The US Renewable Energy Thread - All Renewable, All the Time! (1 Viewer)

[Nathan R. Jessep]

 

 

[msommer]

In the from elsewhere column:

Replacing "end of life" coal plant with renewables cheaper than life extension upgrades in Australia

About 1bn USD over the first 5 years...

Modelling by the UTS Institute for Sustainable Futures, commissioned for the Australian Conservation Foundation, found a clean energy package including battery storage, solar thermal and bioenergy, would have a zero pollution outcome compared with 40m tonnes of pollution by extending Liddell.

 

[msommer]

Also in the from elsewhere column:

Clean Energy Is Approaching a Tipping Point

But there is this little nugget 

Because energy costs vary widely from country to country, it’s difficult to make firm conclusions about when renewables might be able to overtake fossil fuels on the grid. For example, Brazil relies heavily on hydroelectric dams and France on its nuclear reactors -- technologies in much lower use in most other places.

For Liebreich, the economics of wind and solar are becoming compelling enough that it’s unlikely coal be able to hold onto its dominant position in the global power mix no matter what incentives President Donald Trump implements in the U.S.

“This is going to happen,” Liebreich said. “Coal is declining in the U.S. Nobody is going to make coal great again.”

 

[General Malaise]

This is a pretty big deal:
 

The China-based electric vehicle battery manufacturer Contemporary Amperex Technology Co Ltd (CATL) is now planning a $2 billion IPO to be completed by the end of June 2018, with the funds to be used to accelerate the company’s expansion plans.

Amongst the plans for the IPO funds, the company will reportedly be building two new electric vehicle battery manufacturing plants — including one that will possess a production capacity of 24 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of battery cells.

If completed, the IPO in Shenzhen will represent the largest by a non-financial private firm in China on the mainland — and will boost the value of the firm to some $20 billion.

“CATL said in a prospectus that it planned to raise 13.1 billion yuan ($1.97 billion) through an initial public offering of 217 million new shares, or about 10% of its enlarged capital, indicating a valuation of around $20 billion,” Reuters reports.

“CATL held 10.5% of the global electric-vehicle (EV) battery market in 2016, behind only BYD and Panasonic, according to BNP Paribas. The firm’s move to list on China’s NASDAQ-style ChiNext board would also give investors a potential way into a company pegged as one of the battery champions in the world’s largest market for electric cars.

“In the prospectus, first posted by China’s securities regulator late on Friday, CATL said it had brought in 14.9 billion yuan in sales last year, up almost threefold versus 2015. Net profits were up sharply also to 3.1 billion yuan.”

The plan is for the newly raised funds to help CATL achieve its target of possessing 50 GWh of lithium-ion automotive battery production output by 2020 — and also to help in a possible further expansion into international markets.

The company is also reportedly now looking into further upstream investments into the mining and production of the raw materials used in automotive lithium-ion batteries — such as cobalt, lithium, etc.

I'm pretty sure my next vehicle purchase will be EV or a hybrid.  

 

[Sand]

The US is crushing it's clean energy forecasts.

 

[msommer]

Five ways to play the growing renewable energy sector

As coal continues to decline (which Molchanov argues is due to the uncompetitive economics of older plants along with some state-level policies, with federal policy only playing a peripheral role), the analyst reaffirmed his view that wind and solar will provide two-thirds of the U.S.'s power generation on average with natural gas providing the other third.

And one more for the wind sceptics out there:

UK enjoyed 'greenest year for electricity ever' in 2017

Renewables overall - including wind, solar, biomass and hydropower - beat fossil fuels for only 23 days of the year.

Dr Andrew Crossland from MyGridGB and the Durham Energy Institute said: "The government has focused on reducing coal use which now supplies less than 7% of our electricity.

"However, if we continue to use gas at the rate that we do, then Britain will miss carbon targets and be dangerously exposed to supply and price risks in the international gas markets."

He added that "refreshed government support for low carbon alternatives" is now needed to "avoid price and supply shocks for our heat and electricity supplies".

Emma Pinchbeck, executive director of Industry body RenewableUK, called for "more boldness" from the government.

She urged onshore wind to be developed across the UK in an "ambitious sector deal with the off shore wind industry" that could help secure a "golden age for renewables" in 2018.

An Energy Department spokesman said the UK was reducing emissions faster than any other G7 country - which includes the US, Japan, Germany, Italy, France and Canada.

 

[brettdj]

tesla solar roof cheaper than normal roof

@brettdj

Sent my $1000 in last week.  I need to replace my cedar shingles soon.  I hope their quote process does not take too long.

 

[msommer]

Sent my $1000 in last week.  I need to replace my cedar shingles soon.  I hope their quote process does not take too long.

Love to hear your experiences. I definitely think that tech will be great, but I don't live in a place where it is marketed yet. By the time they get to here, I'm sure I'll need a new roof

 

[Dragons]

 

[joffer]

would be interested in hearing any quotes anyone has gotten recently on solar panels.  I think it’s still about a 10-12 year payoff.  I’m on pace for about 13 years.

 

[msommer]

On the topic of off shore wind:

Bigger, higher and floating — advances that make wind a better power source

One reason wind farms do not supply as much electricity as older power stations is that they do not work on still days. Larger rotors that can capture more wind energy and other advances in turbine technology have already led to higher capacity factors — the amount of electricity a power plant actually produces compared with what it could generate running at full capacity.

“Nowadays it is the norm in the large US Midwest market for projects to have capacity factors above 50 per cent, something that was unheard of 10 years ago,” says energy specialist, Ben Backwell of FTI Consulting.Renewable energy advocates have long sought ways to boost that number further by storing power generated on windy, sunny days so it can be released in still or dark circumstances. The high cost of common storage technologies, such as lithium-ion batteries, is a hurdle. Prices are falling, however and some companies are looking at ways to hook up turbines to batteries.

In the US, the Deepwater Wind company plans to pair a wind farm off the coast of Massachusetts with a Tesla battery system. The world’s biggest lithium battery device — installed in South Australia this year by Tesla’s Elon Musk — is connected to a wind farm, though its job is to inject power rapidly to help keep the grid stable. 
 

 

[msommer]

Tesla's solar tiles are here

 

[msommer]

Rare Earth Minerals, why not to worry

@jonessed - I think you have brought this up in the past, the article may be interesting for you. An opinion piece and not solid science but perhaps worthwhile reading

Together, these shifts in economic geology, resource use, and innovation are extremely powerful. This isn’t to say that no rare-earth issues remain: Price instability, for example, remains a long-term concern if greater efforts to supply the more-valuable “heavy” subfamily of rare earths co-produce too many less-valuable “light” ones. But serious concern about rare earths still lacks an informed basis in either scarcity or oligopoly. Only the echoes of less-informed prior concerns reverberate.

 

[jonessed]

Rare Earth Minerals, why not to worry

@jonessed - I think you have brought this up in the past, the article may be interesting for you. An opinion piece and not solid science but perhaps worthwhile reading

Interesting read.  Thank you.

 

[msommer]

In the "from Elsewhere in the World" category

Wave energy: Introducing the Wave Star

ETA: To say this technology is in it's infancy would be an understatement

 

[Snorkelson]

Clean power, education, affordable health care. These are the things I want too see $$ spent on, not walls. I understand people don’t want 100 windmills in their county or their beachfront to suddenly sport a wave power plant, but I also understand the current path isn’t sustainable. When we get this stuff miniaturized and affordable enough where people can rely on themselves rather than a regional producer we will make exponential progress. 

Its irritating that we seem to be lagging behind in this research. This is a no brainer- we don’t have to drill or mine anything to get it, it doesn’t put a bunch of crap in the air and water. It doesn’t ruin the health of the people working with it. And when it runs out we will have bigger problems like the sun dying. 

You want your presidency to be looked at in the future along side FDR? Be the guy that pushes America to renewable energy. A trillion dollar push to build would pay for itself- unlike a border wall (even if you put solar panels on it). 

Energy lobby is powerful. Unlimited money, for limited power. 

 

[msommer]

Renewable Energy at 18% of electricity in 2017, up 20% from 2016

Eighteen percent of all electricity in the United States was produced by renewable sources in 2017, including solar, wind, and hydroelectric dams. That’s up from 15% in 2016, with the shift driven by new solar and wind projects, the end of droughts in the West, and a dip in the share of natural gas generation. Meanwhile, both greenhouse gas emissions from power generation and consumer spending on power declined.

Renewables’ share of U.S. energy consumption has now doubled since 2008, as coal’s share crashed in the same period from 48% to 30%. And while the Trump administration has signaled a desire to cut funding for renewable energy and efficiency programs, the trends seem set to continue thanks to market forces.

 

[Borden]

@msommer 

Do you have solar panels? How much was the initial setup costs? How much maintenance do they require?

When I look it up through Tesla it all it has is the deposit price which doesn’t really help with trying to budget for something so potentially expensive. 

 

[msommer]

@msommer 

Do you have solar panels? How much was the initial setup costs? How much maintenance do they require?

When I look it up through Tesla it all it has is the deposit price which doesn’t really help with trying to budget for something so potentially expensive. 

Unfortunately not. I live in Denmark and they have not entered the market here. But when they do I'll be very keen to install them, assuming I have a South or West facing roof at that time

 

[Snorkelson]

@msommer 

Do you have solar panels? How much was the initial setup costs? How much maintenance do they require?

When I look it up through Tesla it all it has is the deposit price which doesn’t really help with trying to budget for something so potentially expensive. 

I don’t know what exactly you’re looking for but this stuff is available at Home Depot these days. 

Here is one example

If you are handy they aren’t hard to install, although leave the wiring to a professional. I don’t have any but have installed a set. 

This one is a grid tied system (on grid) so it feeds back thru the meter and offsets your usage, rather than an off grid system that has battery storage. Off grid systems with storage capacity are about double the price. I believe it’s possible to purchase a battery for an on grid unit but I really don’t know enough about it. 

 

[Borden]

I don’t know what exactly you’re looking for but this stuff is available at Home Depot these days. 

Here is one example

If you are handy they aren’t hard to install, although leave the wiring to a professional. I don’t have any but have installed a set. 

This one is a grid tied system (on grid) so it feeds back thru the meter and offsets your usage, rather than an off grid system that has battery storage. Off grid systems with storage capacity are about double the price. I believe it’s possible to purchase a battery for an on grid unit but I really don’t know enough about it. 

Thanks for the link and suggestion. Lots of info that I didn’t know about when you look into the Q&A section. That specific brand can hook into a battery but only the manufacturers proprietary battery. 

I’m just starting to look into seriously solar for my home and thought if someone here already had it then I could avoid some mistakes. My reasons for wanting solar power probably aren’t really inline with the theme of the thread though and don’t really want to clog up the thread with my issues and home solar power only discussion. I will find or start a “Going solar for my house” thread if/when I actually get it done. 

Thank you again though for the link and info. 

 

[Snorkelson]

Thanks for the link and suggestion. Lots of info that I didn’t know about when you look into the Q&A section. That specific brand can hook into a battery but only the manufacturers proprietary battery. 

I’m just starting to look into seriously solar for my home and thought if someone here already had it then I could avoid some mistakes. My reasons for wanting solar power probably aren’t really inline with the theme of the thread though and don’t really want to clog up the thread with my issues and home solar power only discussion. I will find or start a “Going solar for my house” thread if/when I actually get it done. 

Thank you again though for the link and info. 

Keep in mind what kind of credits are available now vs 2-3 years from now, the cost offset by way of tax credit could quite possibly disappear. However, there may be new credits in place if you heat your house with coal 

 

[Borden]

Keep in mind what kind of credits are available now vs 2-3 years from now, the cost offset by way of tax credit could quite possibly disappear. However, there may be new credits in place if you heat your house with coal 

Hahahaha. I’m in Canada so I don’t think there will be coal rebates any time soon. 

The biggest concern that I have is that that I end up spending a bunch of money now and in 2-3 years the technology is WAY more effective and efficient. Being in Canada the winter months get still get lots of sun but the rays aren’t very strong (obviously) so jumping on board early could be an expensive error. 

Since we are getting into it, the reason I want to go solar is to that I can be self sufficient. I want to get to the point where if I were to lose my job I could survive on next to nothing without having to giving up much. Utility bills can get pretty expensive and you’re under the thumb of power companies. It’s a reoccurring bill that you can never pay off. 

With this being my reasoning, I don’t want to jump the gun and end up with marginal gains in the summer and then still paying high bills in the winter because I jumped the gun and got in when the technology wasn’t quite there yet. 

 

[The Tick]

Thanks for the link and suggestion. Lots of info that I didn’t know about when you look into the Q&A section. That specific brand can hook into a battery but only the manufacturers proprietary battery. 

I’m just starting to look into seriously solar for my home and thought if someone here already had it then I could avoid some mistakes. My reasons for wanting solar power probably aren’t really inline with the theme of the thread though and don’t really want to clog up the thread with my issues and home solar power only discussion. I will find or start a “Going solar for my house” thread if/when I actually get it done. 

Thank you again though for the link and info. 

@joffer did it a little over a year ago and has posted about it here some, not sure what thread it was in.

 

[Borden]

@joffer did it a little over a year ago and has posted about it here some, not sure what thread it was in.

I tried to track it down but ole joffer isn’t conservative with the posts and didn’t start any specific thread for it in the last 4 years. Hopefully your mention will summon this solar demon.

 

[Dragons]

In the US (specifically CT, in my case), there were 3 things that made solar affordable 4 years ago. We have a Federal Tax Credit, so the system is automatically discounted by 30%. We also had a state rebate, which reduced the cost an additional 30ish%. Additionally, our state currently has Net Metering, so every watt I send to the grid completely offsets one that I buy.

With those 3 benefits, a $30k system offsets 90-95% of my yearly energy use and would be a 7-8 year payback if I paid cash.

I put in 255W 16% efficient panels, which seemed to be the sweet spot at the time. I believe panels can be 285-300W now and potentially over 20% efficiency, so more energy can be produced for the same roof space.

I'd be happy to answer any specific questions you have.

ETA -

Panels I put in: http://www.solardesigntool.com/components/module-panel-solar/Canadian-Solar/2613/CS6P-255P/specification-data-sheet.html

255W, 15.85% efficiency.

Best guess at today's versions of this panel: https://www.canadiansolar.com/fileadmin/user_upload/downloads/datasheets/en/new/Canadian_Solar-Datasheet-CS6P-P_en.pdf

270W, 16.79% efficiency.

At any time we could get game changing tech, but in 4 years it seems to be more incremental (and I'm already halfway through the payback).

 

[Borden]

In the US (specifically CT, in my case), there were 3 things that made solar affordable 4 years ago. We have a Federal Tax Credit, so the system is automatically discounted by 30%. We also had a state rebate, which reduced the cost an additional 30ish%. Additionally, our state currently has Net Metering, so every watt I send to the grid completely offsets one that I buy.

With those 3 benefits, a $30k system offsets 90-95% of my yearly energy use and would be a 7-8 year payback if I paid cash.

I put in 255W 16% efficient panels, which seemed to be the sweet spot at the time. I believe panels can be 285-300W now and potentially over 20% efficiency, so more energy can be produced for the same roof space.

I'd be happy to answer any specific questions you have.

Lots of questions. What brand did you choose and why? Do you have the battery system? Does your system draw enough power in the winter to supply your home? How optimal was your house/roof position? Is there anything that you would change if you did it again? Was there anything that unique that you did or just anything in general that you would recommend doing? I have more questions but this seems like too many already.

 

[Dragons]

Lots of questions. What brand did you choose and why? Do you have the battery system? Does your system draw enough power in the winter to supply your home? How optimal was your house/roof position? Is there anything that you would change if you did it again? Was there anything that unique that you did or just anything in general that you would recommend doing? I have more questions but this seems like too many already.

I didn't choose a brand. I chose a solar installer, the panels and inverter were selected by them.

I do not have a battery system, these were not really an option 4 years ago. I've thought about installing one now, but with Net Metering, I get most of the benefits of a battery system without the cost. Also, note that with my installation, solar production is OFF if we lose power.

No, through net metering, I bank kwh during the spring/summer with the utility and get to use them in the fall/winter. Theoretically, I could bank kwh in a battery, but it would have to be far larger than is currently available for home owner use. Current batteries are sized for small time shifting (using afternoon solar production in the evening). In CT, and presumably Canada, you need seasonal time shifting. Net Metering provides this for me. You would need a ~1000 kwh battery to accomplish this with a battery. (Tesla's Powerwall is 10 kwh)

My roof point west/south, but I have tons of tall trees. I had 3 installers tell me I had shading issues before 1 finally went up on the roof and took some measurements. He said, "When you get up here, it's not so bad." Duh. So I would say better than average roof.

I think I made the best decision based on my options at the time. I can't think of anything I could change that was available at the time.

I didn't do anything really unique other than purchase the system vs. lease. With the State rebate, I was locked into a particular system/program. I was really at the mercy of the installers and ultimately our electric utility. I do strongly recommend to buy vs. lease. Leasing options at the time were only a slight savings over 20 years, but came with an immediate "payback". Buying had a longer payback, but much greater savings.

 

[Borden]

I didn't choose a brand. I chose a solar installer, the panels and inverter were selected by them.

I do not have a battery system, these were not really an option 4 years ago. I've thought about installing one now, but with Net Metering, I get most of the benefits of a battery system without the cost. Also, note that with my installation, solar production is OFF if we lose power.

No, through net metering, I bank kwh during the spring/summer with the utility and get to use them in the fall/winter. Theoretically, I could bank kwh in a battery, but it would have to be far larger than is currently available for home owner use. Current batteries are sized for small time shifting (using afternoon solar production in the evening). In CT, and presumably Canada, you need seasonal time shifting. Net Metering provides this. You'd need a ~1000 kwh battery to accomplish this. (Tesla's Powerwall is 10 kwh)

My roof point west/south, but I have tons of tall trees. I had 3 installers tell me I had shading issues before 1 finally went up on the roof and took some measurements. He said, "When you get up here, it's not so bad." Duh. So I would say better than average roof.

I think I made the best decision based on my options at the time. I can't think of anything I could change that was available at the time.

I didn't do anything really unique other than purchase the system vs. lease. With the State rebate, I was locked into a particular system/program. I was really at the mercy of the installers and ultimately our electric utility. I do strongly recommend to buy vs. lease. Leasing options at the time were only a slight savings over 20 years, but came with an immediate "payback". Buying had a longer payback, but much greater savings.

Thank you.

Just to clarify something, a non-battery/on-grip system isn’t really about powering your home but rather it’s about feeding back into the system and getting money back for the power you provide the company?

Back to more questions...

Is your system upgradable? Both to a battery bank system (you did mention this) and/or to more efficient panels? Have you done much research on the newer stuff? Or Tesla specifically? How big are your panels and how many do you have? (You might have answered this with your edit and the links). Assuming my position of wanting to be 100% independent of the power company (still tied into the grid though), would you recommend waiting for the technology to advance? How often do you need to clean off the panels? 

 

[Dragons]

Thank you.

Just to clarify something, a non-battery/on-grip system isn’t really about powering your home but rather it’s about feeding back into the system and getting money back for the power you provide the company?

Back to more questions...

Is your system upgradable? Both to a battery bank system (you did mention this) and/or to more efficient panels? Have you done much research on the newer stuff? Or Tesla specifically? How big are your panels and how many do you have? (You might have answered this with your edit and the links). Assuming my position of wanting to be 100% independent of the power company (still tied into the grid though), would you recommend waiting for the technology to advance? How often do you need to clean off the panels? 

Yes, to a certain degree. My house does use as much of my own solar power as I need first, before sending anything to the grid. But the peak generation is in the afternoon, whereas my peak usage is in the evening.

In 2016, I produced 8014.6 kwhs of electricity and my home used 8641.6 kwh. Of that usage 6379 kwh (74%) was delivered from the grid and I sent back 5752 kwh.

As far as panels are concerned, I would think my system would be upgradeable, but I do not know the process for this. I have micro-inverters, so theoretically, I should be able to take out any panel and replace it. I don't know if my inverter can handle different types of panels, but I would assume I could replace them all with the same type of new panel (as long as the new production does not exceed the max that my inverter can handle). The panels are by far the largest cost of the system, so there would have to be a major technology breakthrough to warrant it.

I also think I could upgrade to a battery. The way I understand the Tesla battery is that it seamlessly works on your side of the meter. I would think it would not be noticeable to the utility (but would also need to be OFF during a power outage).

I follow solar tech news, but I don't follow the market (in other words, I constantly see articles of the latest technology under study, but don't know what is available for purchase and at what cost). To my understanding, Tesla's solar offerings are on par with the market, they're not technologically superior.

I have (31) 255W panels. With my roof, in my area, they projected these to output ~8500 kwh / year (before panel degradation).

If you have net metering available (and your roof is setup correctly), you can be "100% independent" now, as long as you are willing to define that in you will produce as much solar power as you consume, but you may trade solar power for grid power at the time of use. If you want to store all the power you produce and then actually use it yourself, then you will need to wait for battery (or other storage) technology to grow exponentially. I suppose you could also wait for solar technology to grow immensely, so that you have a system powerful enough that the lowest producing day in the winter will still produce all the energy you will need, but you will have massive overages in the summer that will either be lost as heat, or sent to the grid at a very low return. This type of system will likely never be cost effective to install.

IMO, solar on it's own is nowhere near ready to go off the grid. Which is what I think you're asking for, even though you'll still be grid tied (for emergencies).

ETA - and it may never be capable of going off the grid except in areas where sun is more consistent year round, so you may be waiting for technology that will never come (thus missing possible savings and going green along the way).

 

[joffer]

you never have to clean the panels.  Dragons is covering most of it very well. My experience has been very similar, although I only have 18 panels.

Make sure to research how your utility company handles it.  There can be gotchas in the fine print.  

More discussion here - https://forums.footballguys.com/forum/topic/743403-price-of-solar-has-dropped-50-in-last-16-months/

 

[brettdj]

@msommer 

Do you have solar panels? How much was the initial setup costs? How much maintenance do they require?

When I look it up through Tesla it all it has is the deposit price which doesn’t really help with trying to budget for something so potentially expensive. 

Tesla is only working California right now.  I had a deposit in.  Did not hear anything for over a month.  Emailed Solar City and they told me just California right now.  I did get my deposit back within a week of cancelling.

 

[msommer]

Most of this article is in the category elsewhere in the world, but this little tidbit stood out

The Solar industry in the United States is creating new jobs at a rate 17 times faster than the overall economy.

Battery storage is expected to grow tenfold in the next 5 years in the US – from 295 megawatts in 2017 to 2.5 gigawatts by 2022. Battery storage technology is the fastest growing component of the solar energy market.

 

[msommer]

US Solar doubles capacity in 2017 but trend is down

Utility-scale solar photovoltaic (PV) development continues to trend downward, according to a recent report by the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) (Washington, D.C.). This decline was expected, due to uncertainty stemming from tariffs for solar module imports, and a decrease in solar investment tax credits through 2021.

 

[msommer]

Regardless of tariffs Solar might surprise

The soft costs of solar energy

Analysts have pointed out that Trump’s new solar tariff only impacts the “hard” cost of solar energy, namely, the panels themselves. “Soft” costs account for much of the overall cost of a new solar installation. That can include anything from marketing and administration to transportation, permitting and labor costs. So, at least theoretically a savings on soft costs could offset any upward movement on hard costs.

One place where hard and soft costs intersect is the racking system needed to position solar panels on the ground or on a rooftop. These systems are generally made of steel, and that could be impacted by the new Trump tariff on imported steel. If the new racking system being tested at NREL pans out, though, labor and associated costs could drop significantly — and the steel tariff would be a moot issue, too.

The article continues to outline savings in the pipeline for installation

 

[msommer]

Bay State Offshore windfarm to include storage

Earlier this month, the 800 megawatt Bay State Wind offshore project being developed jointly by Ørsted and Eversource off the coast of Massachusetts announced a deal which will see it work with local NEC Energy Solutions to develop an energy storage solution for the offshore wind farm.

Ørsted, one of the world’s leading offshore wind companies, and Eversource, New England’s premier transmission builder, announced on March 16 that their Bay State Wind partnership had signed a Letter of Intent to work collaboratively with Massachusetts-based NEC Energy Solutions so as to develop an energy storage solution for the 800 megawatt (MW) Bay State Wind. Specifically, they are looking to combine the offshore wind farm with a 55 MW/110 MW-hour (MWh) energy storage option, which upon completion would result in the world’s largest wind-paired energy storage system for commercial-scale energy.

 

[msommer]

Tesla installing for regular customers now

A new “normal” roof with a rooftop solar array was quoted to him for ~$70,000 before incentives, but he ended up waiting for Tesla’s solar roof, which cost him “about $100,000” for the whole solar roof system with 3 Powerwall home battery systems.

The result is a new roof, ~10 kW of solar tiles integrated into the roof, and ~40 kWh of energy storage

Not sure this is 100% apples to apples as a normal rooftop array would not typically have storage (the 3 power walls). Three powerwalls installed appears to be about usd 25k

@Borden

 

[msommer]

A new solution in old tech for power leveling from renewable sources

MIT to the forefront again...

The use of the new type of membrane can be applied to a wide variety of molten-electrode battery chemistries, he says, and opens up new avenues for battery design. “The fact that you can build a sodium-sulfur type of battery, or a sodium/nickel-chloride type of battery, without resorting to the use of fragile, brittle ceramic — that changes everything,” he says.

The work could lead to inexpensive batteries large enough to make intermittent, renewable power sources practical for grid-scale storage, and the same underlying technology could have other applications as well, such as for some kinds of metal production, Sadoway says.

Sadoway cautions that such batteries would not be suitable for some major uses, such as cars or phones. Their strong point is in large, fixed installations where cost is paramount, but size and weight are not, such as utility-scale load leveling. In those applications, inexpensive battery technology could potentially enable a much greater percentage of intermittent renewable energy sources to take the place of baseload, always-available power sources, which are now dominated by fossil fuels.

 

[msommer]

In case you missed it, renewable energy is the future

Moving into 2018, the outlook is also bullish. The numbers have shown big jumps in renewable energy investments in places like Mexico (up 810%), and a very impressive 29-fold increase in investment in the United Arab Emirates. Saudi Arabia has meanwhile unveiled a planned solar power venture with Japan’s SoftBank – a mind-boggling $200 billion, 200GW scheme that is equivalent to two-thirds of all the existing solar worldwide. Even if a quarter of the panels see the light of day, it’ll transform the region’s energy landscape.

All of this has happened at a pace that few thought possible even just a few years ago. In large part, these big numbers are thanks to China, which last year added 53 gigawatts of solar power, about half the world’s total. This growth has brought economies of scale, which in turn has pushed down prices, enabling other power-hungry nations – notably India – to embark on their own mega projects.

And just a bit about the US

Add to that the data on jobs: we know, for example, that solar can easily create more jobs than fossil fuels per dollar invested. In addition, the jobs are generally better paid, better quality, with wider geographical distribution and better gender balance. There are now over 800,000 Americans who work in renewables, compared to 85,000 in coal.

From those liberals at World Economic Forum  

 

[joffer]

Does anyone's energy provider have a "renewable energy rider"?  Haven't been able to find much about them on the web, mine (PEC) only says this:

Would you like to power your home or business with 100 percent renewable energy? Our Renewable Energy Rider Rate lets you go green by just checking a box.  At the cost of just $0.00043 per kilowatt-hour more, this added fee, or adder, ensures that energy billed to you is from a facility that relies exclusively on energy that is naturally generated, such as solar, wind, geothermal, hydroelectric, tidal, biomass or biomass-based waste products.  The adder amount is based on the prices of Texas Renewable Energy Credits.

Unless they've found a way to actually direct the electrons from the wind turbine to my address, i'm guessing this is some kind of adder that, if enough people sign up, allows them to buy more of their power from renewable sources.  It's ridiculously cheap.  1000 kW-hr per month would only cost you $0.40.

Or is this a scam? 

 

[joffer]

Does anyone's energy provider have a "renewable energy rider"?  Haven't been able to find much about them on the web, mine (PEC) only says this:

Would you like to power your home or business with 100 percent renewable energy? Our Renewable Energy Rider Rate lets you go green by just checking a box.  At the cost of just $0.00043 per kilowatt-hour more, this added fee, or adder, ensures that energy billed to you is from a facility that relies exclusively on energy that is naturally generated, such as solar, wind, geothermal, hydroelectric, tidal, biomass or biomass-based waste products.  The adder amount is based on the prices of Texas Renewable Energy Credits

Unless they've found a way to actually direct the electrons from the wind turbine to my address, i'm guessing this is some kind of adder that, if enough people sign up, allows them to buy more of their power from renewable sources.  It's ridiculously cheap.  1000 kW-hr per month would only cost you $0.40.

Or is this a scam? 

also found this from Mecklenberg, VA

Renewable Energy Rider

For members interested in utilizing energy from renewable resources for all their needs, Mecklenburg Electric Cooperative now offers electric service fully backed (100%) by Renewable Energy Certificates under the “Rider GT” rate.  This Rider is available, on a voluntary basis, as a “companion rate” to any residential bill for the entire month’s electricity usage and will be implemented for those using the program.

After a member signs up for the electric service backed 100% by Renewable Energy Certificates, the Rider will add an additional charge of $0.015 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) to the Energy Supply line on your monthly bill.  This is a sell-at-cost charge, or straight pass-through cost, with no profit or fee added by your Cooperative - participating members will pay exactly what the Cooperative pays.

For every 1,000 kWh sold under the program, MEC will purchase a Renewable Energy Certificate from Old Dominion Electric Cooperative (ODEC).  Renewable Energy Certificates are produced every time a renewable source (windmill, solar array, hydro, etc.) generates 1,000 kWh.  At this time, all Renewable Energy Credits offered by ODEC will be sourced from one or more of the following:

The Armenia Mountain Wind Farm in north-central Pennsylvania (Tioga and Bradford counties)

The Stony Creek Wind Farm in south-western Pennsylvania (Somerset County)

The Criterion Wind Farm in western Maryland (under construction in Garrett County)

 

[msommer]

2018: New record - US corporate renewable energy procurement 3.5 GW so far this year

2018 has been a record year. Do you expect procurement to continue growing in the next three years?

In a word, yes. There are 140 companies who have committed to go 100% renewable under the RE100 pledge, and only about 70 companies who have done large-scale, offsite renewable energy transactions to date. That suggested there will plenty more deals to be done as companies work to meet their 2020 goals or milestones.

Is the increase in procurements spurring more renewable energy development?

Absolutely – most companies seek to build new renewable projects to meet their goals, as opposed to purchasing renewable energy certificates (RECs) or buying from existing projects. In 2017, for example, corporate renewables deals accounted for approximately 20% of new renewable energy build in the U.S.

What do you envision over the next 5-10 years for corporate procurements?

Aside from growth, we anticipate a broadening of the market as different kinds of companies are able to buy renewables. We’re especially excited for smaller businesses to get in on this market, potentially through aggregating their demand to collectively buy large projects. We also are seeing a diversification of sectors entering the market for renewables – this isn’t just a market for big tech companies; it’s also meeting the needs of manufacturing, retail and financial service companies.

 

[msommer]

From the rest of the world column - a curio or potential revolution?

Urban Wind Turbine

The O-Wind Turbine aims to capture inner-city wind and turn it into electricity in cities struggling to produce enough renewable energy for increasing populations.

The portable, low-cost device can be attached to the sides of buildings.

The two inventors said they hoped the energy produced could be plugged into the home or the electricity grid.

The inventors, Nicolas Orellana and Yaseen Noorani from Lancaster University, set out to solve the problem.

"If we could find a solution that caters for the half of the world's population who live in cities, we could give these people an opportunity to generate their own energy and contribute to the environment," explained Mr Noorani

....

He had his eureka moment when he realised that "wind energy technology currently can only capture horizontal wind".

The O-Wind turbine is a 25cm spherical device which sits on a fixed axis. The geometric structure of its vents means that it spins when wind hits it from any direction.

This wind energy turns the device which triggers a generator, which, in turn, converts the wind energy into electricity.

The next stage of its development will focus on finding ways to build it so it will be cheap enough for anyone to buy.

 

[msommer]

Large-scale wind and solar power 'could green the Sahara'

Installing huge numbers of solar panels and wind turbines in the Sahara desert would have a major impact on rainfall, vegetation and temperatures, researchers say.

They found that the actions of wind turbines would double the amount of rain that would fall in the region.

Solar panels have a similar impact although they act in a different way.

The authors say their work reinforces the view that large-scale renewables could transform the Sahara region.

The scientists modelled what would happen if 9 million sq km of the Sahara desert was covered in renewable energy sources.

How do turbines and panels increase rainfall?

With wind turbines, it's all about the mixing of air caused by the rotation of the blades. Wind farms mix warmer air from above, which creates a feedback loop whereby more evaporation, precipitation and plant growth occurs.

"Wind farms increase surface roughness and therefore increase wind converging into low-pressure areas," said Dr Li. "The converging air has to rise, making it cool off and moisture condense, which will lead to increased rainfall."

Solar panels actually reduce the reflection of sunlight from the surface known as the albedo effect. This triggers a positive albedo-precipitation-vegetation feedback that leads to precipitation increases of about 50%, the authors report.

"The panels directly reduce the surface albedo which leads to more solar energy absorption and surface warming, which in turn strengthens the Saharan heat low, leading to more rising air and precipitation," Dr Li explained.

Seems like a worthwhile endeavour.

Wonder how much power the region would be able to export to e.g. Europe or West Africa

 

[msommer]

"What can I do about Climate Change?"

isn’t renewable energy extremely expensive?

Actually, renewables like wind and solar are becoming increasingly cheap across the world (although final costs are subject to local circumstances). The latest report from the International Renewable Energy Agency (Irena) found that several of the most commonly used renewables, like solar, geothermal, bioenergy, hydropower and onshore wind, will be on par with or cheaper than fossil fuels by 2020. Some are already more cost-effective.

The cost of utility-scale solar panels has fallen 73% since 2010, for example, making solar energy the cheapest source of electricity for many households in Latin America, Asia and Africa.  In the UK, onshore wind and solar are competitive with gas and by 2025 will be the cheapest source of electricity generation.

Some critics argue that these prices disregard the price of integrating renewables on the electricity system – but recent evidence suggests these costs are ‘modest’ and manageable for the grid.

Could I make a difference by changing my diet?

That’s a big one, too. In fact, after fossil fuels, the food industry – and in particular the meat and dairy sector – is one of the most important contributors to climate change. If cattle were their own nation, they would be the world’s third largest emitter of greenhouse gases, after China and the US.

The meat industry contributes to global warming in three major ways. Firstly, cows’ burping from processing food releases lots of methane, a greenhouse gas. Secondly, we feed them with other potential sources of food, like maize and soy, which makes for a very inefficient process. And finally, they also require lots of water, fertilisers that can release greenhouse gases, and plenty of land – some of which come from cleared forests, another source of carbon emissions.

You don’t have to go vegetarian or vegan to make a difference: cut down gradually and become a ‘flexitarian’. By reducing your consumption of animal protein by half, you can cut your diet's carbon footprint by more than 40%. A larger-scale approach could be something like banning meat across an organisation, as office-sharing company WeWork did in 2018.

This explainer of sustainable diets by the World Resources Institute (WIR) and its longer associated report provides more answers to questions about food and carbon emissions.

Here's a bit of an issue where transparency is really lacking. For instance when one speaks about the water consumption for cows, in terms of liter/gallons per kg/pound of meat - how does dairy count here? (Here's an article on how meat from dairy cows is great btw)  Another Vegan staple is that you should eat nuts instead of meat, but it takes as much water to create a pound of almonds as a pound of chicken meat.