PV Tech, April 21, 2014 Value of solar tariffs (VOST) of the type recently adopted in the US state of Minnesota create “serious instability for the solar industry”, according to US advocacy group The Alliance for Solar Choice (TASC). The group has spoken out on the VOST, which could replace net metering. The policy is designed … Read More
“We can’t do it as an individual, But four hundred communities aggregating and asking for local wind power and solar power – that’s really powerful.” Oak Park, IL, is one of hundreds of Illinois towns using their authority to buy electricity in bulk on behalf of its residential and small business customers. So far, most communities … Read More
The following presentation was given by ILSR’s Director of Democratic Energy John Farrell at the Electrons on the Run mini-conference in Alexandria, MN, on March 12, 2014. The presentation illustrates how distributed renewable energy in the 21st century fits the rural electric utility philosophy of self-reliance and local economic development, just as providing local electricity service … Read More
Two weeks ago, Minnesota’s Public Utilities Commission ratified the first-ever statewide policy for setting a fair and transparent price on solar energy. This week, a coalition of companies that provide leasing contracts for solar to home and business customers declared war on this “value of solar” policy, and pretty much every financial model for compensating solar … Read More
In March 2014, Minnesota became the first state to adopt a “value of solar” policy. It may fundamentally change the financial relationship between electric utilities and their energy-producing customers. It may also serve as a precedent for setting a transparent, market-based price for solar energy. This report explains the origins of value of solar, the compromises … Read More
A recent report from the World Wildlife Fund (and others) touts how city energy aggregation is “unleashing” renewable energy in Illinois. Buying electricity on behalf of their residential and small business customers, nearly 100 Midwestern cities have purchased renewable energy credits (RECs) along with their energy supply, giving their electrons a questionable aura of green energy. … Read More
Learn more about the struggle against the incumbent utility giant for local clean energy in this 2014 interview with Marin Clean Energy Executive Director Dawn Wiesz about community choice aggregation in California and her community’s pioneering program.… Read More
Browse the Report Introduction What is Energy Storage? Empowering Local Energy Community Solar and Storage Removing Barriers to Storage Supporting Renewable Energy Summary Footnotes DOWNLOAD THE REPORT Executive Summary Distributed energy storage promises to change the electricity system during the next decade, as fundamentally as distributed renewable energy has in the last decade. Already, promising examples … Read More
The rapid changes to the electricity system being wrought by distributed solar have utilities crying out, and they’ve poured much of their distributed solar angst into a chart being shared throughout the energy nerdocracy – the duck. The Duck Chart, Showing Net Supply/Demand on the California Grid in 2012-13, Forecast through 2020 Until 2012, daily energy demand … Read More
