbreaking ceremony on January 10th, 2020, celebrating the start of construction on its 98 MW Titan Solar 1 Project in Ocotillo Wells, California. This is Sunpin Solar’s second large utility-scale solar project in California, following the successful completion of the 96.75 […]

  • New York Is Fertile Ground for Clean Energy

    When many people are asked which state is leading the U.S. toward a renewable energy future, California is the first that comes to mind. And while California is worthy of such distinction, it’s not the only state with a progressive clean-energy agenda. New York should also be part of the conversation. On Jan. 8, New […]

  • 2020 – A New Energy Era Begins, and Storage is Key

    This last year of the decade proved to be a pivotal year for energy storage technology, as major developments underscored why it is so vital for energy markets. Events such as widespread power outages and transmission issues on a global scale have led to the precipitous rise in energy storage deployments. The energy industry has […]

  • Solar Installations to Grow by Additional 142 GW in 2020 – Seven Times the World’s Total Solar Installations a Decade Ago

    LONDON (January 7, 2020) – Global solar installations will continue double-digit growth rates into the new decade, according to the new 2020 Global Photovoltaic (PV) Demand Forecast by IHS Markit (NYSE: INFO), a world leader in critical information, analytics and solutions. New annual installations in 2020 will reach 142 gigawatts (GW), a 14 % rise […]

  • Feds Back Construction of Largest U.S. Solar Farm

    The U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) on Dec. 30 released a final environmental impact statement (EIS) for the Gemini solar project, a planned 7,100-acre installation outside Las Vegas, Nevada, with a proposed generation capacity of 690 MW. The $1 billion project would be the largest U.S. solar farm in terms of generation, and includes […]

  • 10 Power Sector Insights from the IEA’s World Energy Outlook 2019

    The International Energy Agency’s (IEA’s) November 2019–released World Energy Outlook 2019 (WEO2019) is studded with interesting findings about emerging trends in the power sector. Here are 10 from the

  • POWER Digest [January 2020]

    Engie Will Close 1 GW of Coal Generation; Adding Solar, Wind. French energy group Engie in mid-December said it will close 1 GW of coal-fired power generation assets in Peru and Chile over the next five years

  • Power Industry Disrupters: Gas, Renewables, and Storage

    The power industry is experiencing significant changes. Natural gas, wind, solar, and battery storage seem to be the wave of the future. What’s compelling the transformation? Some people point to

  • Electric Power Generation: Coal Is Currently a Vital Component

    Over the past decade, there has been a significant change in the U.S. system of power generation in the lower 48 states. The major factors that resulted in these changes were the discovery of new natural gas

  • Why the 2010s Were a Definitive Decade for Power

    Every one of the 13 decades that POWER magazine has been in print has been definitive for electric generation technology, policy, and business in some significant way, but few have been as transformative as the 2010s. The decade opened just as the global economy began to crawl toward recovery from a historically unprecedented downturn that […]

  • New Jersey Backs 45 Community Solar Projects

    The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) on Dec. 20 announced it has approved 45 applications in the first year of its Community Solar Energy Pilot Program. The NJBPU in a statement Friday said the projects, with total generation capacity of 77.61 MW, will be designed by local governments, community groups, and private developers. […]

  • NERC: Long-Term Reliability Uncertain Amid Rapid Changes to Bulk Power System

    Significant and rapid changes that are reshaping North America’s power sector will likely leave Texas and Ontario, Canada, with supply shortfalls over the next decade, and energy deficiencies could also occur during off-peak conditions in the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) area and the Western Electricity Coordinating Council (WECC) region, the North American Electric Reliability […]

  • THE BIG PICTURE: The Need for Power Flexibility

    In its November 2019–issued World Energy Outlook, the International Energy Agency (IEA) suggests that if countries pursue currently stated policies, the combined generation share of wind and solar photovoltaic could surge from 7% today to 24% in 2040. This very steep ramp-up of variable renewables will undoubtedly require an emphatic focus on flexibility—the ability of […]

  • Renewable Power Generation on Rise in Turkey

    The market for renewable energy in Turkey has been growing since the country enacted a “Renewable Energy Law” in 2005. Progress has been steady and has ramped up in recent years after renewable energy

  • Decarbonization: Utilities Leading the Way

    Decarbonization is a word that seems to be used quite regularly these days. For the power industry, it refers to the shift in electric generating resources from carbon-heavy coal to carbon-free nuclear or

  • Joining Forces with Europe Brings Learning and Promising Results for U.S. Renewable Energy

    One of the most hopeful statistics regarding the world’s energy goals comes from the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory, whose study explained that it’s possible for America

  • China Ramping Renewables, and Building More Coal Plants

    Officials in China in 2017 said the country—the world’s largest emitter of greenhouse gases—would move away from coal-fired power generation. They promptly canceled more than 100 coal power plant construction projects. But coal remains king in China, which in the past two years has added 43 GW of coal-fired generation capacity, according to a report […]

  • What’s Driving Wholesale Power Price Changes? Not What You Think

    Falling natural gas prices tamped down annual U.S. wholesale power prices over the last decade by $7/MWh to $53/MWh—to a much higher degree compared to the impact of wind and solar growth—a new report from Lawrence Berkeley National Lab (LBNL) suggests.  The Nov. 20–published report, The Impact of Wind, Solar, and Other Factors on Wholesale Power […]

  • 6 Takeaways from POWERGEN International 2019

    The POWERGEN International exhibition and summit—one of the world’s largest power-industry events with more than 750 exhibitors—was held at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans, Louisiana, Nov. 19–21, 2019. POWER was there (Figure 1) to connect with leaders from the industry and report on the latest news from the show. Hot topics […]

  • Regulators: Central Station Generation Will Stay Dominant Despite Emerging Tech

    A nationwide survey of state utility commissions suggests regulators are increasingly grappling with issues that could “profoundly” alter energy delivery and utility business models. However, over the next decade, they expect central station generation will continue to dominate state portfolios, and utility-scale solar growth will surpass customer-owned photovoltaic (PV).  The survey to take the “regulatory […]