Colorado – pv magazine USA

Meyer Burger cancels U.S. solar cell plant, announces restructuring

Matthew Lynas — Mon, 26 Aug 2024 12:50:46 +0000

Colorado Springs solar cell plant halted as Swiss-German PV manufacturer announces company restructuring plans. Planned capacity expansion at Arizona module production plant also put on hold. Existing cell production site in Thalheim, Germany, to remain part of Meyer Burger operations.

From pv magazine Global

Meyer Burger has canceled plans to open a 2 GW solar cell manufacturing facility in the United States. In a statement, the Swiss-German PV manufacturer said construction of the plant at Colorado Springs is no longer financially viable.

The board of directors has also instructed company management to draw up a comprehensive restructuring and cost-cutting program for the business. A planned 0.7 GW expansion of Meyer Burger’s 1.4 GW module production plant in Goodyear, Arizona, has also been put on hold.

The decision means Meyer Burger’s existing cell production site in Thalheim, Germany, will continue to form the backbone of the company’s solar cell supply, according to the manufacturer – a reversal on previous plans. Meyer Burger said cells produced at Thalheim represent the most economical option in the current market conditions.

The manufacturer had sought a debt financing package backed by the monetization of tax credits available through the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Regulations in the United States allow an additional 10% bonus investment tax for U.S. solar projects. Announcing the Colorado production facility in July 2023, Meyer Burger said it planned to monetize up to $1.4 billion in tax credits from the start of production in 2024 until the end of 2032.

In the restructuring announcement, it said it will continue to seek debt financing on a reduced scale by monetizing the tax credits available to its US module production facility. It added its financing requirements will be “significantly lower” due to halting the Colorado Springs plant.

In addition to announcing a “comprehensive” restructuring and cost-cutting program, Meyer Burger has postponed publication of its half-year financial result, previously announced for Sept. 16, 2024, to Sept. 30, 2024. The company said it could potentially postpone to an even later date, subject to regulatory approval.

Personnel changes are also expected at board level. Mark Kerekes has stepped down from the board of directors, with the company stating that its realignment will require a “new composition” of the board of directors.

“We would like to thank Mark Kerekes for his very constructive cooperation and significant contributions during his membership of the board of directors,” said Franz Richter, chairman of the board of directors of Meyer Burger.

Six states offer grants to help local governments automate solar permitting

William Driscoll — Mon, 29 Jul 2024 14:14:34 +0000

Solar trade groups in Washington, Colorado and Minnesota advocated for grant programs to speed permitting for rooftop solar, using software such as SolarAPP+. Three other states also offer grants, with two requiring automated permitting.

Automated permitting for distributed solar and storage is set to expand well beyond California, as five states follow California’s lead in offering grant support to localities to help them switch to automated permitting.

An automated process can issue a permit “instantly” to a distributed solar project that meets all permitting requirements, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. Standard permitting can take months, says the New York Solar Energy Industries Association, “resulting in delays and higher costs for homeowners and solar companies.”

The best-known automated permitting software for solar and storage is SolarAPP+, developed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. NREL provides free support to local governments before and during implementation of SolarAPP+, and a spokesperson said the software will always be free for local governments to use, while solar installers pay user fees.

While the software is free to local governments, grants can help them meet the costs for staff time to transition to automated permitting. Once the transition is completed, automated permitting can save substantial staff time.

NREL reports that SolarAPP+ is now used by 138 local governments in California and 14 local governments in nine other states, including several large cities and counties. The software is also being pilot tested by 56 local governments.

California has been helping local governments make the switch to automated permitting by offering them grant support and technical assistance, in a program launched in 2022.

Five other states are now following California’s lead in offering grants and technical assistance to local governments adopting automated permitting.

In Washington, state legislators early this year allocated $600,000 for a grant program. The state’s solar trade group WASEIA provided written testimony to the Washington House Appropriations Committee and a policy brief supporting the budget provision “to help speed rollout of SolarApp+,” said Bill Will, the association’s senior policy advisor.

Colorado has launched an “Automated Permit Processing for Solar” grant program with $1 million in funding for local governments. The state’s solar trade group COSSA “was the main advocacy organization to push for” a state law that created the grant program, said Mike Kruger, president and CEO of COSSA, as the group worked with bipartisan sponsors and other stakeholders “to lower red tape and speed up solar permitting,”

Minnesota has budgeted $2 million to support a grant program for local governments to adopt SolarAPP+. Passing the legislation “was a multi-year, bipartisan effort,” said Logan O’Grady, executive director of the state’s solar trade group MnSEIA. The group “was proud to collaborate with advocacy partners on this initiative, boosting the residential solar market and enabling Minnesotans to go solar faster and easier,” he said.

Illinois plans to use a portion of its federal Solar for All grant to fund a program to help communities automate permitting, according to Environment America.

Maryland has announced an upcoming SolarAPP+ Implementation Grant Program.

Automation requirements

California and Maryland have also set requirements for local governments to automate solar permitting.

California requires all but the smallest local governments to use either SolarAPP+ or another automated permitting software. Larger cities and counties were required to comply by last September, and medium-sized cities and counties are required to comply by this September.

The California Energy Commission says that “enforcement lies outside of CEC jurisdiction but may be enforced through private claims.”

California last month completed awards of $19 million in grants to 334 cities and counties to make the switch to automated permitting, according to an analysis by Permit Power, a new advocacy organization dedicated to advancing automated permitting.

Maryland’s Brighter Tomorrow Act, enacted in May, requires local governments to adopt automated solar permitting software, according to the law firm Saul Ewing. Montgomery County, Maryland, with a population of 1 million, already uses SolarAPP+.

In New York, the solar trade group NYSEIA recently called for automated permitting in the state.

Advocacy partners

The nonprofit group Solar United Neighbors joined with others in advocating for the automated permitting grant programs in Minnesota and Maryland, said a spokesperson.

Environment America Senior Campaign Director Johanna Neumann said the nonprofit group’s Maryland director identified legislative sponsors for the state’s automated permitting policy, recruited allies, and helped guide the legislative strategy.

Permit Power also contributed to the Maryland effort, Neumann said.

50 states of solar policy moves, Q2 2024

Anne Fischer — Wed, 17 Jul 2024 14:56:31 +0000

Q2 2024 saw 44 states plus the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico take a total of 182 distributed solar policy actions.

The N.C. Clean Energy Technology Center (NCCETC) released its 50 States of Solar: Q2 2024 report that looks at state regulatory and legislative discussions that affect the distributed solar market in various states.

The report finds that many states are taking a close look at solar policies due to the influx of funding from the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) going to state agencies and clean energy projects. Q2 2024 saw 44 states plus the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico take a total of 182 distributed solar policy actions.

In addition to states are examining the interplay of IRA funding and solar programs, other trends are seeing states initiate formal studies to inform net metering successor efforts, and states are modifying existing community solar programs.

The greatest number of actions address net metering policies (64), and residential fixed charge or minimum bill increases (48), and community solar policies (42). Most of these actions were taken in California, Arizona, Connecticut, New York, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, and Virginia.

A summary of state actions related to distributed generation compensation, rate design, and solar ownership during Q2 2024.

Top five distributed generation solar policy actions

In Q2 2024, six states issued decisions, passed legislation, enhance programs or initiated studies that pertain to solar policy:

California—Regulators at the Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) issued two major decisions on community solar and income-based fixed charges. The CPUC approved income-tiered residential fixed charges for the state’s investor-owned utilities, which range from $6.00 to $24.15. The CPUC also approved a new Community Renewable Energy Program and modifications to existing Green Tariff programs. The new community energy program will use existing procurement mechanisms like the Renewable Energy Market Adjustment Tariff and PURPA Standard Offer Contract as the foundation of the program.

Alaska— Alaska lawmakers passed legislation requiring the Commission-regulated utilities to offer community energy programs. The Regulatory Commission of Alaska is to develop several program specifications, including bill credit rates that consider the full economic value provided by community energy facilities. The Commission is also authorized to adopt a separate rate for capacity provided by energy storage as part of a community energy facility.

Colorado—Legislators in Colorado approved changes to the states’ community solar garden program. The revised program will begin in 2026 and focus on inclusive community solar development. It requires that at least 51% of a facility’s subscriptions be reserved for income-qualified customers and allows for the donation of excess credits to income-qualified customers. For income-qualified customers, the subscription charge is limited to 75% of the value of the bill credits, while this decreases to 70% if the project is receiving IRA funding for energy communities and 50% if IRA funding is being used to provide bill savings.

Connecticut and Washington—Lawmakers in these states initiated net metering studies. Connecticut’s study will consider whether the Renewable Energy Solutions Program should be extended and possible successors. Washington’s study will examine the value of distributed solar and storage and options that may be used after the net metering cap is reached.

Kansas—The Kansas legislature enacted legislation in April that increases the aggregate cap for net metering, as well as the individual system size limit. The aggregate cap will increase by 1% (of the utility’s highest annual peak demand since 2014) per year until reaching 5% in July 2027. The bill increases the system size limit to 150 kW for all customers and also provides guidance for net metering crediting under time-of-use rates.

“States are beginning — or rather, re-beginning — to study net metering programs, outside of the valuation of distributed solar,” said Rebekah de la Mora, senior policy analyst at NCCETC. “These investigations focus on program redesigns and successors, looking at the policies, economics, results, and future projections of net metering programs. Some of these investigations are already baked into law, like in Puerto Rico, while others were proposed by newly-passed bills, such as those in Delaware and Washington.”

One other state that made a big move as a result of federal funding is Mississippi, where the Public Service Commission has suspended multiple solar and storage incentives/programs in the state due to Solar for All funding.

Meyer Burger set to begin production at U.S. module factory

Sandra Enkhardt — Tue, 25 Jun 2024 13:00:18 +0000

The relocation of the photovoltaic manufacturer's core business from Germany to the USA is taking shape. Production of heterojunction solar modules is starting and financing for a new cell plant is progressing.

From pv magazine Germany

Meyer Burger’s new plant in Goodyear in Arizona passed the factory audit according to UL test standards without any deviations, and production can begin.

The solar cells required for module production have been delivered from the German site in Thalheim to the U.S. plant for some time now. This will continue to be the case in the future to ensure the ramp-up in the USA, Meyer Burger added.

In addition to the module factory, Meyer Burger also plans to build a cell factory in Colorado. It is not yet entirely clear when this will be able to start production. This depends on the conclusion of the 45X financing. The due diligence of a major U.S. bank on monetization in accordance with Article 45X of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) has been completed and negotiations on the loan agreements are currently underway.

Meyer Burger says it is aiming to complete the deal and make the payment by the middle of the third quarter. At this time, the payment of export financing by a German bank for the construction of photovoltaic production in the U.S. is also expected. The photovoltaic company has also submitted the final application for the loan from the U.S. Department of Energy to finance the cell factory. This is currently still being reviewed, says Meyer Burger.

In addition, a commercial agreement has already been negotiated with a U.S. industrial and technology group and a term sheet for a possible investment in Meyer Burger has been exchanged. This strategic cooperation would enable Meyer Burger to manufacture solar modules in the U.S. with an ever-increasing proportion of domestic components.

Meyer Burger has already signed several contracts with EPC companies and energy suppliers for the purchase of its solar modules manufactured in the U.S.. Now another purchase contract for up to 600 megawatts per year has been added with a large energy company from the U.S.. Delivery has been agreed for three years from 2026 with an extension option for two years. The agreement is to take effect when the financing of the solar cell plant in Colorado Springs is completed, Meyer Burger said.

Meyer Burger shut down its module plant in Freiberg, Saxony , in April after there was no agreement within the federal government on resilience measures for German and European photovoltaic manufacturers .

Colorado modernizes community solar program

Anne Fischer — Thu, 23 May 2024 15:00:22 +0000

Governor Polis signed into law bipartisan legislation that launches a new dispatchable distributed generation program and leverages Solar for All funding to upgrade its grid, lower energy bills for all and promote energy equity.

With his signature on SB24-207, Governor Polis signed into law legislation intended to modernize the state’s community solar program, start a new dispatchable distributed generation program, upgrade the power grid, and promote energy equity.

Colorado was awarded a $156 million grant from the EPA’s Solar for All program to provide loans and incentives for community solar development, including directly funding community solar projects in the state, helping to deliver lower utility bills, create jobs, and expand the benefits of solar to low-income and disadvantaged communities.

One of the major benefits of community solar is it opens access to customers that may not have a suitable roof or financial situation for rooftop solar. It allows residents, businesses, organizations, and municipalities to subscribe to a portion of a solar asset’s electricity generation to receive credit on their electricity bills for the power it generates.

The Solar for All program is one of three grant programs under the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund created by the Inflation Reduction Act. EPA intends to design the grants competition to “maximize impact toward” that fund’s objectives, namely reducing greenhouse gas emissions and other air pollutants, delivering program benefits “particularly” to low-income and disadvantaged communities, and mobilizing financing and private capital.

The DOE estimates that the average low-income household benefiting from this program will save around $400 a year on their electric bills; collectively that’s over $350 million in annual household savings from all 60 selected applicants, totaling over $8 billion in cumulative savings for over a standard solar project 25-year asset life.

“All Coloradans, regardless of income level or homeownership status, should be able to participate in the transition to renewable energy,” said Senate President Steve Fenberg, sponsor of SB24-207. “With the signing of this bill, we have taken a major step to remove barriers to accessing solar energy — like homeownership or credit score requirements — to ensure renters, non-profits, and small businesses can take part without breaking the bank.”

Colorado was the first in the nation when, in 2010, it passed pass legislation “truly enabling” a third-part community solar model, according to Kevin Cray, Mountain West

“It was time for an upgrade. Today’s action by Gov. Polis will reinvigorate Colorado community solar, positioning the state to regain its leadership position in providing equitable clean energy options for customers,” said Cray.

The new law is expected to deliver the following benefits:

Deliver meaningful bill savings of 25-55% to thousands of additional income-qualified Colorado households;
Reserve at least 51% of each community solar project for income-qualified residential subscribers;
Enhance subscriber experiences with best-in-class enrollment methods, consumer protections, and consolidated billing;
Prioritize projects sited on preferred locations, like rooftops and brownfields, and drive dual-use practices, such as agrivoltaics; and
Improve the methods that third-party stakeholders use to develop community solar projects with investor-owned utilities.

“This law is a reflection of the state’s ongoing commitment to ensure an equitable clean energy transition and to leverage local energy resources to create a cost-effective and resilient grid,” said John Bernhardt, Vice President of Policy for Pivot Energy. “As a Colorado-based company, we are proud of our state’s leadership and stand ready to help realize the goals of SB 24-207.”

Organizations and advocates including Vote Solar, Nature Conservancy, Grid Alternatives, Colorado Solar and Storage Association, among others, are optimistic about the opportunities presented by this legislation.

Colorado co-op United Power is free to pursue renewables after exiting Tri-State

William Driscoll — Tue, 07 May 2024 14:57:33 +0000

To build out its renewables portfolio, United Power is the latest electric utility co-op in Colorado to exit its long-term power supply contract, while other co-ops plan to let their contracts expire.

Colorado electric co-op United Power stopped buying power from the Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association on May 1, and has started buying power from Guzman Energy, a wholesale power supplier that says it focuses on “cheaper, better and cleaner energy sources.”

United Power says in its planning roadmap that independence from Tri-State will allow higher levels of self-supply through local renewable energy sources, and the opportunity to partner on more utility-scale projects. With its newfound freedom, United Power is initially developing a microgrid that will combine floating solar with storage.

United Power had been working to exit its contract with Tri-State for several years.

Two other co-ops, the Kit Carson co-op in New Mexico and the Delta Montrose co-op in Colorado, have already exited Tri-State, and now buy wholesale power from Guzman Energy.

Two more Colorado co-ops will soon follow suit. The Mountain Parks Electric co-op will exit Tri-State in early 2025, and has lined up a 20-year wholesale power contract with Guzman. The La Plata Electric co-op has voted to exit its contract with Tri-State in 2026.

The largest electric co-op in Colorado, known as CORE, has a power supply contract with Xcel Energy that ends late next year. CORE said that a wholesale power supply partnership it entered with Invenergy last year “signals CORE’s transformation to a fully independent electric utility with control of its power supply future.”

The partnership with Invenergy will provide CORE with 1.2 TWh of renewable energy per year, including 400 MW of new solar and wind projects and 100 MW of battery storage, backed up by 300 MW of existing natural gas generation, starting in 2026.

CORE says that given Colorado’s mandate to reduce 2005 carbon emission levels 80% by 2030, “we are using this mandate as a target for our emissions goals,” adding that “part of our mission is to listen to and implement the wishes of our members, which largely align with the state on this issue.”

CORE recently announced it will partner with co-op Holy Cross Energy to buy power from a 75 MW solar project in Colorado. HCE plans to reach 100% renewable electricity by 2030.

CORE’s planned departure from its Xcel Energy agreement follows a CORE lawsuit over a year-long power outage at a coal plant that is majority owned by Xcel and partly owned by CORE. The lawsuit resulted in a damages award that required Xcel to pay $26 million to CORE.

50 states of grid modernization

Anne Fischer — Fri, 03 May 2024 16:14:18 +0000

North Carolina Clean Energy Technology Center's recent report looks at how states are doing with legislative and regulatory action related to shoring up the power grid.

The U.S. power grid in use today was built in the 1960s and 70s and is hard pressed to handle the extreme weather events caused by climate change, let alone the renewable energy needed to meet energy goals.

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, 70% of transmission lines are over 25 years old and approaching the end of their typical lifecycle. Grid upgrades that deploy modern grid technologies are sorely needed, and federal funding is available through the Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnership (GRIP) program, which recently closed applications for up to $2.7 billion in DOE grant funding under a second round.

Grid modernization has been underway in some states more than others, and the North Carolina Clean Energy Technology Center recently released The 50 States of Grid Modernization: Q1 2024 Quarterly Report, which looks at legislative and regulatory action related to smart grid and advanced metering infrastructure, utility business model reform, regulatory reform, utility rate reform, energy storage, microgrids, and demand response.

In Q1 2024, according to the report, 49 states plus DC and Puerto Rico took a total of 567 policy and deployment actions, the most common related to policies (133), financial incentives (108), and utility business model and rate reform (93).

Five top policy developments

Maryland: Lawmakers passed the Distributed Renewable Integration and Vehicle Electrification (DRIVE) Act in Maryland that directs the Public Service Commission to develop a program for utilities to establish virtual power plant (VPP) pilots to compensate owners and aggregators of distributed energy resources for distribution system support services.

Massachusetts: Eversource, National Grid and Unitil filed final electric sector modernization plans in January 2024. The plans include a variety of programs and investments, such as VPP programs, advanced distribution management system and distributed energy resource management system investments, resilience upgrades, heat pump integration, and non-wires alternative

Connecticut: The Connecticut Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA) issued a set guidelines for utilities’ advanced metering infrastructure plans, including a directive to include advanced time-of-use rates and to use Green Button Connect functionality. Later in the quarter, PURA filed a straw proposal on performance incentive mechanisms (PIMs), which includes four PIMs based on non-wires solutions, equitable reliability, distributed energy resource interconnection, and avoided service terminations.

Colorado: The Colorado Public Utilities Commission (PUC) approved guidelines and directives for VPP implementation in Xcel Energy’s service territory.

Maine: The Governor’s Energy Office in Maine released its final long-duration energy storage (LDES) study that identifies policy considerations and actions for the state to support LDES. The PUC also released a study that examines utility control or ownership of energy storage, finding that utility ownership of storage should only be allowed under certain circumstances.

Top trends

Grid-enhancing technologies can boost the use of any existing transmission system, according to a study by The Brattle Group, which looked specifically at advanced power flow control, topology optimization and dynamic line ratings. The NC State report said use of grid-enhancing technologies (GETs) is a notable trend and noted the following actions:

Virginia lawmakers enacted a bill requiring utility integrated resource plans to include a comprehensive assessment of the application of GETs and advanced conductors. In
Maine legislators enacted a bill requiring the PUC to conduct a review of available GETs that large investor-owned utilities may use to reduce investment needs in grid infrastructure.
Minnesota lawmakers introduced bills requiring utilities to file plans regarding the implementation of GETs to prevent grid congestion at the transmission level.
New York legislators introduced bills that would allow the Department of Public Service to approve requests from distribution companies to develop GETs.

Other states considering legislation initiating studies on GETs include Connecticut and New Hampshire.

Virtual power plants

VPPs give grid operators a utility-grade alternative to new generation and system buildout by automating efficiency, capacity support and offering non-wire alternatives, according to Jigar Shah, director of the U.S. Department of Energy Loan Programs Office. “By deploying grid assets more efficiently, an aggregation of distributed resources lowers the cost of power for everybody, especially VPP participants,” Shah said in an article in pv magazine USA.

According to the NC State report, a state policymakers and regulators are taking steps to develop frameworks for VPPs in their states:

Pennsylvania regulators issued an advanced notice of proposed rulemaking seeking input on VPPs as a potential resource for the state.
Maryland lawmakers passed a bill directing the Public Service Commission to develop a program for utilities to establish VPP pilots, with each investor-owned utility required to propose a pilot or temporary tariff by July 1, 2025.
Colorado PUC issued a decision outlining rules for VPP pilots and acquisition.
California and Hawaii regulators are also advancing expansive programs to promote VPPs.

Microgrids

Microgrids are groups of distributed energy resources, such as solar modules on a home, connected to a battery system, that can disconnect from the grid and operate independently during a power outage. The U.S. Department of Energy has a vision that 30% to 50% of electricity generation will come from distributed resources by 2035, with microgrids playing a key role in the transition.

The NC State report found that a growing number of states are evaluating the potential for microgrids to provide resilience or other benefits in their states.

Colorado Energy Office is currently developing a microgrid roadmap, which will examine how microgrids can improve grid resilience and reliability in the state.
New Hampshire lawmakers recently passed a bill requiring the state’s Department of Energy to study the potential benefits, risks and other factors of developing a microgrid framework.
Rhode Island PUC issued request for proposal for a study related to microgrid program design.
Puerto Rico Energy is examining revisions to its existing microgrid revisions.
Arizona regulators issued a decision prohibiting Arizona Public Service from providing microgrid services.

Lawmakers in California, Iowa, New Jersey, and New York also considered legislation related to microgrid studies during the quarter.

Researchers discover additive that enhances perovskite coating process

Anne Fischer — Tue, 02 Apr 2024 15:30:11 +0000

By adding an ionic pair stabilizer to perovskite cells enables coating to take place in ambient air, simplifying the manufacturing process.

An international team of researchers announced an important achievement on the path to commercializing perovskite solar cells. Perovskite, a semiconducting material, is the focus of research around the globe due to its potential to convert more solar power to electricity than the commonly used silicon, and at lower cost.

There are drawbacks, however, in the production of perovskite solar. One of them is that the coating process must take place inside a chamber filled with non-reactive gas because otherwise the perovskites react with oxygen, thus decreasing performance.

A new paper published in the journal Nature Energy describes the work conducted by Jixian Xu and his team at the National Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory, University of Science and Technology of China. The team found that adding dimethylammonium formate (DMAFo) to the perovskite solution before coating could prevent the materials from oxidizing. This discovery enables coating to take in ambient air instead of having to be inside a box.

Michael McGehee, a professor in the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering and fellow with Colorado University Boulder’s Renewable & Sustainable Energy Institute, interpreted the results and helped with writing the paper. He told pv magazine USA that this was the first time DMAFo had been used in perovskite research and said it’s helpful because it is a reducing agent that prevents iodide from oxidizing. As he described it, the DMAFo was added into the perovskite precursor solution. “It protects the iodide in that solution, making it possible to make the cells in air and greatly extending the shelf life of the precursor solution,” McGehee said.

A and b show the impact of the DMAFo on the perovskite’s crystallization in ambient
air. Time evolution of GIWAXS intensity along qz direction for the control (as cast perovskite wet film without DMAFo) (a) and the DMAFo sample (with DMAFo stabilizer). b shows the 2H, 4H/6H and 3C phases are labelled in the GIWAXS images.

McGehee acknowledged that coating inside a box is acceptable during the research phase, “but when you start coating large pieces of glass, it gets harder and harder to do this in a nitrogen filled box,” he said.

The results show that DMAFo perovskite cells can achieve an efficiency of nearly 25% on their own, comparable to the current efficiency record for perovskite cells of 26%.

The additive also improved the cells’ stability, which McGehee noted is important for the transition to clean energy.

An issue with perovskite solar compared to silicon is that they can degrade much faster. The study showed that the perovskite cell made with DMAFo retained 90% of its efficiency after being exposed to LED light that mimicked sunlight for 700 hours. In contrast, cells made in the air without DMAFo degraded quickly after only 300 hours.

McGehee noted that longer tests are needed because there are 8,000 hours in one year. “It’s too early to say that they are as stable as silicon panels, but we’re on a good trajectory toward that,” he said.

The next step for the team is to develop tandem cells with a real-world efficiency of over 30% that are as equally stable as silicon panels over a 25-year period.

After a decade of research in perovskites, engineers have built perovskite cells that are as efficient as silicon cells, which were invented 70 years ago, McGehee said. “We are taking perovskites to the finish line. If tandems work out well, they certainly have the potential to dominate the market and become the next generation of solar cells,” he said.

Colorado startup develops air-source steam heat pump for industrial use

Lior Kahana — Thu, 14 Mar 2024 13:02:44 +0000

Colorado-based AtmosZero has closed a Series A funding round that will help it accelerate the commercialization of its Boiler 2.0 technology. The air-sourced heat pump generates steam for industrial use and can be combined with PV generation and storage.

From pv magazine Global

AtmosZero said it has raised $21 million in a Series A funding round. The company said it will use the funds to accelerate the commercialization of its Boiler 2.0 technology.

“Boiler 2.0 can easily be combined with PV power generation and storage,” a company spokesperson told pv magazine. “The tech runs off electricity and it doesn’t matter how that electricity is created, just that it’s there.”

Most industrial steam is generated by burning fossil fuels on-site in boiler systems. It is used in a range of industries, from food and beverage to chemical manufacturing, accounting for about 8% of global energy use.

“AtmosZero’s proprietary Boiler 2.0 technology extracts heat from the air and delivers high-temperature steam with maximum efficiency and zero carbon emissions, allowing companies to replace their existing natural gas and oil boilers quickly and cost-effectively,” the spokesperson said.

The heat pump draws 480 V of voltage in a three-phase configuration and can produce 650 kW of thermal energy, with an output flow of 997.9 kg/hr of saturated steam. Its output temperature-pressure ranges between 120 C/199.8 kPa and 165 C/701.7 kPa.

“The coefficient of performance (COP) of the system is dependent on the ambient temperatures as well as the desired steam temperature,” the spokesperson said. “We work together with customers and perform specific analysis to give them a better insight on expected performance. That being said, our target is a COP of 2 going from 15 C ambient to 150 C saturated steam.”

The system uses an unspecified refrigerant with “low global warming potential (GWP), flammability, and toxicity.” Its footprint is approximately 2.4 meters x 6.1 meters.

AtmosZero is currently testing the system under a full-scale pilot deployed at a facility operated by US-based New Belgium Brewing Company. It also recently launched a European subsidiary.

“Our first systems deploying in 2025 will produce 165 C and in 2026 we will achieve 200 C,” the spokesperson said.

The top five states for solar deployment in 2023

Ryan Kennedy — Fri, 08 Mar 2024 22:09:18 +0000

The Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) released an overview of the top states for solar installation last year.

In 2023, every segment of solar in the United States saw year-over-year growth in installations. Cumulative solar capacity stood at 177 GW by the end of the year, and utility-scale solar alone added 22.5 GW, a record year.

Solar has been on an upswing across the nation, with more than half the states with 1 GW of total installed solar capacity.

The industry has been lifted in part by the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, a largest-ever spending package for climate and energy. The legislation contains numerous provisions to support the U.S. solar industry, among other clean energy technologies, including a long-term extension of the federal investment tax credit, significant domestic manufacturing incentives, labor standards, energy production tax credits and more.

Since passage of the IRA, over $240 billion has been invested in clean energy manufacturing and infrastructure projects, according to a White House report. This includes over $86 billion invested in nearly 300 new solar, wind, and battery energy storage projects.

Tracking this growth, the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) released rankings for the top five states in terms of solar deployment across sectors.

Ohio ranked fifth in solar deployment, increasing its installation totals year-over-year by 1,230%, with 1.3 GW installed. The state has 3 GW across 20 projects in the pipeline for development.

Colorado ranked within the top five for the first time since 2010, with 1.6 GW installed. This is nearly ten times the total installed in 2022.

Florida maintained its spot as number three in solar deployment for the fifth year straight, adding a record 3.2 GW in 2023. Over 50,000 residents installed rooftop solar on their homes last year, and nearly half of Florida’s 220,000 residential solar arrays were installed in the last two years.

California ranked second, adding 6.2 GW of new solar. However, California Public Utilities Commission have significantly damaged California’s rooftop solar sector. In total, the state’s solar market is expected to decline 36% across all market segments in 2024, said SEIA.

Texas has moved to the front for solar installations, adding 6.5 GW in 2023. The 15 GW added since 2021 was more than the entire solar cumulative total installed in the United States in 2019.

“From 2024-2034, Texas will lead the nation with nearly 100 GW of new solar capacity additions, outpacing the next closest state by a two-to-one margin,” said SEIA.

U.S. residential solar prices drop, strong interest in storage

Anne Fischer — Thu, 22 Feb 2024 14:15:55 +0000

The 18th edition of the EnergySage Marketplace Report finds the residential solar segment in the U.S. is rocked by persistent inflation, the California NEM 3.0 and rising loan fees. Yet prices have fallen and consumer interest in storage is strong.

The 18^th edition of the EnergySage Intel: Solar & Storage Marketplace Report looks at pricing trends, equipment preferences, financing terms, consumer interest and more.

EnergySage, an online comparison-shopping marketplace for solar, provides solar quotes from local, vetted solar companies in 41 states and Washington DC. The marketplace report is compiled by assessing those quotes submitted by solar companies to shoppers throughout 2023, comparing the first half of the year to trends over the second half of the year.

A key finding is that despite inflation and increased financing fees, solar prices dropped for the first time since 2021, falling by 3.5% to $2.80 per watt. The report finds that the median price of $2.80 W in H2 2023 is in line with solar pricing from mid-2020, and 4.5% higher than the low point from summer 2021.

Recent price drops were offset by larger fees charged for lower interest rate loans. The most frequently quoted solar loan was a 25-year loan with a 3.99% interest rate. But the report found that the average fee on the most quoted loan product reached 47% of the cash project cost in the second half of the year.

Storage

Consumer interest in battery energy storage is up, with 61% of solar quotes on EnergySage including a battery in the second half of 2023—an increase of ten percentage points over the first half of 2023.

Quoted storage prices also dropped for the first time since EnergySage started tracking them in 2020, falling by 6.4% in the second half of the year. Previously the median price for batteries quoted on EnergySage increased during every six-month period, but that changed in second half of 2023. This drop in prices is driven by a 19% decrease in quoted storage prices in California, where the attachment rate has been 45% since NEM 3.0 went into effect. The report finds that in the first six months of 2023, Calif. had the lowest level of storage interest of any state on EnergySage.

The change in California’s net metering policy came after the original NEM helped the state become the leading rooftop solar market, achieving Governor Schwarzenegger’s million solar roofs initiative, and under NEM the state has since reached two million solar roofs. The Calif. residential solar market came to a screeching halt after the NEM 3.0 rulemaking decision lowered compensation for exported solar production by about 75%, thus making batteries an essential component of a residential solar project. Assemblymember Laura Friedman recently introduced a bill calling for the CPUC to re-evaluate net metering.

As storage installations increased over the last three years, the specific batteries quoted and installed through EnergySage have evolved rapidly, yet a few brand choices remain on top. Enphase and Tesla are the most quoted, while FranklinWH jumped from 1% of quotes in H2 2022 to 11% of quotes in H2 2023.

Enphase Energy recently launched the new Enphase Energy System with the IQ Battery 5P, and the company reports that its system is optimized to support the new NEM 3.0 rules by enabling self-consumption and exporting energy at the appropriate times to create maximum value.

Tesla launched its latest battery, the Powerwall 3, last September. The FranklinWH integrated battery and control system was launched in 2022.

The drop in pricing is driven by Tesla and FranklinWH. These two brands were included in one-third of quotes and were priced similarly to each other at around $1,100/kWh-stored. Only one battery brand, LG Energy Solution, was included in more than 1% of quotes and priced below $1,000/kWh-stored on average in the second half of the year.

Seven out of 10 solar shoppers requested battery quotes on EnergySage throughout 2023. For the most part, very little separated the three drivers in the second half of 2023: main
financial savings, maximizing self-consumption, and backup power each accounted for more than 30% of consumer interest in storage.

The NEM 3.0 factor is evident in the Marketplace analysis of California shoppers because it wasn’t until H2 2023 when interest in energy storage spiked. In fact, prior to that Californians had the lowest interest in backup because of the favorable net metering rates. After rates were slashed by NEM 3.0, the state saw the fifth-highest storage interest rate in the country with four out of five EnergySage shoppers requesting storage quotes.

Pricing by state

EnergySage looked at Marketplace quotes for the second half of 2023 for the 10 states with the most cumulative solar electric capacity installed through the third quarter of 2023 based on data from the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) and Wood Mackenzie.

According to SEIA the top five solar states are: California, Florida, Texas, Colorado, and Nevada. All of the top five, with the exception of Colorado, had median quoted prices below the national median price. In California half the quotes on EnergySage were priced below $2.75 W in the second half of the year (up from 20% in H1), driven by companies trying to improve solar economics when NEM 3.0 became policy.

Solar season slows, wind power rises

John Fitzgerald Weaver — Tue, 16 Jan 2024 13:55:31 +0000

From January through October 2023, solar photovoltaics contributed 5.78% to U.S. electricity, with just over 6% coming from the source in October alone.

The Energy Information Administration (EIA), a division of the U.S. Department of Energy, released its Electric Power Monthly report for the first ten months of 2023. The data shows consistent growth in solar power, supported by high installation volumes in 2023, and a notable increase in wind power output toward the end of the year.

PV Intel data indicates that from January to October 2023, solar power accounted for 5.78% of U.S. electricity, an increase from 4.98% during the same period the previous year. This marks a 16% increase in solar power generation over the previous year.

During the rolling twelve-month period, (November 2022 to October 2023), solar generation contributed to 5.36% of the U.S. total electricity, rising from 4.63% in the previous October. This also represents a 16% increase, over a somewhat different time period.

Source: PV Intel

In another perspective, for October alone, solar power’s share of total generation held just above 6%, and is expected to decline, similar to the 29% decrease observed in 2022.

If 2023 concludes with an estimated 16% increase in solar generation, it would be the second-lowest growth year since 2018, which saw only a 15% increase. This modest growth in 2018 was essentially a hangover following the boom in 2016, which saw a remarkable 53% growth over 2015. Assuming a steady 16% growth rate, 2023’s solar generation is projected to reach approximately 5.46%. However, this figure could be slightly higher, taking into account the significant capacity of solar installations deployed as the year progresses.

Source: PV Intel

Despite achieving 5.78% so far in 2023, the rate is expected to decline during the winter months. For example, in October 2022, solar generated 4.98% of all U.S. electricity, but by year-end, this figure had dropped to 4.7% due to decreased generation in November and December, which coincides with the year’s shortest days.

Fortunately, this decrease in solar output aligns with an uptick in wind generation. As shown in the graph above, when solar output decreases in November and December, wind generation starts to increase, peaking in March. In October, wind and solar combined produced 16.78% of U.S. electricity generation.

October also saw several states achieving remarkable growth in solar generation compared to the previous year. South Dakota, for instance, experienced an extraordinary surge with a 3,605% increase in solar generation. Montana also saw a significant rise of 398%. These dramatic increases were largely due to the commissioning of large, utility-scale solar installations, which dwarfed the states’ existing solar capacities.

Source: PV Intel

Most states registering high growth in solar generation started from a baseline of less than 2% of their electricity derived from solar. This low starting point means that even the addition of a single large facility can have a significant impact on its overall solar output. However, states like New Mexico, Colorado and, to a lesser extent, Delaware, have experienced growth from higher base percentages. For example, Colorado’s solar generation grew by 49% due to the commissioning of seven utility-scale solar facilities, including two major plants with capacities of 325 MWac and 248 MWac.

Source: SEIA

It is important to note that monthly data can sometimes include anomalies that may affect its reliability. For instance, a recent decrease in jet stream activity on the West Coast led to lower moisture levels, affecting areas from California to New Mexico and the Midwest. As a result, irradiance levels were 10% higher than usual in October.

With more than 30 GW of solar power expected to be deployed in 2023, the EIA’s 860-M form, known as the “Monthly Electric Generator Inventory,” is especially active. In October alone, the document reports that 36 utility-scale solar power facilities were commissioned, adding a substantial 2,466 GWac of capacity.

S-5! kept environment in mind with new solar-powered corporate headquarters

Anne Fischer — Fri, 17 Nov 2023 16:27:29 +0000

With native timber and moss covered rocks on the outside, the building has energy efficiency features on the inside and is topped with a 53 kW solar array mounted on its metal roof.

S-5!, a specialist in roofing attachments for the solar industry, completed a 53 kW solar installation on its new corporate headquarters in Colorado.

The rooftop installation will provide 84 MWh annually and cover up to 75% of the facility’s power, the company reports.

S-5! hired Spear Commercial & Industrial from Texas to handle the solar installation, which includes 135 Trina Vertex S 395 W solar modules with Enphase IQ8 microinverters. The modules are mounted directly on the metal roof using the company’s own PVKIT for attachment. PVKIT enables solar modules to be mounted on metal roofs without the need for a rail system.

Mark Gies, director of product management told pv magazine USA that the company does plan to add battery backup in the future. “The weather in Colorado Springs is volatile especially in the winter,” said Gies. “We want to utilize the benefits of a battery backup as well as leveraging any future economics of ‘time of use’ shifting.”

The two-story office building, designed by PWN Architects and Planners of Denver, Colorado, was built with the environment in mind and makes use of native timber and natural moss rock, along with Corten steel, which provides a rustic appearance to the building exterior. The roof, installed by Weathercraft from Colorado Springs is a standing seam, Galvalume Drexel Metals 24-gauge supported by hand-peeled log trusses.

While the finished project is “now an office that I could only dream of,” said Rob Haddock, CEO and founder of S-5!, the road to completion was rocky at times. After ten years of searching, Haddock said he found land that had been burned in the Black Forest Fire of 2013. An architect began the plans, but they ran into challenges from formal rezoning, to fire protection, to escalating costs during COVID, to workforce challenges, and more. Despite the challenges, the corporate headquarters is finished and running on solar.

RE+storage better than a Colorado utility’s proposed 400 MW gas unit: Strategen

William Driscoll — Thu, 16 Nov 2023 15:00:56 +0000

Developers' bids for solar, wind and storage projects provided in response to a Colorado utility’s all-source procurement enabled an easy comparison of those projects to the utility’s proposed 400 MW gas unit.

Storage and renewables projects already offered in response to an RFP from the Public Service Company of Colorado (PSCo) would be more economic and provide greater capacity than a 400 MW gas peaker unit proposed by the utility, found the consulting firm Strategen in an analysis of the utility’s proposed resource plan.

The Colorado utility, an Xcel Energy subsidiary, “takes commendable strides toward decarbonization,” says the Strategen analysis, but the low cost of clean energy resources supported by the Inflation Reduction Act “could provide an opportunity to avoid additional natural gas deployment.”

Strategen analyzed a portfolio of battery storage, solar and wind projects it selected from a public list of almost 800 bids for new renewables and battery projects that were offered in response to the utility’s 2022 all-source request for proposals.

Strategen said its portfolio, sized to exceed the capacity of a 400 MW gas peaker unit the utility proposed in its resource plan, would provide savings of about $29 million in its first year of operation, with greater savings in subsequent years. Those savings do not consider grid service benefits, stranded asset risk or fuel supply risk.

Because the costs for specific RFP bids are not publicly available, Strategen’s analysis assumed that the costs of the battery storage, solar and wind projects would equal the generic costs that PSCo presented in an appendix to its resource plan.

PSCo’s plan proposes 628 MW of new gas units by 2027, representing “long-term investments that will restrict PSCo’s ability to eventually achieve a fully decarbonized grid,” Strategen’s report says.

For two of the gas units proposed by PSCo—sized at 200 MW and 28 MW—Strategen was unable to analyze the potential to substitute renewables and storage because the utility proposed those units specifically for their local reliability benefits, and the public database of projects submitted in response to the RFP did not disclose location data. Strategen said its analysis of the 400 MW gas unit may also be applicable to the 200 MW unit if locational data and local reliability analysis were made available to stakeholders.

Strategen credited PSCo with proposing in its resource plan an 80% reduction in carbon emissions from 2005 levels by 2030, retiring all coal plants in the process.

Even so, Brian Turner, a director at the trade group Advanced Energy United, which sponsored the Strategen analysis, said Xcel’s proposal to build the new gas units “is a missed opportunity to provide Colorado households and businesses the best-cost and cleanest energy.” Turner noted that last winter the price of natural gas “skyrocketed, leaving ratepayers with high bills.”

Advanced Energy United said in a statement that as the cost of renewable energy continues to decline, new gas turbines risk becoming stranded assets, leaving ratepayers to pay billions of dollars “for a resource that may one day soon no longer produce any energy.”

The trade group formally presented its concerns in comments it submitted to the Colorado Public Utilities Commission.

Most states are doing a less than stellar job at deploying microgrids

Anne Fischer — Fri, 03 Nov 2023 18:15:12 +0000

A recent report by Think Microgrid recommends that legislators or utilities develop a microgrid roadmap to guide the coordinated efforts between utility commissions, energy offices, and stakeholders.

Think Microgrid, a coalition that serves as a unified voice for the microgrid industry, said microgrids can play a critical role in the U.S. energy picture. The organization recently completed a study of microgrid deployment in each state in its State Scorecard 2023. Unfortunately, it found that no state is performing well with microgrid deployment, and the report offers recommended pathways to improvement.

The U.S. microgrid market reached 10 GW in the third quarter of 2022, with more than 7 GW in operation and the rest in planning or construction stages, according to analysis from Wood Mackenzie’s Grid Edge Service.

Think Microgrid gained early insight from an upcoming annual report from Wood Mackenzie, which indicates that annual growth in microgrids is expected to be close to 20%. The drivers include increasing demand for resilience, federal incentives, favorable state policies and expanding corporate commitments to environmental social good (ESG) investment goals.

Wood Mackenzie analysis finds that the most significant barrier to deploying microgrids are state laws that prohibit private or community-owned electric infrastructure across property lines. Secondarily, Wood Mackenzie identifies a lack of tariffs or other market pathways designed for multi-customer microgrids.

To assess each state, the study considered the policy and market conditions in across five critical dimensions: deployment, regulation, resilience, market access and equity. The result is that only a few states received even a B and many received a C or D.

While some states received an A for activity in specific categories, there is no state that where Think Microgrid believed an overall A is warranted, and this reflects in the policy landscape. While some states have innovated in certain categories, “barriers still inhibit advancement towards commercialization,” according to the report authors.

Deployment

No state earned the highest score; however, Hawaii, Texas, Colo. and Conn. all earned a received B grades for deployment.

Deployment scores are based on overall capacity deployed compared to electricity consumed in that state. Note that a state with high overall capacity and diverse projects deployed scores higher because it indicates a broad range of projects serving various customer and grid needs, according to report authors.

Policy

No state earned the highest score in policy; however, the same four states earned a B.

Think Microgrid looked at microgrid programs and incentives, tariffs to facilitate interconnection and services compensation between microgrids and distribution utilities, as well as reforms to regulatory processes or state law to incentivize or remove barriers to microgrid development. The report indicates that successful microgrid policies support “an ecosystem robustly incorporating private, utility ratepayer, and public sector capital”. What they found was that most state policies including incentives, programs and tariffs support ratepayer-recovered, utility-owned projects.

Resilience

Texas achieved the rare top score for resilience, with Hawaii, Colo. and Conn. each earning a B in this category.

Think Microgrid looked at regulatory activity, legislation, and state planning activities related to electric grid resilience, as well as engaged in collaborative activities with energy regulators and energy offices.

To achieve a high score, state policy activities must include microgrids as a targeted resilience solution.

The authors noted that effective policy allows communities to tailor microgrid configurations to local resilience needs.

Grid services

For grid services, Hawaii earned the lone top score, with Texas earning a B. Colorado and Connecticut were the lowesst in this category.

The report identifies three potential market interfaces with which microgrids can engage to receive compensation for services: wholesale markets, retail tariffs and distribution-level markets. Successful retail tariffs, the authors contend, provide compensation pathways for a range of microgrid services, including: energy exports during periods of excess generation, load-shifting during peak demand periods, resiliency services, and utility distribution investment deferral or non-wires alternatives.

Equity

In the equity category, Colorado and Connecticut rose to the top. Hawaii had th next highest score, with Texas trailing behind.

Community microgrids can provide benefits to all residents, including resilience, clean air, workforce development, and economic development to vulnerable communities, so the report looked at how well the states prioritize such equity. This is accomplished by identifying and/or mapping vulnerable communities and actively seeking to stimulate investment in those areas.

The reports note that states approach equity differently, with some establishing equity laws that provide mandates, carveouts or directives for infrastructure that supports low-income, outage-vulnerable, rural, and tribal community resiliency and economic well-being. Some states offer state or regulator-approved programs that incentivize or fund projects in specific communities. And yet another approach is when state agency programs support communities with funding or technical assistance to capture federal funding for microgrids. The report authors gave high scores to states that take a coordinated approach.

The State Scorecard 2023 scores the states while also identifying practical next steps available at all levels of government and community engagement. The authors recommend that legislators or utilities develop a microgrid roadmap to guide the coordinated efforts between utility commissions, energy offices, and stakeholders. The report also sees an effective roadmap as identifying opportunities where microgrids can address grid vulnerabilities and state public policy goals, and more.

Peak Energy moves toward establishing a domestic market for sodium-ion energy storage systems

Jerusha Kamoji — Thu, 19 Oct 2023 14:05:18 +0000

Sodium-ion energy storage system manufacturer, Peak Energy, is working to streamline what it believes is the biggest bottleneck to scaling enough battery energy storage systems to accommodate 80% renewable energy generation and 100% carbon-free electricity by 2035.

Peak Energy has set out to use cheaper and more abundant raw materials to design sodium-ion battery energy storage systems (BESS). While a sodium-ion BESS is 30% less energy dense than those made from lithium-ion chemistries, they are also about 20% to 40% cheaper, says Landon Mossburg, who co-owns Peak Energy with Cameron Dales. Moreover, the U.S. has 19% of the world’s soda ash, from which sodium is derived. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, six companies in Wyoming and California comprise the U.S. soda ash industry. which is the largest in the world.

Peak Energy sees the ability to scale as another bottleneck. To overcome this challenge, the company is leveraging partnerships with international and domestic sodium cell manufacturers to introduce this technology to the U.S., while generating enough income to establish a local engineering site and gigafactory.

“We’ll do this in three phases,” Mossburg said.

Currently ongoing, Phase I involves importing the sodium-ion battery cells from manufacturers based in Asia, Europe and North America while producing packs in the U.S. The company plans to launch small-scale demonstration systems early next year with an expected energy capacity and duration of 3MW/h.

“When stacked together, they can create a larger scale utility system,” Mossburg said. The company will scale these systems to several 100MW/h commercial projects throughout 2026.

Peak Energy is currently testing cells from potential partners to decipher the best technology for U.S. markets. However, Dales suggests their systems will likely consist of a hard carbon anode and a layered oxide, Prussian white or polyanion cathode.

During Phase II, Peak Energy will begin manufacturing both cells and packs domestically, “That will likely be late 2027, early 2028,” Mossburg said. The company will continue to license cell technology from a third party for its BESS’ during this time.

In 2028, Peak Energy aims to open an engineering site in the Denver or Boulder, Colo., area to design the chemistry and technology of sodium-ion cells. These would be manufactured into storage systems at a gigafactory, likely based in the U.S. Midwest or Southeast region. When fully operational, the facility is expected to produce up to 5GW/h of battery cells per year. Moreover, Peak Energy plans to incorporate improvements into its licensed technology to optimize the cost and performance benefits of its storage systems.

Peak Energy states it’s exploring partnerships with businesses owning intellectual property or exhibiting a deep understanding of sodium-ion battery technology. The feedback that Peak has received indicates that the companies are also profoundly interested in deploying their product domestically by leveraging Peak Energy’s ability to scale manufacturing.scale manufacturing capabilities. This includes businesses based in China, as the country offers less stringent off-take agreements enabling Peak Energy to scale sodium-ion storage without hard evidence of committed customers, which can be a common requirement of European and North American partners.

“You need around a billion dollars for a small-scale GW factory, think less than 10 GW,” Mossburg said. “So, the fastest way to get to market is to build a system with cells available from a third party, and China is the only place building capacity to ship enough cells.”

Peak Energy also understands the value of creating an alternative supply chain down the road. This will help to maintain green grid resiliency if China’s supply chain experiences challenges.

Investors

To date, Peak Energy has received $10 million in equity investments. California-based capital market company Eclipse Ventures provided $5 million in a seed round, followed by Japanese electronics conglomerate TDK Ventures’ $5 million investment. The latter owns Amperex Technology Limited, which produced Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Limited (CATL), the world’s largest lithium-ion producer. In 2021, CATL announced launching lithium-free, sodium-ion batteries for commercial use. Dales suggests this partnership brings Peak Energy’s strategic global relationships to help enhance its supply chain.

Incentives

Peak Energy is expected to qualify for model production and domestic content credits from the Inflation Reduction Act’s tax provisions to incentivize clean energy security. This should happen once the company starts producing cells and packs in the country.

“We expect to qualify for the domestically produced battery cells at $25 kW/h and another $10 kW/h for domestic module production. On top of that, our customers would receive a 10% tax credit when they deploy projects based on our technology because it’s domestically produced,” Dales said. Potential Peak Energy customers include utility providers, independent power producers and industrial companies.

The company is also in the early stages of a conversation with the Department of Energy’s Loan Program Office, which finances domestic projects that advance the deployment of clean energy infrastructure. “We haven’t yet decided the best category for us to go under. That’ll probably happen a year from now,” Dales said.

Peak Energy states that its gigafactory and engineering site will generate over 1,000 full-time jobs once running. The location for the Denver, Boulder, Colo., engineering facility was selected due to its proximity to talent and big solar markets (Texas and California). Peak Energy’s gigafactory will likely be in the Midwest or Southeast region due to the number of new automotive plants in the area, Dales said.

Ascent Solar increases CIGS thin-film solar cell efficiency to 15.2%

Ryan Kennedy — Wed, 06 Sep 2023 18:43:47 +0000

The significant increase over previous efficiencies achieved is attributed to replacing cadmium sulfide in manufacturing process with a new material.

Colorado-based Ascent Solar, a provider of thin-film solar panels designed for harsh environments like space, announced it has achieved a significant increase in power conversion efficiency for its copper indium gallium diselenide (CIGS) solar cells.

Ascent achieved a 15.2% efficiency, bounding past the 10.8% standard efficiency measured for production material in 2012. The Department of Energy said that although laboratory-scale cell efficiencies have exceeded 20%, commercially viable CIGS modules typically have efficiencies between 12% and 14%.

CIGS technology is a versatile material that can be fabricated by multiple processes and implemented in different form factors. It can be deposited on substrates like glass, metal foils, and polymers, allowing for lightweight or flexible modules.

Starting with an ultra-thin, 25 micron (µ), polyimide base film, the final thickness of Ascent’s thin film is 52 µ. For reference, a human hair is on average 72µ thick. This enables lightweight power production at 68.4 grams per square meter.

The company’s breakthrough in efficiency for commercial cells is attributed to replacing cadmium sulfide, a harsh and hazardous material, with zinc oxysulfide. Preliminary measurements have shown the replacement material to offer 5% to 8% higher efficiency, offering a theoretical limit of about 16%.

“We’re thrilled with the recent achievements in process optimization for our CIGS technology, an innovation in thin film PV that we believe positions us for increased commercial adoption,” said Paul Warley, chief executive officer, Ascent Solar Technologies. “With continued increases in efficiency, we anticipate expanding sales into both new and existing markets and meeting the ever-increasing demand for solar power in targeted specialty applications.”

Ascent said its technology is suitable for flexible applications like agrivoltaic installations, building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV), drones and autonomous aircraft, and space and defense applications.

Ascent Solar’s research and development center and 5 MW production facility is in Thornton, Colorado. The company’s technology is backed by 40 years of research and development and 15 years of manufacturing experience.

In April Ascent Solar announced the closing of its acquisition of Flisom AG, a Swiss manufacturer of thin-film solar modules with 15 MW of production capacity.

In December 2022 the company secured a $50 million equity financing from two institutional investors. The company said it intends to use the net proceeds for general corporate purposes including financing its continued growth, strategic investments in partnerships and capital expenditures.

Sunrise brief: Arizona to vote on 37% slash to solar net metering

pv magazine — Fri, 25 Aug 2023 12:42:38 +0000

Also on the rise: Microsoft invests in 6.6 MW solar facility in Mississippi. Texas to activate its first virtual power plants. And more.

New York provides pre-development support for solar and storage for LMI housing A New York State program helps bring solar power to low- and moderate-income (LMI) housing by providing pre-development grants and technical assistance. The Clean Energy States Alliance considers the program a model for other states.

SolarEdge joins Xcel Energy’s virtual power plant incentive program in Colorado The Renewable Battery Connect initiative will call on home battery owners to discharge power to the grid when electricity demand is especially high, and provide them with financial incentives in return.

Arizona to vote on 37% slash to solar net metering A proposed amendment would supersede the 10% reduction cap currently enforced by law.

Microsoft invests in 6.6 MW solar facility in Mississippi Clearloop received an upfront payment for long-term renewable energy credits from Microsoft, a decarbonization investment in the Panola II Solar Farm.

Texas to activate its first virtual power plants A pilot project tests how consumer-owned small energy devices like batteries, generators, electric vehicle chargers and more can be virtually aggregated and participate in the wholesale electricity market.

SolarEdge joins Xcel Energy’s virtual power plant incentive program in Colorado

Kavya Balaraman — Thu, 24 Aug 2023 13:30:53 +0000

The Renewable Battery Connect initiative will call on home battery owners to discharge power to the grid when electricity demand is especially high, and provide them with financial incentives in return.

Customers in Colorado who own a SolarEdge Technologies’ home battery system can now participate in a new virtual power plant (VPP) incentive program run by Xcel Energy.

The initiative – called the Renewable Battery Connect program – will call on home battery owners to discharge power to the home or the grid when electricity demand is especially high, and provide them with financial incentives in return. SolarEdge software will automatically handle the charging and discharging of the battery when called upon to do so.

VPPs are aggregations of distributed energy resources, and offer many benefits. In an article on the barriers to VPPs, Jigar Shah, director of the Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office, touted their virtues. “By deploying grid assets more efficiently, an aggregation of distributed resources lowers the cost of power for everybody, especially VPP participants,” Shah wrote.

SolarEdge worked closely with Xcel Energy to design a program that meets Colorado’s specific energy requirements, Peter Mathews, the company’s North America general manager, said.

“The combination of our highly efficient DC-coupled technology and innovative software lays the groundwork for future VPP growth, as we continue to move towards a net-zero economy,” Mathews added.

Xcel Energy’s Renewable Battery Connect program began in June. Customers who generate clean electricity from their own rooftop solar systems, store it with at-home batteries and participate in grid-management events can play an important role in supporting the electrical grid and generation needs, especially on very hot days when air conditioning units are running, the utility told pv magazine USA. Xcel Energy invests nearly $5.2 million each year in customer rebates for renewable programs such as this one.

Customers who enroll in Xcel Energy’s Renewable Battery Connect program will be given a $500 per KW upfront incentive, working out to $2,500 for one SolarEdge home battery, and an additional $100 for each year that they are part of the program. Customers who meet certain income thresholds or come from disproportionately impacted communities could receive a higher $800 per kW incentive. The program’s enrollment period is five years, and customers could be called upon to discharge power to the home or the grid up to 60 times annually.

VPPs present the electricity sector with a host of potential benefits. They can reduce reliance on fossil fuel resources, and play a role in electrifying different sectors of the economy. In the report Virtual Power Plants, Real Benefits, RMI estimates that VPPs will reduce peak demand in the country by 60 GW by 2030, and potentially 200 GW by 2050. Moreover, VPPs can reduce yearly power industry costs by $17 billion by the end of the decade, since they can avert the need to build out generation, transmission and distribution infrastructure.

“Over the next decade, VPPs could play a central role in meeting grid and societal needs,” the report stated.

However, the report also identified three potential obstacles to the growth of the VPP market – whether regional transmission organizations craft wholesale market rules that fairly compensate VPPs; whether utilities provide retail programs and rates that promote VPPs in areas that are not served by wholesale electricity markets; and the low awareness among customers and policymakers regarding the benefits offered by VPPs.

In July, SolarEdge announced it had entered a multi-year capacity reservation agreement with global semiconductor company Infineon Technologies, under which Infineon would supply it with components for multiple SolarEdge products. The two companies also plan to work together on developing solar products and other future technologies.

SolarEdge reported record revenue of $991.3 million in its Q2 earnings report on Aug. 1, 5% higher than the previous quarter and 36% higher than the second quarter of 2022. Solar segment revenues totalled $947.4 million, 38% than the same quarter last year.

This article was amended on August 28, 2023 to add a statement from Xcel Energy.

Radiation-hardened solar blankets to power orbital logistics vehicle

Ryan Kennedy — Thu, 03 Aug 2023 15:51:14 +0000

Solestial’s ultra-thin solar cells will power in-space delivery vehicles for Atomos Space.

Solestial, a space-based solar technology provider based in Tempe, Arizona, and Atomos Space, an in-space logistics company, announced the two have entered a partnership in which Solestial will supply its ultra-thin PV blankets for Atomos’ solar-electric orbital transfer vehicles (OTV).

The deal calls for at least 20 kW of ultra-thin, low mass, radiation-hardened solar blankets to power the craft for several upcoming missions in 2024. The company said its 20-micron thick cells demonstrate over 20% efficiency.

Atomos’ OTVs provide a variety of transportation services for satellite operators. The craft use high-powered electric propulsion systems, making use of PV as a steady supply of power in space. Following an initial demonstration, the blanket shipsets from Solestial will power two OTVs providing deployment services to constellation operators in low Earth orbit and relocation services to operators in other orbits.

Solestial’s ultra-thin PV blankets self-repair under radiation.
Image: Solestial

“It was clear that traditional space solar was too expensive and too supply-constrained to support our high-power OTV design,” said Vanessa Clark, Atomos co-founder and chief executive officer. “We were attracted to Solestial’s solution as they provided the best combination of solar array specific mass performance, radiation hardness, and affordability available on the market today.”

The French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) independently validated the ability of Solestial’s ultrathin silicon solar cells to effectively anneal radiation damage under sunlight at 90 C (194 F). This means the cells essentially self-heal under radiation damage.

Solestial’s silicon solar cells open circuit voltage dropped by only 4% and maintained 96% of initial value after being exposed to radiation equivalent to 10 years in low Earth orbit.

“Annealing of radiation damage in silicon is straightforward at high temperatures, for example, above 200-250°C, but this is not useful for applications in space as these temperatures are rarely, if ever, experienced in situ,” said Romain Cariou, space silicon solar applications expert, CEA. “The differentiation factor here is that Solestial’s cells can cure radiation damage at normal operating temperatures for solar panels in space.”

The Tempe, Arizona-based company has been developing its technology for over a decade, beginning its life in Arizona State University. It underwent a $10 million seed funding round in October 2022.

Solestial targets a 2025 launch of a manufacturing facility capable of producing 10 MW per year of solar blankets.

Vertical bifacial solar seeking greenhouse albedo and deployment space

John Fitzgerald Weaver — Fri, 28 Jul 2023 13:42:32 +0000

A Colorado farmer installed vertical bifacial solar, leveraging greenhouse albedo to increase output. The installation demonstrates promising generation during winter months, while maximizing limited land space.

Even in non-traditional orientations solar panels can provide a cost-effective and environmentally friendly energy solution when strategically installed.

This principle is currently being showcased by Spring Hill Greens, a Colorado-based farming operation nestled between two greenhouses. Their unique vertical bifacial solar panel system optimizes land use while potentially capitalizing on the high albedo effect of the highly reflective greenhouse materials.

We get morning sun and evening sun but during the day we also get reflection off the buildings which we hope will produce a significant amount of solar–Tom, from Spring Hill Greens Farm in Fort Collins

The system’s design and installation were handled by Sandbox Solar. While they don’t yet have a tool to fully measure the albedo effect without a control vertical system, the company has commenced experiments to provide further insights into generation curves.

Ian Skor, owner of Sandbox Solar noted that the production on snowy days is dramatically higher than any other installation. The project’s peak generation periods are at 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., which Skor likened to a “reverse duck curve”.

To help design and simulate the generation curves of the facility prior to construction, Sandbox Solar employed their inhouse software, SPADE Agrivoltaic.

Preliminary data shows promising results. During the months of September through April, the vertical bifacial system produced 559.28 kWh/kWp. This performance surpasses that of a nearby east-west rooftop system owned by Spring Hill by 14%, which produced 489.93 kWh/kWp. However, it falls behind a south-facing ground mount project, also a Spring Hill property, which achieved an output of 857 kWh/kWp, by 34%.

Denver-based Greentech Renewable provided the hardware for the project, which includes Canadian Solar 445 W BiHiKu bifacial solar modules, SolarEdge 11.4 240V single-phase inverters, p505 rail mounted optimizers, and Tamarack bifacial vertical solar fence racking.

Acknowledging the customer’s initial desire to maximize land use, Skor commented, “My summary is that the system saves dramatically on footprint and can increase the number of usable project areas. The production during snowy days is dramatically higher than any other installation. This application may work extremely well in northern climates that experience significant snowfall.”

Sunrise brief: Meyer Burger to bring 2 GW of solar cell manufacturing to Colorado

pv magazine — Tue, 25 Jul 2023 12:46:13 +0000

Also on the rise: How will the latest change to net metering impact solar adoption in California? Solar contractor tool helps quote roofing and solar in one. And more.

Solid-state lithium-ion batteries based on foil-based negative electrodes Georgia Institute of Technology researchers used aluminum foil-based negative electrodes with engineered microstructures in an all-solid-state lithium-ion cell configuration. They have reported hundreds of stable cycles with practically relevant areal capacities at high current densities.

2 GW Meyer Burger solar cell factory in Colorado, hints of more coming The Swiss-German solar machine and module manufacturer has announced it will redirect solar cell manufacturing machines planned for Germany to Colorado in order to get the factory up by the end of 2024, which would make all of their Arizona solar modules qualify for the IRA”s “domestic content”.

Interfaith group uses moral suasion to advance solar power for Philadelphia A Philadelphia interfaith group seeks to persuade the utility serving the region to contract for more solar and wind power. Pennsylvania’s renewable generation ranks 45th out of 50 states, said the group’s executive director.

How will the latest change to net metering impact solar adoption in California? With the changes to net metering incentives introduced in April, homeowners and installers alike are faced with the unknown. Amir Cohen, general manager, SolarEdge Technologies, discusses what installers need to do now to help their businesses and customers thrive in the California solar industry’s ‘new normal’.

Solar contractor tool helps quote roofing and solar in one SumoQuote partnered with EagleView to expand its roofing tool to also offer quotes on new solar installations.

2 GW Meyer Burger solar cell factory in Colorado, hints of more coming

John Fitzgerald Weaver — Mon, 24 Jul 2023 13:17:20 +0000

The Swiss-German solar machine and module manufacturer has announced it will redirect solar cell manufacturing machines planned for Germany to Colorado in order to get the factory up by the end of 2024, which would make all of their Arizona solar modules qualify for the IRA”s “domestic content”.

Meyer Burger will construct a 2 GW per year solar cell manufacturing facility in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The facility will be used to exclusively produce solar cells to feed the company’s Goodyear, Arizona solar module manufacturing facility.

The company also stated further expansion in the U.S. was probable. CEO Gunter Erfurt said, ”Meyer Burger is currently working on additional multi-gigawatt offtake agreements in the U.S. with new customers. We are already exploring opportunities to add further solar cell and module production capacity in the country”.

The two cities, separated by a mountain range, are a bit over 800 miles and twelve hours away. Colorado Springs is just over an hour away from the National Renewable Energy Lab in Golden, Colorado.

The manufacturer noted multiple sources of financing for the facility.

First of course, is that solar cells made in the factory are expected to qualify for the advanced manufacturing tax credit 45X, which is part of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Meyer Burger says that from the end of 2024 through 2032, the company’s current manufacturing capacity at its solar cell and module factories would manufacture a cumulative sum of hardware that would be eligible for up to $1.4 billion in tax credits.

As part of the IRA, solar cells manufactured in the U.S. earn 4¢/Wdc in tax credits, while solar modules earn 7¢/Wdc in tax credits, totalling 11¢/Wdc for Meyer Burger’s hardware. At 2 GW/year for eight years (including all of 2025 through the end of 2032), a minimum of 16 GW of modules would be manufactured at the facilities.

The company noted additional funding of $90 million was provided from the city of Colorado Springs and the state of Colorado, mainly in the form of tax credits, direct support and discounted electricity and water rates. Meyer Burger said $300 million in prepayments from module offtake partners, as well as funding from the Department of Energy loan program total $300 million.

Meyer Burger, PECVD high-vacuum coating system for amorphous silicon for HJT solar cells.

The prepayments from module offtake partners include funding to cover the operating costs of the facility, purchase price of the components that go into the modules (wafers, glass, aluminum, etc), as well as a floating price on the wafers, which protects both parties in the transaction against the volatile polysilicon market.

The company said the machines used to make the solar cells will be redirected from current plans of deploying this hardware in Germany. This was done to get the U.S. manufacturing facility up and running as fast as possible. The company was recently awarded $224 million by the European Union to develop 3.5 GW of solar cell and panel manufacturing.

Meyer Burger had previously said it was considering solar cell manufacturing in the U.S. after the Internal Revenue Service released their “domestic content” guidance on May 12 – about two and a half months ago. The guidance made clear that in order for a solar module to meet domestic content guidelines and partially qualify a project for the 10% tax credit adder, that the solar cells in the solar modules must be made in the U.S.

The company’s Arizona facility recently announced new solar module offtake agreements that have brought its annual manufacturing capacity goals to 2.0 GW/year as well. Meyer Burger’s module offtake partners include D. E. Shaw Renewable Investments, Ikea, and BayWa r.e..

Meyer Burger’s module production facility in Freiberg

Meyer Burger has also hinted that there are light talks with residential installation companies Sunrun and Sunnova, however, no other deals are announced at this time. Sunrun & Sunnova, which are primarily residential solar companies, are able to make use of the 10% tax credit adder for domestic content in the residential space – unlike actual homeowners. This is because the commercial and residential tax credits are separate laws within the Inflation Reduction Act, and the residential tax credit doesn’t offer a domestic tax credit bonus.

Thus, these two companies – and any other third party residential asset owner – have a strong business interest to sign an offtake deal for the residential module manufacturing lines in the Arizona Goodyear facility. Currently, these manufacturing lines have no signed offtake agreements in place.

Sunrise brief: Solar jobs grow 3.5% in 2022, workforce challenges remain

pv magazine — Thu, 20 Jul 2023 12:09:58 +0000

Also on the rise: Autonomous robots for solar installation gain traction. First utility deployment of new liquid metal battery system. And more.

People on the move: Aera Energy, Spearmint, Sungrow Power Supply, and more Job moves in solar, storage, cleantech, utilities and energy transition finance.

Solar jobs grow 3.5% in 2022, workforce challenges remain IREC’s 13th annual National Solar Jobs Census shows that solar jobs were up, with California leading the way. Major challenges continue in finding workers and increasing diversity.

Autonomous robots for solar installation gain traction Installation robots are moving from test centers to the field. Sarcos Technology and Robotics Corporation and Terabase Energy recently announced key business developments.

First utility deployment of new liquid metal battery system Ambri advances collaboration with Xcel Energy for a long-duration energy storage project.

Leap raises $12 million to expand virtual power plant business The funding round was led by Standard Investments with several other investors participating.

First utility deployment of new liquid metal battery system

Anne Fischer — Wed, 19 Jul 2023 16:37:00 +0000

Ambri advances collaboration with Xcel Energy for a long-duration energy storage project.

Ambri, an MIT spinoff, developed a liquid metal battery for long-duration energy storage solutions. Designed for daily cycling in harsh environments, the battery has an expected lifetime of 20+ years with minimal fade, said Ambri. While the battery is in use in data centers, an announced test with Xcel Energy is the first reported installation by a utility.

Xcel Energy and Ambri plan a year-long test the 300 kWh system at Solar Technology Acceleration Center (SolarTAC) in Aurora, Colorado. SolarTAC is owned and managed by Grey Snow Management Solutions, a tribally owned economic development enterprise. The test center was established in 2009 by original founding member companies Xcel Energy, SunEdison and Abengoa Solar with the mission to test renewable energy technologies in a real-world, grid-connected environments.

Installation of the Xcel system is expected to begin in early 2024, with the system fully operational later in the year. The pilot will test various use cases, including solar and wind integration, capacity management, arbitrage, and ancillary services, among others. It will use the GridNXT Microgrid Platform at SolarTAC to integrate multiple generation sources, such as solar and wind, along with inverters, load banks, and 3-phase distribution connections and communications.

Xcel Energy became the first utility in the United States to set a long-term goal of providing its customers zero-carbon electricity. The utility aims to be net-zero across electricity, heating, and transportation by 2050.

“Xcel Energy is a forward-thinking and ambitious utility, and their enthusiasm for testing our system highlights the huge potential for Liquid Metal batteries,” said Adam Briggs, chief commercial officer at Ambri. “Xcel Energy clearly understands the significant value that can be achieved by integrating innovative storage technologies into their renewable portfolio.”

Xcel Energy plans to develop a follow-on memorandum of understanding (MOU) for larger-capacity long-duration energy storage projects to follow the upcoming 300kWh system at SolarTAC.

“Xcel Energy has always been at the forefront among utilities in the transition to carbon-free electricity,” said Justin Tomljanovic, vice president, corporate development at Xcel Energy. “This demonstration project with Ambri allows us to explore a technology that could help us continue to reliably supply the energy our customers depend on throughout the clean energy transition.”

Ambri’s batteries, manufactured in Milford, Mass., are comprised of a liquid calcium alloy anode, a molten salt electrolyte, and a cathode comprised of solid particles of antimony, enabling the use of low-cost materials and a low number of steps in the cell assembly process.

The company said that the active materials in its cells reversibly alloy and de-alloy while charging and discharging. The electrolyte thermodynamically stable with the electrodes, avoiding side reactions such as film-formation that can lead to performance degradation. The negative electrode is fully consumed when discharged, and reformed on every cycle, resulting in what the company said is a “highly repeatable process with no memory effect.”

Grassland agrivoltaics show minimal difference in forage yield to traditional growth

Michael Schoeck — Thu, 06 Jul 2023 15:12:32 +0000

A Colorado State University study found that despite a 38% reduction in light availability, a C3 semi-arid grassland only reduced aboveground productivity and photosynthesis by 6%, pointing to the feasibility of grassland agrivoltaics.

Agrivoltaic systems, where solar photovoltaic arrays are co-located with crop or forage production, can alleviate the tension between expanding solar development and loss of agricultural land. However, the ecological ramifications of these arrays are not yet well known.

Agrivoltaics bring notable benefits, including creating microclimates for crops, shade to grazing animals, improved forage quality, and increasing farmer income and income stability. While the installation of traditional solar arrays tends to increase soil compaction, reduce soil carbon and nutrient content, and reduce water retention, care can be taken during the installation phase to minimize the impacts on soil and vegetation. Agrivoltaic solar arrays may be better able to maintain crucial ecosystem services such as carbon storage, water retention, and habitat quality.

A new report by Colorado State University used field measurements and a plant hydraulic model to quantify carbon-water cycling in a semi-arid perennial grassland growing beneath a single-axis tracking solar array in the Rocky Mountain State.

Although the solar array reduces light availability by 38% during the day, photosynthesis and above ground primary productivity were reduced by only 6–7% while evapotranspiration or the evaporation of water from soil into the atmosphere decreased by just 1.3%.

These minimal changes in carbon-water cycling occurred largely because the sample plants’ photosynthetic traits underneath the panels changed to take advantage of the dynamic shading environment.

The test results indicate that agrivoltaic systems can serve as a scalable way to expand solar energy production while maintaining ecosystem function in managed grasslands, especially in climates where water is scarce compared to sunlight.

Agrivoltaic systems are promising in water-limited regions such as the Western U.S. due to their capacity to moderate thermal environments and reduce plant water-use and soil evaporation. Semi-arid and arid grasslands are a favorable location for such arrays given their short-statured vegetation and relatively flat topography, the CSU report found.

The U.S. is home to close to 40 million acres of grassland for hay production and non-alfalfa forage. It has been estimated that close to 10 million acres of high-density photovoltaic systems are needed to achieve statewide decarbonization goals by 2050. Thus, the report notes that managed grasslands have the potential to house an increasing amount of collocated agrivoltaic systems at a meaningful scale while concurrently increasing land-use efficiency.

However, the CSU report affirms certain unknowns still exist about the long-term impacts of agrivoltaic systems, including the degree to which reductions in light availability will limit plant photosynthesis, and thus forage production.

Water retention in grassland agrivoltaics could also translate into enhanced ecosystem resistance to weather extremes such as droughts or heat waves.

Overall, many uncertainties remain regarding the highly dynamic microclimate within agrivoltaics, the physiological responses of plants to microclimate variability, and how solar arrays impact carbon and water cycling at decade-level time scale.

Jack’s Solar Garden

In the U.S., where the CSU study was undertaken at the first widely studied agrivoltaic project, Jack’s Solar Garden, a 1.2 MW, 3.5-acre solar field in Longmount, Colo., with new crops grown underneath since 2020, studies have been undertaken for just the last few years.

Widespread adoption of agrivoltaics in managed grasslands will depend, in part, on the degree to which ecosystem function within the array can be maintained despite reductions in light availability.

At Jack’s Solar Garden, the CSU study used plant hydraulics and soil hydrology to simulate grassland growth and hourly carbon-water fluxes over a 23-year time period forecast. Using single-axis tracking panels, common smooth brome pasture grass grows underneath and between the solar panels in 17 foot spaced rows.

The CSU model was measured with plant traits and driven by a combination of measured and reanalysis-derived weather data. The study group partitioned the agrivoltaic system into four locations:

Areas underneath the eastern and western edges of the solar field receive additional precipitation from panel runoff, and experience full sunlight in the morning and afternoon, respectively.
Locations between the panel rows experience a microclimate similar to a non-agrivoltaic grassland (with the exception of minor morning and afternoon shade).
Locations directly under the solar panels are mostly shaded and receive reduced direct precipitation inputs. The CSU group compared these within-array locations to a control plot located 32 feet away that had similar vegetation composition and management history but not influenced by solar panels.

The impact of agrivoltaics on grassland function will likely differ across climates and species. While reductions in productivity are commonly observed in more moderate moisture ecosystems, drier regions may experience increases in plant growth under solar arrays due to more acute water limitation in those environments, the study found.

The CSU study was undertaken using C3 type grass, a cool season grass type found in cooler temperature environments and less sunlight requirements, with high moisture retention and high frost withstand. Future studies by the group will focus on C4 grassland plots, which are warmer environment, high light factor grass with lower moisture requirements.

The report was led by Steven A. Kannenberg of West Virginia University, with participation by Matthew Sturchio and Alan K. Knapp of Colorado State University, and Martin Venturas of Universidad Politécnica de Madrid.

Vikram Solar announces $1.5 billion vertically integrated manufacturing operation

Michael Schoeck — Fri, 23 Jun 2023 14:46:51 +0000

Vikram reports that its new joint venture will build a 4 GW solar module production facility in Brighton, Colorado, followed by a wafer and ingot facility in a Southern State.

Vikram Solar, an India-based solar module producer, has partnered with investors Phalanx Impact Partners and Das & Co. to create a U.S. joint venture, VSK Energy LLC. The new company plans to invest up to $1.5 billion to develop a vertically integrated solar manufacturing operation.

The first phase of the investment consists of a $250 million investment to establish the Colorado module manufacturing facility in a recently completed building owned by Mortenson Properties and Hyde Development.

The new factory is expected to create over 900 direct jobs with an average salary of more than $70,000 and 200 construction phase jobs. VSK Energy expects the facility to commence operations in 2024 with an initial capacity of 2 GW of solar PV modules and planned expansion of up to 4 GW in the coming years.

With two planned projects, VSK extends Vikram Solar’s 17 years of solar manufacturing experience to the U.S. with financial support from sustainability-focused private equity firm Phalanx Impact Partners and Das & Co., a multi-tiered asset manager.

“Colorado is one of the top states in the country for solar production so this expansion in Brighton will help build upon our plans to achieve 100% renewable energy by 2040, create more than 900 new good-paying jobs for Coloradans and contribute to our state’s thriving economy,” said Colorado Governor Jared Polis.

“Cleantech in Colorado contributes $4.6 billion per year to the state’s economy and employs over 62,000 Colorado workers. By establishing a new solar manufacturing facility in Brighton, VSK will grow this important employment sector and help further Colorado’s commitment to grow clean energy technologies,” said Eve Lieberman, Executive Director of the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade.

The second phase of investment would complete VSK’s vertical integration of the solar manufacturing process with the development of a second U.S. factory in a Southern state to produce solar ingots, cells and wafers with a planned annual capacity of 4 GW and $1.25 billion capital commitment.

VSK Energy is expected to commence operations in 2025 following the evaluation and finalization of available federal, state, regional, and local incentives for the project. The new factory is expected to create over 1,500 direct jobs and 1,000 construction jobs.

Mortenson, a leading solar engineering, procurement, construction, and commercial contracting firm, will oversee the engineering and construction of both phases of VSK Energy’s planned investment.

To construct both phases of VSK Energy’s planned module and ingot facilities, Mortenson intends to hire hundreds of team members from the local communities involved in the project, including pipefitters, electricians, sheet metal workers, plumbers, operators, carpenters, laborers and safety professionals.

“With our 17 years of experience in solar manufacturing, combined with the VSK team’s commitment to a clean energy future, we look forward to driving the solar industry forward and setting a new benchmark for innovation and efficiency in solar manufacturing in the United States.”

“The passage of the Inflation Reduction Act was a landmark moment for the clean energy future of the United States,” said Sriram Das, Co-Chairman of VSK Energy and Managing Director of Das & Co. “The Biden Administration and Congress have called for immediate action and through our partnership in VSK, we are taking a decisive step towards achieving solar technology self-sufficiency, fortifying America’s energy security, and propelling large-scale solar deployment.”

Dentons LLP represented Vikram Solar for the creation of the VSK Energy JV, while McDermott Will & Emery represented Phalanx Impact Partners and Reed Smith represented Das & Co.

Based in Kolkata, India, Vikran Solar has a presence in 32 countries, operates a portfolio of 1.42 GW of PV projects and employs close to 2,000 employees. The company’s cumulative production capacity of solar modules is 3.5 GW.

Sunrise brief: U.S. solar market expected to triple in size in five years

pv magazine — Fri, 09 Jun 2023 11:14:07 +0000

Also on the rise: BMW electric vehicle battery supplier breaks ground on 30 GWh factory. Solar development found to not impact biodiversity. And more.

U.S. solar market expected to triple in size in five years The solar industry had its best first quarter in history as supply chain challenges fade, according to U.S. Solar Market Insight Q2 2023 report.

2D solar cell design based on transition metal dichalcogenides promises 12.87% efficiency A 2D solar cell based on TMDCs may exceed by far the efficiency of this device typology, which usually doesn’t exceed 6%. The novelty of this cell consists of its superlattice structure, which the research group said can separate the layers of 2D TMDCs by a spacer, thus improving light absorption.

U.S. Inflation Reduction Act poses threat for Australia in green hydrogen race Former Reserve Bank of Australia Deputy Governor Guy Debelle has warned that the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) poses a “material threat” to Australia’s push to become a green hydrogen superpower.

BMW electric vehicle battery supplier breaks ground on 30 GWh factory A South Carolina manufacturing site will host over 1,100 jobs made by Japanese battery provider AESC.

Solar buildout mapped to determine biodiversity impact on largest estuary in the U.S. A group of researchers and data scientists from the Chesapeake Conservatory studied the construction of solar energy facilities in states surrounding the Chesapeake Bay Watershed and found that solar developments on already cultivated land did not adversely impact biodiversity.

Rooftop community solar projects a key IRA thrust At the ACORE Finance Forum, investors said a key challenge that statewide community solar programs do not yet address is how to unlock the opportunity of hundreds of thousands of building rooftops for solar development and bringing access to residents who rent their apartment.

Key Capture installs third New York storage project near Buffalo The 45.6 MWh project is interconnected into National Grid’s western New York service territory, a region which has seen a surge of distributed energy system deployment activity in recent years due to grid constraints.

Will homebuyers in Colorado be priced out by solar and EV-ready building codes? Beginning July 1, new buildings must integrate energy efficient appliances and include pre-wiring for on-site solar and EV charging.

Will homebuyers in Colorado be priced out by solar and EV-ready building codes?

Ryan Kennedy — Thu, 08 Jun 2023 19:56:35 +0000

Beginning July 1, new buildings must integrate energy efficient appliances and include pre-wiring for on-site solar and EV charging.

Colorado is soon to implement House Bill 1362, a law passed in 2022 that directed the state to create an energy codes agency to develop mandatory codes for clean energy and energy efficiency adoption.

Beginning July 1, in a rolling fashion across different towns and cities in the state, new buildings will be required to be constructed in a way that makes them readymade for the clean energy transition. The code requires that buildings have prewiring for on-site solar and electric vehicle charging infrastructure. The codes apply to single-family and multi-family homes, as well as commercial buildings.

Despite the long-term cost savings realized from energy-efficient appliances required by the code, home builders in the state are complaining that the moderate cost increase will “price out” many buyers.

“While we share the goals of reducing energy use and emissions, we must balance these goals with all housing costs,” said Ted Leighty, chief executive officer Colorado Association of Home Builders.

While Colorado construction firms likely don’t support any measure that adds to their costs, the arguments that EVs, solar and energy efficiency are neither desired nor cost-effective stand on shaky ground.

The new code is a forward-looking requirement that is expected to save home and business owners considerably in the long run. While preparing a home for an EV charger costs about $1,000 in the new construction process, it can cost up to $4,000 when retrofitting to an existing home, said Adam Berry, program manager, codes and efficiency, Colorado Energy Office.

Berry said the new building codes were negotiated down to being “EV-capable lite,” merely requiring a ground conduit and a higher capacity main electric panel, with wiring able to be added later on as EVs are adopted.

The Colorado Apartment Association claimed only about 1% of surveyed renters said they want an EV charger right now, yet the Colorado Automobile Dealers Association showed that 10.5% of new vehicle sales in Colorado in 2022 were electric vehicles.

State officials in Colorado have set aside $2 million in grant money for local governments to implement and administrate the new codes. The state is also directing hundreds of millions of dollars in incentives to buy new and used EVs, heat pumps and other energy efficient appliances.

The City of Denver is a leader in this regard, offering several rebates including $1,500 for a heat pump, $3,500 for a cold-climate heat pump, $3,500 for ground source heat pumps, $1,000 for heat pump water heater, and $300 for a standard electric bike, $500 for a cargo e-bike, and up to $1,200 for income-qualified buyers. Other cities and municipalities as well as utility companies offer clean energy and energy efficiency incentives, as well.

These incentives can be combined with those offered the state’s major utility Xcel Energy, including $1,500 for an efficient air-source heat pump, $2,000 for a cold-climate heat pump, and $1,300 for home wiring for a Level 2 electric vehicle charging station.

Additionally, Colorado offers among the highest EV tax incentives in the United States. Beginning July 1, the Colorado electric vehicle tax credit rises from $2,000 to up to $5,000. This can be added to the federal EV tax credit, which offers up to $7,500 in tax credits, combining for an impressive $12,500 in tax credits for the purchase of a new electric vehicle.

The Colorado Sun reported that the next round of code updates may be more contentious. While the new energy codes still require pathways for both natural gas and electricity service to buildings, the state board in 2024 is required to write “low carbon” codes.

This may spark a battle on whether new construction homes should be built electric-only, with no natural gas hookups allowed. While builders may welcome the lowered cost of having to integrate only one energy source, the natural gas industry would likely have a combative stance towards such requirements.

NREL adds a lab and announces plans for spending $150 million in IRA funding

Anne Fischer — Wed, 31 May 2023 13:34:59 +0000

Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm was on hand for the opening of the Research and Innovation Laboratory, which will focus on plastics upcycling, next-generation batteries and advanced energy materials.

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), founded in 1977, recently held a ribbon cutting ceremony for a new laboratory—the first on its campus since 2013.

NREL is one of the U.S. Department of Energy’s 17 national research laboratories and the only one dedicated to renewable power sources. Based in Golden, Colo., NREL fills its main campus with offices, laboratories, product test sites, solar parking canopies and, now, the recently added Research and Innovation Laboratory (RAIL).

Department of Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm was on hand for the recent ribbon-cutting ceremony, who marked the official opening of the new building with Colorado Governor Jared Polis.

The honorable Jennifer Granholm, U.S. Secretary of Energy, center), cuts the ribbon for the RAIL building during a ceremony at NREL in Golden, Colorado. Also present were (from left) NREL Director Martin Keller, U.S. Senator John Hickenlooper, Colorado Governor Jared Polis, and Brian Holland, director of business development, M.A. Mortenson, which constructed the building. Image: Werner Slocum / NREL

The new lab, which will provide “wet” lab space for chemistry experiments, will be home to research aimed at moving the nation toward the goal of 100% clean electricity by 2035 and reaching net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.

“NREL, with its goals of getting to net zero, is amazing,” Granholm said. “We have real-world impacts that come out of this lab, and it’s only getting better thanks to the expansion that we’re here to celebrate.”

The current buildings on the 178-acre campus are dedicated to advancements in batteries, biofuels and solar, among other carbon-free technologies. The RAIL laboratory is the first building in a planned expansion, adding about 15,000 square feet to the campus.

NREL plans to expand the campus further, and recently took ownership of the former Camp George West site, which was used 120 years ago as training grounds for the Colorado National Guard. The portion of Camp George West acquired under a land swap with Jefferson County was most recently a correctional facility.

NREL intends to transform the 6.6-acre site into the South Table Mountain Energy Park (STEP), which will serve as an incubator for clean energy companies. The state of Colorado intends to build the Global Energy Park directly adjacent to NREL as a hub for the cleantech industry.

The Global Energy Park is expected to house young companies working in the clean technology space. Development of the site will start later this year, with a projected opening date in early 2026.

“We have never had a lab envelope so big that it could entertain a collaboration exchange. Most of the time, those labs are very limited,” said Michelle Slovensky, Intelligent Campus program manager at NREL. “This is unique, and we’re going to see what that exchange produces.”

In addition, NREL received $150 million in funding from the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which will enable additions and improvements to its facilities.

“Thanks to the historic IRA, we will be able to make vital upgrades to lab infrastructure and enable clean energy research and development that is imperative to addressing the climate crisis,” said Martin Keller, director of NREL. “The funds will accelerate three-plus years of planned capital investment to modernize research infrastructure supporting Department of Energy clean energy research and development activities, critical laboratory renovations, and deferred maintenance.”

NREL’s IRA funds have been designated for the following priorities:

$93 million for modernizing research infrastructure, including new and expanded facilities to advance technologies such as sustainable aviation fuels, and advancing NREL’s Advanced Research on Integrated Energy Systems (ARIES) research platform that will support decarbonization goals in the grid, buildings, transportation and industrial sectors.
$57 million for laboratory renovations and deferred maintenance to improve facilities for NREL researchers and enable the lowering of overall emissions from lab operations.

Surnrise brief: Treasury Department releases guidance on solar domestic content

pv magazine — Mon, 15 May 2023 11:14:10 +0000

Also on the rise: First Solar acquires perovskite specialist Evolar. Wind and solar energy saved Texans $11 billion in 2022. And more.

First Solar acquires perovskite specialist Evolar First Solar has agreed to pay $38 million to buy Swedish manufacturing startup Evolar AB, as it seeks to expand development of high-efficiency tandem PV tech.

New York law allows power authority to build renewable projects The Build Public Renewables Act directs the New York Power Authority to plan, construct, and operate renewable energy projects in service of the state’s renewable energy goals.

50 states of solar incentives: Colorado Colorado has had a strong residential solar market for a decade now, and continues to introduce more solar across residential, commercial, community and utility scales.

Treasury Department releases guidance on solar domestic content The Inflation Reduction Act includes a 10% bonus for solar power projects that use made-in-USA content, and the Treasury released long-awaited details on what that means.

Wind and solar energy saved Texans $11 billion in 2022 A recent analysis reveals that amid the abnormally high-priced natural gas market in 2022, wholesale electricity rate savings from wind and solar surged nearly 300% from previous years to exceed $11 billion, totalling $31.5 billion in energy savings since 2010.

Solar earnings recap: Tigo Energy, Nextracker and FTC Solar pv magazine USA’s recap of notable upstream solar, integrated solar, hardware, finance and rooftop installers that reported quarterly or fiscal year earnings over the last week.

50 states of solar incentives: Colorado

Ryan Kennedy — Fri, 12 May 2023 15:16:25 +0000

Colorado has had a strong residential solar market for a decade now, and continues to introduce more solar across residential, commercial, community and utility scales.

Colorado had installed about 2.3 GW of solar capacity through the end of 2022, enough to power the equivalent of over 450,000 homes, said the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA). SEIA expects the state to more than double its capacity over the next five years, adding 3.2 GW along the way.

The Rocky Mountain State is home to nearly 400 solar companies, employing over 7,000 people. It also is the site of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in Golden.

Over 6.3% of the state’s electricity generation comes from solar, higher than the national average. Colorado has over 300 sunny days per year and was among the first states to enact a renewable energy standard.

Image: Solar Energy Industries Association

Incentives

Colorado was an early adopter of solar incentives, which may explain in part why it has the 13th most solar capacity among the states despite being the 21st most populated state.

Residential solar customers are offered net metering, a program in which excess solar production is exported to the grid during the day and is credited for nighttime usage. The state’s largest utility, Xcel Energy, offers net metering for all projects 1 MW and smaller. Net metering helps secure a desirable return on investment for solar arrays, even when not paired with energy storage.

Colorado also places tax exemptions on solar. There is no sales tax when purchasing a system, and it is property tax exempt, meaning that even though it will increase the value of your home, it will not increase your property taxes.

Xcel Energy has a solar rewards program, under the program, you agree to sell renewable energy credits (RECs) to the utility in exchange for cash payments. RECs are intangible assets created by the generation of clean electricity. By agreeing to sell 20 years of RECs, Xcel will pay $0.07 per kWh for 10 years for the credits. This equates to a payment of $6,500 over 10 years for a 6 kW system.

Holy Cross Energy offers $500 per kW up to 6 kW, and Energy Smart Colorado supports installations with rebates up to $2500 for Pitkin and Eagle County, Eagle Valley, Vail, and Summit County.

Like all solar installations in the United States, Colorado solar projects are eligible for the federal Investment Tax Credit. The credit covers 30% of installed system costs, and can be rolled over year to year if the customer lacks the tax liability to take advantage of the credit in one tax session.

Colorado also supports a microgrid grant program. Microgrids are a connected series of distributed energy resources like solar, paired with backup battery systems, and often connected with smart appliances and meters. Microgrids are particularly beneficial to communities that are exposed to extreme weather or experience frequent outages. Available to remote communities, the grant program allocates $400,000, with maximum individual rewards of $36,000.

Notable installation

On the edges of Boulder, Colorado sits Jack’s Solar Garden, a community garden that grows crops and local pollinator supporting plants. This community garden is far from ordinary, as it houses a 1.2 MW solar array that shares the same land as the crops below.

Jack’s Solar Garden is the largest commercial agrivoltaics research site in the United States. The 24-acre plot is part of a research study being conducted by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Colorado State University and the University of Arizona to understand the microclimates created by the panels and how they impact vegetation growth.

The electricity generated by the single-axis tracker mounted array is enough to power 300 average Colorado homes annually. The power is sold to various subscribers via utility Xcel Energy’s Solar Rewards Community program, where customers receive a percentage of the net metered production as credits against their monthly electric bills.

Fifty residents, five local businesses, and two local governments subscribe to the plant. Jack’s Solar Garden donates 2% of its power production to low-income households through the Boulder County Housing Authority.

A study by Oregon State University showed wide-scale installation of agrivoltaic systems could lead to an annual reduction of 330,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions in the U.S. while “minimally” impacting crop yield, the researchers said.

Up next

Last time, we toured the solar incentives of Utah, and next we will move south to the sunny state of Arizona. For a full list the state articles to date, click here.

Above: Orbital and Ascent Solar receive federal grant for orbital thin-film panels

Michael Schoeck — Thu, 11 May 2023 19:32:50 +0000

The companies received a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program Phase I award from the Air Force to develop a solar-heated crucible.

Above: Orbital and thin-film solar panel manufacturer Ascent Solar Technologies have received a contract from the U.S. Air Force to manufacture on-orbit thin-film solar systems.

The partnered companies received a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program Phase I award from the Air Force to develop a solar-heated crucible to manufacture lightweight, thin-film solar photovoltaics (PV) for on-orbit applications used for Air Force and Space Force flight applications.

“We’re pleased to be partnering with Ascent to develop high efficiency, lightweight solar cells that can be manufactured in space,” says Rhonda Stevenson, chief executive officer of Above: Orbital. “This is the second SBIR contract from the U.S. Air Force and we believe it will lead to a larger, Phase II award. We are advancing robust on-orbit systems for both defense and commercial applications.”

The Air Force has a vital and urgent need to deploy lightweight and affordable solar modules across the globe as well as in space to meet operational power requirements for Uncrewed Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), forward operating bases and space-based power beaming.

“Above’s ability to provide tunable, artificial gravity, coupled with our manufacturing equipment cost and operations, create an ideal scenario for producing thin-film solar in space,” said Dr. Joseph Armstrong, chief technology officer, Ascent Solar.

Above: Orbital has already begun to make an impact in multiple commercial sectors with use cases ranging from in space servicing, assembly, and manufacturing to photonics and space tourism. Earlier this year, Above: Orbital received a $1.7 million SBIR award to develop an efficient, lightweight structure to support solar panels, power and communications antenna hardware systems, as well as other space infrastructure functions.

Formerly known as Orbital Assembly, Above: Orbital is a Huntsville, Ala.-based company that designs and operates space stations for on-orbit, lunar missions, and throughout the solar system.

Solar module producer Ascent Solar also expanded its offerings recently to include space mission applications. In April, the company announced a new product line, Space Hardware Development Kits (HDKs), developed previously under collaboration with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA).

The HDK platform integrates the company’s thin-film solar modules for use in accelerate mission schedules to boost spacecraft performance.

Benefits of the HDK system include:

Engineered for Space: Solar cells encapsulated in space-rated laminate with on-orbit specific power and longevity, as demonstrated on orbit with NASA.
Plug & Fly Solar Integration: HDKs engineered to easily interface with proprietary and commercially available components, including systems and buses.
Modular Mission-Enabler: HDKs configurable to mission power, mass and delta-v budget requirements, including solar arrays optimized for LEO/GEO, and are lunar mission and deep space-capable.
Sustainable Space Solar Solution: Robust arrays that provide reliable power, even if impacted by micro-meteoroid or orbital debris.
Assured, On-Time Delivery: In-house produced solar modules, backed by MW of proven production capacity.

DOE announces $26 million to support eight solar, wind and storage demonstration projects

Anne Fischer — Wed, 10 May 2023 16:38:08 +0000

Selected projects in thirteen states and Puerto Rico will be funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and support a resilient grid that automatically adjusts to changing demands.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is investing $26 million through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law for eight selected projects to demonstrate how solar, wind, storage and other clean energy resources can support a reliable and efficient power grid.

The Solar and Wind Grid Services and Reliability Demonstration program will deploy clean energy technologies with a goal of learning more about technologies that support a resilient grid that automatically adjusts to changing demands.

“As threats and climate risks to America’s energy infrastructure continue to evolve, DOE is laser-focused on ensuring our power grid is strong and reliable as it incorporates a historic level of renewable resources,” said U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm.

The program is funding eight projects at 15 sites in 13 states and Puerto Rico, and will involve research teams consisting of utilities, laboratories, universities and industry. The teams will test how wind and solar plants can more reliably transmit clean energy and protect against disruptions to the network of high-voltage power lines that carry electricity from centralized generation sources. Monitoring and test controls will also be implemented that allow the grid to restore power quickly and efficiently after power outages.

The selected projects fall into two topic areas: Wind and solar grid services design, implementation, and demonstration; Protection of bulk power systems with high contribution from inverter-based resources (IBRs).

The Electric Power Research Institute was awarded $3.4 million for the Collaborative Ancillary Service Accelerator for Renewables (CASAR) project. This project will develop a multi-level control architecture for power systems that supports ancillary services to the grid, including active and reactive power event and non-event reserve services. This project will work with multiple balancing authorities and utilities to perform demonstrations of grid services at sites across Michigan, Nebraska, Texas, New Mexico, and California.

GE Renewable Energy was awarded $3.5 million for the Grid-ready Wind project. The work is primarily taking place at the Great Pathfinder wind power plant in Iowa, and it includes a commercial-scale demonstration of grid services using emerging grid-forming technology in Type-III wind turbines with electricity output controlled by converters. This project is jointly funded by WETO and SETO.

Portland General Electric Company was awarded $4.5 million for a project that will develop a 300 MW wind, solar and battery storage combined power plant. The project aims to demonstrate grid services using mixed grid-forming and grid-following technologies at the Wheatridge Renewable Energy Facility in Oregon, North America’s first energy center to combine wind, solar, and energy storage systems in one location.

Veritone was awarded $3.9 million for the Advanced Reliability and Resiliency Operations for Wind and Solar (ARROWS) project, which aims to boost confidence in renewable power investment using Veritone’s artificial intelligence-powered distributed energy resource management system (iDERMS) technology. The AI-powered platform will be used to forecast, optimize, and control IBRs on New Mexico’s power grid in real-time.

Con Edison of New York was awarded $3 million with an awardee cost share of $1.4 million for a project that demonstrates reliable protection for an IBR-dominant grid. The project aims to improve existing grid protection strategies and enable new technologies to maintain reliable system protection in systems with a very large number of IBRs.

National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) was awarded $2 million with a cost share of $600,000 for the Protection of Inverter-dependent Transmission Systems (PROTECT-IT) project. NREL will partner with University of Idaho, Kauai Island Utility Cooperative, Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories, Tesla, and the Public Service Company of New Mexico to investigate the impact of high levels of IBRs on bulk power transmission protection systems.

Pacific Gas and Electric Company was awarded $2.5 million with a cost share of $700,000 for development of a sensitivity-driven wide area protection (SWAP) coordination tool for high penetration of IBRs. The intent is to develop an analysis tool that can be incorporated in commercial platforms used by transmission utilities and system operators nationwide.

University of Illinois at Chicago was awarded $3 million with a cost share of $1.1 million for a project that uses an innovative modeling, protection, and control framework to ensure reliable operation of a bulk power system with 100% of its generation coming from IBRs, which have much different fault characteristics than traditional synchronous generators. The IBR model under development by this project will be able to perform accurate protection simulation and be easily implemented in the existing commercial simulation software. This project will demonstrate protection strategies in Illinois and Puerto Rico.

Silicon Valley Bank reemerges as a lender, extends credit to Pivot Energy community solar portfolio

Michael Schoeck — Wed, 10 May 2023 13:12:58 +0000

Subscribers in the portfolio include municipalities, healthcare, food service, and retail companies, as well as 8,000 low-to-moderate income (LMI) households.

Just two months after the receivership and takeover of Silicon Valley Bank by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, now under the ownership of First Citizens Bank, SVB has reemerged as a lender to the solar development market.

The lender closed a $203 million debt financing to support construction of a 100 MW multi-state distributed generation solar portfolio of Pivot Energy, a Denver-based community, commercial and industrial solar development company.

Tax investor Foss & Company is committing an initial tax equity round in the portfolio, which comprises 35 community solar and C&I projects planned to reach commercial operation (COD) between mid-2023 and mid-2024.

Community solar subscribers in the portfolio include municipalities, healthcare facilities, food service, and retail companies, as well as 8,000 low-to-moderate income (LMI) residential households.

With community solar projects in Colorado, Minnesota, Illinois, New York, Hawaii, Maryland, and California, the portfolio represents what the company said is one of the most extensive LMI solar portfolios developed to date in terms of diversity and geographic reach.

SunCentral, a community solar subscriber management and acquisition platform, will manage the community solar portfolio through operations.

The debt transaction led by SVB includes a construction loan, tax equity bridge loan, and term loan. SVB led the financing as coordinating lead arranger (CLA) and sole bookrunner. Other lenders committed to the DG solar portfolio include J.P. Morgan, National Bank of Canada, Bank United, Cadence and Comerica. The debt facility also represents J.P. Morgan’s first debt issuance to the community solar market.

The SVB financing represents Pivot’s second debt syndication closed with the SVB-led lender group. In 2022, the developer raised $190 million in credit to finance a 90 MW community solar portfolio in New York, Illinois, Colorado, Minnesota, California, and New Jersey.

Bret Labadie, chief financial officer for Pivot Energy, told pv magazine USA that for the new financing, Pivot had been in the market since Q4 2022 and were set to close the second debt facility with Silicon Valley Bank in March 2023, but the federal takeover of the commercial bank put the financing process on hold.

“Each of the banks in this syndicate worked with Pivot and we were able to navigate the temporary uncertainty to retain the initial terms of the deal,” Labadie said. “It’s a testament to the leadership from each of the parties that we were able to stay the course and see this loan through.”

“We are pleased to have led and structured this portfolio of solar projects across 35 sites in 7 key markets,” said Bret Turner, head of project finance, Silicon Valley Bank. “We appreciate the confidence and trust placed in the team at SVB to continue moving this asset class forward.”

When combined with the Foss tax equity contribution, the total financing package enables Pivot to construct, operate, and own the multi-year and multi-state portfolio.

“This initiative will expand access to clean, affordable energy for small businesses and low-income households, reinforcing our commitment to invest in tax equity within under-served market segments,” said Bryen Alperin, managing director at Foss & Company.

CohnReznick Capital was Pivot’s financial advisor on the transaction. Stoel Rives was counsel to the company. Milbank represented SVB while Winthrop & Weinstine represented Foss.

The financing is Pivot’s second project development portfolio to be built, owned, and operated since the company’s June 2021 acquisition by Energy Capital Partners (ECP).

Safe asset class

Silicon Valley Bank, the 16^th largest U.S. commercial bank, was shuttered on March 9, 2023 and placed into receivership by the FDIC. After parent company SVB Financial filed for bankruptcy on March 17, First Citizens Bank entered an agreement on March 27 to acquire Silicon Valley Bridge Bank, effectively resuming the corporate debt financing platform of the bank.

SVB extended $56 billion of venture capital financing to climate-technology focused companies in 2021. Several solar development executives told pv magazine USA for the April print edition of pv magazine that the bank’s demise was not expected to create widespread challenges to development clients in the community and commercial and industrial (C&I) solar market, as well as utility scale solar companies.

“The biggest threat to the pace of project development is definitely not available capital, it’s the significant and ever-increasing pushback on project siting and land use at the local level,” said Mark Richardson, chief executive officer of U.S. Light Energy, a community solar developer in upstate New York, told pv magazine USA. “We are not even close to operating at full speed, because of local opposition, not because of a lack of financing,” he said.

(Read more: “Solar and the SVB banking crisis“)

Fold-out NASA satellite solar array undergoes successful test deployment

Ryan Kennedy — Fri, 05 May 2023 16:57:28 +0000

The NASA/NOAA satellite, part of the GOES-R series, operated as-expected in its terrestrial test, making it one step closer to launch.

The National Aeronautics and Space Association (NASA) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) announced the successful test deployment of a five-panel solar array that will power a weather satellite.

The satellite, GOES-U, is the fourth and final satellite in the GOES-R series. GOES-R is a collaboration with NASA and NOAA in which NASA builds and launches the satellite and NOAA operates it for weather event surveillance.

The satellites provide critical data for weather forecasts and warnings, detecting and monitoring environmental hazards like fire, smoke, fog, volcanic ash, and dust, and monitoring solar activity and space weather.

Lockheed Martin developed the solar array, a five-panel structure that carries 5 kW of capacity. This is equivalent to the power needed to run a home’s central air conditioning system. Each panel measures about 13 feet tall by 4.5 wide and weighs about 45 pounds.

At launch, the panels are folded together to protect them and ensure beneficial aerodynamics to reach orbit. Once in orbit, the panels will fold out on a single array wing that will rotate once per day, continuously pointing the solar cells toward the sun. During the test, engineers unfurled the five panels on railing that simulated a zero-gravity environment.

The PV cells are designed to convert enough sunlight into electricity to power the entire craft, including measurement instruments, computers, data processors, and telecommunications equipment.

The panels were manufactured at Lockheed Martin’s Littleton, Colorado facility, where the satellite was also constructed. GOES-U is scheduled for launch in April 2024.

Below is an artist concept video of a GOES-R satellite in action.

Solar in space

NASA has long used solar to power its spacecraft and satellites, and continues to use it for new missions today. In August 2022, NASA launched a tennis-court sized spacecraft, sending it on a 1.5-billion-mile journey to the asteroid Psyche, which the craft shares its name with. The Psyche craft is winged with two large cross-shaped solar arrays, which will power the craft’s measurement devices as well as its propulsion system.

Each array is 37.1 feet long and 24 feet wide when fully deployed. About an hour after launch, the arrays will deploy sequentially, first with the center column unfolding, and then the two cross-panels unfurling and latching into place. One wing at a time, the total deployment takes about seven and a half minutes.

The Psyche spacecraft.
Image: NASA

This is the largest solar array deployed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, said NASA. So large, in fact, that the entire craft could not be unfolded during the test at Arizona State University’s lab in Tempe, Ariz. ASU partnered with NASA on this mission, which will observe the suspected unusually high amount of metals in the thickest band of the asteroid.

NASA launched the Webb Space Telescope on Christmas Day 2021, and thirty minutes later Webb’s fold-out solar array deployed and activated. The world’s most powerful telescope, set to study phenomena like the formation of planets, and the age and extent of the universe, uses less power than one might think. In fact, only one kilowatt, equivalent to the power use of microwaving your lunch, is needed to power the device.

Webb will stay energy-efficient more than 1 million miles from Earth, said NASA. The 20-foot solar array is attached to the main observatory of the craft. It will act as the ‘powerhouse’ for the telescope, supplying energy to all its scientific instruments, communications, and propulsion systems. Though the telescope only needs 1 kW to perform, the array generates twice that much to factor in the degradation caused by the harsh conditions of space.

HVAC, lighting and solar integrator raises Series E round

Michael Schoeck — Wed, 03 May 2023 15:48:06 +0000

The add-on funding brings the energy services company’s cumulative Series E round to $250 million, and represents a significant step towards expanding Redaptive’s offerings and procuring new customers, the company said.

Redaptive, a Denver-based energy efficiency service provider to commercial and industrial buildings, announced an additional equity commitment from Linse Capital, a growth equity firm invested in energy, mobility, logistics and real estate. The add-on funding brings the company’s cumulative Series E round to $250 million, and represents a significant step towards expanding Redaptive’s offerings and procuring new customers, the company said.

Redaptive installs energy efficiency systems that include smart meters, heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) upgrades, and LED lighting systems at no cost to its customers. The company’s business model involves a monthly “energy-as-a-service” contract, which with no upfront cost to the customer provides more commercial clients to sign up for energy efficiency and sustainability solutions.

The company itemizes efficiency solutions, solar and energy storage at a portfolio of customer building sites into one contract. As the installer, the company is paid over time from energy savings from the customer account. The solar and storage assets take a power purchase agreement (PPA) structure with no upfront cost required from the customer, the company said.

“As one of the original investors in Redaptive, I have seen firsthand the company mature into one of the best players in the energy efficiency and sustainability space that provides a truly differentiated and strong value proposition to its customers,” said Michael Linse, founder and managing director, Linse Capital. “With such a large addressable market in the U.S. and globally, we are doubling down on our investment and look forward to helping Redaptive continue to scale its leading EaaS and Data Solutions platform.”

The Series E add-on investment follows the March 2023 initial Series E funding round when the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board joined Honeywell, CBRE, and other prior investors. Formed in 2013, Redaptive has raised over $360 million in growth capital to date from VC and strategic investors that include Engie New Ventures, CarVal and GXP Investments, the VC arm of Midwestern utility Great Plains Energy.

Solar expansion

Across the U.S., over 450,000 warehouses and distribution centers have 16.4 billion square feet of roof space, providing fertile ground for new commercial and industrial solar installations. California alone is home to over 66,000 warehouses and distribution centers with 1.5 billion square feet of roof surface area, according to a recent report by Environment California and the Frontier Group.

With the average cost of commercial building electricity rising by 10% since 2021, customers of Redaptive begin by installing smart lighting, meters, sensors and other efficiency solutions, which initially provide 15% or more in annual energy savings. The company expects to achieve additional monthly energy savings for its customers with on-site solar generation.

The company said over 70% of its commercial clients’ building portfolios are suitable for solar projects.

Case study

With a net zero goal to offset its energy consumption with clean energy by 2050, commercial uniform, apparel and cleaning company Cintas signed up with Redaptive in March of 2023 to upgrade lighting fixtures across more than 100 of its 450 U.S. facilities, representing 6 million square feet of commercial space.

Lighting efficiency upgrades replacing 42,000 incandescent light bulbs with efficient lighting have driven 18.7 million kWh or $2.2 million of annual energy savings for Cintas, according to the customer.

Working with both Redaptive and the state of New Jersey, in April Cintas began installation of its first solar-powered system at a rental location in Piscataway, N.J. The project is expected to be installed and operational in the late spring of 2023. Once online and connected to the grid, the first solar panel system installation will allow Cintas to evaluate its year-round performance and compare the costs with traditional utility-based energy sources.

“The expansion of our program with Cintas to include solar installations alongside LED retrofit projects is a big step forward on Cintas’ path to a sustainable energy future,” said Arvin Vohra, chief executive officer of Redaptive.

Sunrise brief: Solar testing group warns of degradation risk for TOPCon

pv magazine — Wed, 03 May 2023 11:14:44 +0000

Also on the rise: Big PV plants may have positive climate impact in deserts, say researchers. California bill to mandate bidirectional chargers for all EVs sold after 2026. And more.

Solar testing group warns of degradation risk for TOPCon The Renewable Energy Test Center (RETC) raised the issue of ultraviolet-induced degradation of the trending technology in its PV Module Index 2022.

Colorado passes bill to speed up solar permitting, inspection HB-1234 provides nearly $1,000,000 to help local governments streamline solar permitting and inspection to support solar adoption.

California bill to mandate bidirectional chargers for all EVs sold after 2026 California’s legislature advanced SB-233 last week. If the 14 million+ cars currently registered in the state had a 75 kWh battery, the combined energy storage would amount to just over a terawatt-hour.

Oregon utility’s IRP calls for 400 MW energy storage development The 400 MW nameplate capacity projects can provide enough clean power for 260,000 homes at four-hour intervals during peak power usage times such as weeknights from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.

BayWa r.e. procures credit facility for 2024-26 portfolio Funding will support BayWa r.e.’s efforts to advance its pipeline of solar, solar-plus-storage and storage projects across five states.

Big PV plants may have positive climate impact in deserts, say researchers Chinese researchers have discovered that solar plants might reduce evaporation and wind speeds in the Gobi Desert, while also increasing soil relative humidity, according to a series of simulations with different emission scenarios.

Delta-Q reaches full-scale production of electric vehicle charger with DC-DC converter The Vancouver-based company introduced a 3.3 kW charger with a converter compatible with the vehicle’s auxiliary DC loads.

Colorado passes bill to speed up solar permitting, inspection

Anne Fischer — Tue, 02 May 2023 13:58:43 +0000

HB-1234 provides nearly $1,000,000 to help local governments streamline solar permitting and inspection to support solar adoption.

The Colorado Legislature has passed HB-1234, which establishes the Streamlined Solar Permitting and Inspection Grant Program and provides nearly $1 million to help local governments with start-up costs associated with adopting permitting and inspection software. The bipartisan bill was sponsored by Dylan Roberts and Perry Will in the Senate, and Matt Soper and Kyle Brown in the House.

“Colorado’s mountain communities are eager to develop solar technology, but all too often, projects are held up in the labor-intensive permitting process, and sometimes even canceled. These grants will help reduce time, costs, and burden for permitting, and keep us in line with our greenhouse gas reduction goals,” according to bill sponsor Dylan Roberts. “House Bill 1234 is a win for both our economy and our environment.”

Last year the Department of Energy (DOE) released a solar guidebook that encourages local governments to adopt SolarAPP+ (Solar Automated Permit Process), a software platform, developed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and UL Solutions, that can immediately approve residential permits. According to NREL, projects submitted through the app are 37% less likely to fail final inspections than projects that don’t use the tool. At present, 32 communities across the U.S. are using SolarAPP+, resulting in over 15,000 residential solar permits issued, accounting for 100,000 kW of electricity and 15,000 estimated staff hours saved on reviewing permits.

“We commend the Colorado legislature for advancing expedited permitting on residential solar projects while prioritizing compliance with safety and code standards,” said Ken Boyce, senior director of principal engineering at UL Solutions. “We recognize the value SolarAPP+ brings to governments, the public and the solar industry, and how it will serve as an important enabler of safer and cleaner energy.”

SolarApp+ is already in use in the city of Denver. With HB-1234 in place, communities in Colorado will get financial help with start-up costs of using SolarApp+. Colorado enjoys more than 300 days of sunshine a year, offering vast solar potential. Currently the state has about 2 GW of solar resources installed, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association, and is ranked 13^th in the nation for solar. Streamlining the solar permitting and inspection process can help more Coloradans speed up the process of harnessing that sunshine.

“This will empower local officials to automate permitting and inspections, which will reduce staff time and cut costs,” said Mike Kruger, CEO of the Colorado Solar and Storage Association (COSSA). “In turn, this will give homeowners immediate results for their permit applications, and solar and storage companies can hire more staff to support an increase in projects approved.”

Sunrise brief: U.S. warehouses can host enough solar to power nearly 20 million homes

pv magazine — Mon, 24 Apr 2023 11:14:22 +0000

Also on the rise: Puerto Rico moves into seventh place for residential solar per capita. Invested in our planet: Financing the clean energy transition. And more.

U.S. warehouses can host enough solar to power nearly 20 million homes A report from two environmental groups shows how the roofs of warehouses and distribution centers offer 16.4 billion square feet of installation planes.

Montana city flips switch on 545 kW municipal solar facility At a “flip the switch” event held in Missoula this week, officials christened a 545 kW municipal solar project, which Ameresco will maintain under a 25-year solar energy agreement which had zero upfront cost to the municipality, the companies said.

Hardware giant Lowe’s plans solar on 174 rooftops in three states Rooftop solar arrays of more than 133 MW are to be completed in partnership with DSD Renewables, Greenskies Clean Focus and Infiniti Energy, helping Lowe’s to reach sustainability goal of 50% renewable energy for its facilities by 2030.

Solar microgrid water system brings water to where it’s needed GivePower engineers make use of SolarAnywhere’s solar resource data to design custom solar-powered desalinization systems for remote locations.

Puerto Rico moves into seventh place for residential solar per capita Luma Energy supports more than 54,000 customer connections in its 21 months as grid operator.

Groundbreaking on solar EV charging carport for Colorado tech park Namaste Solar is installing the 1.7 MW solar parking canopy for geospatial information systems provider Trimble.

Invested in our planet: Financing the clean energy transition As Earth Day approaches, Johannes Rittershausen, co-founder & chief executive officer of Convergent Energy and Power discusses investment in the energy transition.

Con Edison sustainability report highlights 3 GW of renewables deployments The utility’s 2022 report highlights milestones the New York company is making to procure distributed solar, storage, energy storage resources, EV charging and heat pumps in the coming decade, as it strives to become fully net zero by 2040.

Groundbreaking on solar EV charging carport for Colorado tech park

Ryan Kennedy — Fri, 21 Apr 2023 16:12:23 +0000

Namaste Solar is installing the 1.7 MW solar parking canopy for geospatial information systems provider Trimble.

A tech park in Westminster, Colo. will soon be home to a 1.7 MW solar project. Of the 1.7 MW, 660 kW will be mounted on a raised solar array that provides shaded parking space below. Electric vehicle charging ports will be integrated with the array.

Trimble, an industrial technology company serving architecture, engineering and construction services and geographic information systems markets, commissioned Namaste Solar to build the project, which recently commenced construction.

The 4.4-acre project will house 170 parking spots and 49 electric vehicle charging stations. The array is estimated to produce 2.57 million kWh of electricity per year, equivalent to burning 3,500 barrels of oil per year. It will also reduce strain on the grid by minimizing Trimble’s reliance on the grid during times of peak demand.

Trimble has committed to reducing its Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions, including emissions from the company’s facilities and vehicles, by 50% by 2030 from a 2019 baseline. It also targets 100% annual renewable energy sourcing by 2025. The two-building campus, which reportedly was built using Trimble’s advanced construction technologies, is LEED Gold and Silver certified.

Several of Trimble’s machines will be used for the installation, including robotic stations for surveying site layout and machine control for pile driving.

“We are committed to pursuing innovative renewable energy solutions in terms of their environmental benefit,” said Rob Painter, chief executive officer, Trimble. “This includes on-site generation of renewable energy from solar, which we are implementing or pursuing across a number of our global sites. Our goal for these projects is to generate our own renewable energy, and when possible, provide any excess energy production to the local electricity grid.”

Installer Namaste Solar is headquartered in Boulder, Colo., and is employee-owned, founded in 2005. The company has developed over 11,500 solar installations to date.

“We applaud Trimble’s commitment to reducing its carbon footprint by investing in clean renewable solar energy,” said Rachel Mountain, co-owner and director of commercial and industrial sales at Namaste Solar. “Not only does this project advance Trimble’s clean energy goals, but it will also drive local economic growth and support over 50 good-paying green jobs in our community.”

Researchers look beyond silicon to potentially double solar cell efficiency

Anne Fischer — Thu, 20 Apr 2023 14:30:39 +0000

A team at Colorado State University proposes making thin-film solar cells from naturally abundant molybdenum disulfide.

Most solar panels used today are made from silicon, a well-tested semiconductor material that is not without limitations. For example, silicon loses up to 40% of the energy it collects from sunlight in the form of heat waste. Researchers at Colorado State University (CSU) are studying radical new ways to improve solar power and provide more options for the future.

CSU chemists are proposing to make solar cells using an abundantly available natural material called molybdenum disulfide. Using a combination of photoelectrochemical and spectroscopic techniques, the researchers conducted a series of experiments showing that extremely thin films of molybdenum disulfide display unprecedented charge carrier properties that could someday drastically improve solar technologies.

The experiments were led by chemistry Ph.D. student Rachelle Austin and postdoctoral researcher Yusef Farah. Austin works jointly in the labs of Justin Sambur, associate professor in the Department of Chemistry, and Amber Krummel, associate professor in the same department. Farah is a former Ph.D. student in Krummel’s lab. Their work is published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Sambur’s lab became interested in molybdenum sulfide as a possible alternative solar material based on preliminary data on its light absorption capabilities even when only three atoms thick, explained Austin.

The collaboration made use of Sambur’s expertise in solar energy conversion using nanoscale materials, and Krummel’s expertise in ultrafast laser spectroscopy, both of which helped them understand how different materials are structured and how they behave.

Krummel’s lab contains a state-of-the-art ultrafast pump-probe transient absorption spectrometer that can very precisely measure the sequential energy states of individual electrons as they are excited with a laser pulse. Experiments using this spectrometer can provide snapshots of how charges flow in a system.

Austin created a photoelectrochemical cell using a single atomic layer of molybdenum sulfide, and she and Farah used the pump-probe laser to track the cooling of electrons as they moved through the material. What they found was astoundingly efficient light-to-energy conversion. More importantly, the laser spectroscopy experiments enabled them to show why this efficient conversion was possible.

What they learned was that the material could convert light to energy so well because its crystal structure allows it to extract and exploit the energy of so-called hot carriers, which are highly energetic electrons that are briefly excited from their ground states when hit with enough visible light. The researchers found that in their photoelectrochemical cell, the energy from these hot carriers was immediately converted into photocurrent, as opposed to being lost as heat, which gave it an advantage over conventional silicon solar cells.

“This work paves the way for knowing how to design reactors that contain these nanoscale materials for efficient and large-scale hydrogen production,” Sambur said.

The project was a collaboration with Professor Andrés Montoya-Castillo and Dr. Thomas Sayer of University of Colorado Boulder, who contributed theoretical chemistry and computational modeling to help explain and verify the experimental data.

“The discovery required a ‘team science’ approach that brought together many different types of expertise, in computational, analytical and physical chemistry,” Krummel said.

Ascent boosts production with acquisition of 15 MW Swiss thin-film producer

Michael Schoeck — Wed, 19 Apr 2023 12:35:53 +0000

With the closing of this deal, Ascent will triple its production capacity from its 5 MW of existing nameplate capacity production.

Ascent Solar Technologies, a Colorado-based manufacturer of copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS) thin-film solar modules, announced the closing of its acquisition of Flisom AG, a Swiss manufacturer of thin-film solar modules with 15 MW of production capacity.

Ascent will continue to be headquartered in Thornton, Colo. where it has a research and development center and 5 MW nameplate production facility. It will commence manufacturing immediately from its new roll-to-roll thin-film manufacturing facilities in Zurich, Switzerland. As a result of the deal’s closing, Ascent will triple its production capacity from its 5 MW of existing nameplate capacity production.

The transaction reflects a significant milestone in Ascent’s turnaround plan by delivering new committed contract revenue, increased production capacity and an international foothold as European and Asian governments adopt legislation to increase solar energy production and domestic manufacturing capabilities, a company statement said.

The Flisom acquisition is expected to provide Ascent with a new revenue stream in the luxury goods and building integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) markets. The company intends to use its new European presence to provide in-region support for Euro Zone driven net zero initiatives and to support new demand for thin-film arrays in the U.S., Europe and Asia.

Modern equipment of the Swiss facility supports Ascent’s focus on operational efficiency and optimization. The Zurich facility is capable of roll-to-roll thin-film outputs up to 3.2 feet in width and 3,200 feet in length.

Ascent’s management anticipates the EBITDA-positive operations of the Swiss assets as early as the second half of 2023 providing a boost to the company’s bottom line earnings profile over the year ahead.

“Since coming aboard the company in September 2022, my priority has been to execute an aggressive turnaround plan and to re-establish Ascent as the leading provider of high-performance, flexible thin-film solar modules for use in scenarios where traditional rigid panels don’t work,” said Jeffrey Max, chief executive officer of Ascent.

“We are seeing a global push for more solar power production and we have identified unmet demand for alternatives to traditional rigid panels that can be used in scenarios where land, form-factor, or weight constraints exist, particularly in Europe and Asia,” Max added.

On December 20, 2022, Ascent raised $50 million in equity from two institutional investors, with Bryan Garnier & Co. acting as financial advisor on the capital raise.

Ascent’s modules have been deployed on space missions, airborne vehicles, agrivoltaic installations, industrial/commercial construction and consumer goods applications.

Founded in 2005 and a public company since 2006, Ascent manufactures its thin-film PV product using a process called monolithic integration (MI). MI enables modules and arrays to have a specific footprint and power output with custom options for voltage and current. The architecture of the module allows it to continue to operate if damaged and in cloudy or overcast conditions, the company said.

The company’s shares traded at $0.37 per share today, down from $2.42 per share on December 19, one day before it disclosed its equity raise.

Lightstar partners with farming conservation group to unlock agrivoltaics

Michael Schoeck — Thu, 16 Mar 2023 18:07:37 +0000

A Boston-based solar developer with 208 MW of active projects is partnering with the American Farmland Trust to preserve rural farmland for agriculture and community solar development co-located on farmland, also known as Agrivoltaics.

Rural farmland in the U.S. is under attack from climate change and a suburbanizing landscape. Between 2001 and 2016, residential and commercial development consumed 11 million acres of farmland. Another 18 million acres could succumb to new developments by 2040. According to the American Farmland Trust, climate change and extreme weather events make farming and ranching more challenging, with AFT’s research showing a significant swath of rainfed agricultural land will be less likely to support current growing systems by 2040.

And if that was not enough, the U.S. is currently in the midst of an intergenerational transfer as millions of acres of farmland change hands as baby boomer farmers retire, making farmland vulnerable to development as not many children of farmers seek to take the reins on the family farmstead, said Ethan Winter, National Smart Solar Director of AFT at the first Solar Farm Summit, a U.S. agrivoltaics conference held on March 14 in Rosemont, Illinois.

Lightstar Renewables, a Boston-based community solar developer, is partnering with AFT in order to preserve rural farmland for agriculture and community solar development co-located on farmland, also known as Agrivoltaics.

Under the partnership, AFT will use its Smart Solar principles to guide Lightstar on policy, research, and farmer engagement initiatives “to accelerate agriculturally-compatible solar energy development” and promote sustainable farming and ranching practices.

Speaking with pv magazine USA at the Solar Farm Summit, Lucy Bullock-Sieger, vice president of strategy for Lightstar, said the four-year old company has developed 31 agrivoltaic projects out of a 208 MW active development portfolio consisting of community and agrivoltaic projects, while the Magnetar Financial-backed company has a multi-year portfolio of committed projects with 600 MW of total power capacity.

Under the AFT partnership, Lightstar aims to empower farmers with regenerative agricultural practices that includes co-located agrivoltaic solar projects on farmland in New York, Maryland and Illinois. Bullock-Sieger said the northeast-focused developer is talking to scores of rural farmers about the solar opportunity to bolster their cash business and supplement crop yields at a higher growth rate in the coming decades.

The agrivoltaics market is establishing a “compliance mechanism between us and farmers,” Bullock-Sieger said. “We’re not going to put a hunk of steel in the ground and run,” Bullock-Sieger joked about a prior misperception rural farmers had about solar development.

“Five years from now, we don’t want farmers asking, ‘what do we do now that a turnkey project is in the ground?’” said Bullock-Sieger. Lightstar forges a relationship with host farmers by promoting and implementing new seed varieties for crop produce, and offering other vegetation management solutions that could improve the property’s resistance to erosion or climate change factors.

Building trust with multi-generational family farm owners is based on tax compliance regulations, Bullock-Sieger said, while farmers typically iron out a long-term plan to continue to cultivate from the land for decades to come. Farmers keen on agrivoltaics are often either near retirement age or whose children see the revenue potential from dual-use agrivoltaic applications, she said.

Like community and utility solar projects, agrivoltaic projects assembled by Lightstar and other developers will typically take a 20-year contractual lifespan in which the developer will continue to actively maintain the facility and farmland property with the owner-operator, Bullock-Sieger said.

In upstate New York, Bullock-Sieger says Lightstar will be developing a 3.6 MW (DC) solar array by early 2024 on a 16-acre plot for DiMartino Farms, a 125-acre family-operated hay and small vegetable farm in Montgomery, N.Y., in the western Hudson Valley region. She said the Hudson Valley development involved children of the farm’s owners stepping forward to preserve the farm’s crop yield. The rural farm also stands to generate new income sources from Lightstar-grown vegetable crops, pumpkins to be seeded, as well as on-site solar arrays to lower the farm’s energy bill.

Dual-use agrivoltaic projects also provide tax revenue at the local municipality level, increase energy independence and grid security.

The AFT is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization formed in 1980 by farmers, ranchers and conservationists Peggy Rockefeller, Patrick Noonan and William K. Reilly, to provide agricultural landowners with environmentally-sound resources, promote land conservation and utilize local solar power resources.

In August 2020, the AFT launched the “Farming Is Our Future” campaign with a goal to double the amount of permanently protected farmland and reduce current loss by 75%. At the same time the nonprofit adopted regenerative practices including Agrivoltaics at scale so that farmers capture more carbon than they emit. Meanwhile, the AFT set out to bring 600,000 new farmers and ranchers into the market by 2040 based on the intergenerational shift away from farming culture in recent decades.

The AFT recently published a solar leasing guidebook for agricultural landowners for the Pacific Northwest market.

Brian Ross of the Great Plains Institute said the U.S. currently has 5 million acres of rural farmland whose land use is governed at the county level for solar development, presenting a large opportunity for the co-location of agrivoltaic projects over existing farm operations.

On a county wide basis, only 4% of Illinois land is currently utilized for solar development, Ross added.

Silicon anode battery producer files for 5 GWh production facility in Colorado

Michael Schoeck — Mon, 06 Mar 2023 16:32:46 +0000

Located in Brighton, Colorado, the facility will become the first large-scale commercial advanced manufacturing center for silicon anode lithium-ion batteries by the time it opens in 2025. The facility will be built in phases, with the first phase starting with an initial 500 MWh of production at the facility which at full scale will produce 5 GWh.

Amprius Technologies has signed a letter of intent to build a 775,000 square foot battery manufacturing facility capable of producing 5 GWh of silicon anode-based lithium-ion batteries in the coming years.

To be located in Brighton, Colorado, the facility will become the first large-scale commercial advanced manufacturing center for silicon anode lithium-ion batteries by the time it opens in 2025. The facility will be built in phases, with the first phase starting with an initial 500 MWh of production at the facility which at full scale will produce 5 GWh.

The initial phase of 500 MWh will be funded in part by a $50 million grant received in October 2022 from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains. Amprius is among the first set of companies to announce receipt of funding from the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to expand domestic manufacturing of batteries, specifically focused on U.S.-based processing of materials and components.

The initial phase of construction at the Brighton, Colo., facility is expected to create over 330 new jobs.

Following an extensive site evaluation spanning three states, Amprius selected Colorado based on its high-volume manufacturing facility. The Brighton location has 1.3 million square feet of existing factory site equipped with electrical infrastructure and structural layout designed for a gigawatt-hour scale lithium-ion battery factory. The pre-configured site reduces expected build-out costs to the manufacturer.

The Colorado facility is located closer to essential materials and transportation infrastructure, which together limits logistics and operational costs. The site exceeded Amprius’ site requirements and is expected to streamline time-to-market and customer fulfillment.

“We worked closely with the state of Colorado, the Colorado Economic Development Commission, Adams County, and the City of Brighton to align on terms that are mutually beneficial and include a comprehensive incentive proposal,” said Dr. Kang Sun, chief executive officer of Amprius. “Increasing production to meet the substantial market demand for our breakthrough silicon anode lithium-ion technology remains a priority, and we are confident this factory will allow us to scale and effectively serve the electric mobility market.”

To further intensify the focus on product and technology development while scaling up production, the company has formed two business units: Amprius Fab, to be located in Brighton, Colo., will focus on manufacturing of silicon anode batteries, while Amprius Lab, located in Fremont, Calif., will focus on the company’s advanced battery research and development efforts.

To support the company’s bifurcated manufacturing and R&D focus, Jon Bornstein, its current chief operating officer, will take on a new role to head the Amprius Lab as the division’s president. Bornstein has spearheaded Amprius’ silicon anode development and pilot production for over 10 years.

In addition to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law of 2021, Section 45X of the Inflation Reduction Act has established the Advanced Manufacturing Production Credit (PTC). This PTC applies tax credits of up to $31 billion to the production of cathode and anode materials used in lithium-ion batteries and advanced battery minerals sourced in the U.S.

A tax credit is also included for the production of battery cells and battery modules in the U.S. based on the capacity of the cell up to $35 per kWh, and in the case of a module is based on the capacity of the module up to $10 per kWh. For a sample 75kWh battery pack, a tax credit of up to $2,625 for the manufacturer of the battery cells and up to $750 for the maker of the modules is available, according to an IRA policy note by law firm Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe.

Amprius’ silicon anode battery cell provides a fast charge capability of an 80% charge in just 6 minutes, while its battery packs have been used in aircraft and unmanned aerial systems (drones) as well as satellites of the U.S. Army, Airbus and BAE Systems, among other customers of the company.

The company was founded in 2008 by Stanford University professor Yi Cui, director of the university’s Precourt Institute for Energy, and Mark Platshon, a venture capitalist. In May 2022, the company announced plans to list as a public company through a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) merger with Kensington Capital Acquisition Corp., which closed in September 2022 valued at $939 million.

Solid-state battery design uses metal blend electrolyte

Michael Schoeck — Thu, 23 Feb 2023 20:44:17 +0000

New battery materials tested by Berkeley Labs and Florida State University could result in a more conductive solid-state electrolyte that is less dependent on a large quantity of individual metals, which proves effective for the huge demand in the EV market.

Academics from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and partner Florida State University (FSU) released a blueprint for a solid-state battery technology less dependent on critical metals that are challenging to source due to global supply chain issues.

The report by Berkeley Labs and FSU was recently published in Science, and could advance solid-state batteries to provide more efficient and affordable battery cells that are more readily available than lithium-ion batteries..

Touted for high energy density and superior safety, solid-state batteries could be a game changer for the EV industry. The solid-state technology has proven to be affordable and also conductive enough to provide hundreds of miles of driving range on a single EV battery charge. This has long been a source of friction for EV drivers as it applies to lithium batteries and “range anxiety.”

“With our new approach to solid-state batteries, you don’t have to give up affordability for performance. Our work is the first to solve this problem by designing a solid electrolyte with not just one metal but with a team of affordable metals,” said Yan Zeng, an author of the report and a staff scientist at Berkeley Lab’s Materials Sciences group.

In traditional lithium-ion battery cells, the electrolyte works like a transfer hub where ions flow with electric charge to power a device or recharge the battery.

Similar to lithium-ion batteries, solid-state batteries store energy and then release it to power devices. But rather than liquid or polymer gel electrolytes found in lithium-ion batteries, they use a solid electrolyte.

Government, research, and academics have invested in the research and development of solid-state batteries because commercial grade batteries have historically been prone to overheating, fire, and loss of charge risk, mainly concerning the liquid electrolyte.

Current solid-state batteries in production are based on metals that are expensive and unavailable in bulk quantities, with many metals such as cobalt produced from regions of the world with high geo-political risk.

For the current study, Zeng, in partnership with Bin Ouyang, assistant professor in chemistry and biochemistry at FSU, and senior author Gerbrand Ceder, a Berkeley Lab senior scientist and UC Berkeley professor of materials science and engineering, showcased a new type of solid electrolyte consisting of a blend of various metal elements.

The new materials could result in a more conductive solid electrolyte that is less dependent on a large quantity of an individual element.

In experiments conducted at the Berkeley Lab and UC Berkeley campus, the researchers demonstrated the new solid electrolyte by synthesizing and testing several lithium-ion and sodium-ion materials with multiple mixed-metals.

Researchers observed that the new multi-metal materials performed better than expected, displaying an ionic conductivity several orders of magnitude faster than single-metal solid state battery materials. Ionic conductivity is a measurement of how quickly lithium ions move to conduct electric charge.

The researchers theorized that mixing different metals together creates new pathways – much like the addition of expressways on a congested highway – through which lithium ions can move quickly through the electrolyte. Without these pathways, the movement of lithium ions would be slow and limited when they travel through the electrolyte from one end of the battery to the other, Zeng said.

To validate blends for the multi-metal design, the researchers performed calculations based on a method called density-functional theory on supercomputers at the National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center (NERSC). Using scanning transmission electron microscopes (STEM), the team confirmed that each electrolyte is made of only one type of material – what scientists call a “single phase” – with unusual distortions giving rise to the new ion transport pathways in its crystal structure.

The discovery enables new opportunities to design next-generation ionic conductors. The next step in this research is to apply the new approach that Zeng developed with Ceder at Berkeley Lab to explore and discover novel solid electrolyte materials that can improve battery performance.

Impact of single-axis agrivoltaics systems on non-irrigated grassland

Beatriz Santos — Tue, 21 Feb 2023 13:27:05 +0000

U.S. researchers are studying how agrivoltaic systems mounted on single-axis trackers affect rainfall and light redistribution at a 1.2 MW installation on grassland in Colorado.

From pv magazine global

Scientists at Colorado State University are investigating how the redistribution of rainfall and light caused by agrivoltaic systems mounted on single-axis trackers can affect the growth of non-irrigated grassland. The study is part of the Sustainably Colocating Agricultural and Photovoltaic Electricity System (SCAPES) project, funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

“What we found is that on the drip edges of modules, depending on whether you’re tilting to the east or the west when there is a rainfall, you can get somewhere between two to five times the amount of precipitation dumped in one spot,” Colorado State PhD student Matthew Sturchio told pv magazine. “If you want to quantify that for Colorado, it’s about changing the annual precipitation from 350 mm to 1,200 mm of rain. When you do that, you can really improve the amount of soil moisture that stays throughout the season, instead of letting it evaporate.”

Sturchio and his team are conducting research on Jack’s Solar Garden, a 1.2 MW community solar garden in Boulder, Colorado. The project was installed in 2020 and features more than 3,200 380 W monocrystalline PV modules from Vietnam-based solar manufacturer Boviet Solar. The panels are mounted on single-axis trackers, one-third of them at nearly 8 feet in height, and the other two-thirds at 6 feet.

Colorado has a semi-arid climate, with stronger rainfalls and temperatures around 95 F in the afternoons. Temperatures in the morning are around 72 F. The trackers tilt to the east in the morning, and to the west in the afternoon, following the sun. When it rains, this movement simulates the conditions of large rainfalls on either edge, with more water falling on the west edge due to the higher rainfall volumes in the afternoon.

Consequently, the research team originally expected the west drip edge to show increased grassland productivity. Instead, they found that the east edge, with lower soil moisture, has higher grassland growth.

They placed moisture sensors on the land and found that there is a 16 inch to 24-inch wide strip that benefits from the increased soil moisture from the drip edges. Experiments showed that air temperature and dryness also impact grassland productivity within and outside that strip.

The temperature optimum for the grassland growing at Jack’s Solar Garden is a lot closer to 86 F than it is to the 95 F registered in the afternoons, according to Sturchio. “If you exceed 30 degrees [C], you are reducing the amount of photosynthesis that can happen for that plant,” he said.

The team found that the lower air temperatures and reduced air dryness in the morning compensate for lower soil moisture, leading to increased productivity in the east edge.

The shading provided by the solar arrays also proved to increase productivity.

“Typically, you’d imagine that grassland is adapted to deal with really high light for the entire day,” said Sturchio. “But we found that if you shade for half of the day with the solar array, it improves photosynthetic efficiency. You have higher rates of photosynthesis when the sun is available because you have a shorter photoperiod,” he explained.

Moreover, shorter photoperiod results in less evapotranspiration from the leaves, reducing the amount of water loss. This could prove crucial in keeping grassland productivity during periods of drought, according to Sturchio. The team hopes to test the hypothesis if Colorado experiences a drought period in the future.

The installation at Jack’s Solar Garden is designed to maximize electricity production, without much space between panel rows. The team found that the soil outside the east or west edge strip behaves more like the space between panel rows, and the conditions between the two strips are more similar to the conditions directly underneath the solar arrays.

They also observed that the leaves of plants under the solar arrays are 39 F cooler. “There are a lot of plants that can benefit from this lower temperature in the middle of summer in Colorado,” said Sturchio.

Overall, the present design leads to 9% less grass production, mainly attributed to the space directly under the solar array. The economic gains from electricity production vastly compensate for the slightly lower crop production, according to Sturchio.

“But if we space the solar arrays out to 15 meters apart, then you get a 6% increase in productivity in a wet year,” he claimed.

Going forward, the SCAPES project aims to develop agrivoltaics in degraded agro-ecosystems.

The team believes that their understanding of the effects of single-axis agrivoltaic systems on rainfall and light redistribution and consequent impacts on crop productivity can help to restore land degraded by overgrazing, agriculture practice, and water scarcity.

Sunrise brief: Interest in solar apprenticeship expands in response to IRA

pv magazine — Fri, 03 Feb 2023 12:14:51 +0000

Also on the rise: 13 European PV equipment makers pitch their machines to U.S. PV manufacturers. EV batteries alone could satisfy short-term grid storage demand. And more.

EV batteries alone could satisfy short-term grid storage demand Low participation rates for vehicle-to-grid (V2G) tech of just 12% to 43% are needed to provide short-term grid storage demand throughout the world by as early as 2030, according to a group of Dutch and U.S. researchers.

SunPower solar to top three multi-family buildings in California About 2,200 to 2,300 SunPower panels will be deployed on new apartment building residences built by Metonic and HomeFed across California.

Duke deploys solar plus battery storage microgrid in Appalachia The solar plus lithium-ion battery microgrid provides power to the Appalachian town during a black start, which during a power outage allows for a full repowering without the use of the local grid.

13 European PV equipment makers pitch their machines to U.S. PV manufacturers A $1 to $1.5 billion U.S. market opportunity awaits PV equipment manufacturers through 2030, said a McKinsey consultant, at a Washington D.C. event that brought together potential equipment buyers and sellers.

Utility delays stalling out rooftop solar projects for six months or more Colorado residents and solar installers have accused utility Xcel Energy for having “no urgency” in installing meters and approving interconnection.

Enphase demonstrates bidirectional EV charger The bidirectional EV charger enables vehicle-to-home and vehicle-to-grid applications, and integrates into Enphase home energy systems.

Three-party joint venture formed for 250 MW of New York community solar The trio expects to construct, own and operate one of the largest community solar portfolios in the state by 2025

Interest in solar apprenticeship expands in response to IRA Apprenticeship programs across the country, such as Rethink Electrical Advanced Program in Illinois, are seeing record numbers of students who are learning the ins and outs of solar installation.

Utility delays stalling out rooftop solar projects for six months or more

Ryan Kennedy — Thu, 02 Feb 2023 16:23:18 +0000

Colorado residents and solar installers have accused utility Xcel Energy for having "no urgency" in installing meters and approving interconnection.

Colorado residents and solar installers have accused Xcel Energy, operator of utilities in eight states, of dragging its feet in the interconnection process for rooftop solar projects.

“They have no urgency to put them in because, as soon as they put them in, that meter profit goes down,” said Paul Webster, a Colorado resident. Webster had an array installed just before winter, and it is sitting on his roof, inactive, waiting for Xcel to move forward on a simple meter installation.

Colorado installers report that it is taking six months for the utility to install net energy meters to enable projects to connect to the grid. This presents a challenge to many customers, as delays often lead to a higher rate of cancellations and reports of bad customer experience.

Permitting, inspection, and interconnection represent 8% of the U.S. residential solar cost stack. Based on data from its members, the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) estimates that a one week delay in system installation due to permitting, inspection and interconnection processes increases the client cancelation rate by 10%.

“We have a nice sunny day out there right now and I’m paying for my electricity,” said Webster. “I have 18 panels on my roof and I’m paying for electricity after I paid for the solar install.”

“It’s been just a disaster from start to finish – projects lost, projects delayed, weird error messages. Every residential rooftop company that works in Xcel is dealing with this,” said Mike Kruger, president and chief executive officer of the Colorado Solar and Storage Association.

Kruger says the delays are hurting hundreds of customers who are paying for systems they can’t use. Solar installers are losing hundreds of thousands of dollars as most aren’t paid until the project is actively producing energy.

Doug Southard, owner of Southard’s Solar Energy and Construction, has been in business for 17 years, but he said the “financially devastating” delays are causing him to struggle to keep the business in operation. Southard has 29 customers waiting on the utility, some of whom have had dormant solar arrays sitting on their roofs since May 2022.

“With no end in sight, with continued frustration, and continued impact on customers and businesses, it’s time folks with regulatory and legislative power to do something,” said Kruger, calling on the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) to take action.

The Colorado PUC said it is investigating the delays, but declined to say whether it would take any action.

Retired coal sites to host multi-day iron-air batteries

Ryan Kennedy — Thu, 26 Jan 2023 16:11:49 +0000

Two renewable energy storing 10 MW / 1,000 MWh batteries will be installed by Form Energy on former Xcel Energy coal fired plants.

Solar and wind power have variability in their productive hours, as multi-day weather events can impact output. Therefore, multi-day storage that is cost effective is important in grid reliability.

This is the logic that supported the creation of Boston startup Form Energy’s iron-air batteries. The grid-scale batteries can store intermittent renewables-sourced electricity for 100 hours at costs competitive with conventional power plants.

Utility Xcel Energy announced it will install two 10 MW / 1,000 MWh iron-air batteries, one at a retired coal plant in Minnesota and another on a restored site in Colorado. Both projects are expected to come online in 2025 following regulatory approval.

The iron-air battery is composed of cells filled with thousands of iron pellets that are exposed to air, creating rust. The oxygen is then removed, reverting the rust to iron. Controlling this process allows the battery to be charged and discharged.

The technology is less energy-dense than its lithium-ion counterparts, making it a better fit for large grid-scale applications. This may come as an advantage for the company, as EV batteries are in competition for lithium, a metal with geo-political mining concerns and battery fire risks.

“Form was founded with a unified mission to develop a multi-day energy storage battery that would unlock the power of extremely low-cost renewable energy to transform the electric grid,” said Mateo Jaramillo, co-founder and chief executive officer of Form Energy.

Image: Form Energy

Form Energy said an individual battery module is about the size of a side-by-side washer/dryer set and contains a stack of approximately 50 one-meter-tall cells. The cells include iron and air electrodes, the parts of the battery that enable the electrochemical reactions to store and discharge electricity. Each of these cells are filled with water-based, non-flammable electrolyte, like the electrolyte used in AA batteries.

These battery modules are grouped together in environmentally protected enclosures. Hundreds of these enclosures are grouped together in modular megawatt-scale power blocks. Depending on the system size, tens to hundreds of these power blocks can be connected to the electricity grid. For scale, in its least dense configuration, a one-megawatt system comprises half an acre of land. Higher density configurations would achieve >3 mw/acre.

“We’re on track to reduce our electric system carbon emissions 80% by 2030 and to deliver carbon-free electricity by 2050,” said Bob Frenzel, chief executive officer, Xcel Energy. “As we build more renewable energy into our systems, our partnership with Form Energy opens the door to significantly improve how we deliver carbon-free energy.”

Form Energy held a $200 million Series D funding round in 2021 led by ArcelorMittal and a $450 million Series E round led by TPG Rise Climate, and numerous Canada-based funds.

In December, it announced a West Virginia-based manufacturing facility. Emerging from start-up mode, Form expects to begin construction of its Weirton, West Virginia factory in 2023 and start manufacturing iron-air batteries in 2024 for broad commercialization.

The Governor of West Virginia, Jim Justice, announced that the state was able to structure a unique financial incentive package worth up to $290 million in asset-based, performance financing to support their decision to locate in Weirton. The West Virginia Economic Development Authority allocated $75 million toward the purchase of land and the construction of buildings in Weirton. The governor said he plans on working with the West Virginia Legislature and federal partners to obtain an additional $215 million needed to finalize the agreement.

The Xcel collaboration was modeled using Form Energy’s investment and operational modeling tool for grids, called Formware. This modeling helped Xcel Energy validate how Form’s multi-day storage will support Xcel Energy’s ability to reliably and cost-effectively integrate large amounts of wind energy and other renewable resources on its system.

Additionally, this analysis demonstrated how the 100-hour iron-air battery technology will strengthen the grid against normal day-to-day, week-to-week, and season-to-season weather variability, in addition to extreme weather events including severe winter storms and polar vortex events.

“Xcel Energy operates across some of the richest wind-resource areas in North America,” said Jaramillo. “This partnership highlights Xcel Energy’s commitment to ensuring grid resiliency and reliability, energy security, and access to low-cost clean energy when and where it is needed – every day of the year.”