All posts published in 2017
Ethan Forauer, ERS, for Zondits In a piece of legislation that has proven to be one of the first of its kind, Wyoming State Representative David Miller has brought forward a bill aiming to penalize state utilities that incorporate ineligible clean energy resources in the state’s electricity portfolio. This comes at a juncture where economic … Read more
Jim Paull, ERS, for Zondits Why in the world would anyone mount a photovoltaic array facing north? Didn’t anyone tell them that in this hemisphere the sun is to the south? What were they thinking? The best orientation for a solar installation – whether it’s thermal or photovoltaic – is facing due south at an … 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
Brian McCowan, ERS, for Zondits When inspecting solar photovoltaic (PV) systems we often encounter the typical problems such as excess shading from trees, loose wires, and module or cell physical damage. During a recent evaluation we discovered something unusual that provides an interesting opportunity to consider the effects of partial shading on PV panels – … Read more
Trump’s regulatory freeze halts four Obama rules aimed at promoting greater energy efficiency The Washington Post, January 21, 2017 Nearly simultaneously with President Trump’s oath of office Friday, the White House website shifted to remove climate change related content from the Obama administration and supplant it with a new statement of Trump’s energy policy — one focused, it said, reducing … 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
Gita Subramony, ERS, for Zondits Clean energy is not the sole province of the federal government. Although the Obama administration included energy efficiency and clean energy in its platform, it is unclear how the new Trump administration will treat these policy issues. Given the uncertainty of federal initiatives going forward, it is now more than … Read more
Ameresco to build renewable-powered microgrid for US Marine Corps Energy Storage, January 13, 2017 Ameresco will build a renewable-powered microgrid at a Marine Corp facility in Parris Island, South Carolina. The project at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot (MCRD) includes 6.7MW of PV generation, a 3.5MW combined heat and power facility and a 8MWh battery storage … Read more