Save the Climate
In-depth reporting on ways to speed the renewables transition, and the barriers slowing it down
(Most headlines are linked to news articles in PV Magazine USA.)
Suggested searches:
- Interconnection
- Flexible demand
- GW (for gigawatts)
- Resource plan
- Smart inverters
- Electric vehicles
- Transmission
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Scheduled home charging of EVs could expand EV hosting capacity
Scheduled home charging of EVs reduces the cost for hosting more electric vehicles on a utility’s distribution circuit, according to a national laboratory analysis.
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50 GW of solar and storage for TVA by 2035, plus EVs could save customers money
A clean energy plan for TVA sponsored by the Center for Biological Diversity and GridLab could save customers about $200 billion through 2050. It calls for almost four times more solar by 2035 than the maximum amount TVA was considering last year.
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PJM projects 48 to 94 GW of renewables will be built in the grid region by 2030
The grid operator’s projected 5% “completion rate” for projects in its interconnection queue was questioned by executives at the renewables trade group ACORE and the consultancy GridLab.
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U.S. added 6.4 GW of small-scale PV last year
Small-scale PV additions last year exceeded additions in 2021 by 1 GW, and additions in 2020 by 2 GW.
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U.S. needs 47,000 more GW-miles of transmission by 2035 for a cleaner grid
The U.S. Department of Energy said it may designate “National Interest Electric Transmission Corridors” based partly on the final results from its national transmission needs study.
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California evaluates impacts of an RTO and its effects on state energy goals
A report requested by California’s legislature discusses both expected cost savings from expanding the state’s grid operator into a regional transmission organization, and a potential loss of state policy control.
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Credit renewables and storage fairly for their capacity value, says ESIG
An Energy Systems Integration Group report calls for improved approaches to crediting resources for their capacity contribution, starting with fair treatment for all resources.
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SEPA survey shows utilities’ favored approaches to become carbon-free
The Smart Electric Power Alliance survey reports utilities’ progress on actions that can support the deployment of solar, wind and storage.
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Price-responsive demand can accelerate renewable generation
With increasing adoption of electric vehicles and heat pumps, whose demand can be flexible, “marrying” that trend with the upward trend of variable renewable generation “could accelerate both,” said a paper from the Energy Systems Integration Group.
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ERCOT advanced 15 GW of solar in 2022, moving 5x faster than other RTOs/ISOs
Texas grid operator ERCOT advanced interconnection requests for 15 GW of solar projects last year, with three other grid operators advancing 9 GW. CAISO completed phase 1 studies for a large cluster of projects, while PJM and ISO-NE stayed mum on their progress.