Southern Company recently joined with industry researchers to launch the Energy Storage Research Center, a unique research and development (R&D) facility focused on the development and deployment of next-generation energy storage technologies. Located on the engineering campus of Southern Research in Birmingham, Alabama, the project is a collaboration between Southern Company, Alabama Power, Southern Research,…
Amazon invests in new renewable energy projects
This week, Amazon announced its latest renewable energy projects: the 65th and 66th for the company. One is a new wind farm in Cork, Ireland, and Amazon’s second wind project in the Republic of Ireland. Once complete, the new facility will provide 23.2 MW of renewable capacity, with expected generation of 68,000 megawatt-hours (MWh) of clean…
ACORE welcomes two new members to its Board of Directors
The American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE), a national pan-renewable organization, announced the appointment of two new members to its Board of Directors: Vikas Agrawal, Head of the Alternative Energy Investing Group at Goldman Sachs, and Gaurav Raniwala, Global Head of Renewable Energy at GE Energy Financial Services. “Vikas and Gaurav have been leaders in…
Record wind capacity under construction or advanced development, reaching nearly 42 GW
U.S. wind farm development activity rose to a new high point in the second quarter of 2019, according to new data released by the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA). Strong consumer demand from Fortune 500 businesses and utilities, as well as calls from multiple states for offshore projects added to wind power’s growing development pipeline.…
Enel begins construction on close to 300 MW of new U.S. wind projects
Enel, through its U.S, renewables company Enel Green Power North America, Inc., has started construction on two new wind farms in the U.S., totaling close to 300 MW of new renewable capacity. These new wind facilities, together with the 450-MW High Lonesome wind project and the 497-MW Roadrunner solar project, both being built in Upton…
CanWEA applauds Alberta’s return to an energy-only market
The Canadian Wind Energy Association (CanWEA) applauds the decision of the Government of Alberta to return to an energy-only market. This market structure provides a critical revenue stream for wind energy facilities, allocating all revenues collected to generators based upon the electricity they produce. Unlike in capacity markets, where electricity generators are paid for their…
NREL addresses the wind energy workforce gap
A new report from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) assesses the national wind energy workforce and the hiring needs of the industry. Entitled, “The Wind Energy Workforce in the United States: Training, Hiring, and Future Needs,”PD the report reviews the educational programs that are preparing students for work. According to the NREL, the researchers…
Senvion granted loan extension from lenders through August
Senvion announced that it has reached an agreement with its lenders, which gives financial support for the continuation of its business until the end of August — and potentially for a period thereafter — if ongoing talks with lenders conclude successfully. The extension enables Senvion to further accelerate its M&A process . The company says…
Businesses and advocacy groups call for 100% clean energy in Arizona by 2045
More than two dozen groups representing consumers, business, environmental advocacy, public health, tribal community, and others submitted a joint proposal for a strong clean energy plan to utility regulators at the Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC). The commission are holding an energy rules stakeholder meeting in Phoenix today. The groups are urging the ACC to increase…
Invenergy to sponsor youth leadership organization, the National FFA
Invenergy, a Midwest-based developer and operator of sustainable energy, recently announced a historic sponsorship of the National FFA Organization. Invenergy is the first sustainable energy company to establish a nationwide investment of this scale with the organization. The FFA is youth organization that prepares participating members for leadership in careers in the science, business, and technology…
BNEF: Energy storage investments boom as battery costs halve in next decade
Global energy storage installations will multiply exponentially, from a modest 9 GW / 17 GWh deployed as of 2018 to 1,095 GW / 2,850 GWh by 2040, according to the latest forecast from research company BloombergNEF (BNEF). This 122-fold boom of stationary energy storage over the next two decades will require $662 billion of investment,…
Digitalization will guide future renewable investments, finds DNV GL
Renewable energy investors and developers are increasingly turning to digital technology to build effective investment strategies, with almost half (47%) of the finance industry saying they have digitalization as a core part of their publicly stated strategy. This is according to new research by DNV GL. The survey of nearly 2000 senior stakeholders across the…
APS to request proposals for new wind & solar resources
Arizona Public Service Company (APS) announced plans to add new wind and solar resources to its portfolio for a total of 2,500 MW by 2021 – or enough to power more than half a million Arizona homes. The company plans to issue two new requests for proposal (RFPs) by September 15, 2019. One RFP will…
Maryland offering two new offshore wind grants
The Maryland Energy Administration (MEA) is launching two offshore wind grants for 2020. The allotted funds will support: 1. the Maryland Offshore Wind Capex program with $1.6 million dollars 2. Maryland Offshore Wind Workforce Training Program with $1.2 million dollars The Maryland Offshore Wind Workforce Training program provides grant funding on a competitive basis to…
Lessons learned from Cape Wind
History can offer hindsight and wisdom to present-day circumstances. The slow, but sure-moving U.S. offshore wind industry is one example. Although much of the sector is looking to Europe and the UK for experience and lessons learned, we can also look in our own backyard. Case in point: Cape Wind. Remember the controversial project,…
New safety guidelines for dropped object prevention at offshore sites
G+, a global health and safety organization for the offshore wind industry, has compiled much-needed safety recommendations for wind-farm owners and operators on the risks posed by dropped objects: the Reliable Securing Booklet for Offshore Wind. Publication of the reliable securing guidelines has come off the back of 2018 safety statistics released by G+, which demonstrate…
Vattenfall proves offshore wind can be profitable without subsidies
Vattenfall announced that it will be constructing the Hollandse Kust Zuid (HKZ) 3 & 4 offshore wind farm using a zero subsidy mechanism. This project follows Hollandse Kust Zuid (HKZ) 1 & 2 and, together, represent the first two unsubsidized offshore wind farms globally, says GlobalData, a data and analytics company. The wind farms will…
DNV GL seeks recommended practices of wind speed TI measurements by LIDAR
DNV GL, the world’s largest resource of independent energy experts and certification body, is calling on wind energy stakeholders to join a new Joint Industry Project (JIP) to explore the potential of using light detection and ranging (LIDAR) to measure wind speed turbulence intensity (TI) for various applications in the wind industry. Measuring meteorological conditions,…
Maryland Energy Innovation Accelerator launched to advance clean energy adoption
With the recent launch of the Maryland Energy Innovation Accelerator (MEIA), the Maryland Clean Energy Center (MCEC) is poised to deliver on its mission of assisting energy related research and technology efforts to commercialize and move to market. MEIA plans to take clean tech from bench to business. MEIA aims to facilitate early-stage technology commercialization…
First Vineyard Wind Scholarship recipients graduate from summer studies
The inaugural class of Vineyard Wind Scholarship recipients graduated from the summertime Advanced Studies & Leadership Program (ASLP) Science/Technology/Engineering/Math Course (STEM Course). The scholarships sponsored full tuition and related expenses for a dozen students at the three-week resident summer camp at the Massachusetts Maritime Academy. The program is designed to encourage minority and female students…