Energy Efficiency, Regulation, Solar  -  May 30, 2020

Weekend reads: Renewables granted extension on tax credits; The EU's greenest COVID recovery plan

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

Joe Biden Weighs New Climate Proposals in Bid to Woo Sanders Supporters (The Wall Street Journal) Joe Biden says he will add details to his climate plan and is likely to propose new investments, an olive branch to Bernie Sanders and his liberal allies. But in battleground states such as Pennsylvania, Republicans are already portraying Mr. Biden as a threat to the oil-and-gas industry.

Trump administration gives renewables more time to take advantage of tax credits (The Hill) The Trump administration is making it easier for renewable energy projects to take advantage of certain tax credits amid the coronavirus pandemic. The Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service issued a notice Wednesday that said it would give some companies that started construction in 2016 or 2017 an extra year before they have to put their projects in service. The notice also allows some companies additional time to receive materials for construction in order to meet a requirement to start construction.

The solar industry and consumers both lose with federal ‘MOPR’ rule (pv magazine) Owners of solar installations in the 13-state PJM grid region would be essentially excluded from earning revenue in the PJM capacity market under a new federal Minimum Offer Price Rule (MOPR), a new report shows. That’s because the minimum bids they would be allowed to offer would generally exceed the clearing price in the market. The rule will exclude projected new solar developments from selling at least 8.5 GW of capacity in the PJM capacity market through 2030, says the report by Grid Strategies, a consulting firm. When counting wind and storage capacity as well, sales of at least 14.6 GW of capacity will be excluded in PJM.

On opposite ends of state, Missouri cities go different directions on building energy use (Energy News Network) St. Louis, Missouri, made headlines this month for adopting one of the country’s most ambitious building energy policies. Meanwhile, across the state in Kansas City, a routine building energy code update is again facing resistance before the City Council. What’s the difference besides 250 miles or so? St. Louis officials credit early outreach and engagement along with flexibility in the final policy for helping to win over homebuilders, who have largely supported the steps in that city while their peers in Kansas City put up resistance to code changes.

The EU is launching the world’s greenest coronavirus recovery plan (Fast Company) While the Trump administration tries to help struggling oil companies and continues to roll back environmental policies, the European Union is planning a green recovery, with a new proposal to pour hundreds of billions of euros into new renewable energy, clean transportation, building renovation, and other programs designed to help Europe shrink its carbon footprint. Though the plan isn’t yet final, most EU member countries see prioritizing climate action in the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic as necessary.

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