Tesla’s Battery Revolution Just Reached Critical Mass Bloomberg, January 30, 2017 Tesla Motors Inc. is making a huge bet that millions of small batteries can be strung together to help kick fossil fuels off the grid. The idea is a powerful one—one that’s been used to help justify the company’s $5 billion factory near Reno, Nev.—but batteries have so far only … Read more
Opening Energy Efficiency To All With Inclusive Financing Alliance to Save Energy, January 25, 2017 More than a third of US residents are effectively locked out of financing programs for energy efficiency, especially renters and those homeowners who can neither afford to pay upfront for efficiency upgrades nor take on debt.1 Similar barriers affect businesses … Read more
Employment in the Energy Efficiency and Renewables Sectors Track Upward Energy Manager Today, January 25, 2017 The numbers are in and the results are clear: Energy efficiency is a growing source of employment. Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Energy (DoE) released its second annual analysis on employment in the energy industry. The 2017 U.S. … Read more
Katie Robinson, ERS, for Zondits More and more companies are looking to save energy – and energy costs – by changing their operating hours or allowing employees to work from home. Can flexible schedules make a significant dent in energy consumption and cost? Implementing a work schedule that strays from the regular 9–5/Monday–Friday is a … Read more
Daniel Pidgeon, ERS, for Zondits Southern California Edison, Pacific Gas & Electric, and San Diego Gas & Electric are seeking a combined $1B over the next five years (in addition to $200M already going towards electric vehicle charging infrastructure) to help the state meet its electric vehicle targets and carbon reduction goals. This figure would … Read more
BP’s Energy Outlook: Between Forecasting and Advocacy The Energy Collective, January 30, 2017 BP’s new Energy Outlook predicts ever-growing demand for oil and gas, and rising emissions that would take the world well beyond 2°C of warming. According to Greg Muttitt, Senior Advisor at NGO Oil Change International, previous Outlooks do not provide much confidence in BP’s projections, but … Read more
Daniel Pidgeon, ERS, for Zondits The California-based beer company Sierra Nevada has installed Tesla Powerpack batteries to help mitigate the costs that stem from electricity demand charges. Sierra Nevada has grown substantially since it began as a West Coast craft brewer and can now brew up to 1.4 million gallons of its signature pale ale … Read more
Why bother with energy efficiency? Control Design, January 19, 2017 “The end user is looking for energy-efficient machines, but these users are also looking to do more work with fewer machines as a means of saving energy,” says Mark Sobkow, vice president of manufacturing solutions, RedViking in Plymouth, Michigan. “We do a lot of projects that focus … Read more
Jesse Remillard, ERS, for Zondits Southern California is becoming a high-stakes testing ground for utility-scale battery energy storage. The energy storage provider AES has secured two contracts totaling 37.5 MW (150 MWh) that will be critical for San Diego Gas and Electric (SDG&E) to meet its peak demands. The AES press release states that the two … Read more
Jesse Remillard, ERS, for Zondits Over the last few years, the Federal Energy Regulation Committee (FERC) has been implementing policy to build energy storage into electricity markets. FERC Order 745, which required grid regulators to allow energy storage resources to bid into wholesale markets, was initially passed in 2012. In 2014, Order 745 was challenged … Read more