A recent assessment of seven US regional transmission organizations confirms that many regions are facing serious deficiencies. The report is that there are over a million megawatts of renewable power and storage stuck waiting in line to connect to the U.S. transmission grid because os flawed interconnection processes. CA and TX stood out as doing better than other areas.
Utility Dive has assessed the state of permitting reform and found it deeply wanting. Federal initiatives/legislation remain stalled and ineffective (in some areas it takes 2 years) largely due to local opposition to projects. However, in some states like CA and NY things are looking better around reform.
Solar and energy storage procurement platform Anza has added expanded capabilities for buyers giving them more granular info re module procurement via the ability to rank and organize procurement priorities based on technical, commercial, supply chain, and risk-related variables.
Solar Builder’s Buyer’s Guide for BOS components is out for 2024 and they look at trends: solar mounting providers have added conduit mounting products, products are getting slimmer, most mounts now use butyl rubber for waterproofing, and direct-to-deck/above the single options are hot. They also, of course, have a roundup of some of the best offerings from QuickBolt, Sunmodo, RoofTech and more.
Pairing energy storage with community solar apparently helps push solar projects to completion. It improves project economics by increasing efficiency and by allowing access to additional incentives from utilities and states.
Three key findings from EnergySage’s 2023 Marketplace Report: solar prices decreased for the first time since 2021 dropping by 3.5% to $2.80 per watt, storage interest increased sharply in California following the Net Billing Tariff in April up to fifth-highest level of consumer interest in the country, and lower interest rate loans brought large fees with median interest rate for quotes that included financing increased to 5.5% in the second half of the year.
James Nagel and David Penalva, co-founders of SolarGrade by HelioVolta discuss industry challenges and scarcity of comprehensive data on solar project performance. They offer their SolarGrade, a software tool designed to automate field reporting and create a “SolarFax,” akin to a Carfax for solar projects. They touch on the importance of early customer feedback, the balance between cost efficiency and quality in solar projects, and the critical role of data in predictive maintenance. The video is below.
