July 10, 2021

Weekend reads: Is the grid ready for climate change?; Electric isn't easy

It's the weekend! Kick back and catch up with these must-read articles from around the web:

Solar Is Dirt-Cheap and About to Get Even More Powerful (Bloomberg)  The solar industry has spent decades slashing the cost of generating electricity direct from the sun. Now it’s focusing on making panels even more powerful. With savings in equipment manufacturing hitting a plateau and more recently pressured by rising prices of raw materials, producers are stepping up work on advances in technology — building better components and employing increasingly sophisticated designs to generate more electricity from the same-sized solar farms. 

'Electric is not easy': LA, NYC look to build capacity for more battery EVs in refuse fleets (Utility Dive)  WasteExpo events the past few years, both in person and virtual, have featured introductory sessions on battery-electric trucks. This year, there were numerous models on display and one available for test drive outside. Leaders and speakers discussed widespread adoption of the technology, though not imminent, as inevitable in the future. The cities of New York and Los Angeles each have ambitious greenhouse gas reduction and fleet electrification goals that were announced just prior to pandemic lockdowns in 2020. 

WEBINAR: How Daimler Trucks North America is Accelerating Scope 1, 2, and 3 Emission Reductions with Sustainable Energy Services Agreements (Metrus Energy) Daimler Trucks North America is implementing sustainable energy improvements across multiple sites using the "as-a-service" model to avoid upfront costs and accelerate sustainability at scale. In this webinar, DTNA’s Matthew Markstaller will reflect on how these projects were shaped by legal and risk considerations, and how the energy services agreement offered the flexibility the program required. Metrus Energy's Anastasia Beckett will share her perspective on the financial nuts and bolts of the Sustainable Energy as a Service model and discuss the role of the third-party financier in coordinating the project's development and hands-on management.

On Virginia military base, efficiency upgrades produce savings and resilience (Energy News Network)  Homeowners eager to lower their power bills have a relatively short rooftop-to-basement-to-backyard checklist for guidance on maximizing potential savings. But that proposition is trickier at the storied Quantico Marine Corps Base, 35 miles southwest of Washington, D.C. With hundreds of buildings sprawling across 86 square miles, military decision-makers needed outside advice to figure out how to button up their largest energy leaks.

PowerFlex Expands Offerings to Provide Integrated Suite of Onsite Energy Solutions (EDF Renewables North America)   EDF Renewables North America today announced that its PowerFlex subsidiary has expanded its offerings to provide customers with a complete product suite that now includes onsite solar, in addition to its existing offerings of battery storage, electric vehicle charging, microgrids, and energy management systems. To enable this expansion, EnterSolar, another EDF Renewables subsidiary, will use the PowerFlex brand and bring its 15-year track record of providing behind-the-meter solar solutions for corporate clients.

The US power grid isn’t ready for climate change (Vox) In Portland, Oregon, this week, the recorded official temperature reached 115 degrees Fahrenheit, power cables for the city’s streetcars melted, sagging overhead wires forced the light rail to shut down, and more than 6,000 people lost electricity. But it’s far from the first time extreme weather has caused serious problems with the power grid in recent months. During the winter storm that hit Texas in February, nearly 5 million people lost power. In June, California suggested that residents charge their electric vehicles during off-peak hours to save energy. And for the first time ever, after power outages hit several neighborhoods during this week’s heat wave, New York City officials sent residents an emergency mobile alert urging them to conserve energy.

Executive Moves: Edison Energy adds Hannah Badrei to oversee its energy commodities and renewables advisory teams (Edison Energy) Edison Energy has hired Hannah Badrei, Ph.D. as Vice President of Front-of-Meter to oversee its power and gas supply procurement functions as well as the renewables advisory and market insights and analysis teams. Badrei brings more than 17 years of energy experience in the power, natural gas, and renewables sectors. Her expertise spans go-to-market strategy development, origination, deal structuring, and quantitative analysis.

Visualizing the Flow of U.S. Energy Consumption (Visual Capitalist)  Breaking down America’s energy consumption in 2020, the United States relies on a complex mix of energy sources to fuel the country’s various end-sectors’ energy consumption. While this energy mix is still dominated by fossil fuels, there are signs of a steady shift to renewable energy over the past decade. This radial Sankey diagram using data from the EIA (Energy Information Administration) breaks down U.S. energy consumption in 2020, showing us how much each sector relies on various energy sources.