News & Articles on Solar Energy
While I have primarily worked with wind energy, I have long been a proponent of renewable energy in the broadest sense. This includes solar energy. My work in Canada, especially Ontario, stressed inclusion of solar energy because it had been previously overlooked. At one time Ontario was one of the leading jurisdictions in North America developing solar photovoltaics due in part to the programs I and others pushed. The political winds changed and these policies were abandoned and with it Ontario’s progress toward a renewable energy future.
Renewables International: German PV roars on
By
Craig Morris
Germany’s Network Agency has announced the PV installation figures for August, confirming that the country remains on course to greatly exceed the government’s target corridor of 2.5-3.5 gigawatts per year. Nonetheless, proponents of solar – including our German sister publication – ignore this continued success, complaining instead that the market is being cut in half.
Providence Journal: R.I. tries to play catch-up with law that boosts solar arrays
By
Alex Kuffner
Under the program, a state board sets ceiling prices that developers can charge for renewable energy. The prices vary based on the type of system and its size by taking into consideration the costs of individual technologies, returns on investment and economies of scale. Projects bid within their classes with prices that do not exceed the ceiling. The winning bids are rewarded with 15-year contracts with National Grid.
CleanTechnica: Japan Solar PV Industry Reaches 10 GW Milestone
By
Joshua S Hill
Japanese solar photovoltaic “PV” installations have now passed 10 GW for cumulative PV capacity, only the fifth country to reach the mark.
Grist: Buying Local Solar Makes Gainesville, Florida a World Leader
By
John Farrell, Ilsr
While the utility’s options were being debated, Ed had an opportunity to travel to Germany with the Solar Electric Power Association and learn about their feed-in tariff program. To his surprise, when he presented his findings to the local energy commission, their reply was, “why can’t we do that here?”
Renewables International: Two strategic lessons from distributed PV in Germany
By
Bernard Chabot
French energy expert Bernard Chabot takes a look at the distribution of PV arrays in Germany by system size based on the latest data up to July 2013.
HELAPCO: Greek Solar PV Market September 2013
By
980 MW solar PV installed in 2013, bringing total Greek PV to 2,500 MW. Greece now ranks 5th worldwide with regard to per capita installed PV capacity.
HELAPCO: The Greek PV Market Status
By
Greece has been offering high feed-in-tariffs (FiTs) for PV since 2006. This has skyrocketed the market, especially during the period 2011-2013, and reached a cumulative installed PV capacity of 2.5 GWp in 2013. . . However, this very mechanism has also overheated the market. High feed-in-tariffs and dramatic decreases of PV costs since 2011 have led to a boom that the Electricity Market cannot sustain anymore.
REW: Lessons from Germany: Solar Energy Opportunities for Farmers
By
A huge opportunity exists for landowners, especially farm owners, to band together and not only offset their own energy usage (to generate savings) but also to earn additional revenue in the long-run from the adoption of solar PV. There is enormous potential for farmers to harvest solar and other renewables to generate local, clean, renewable energy.
UPI: Japan’s grids can support solar boom?
By
Figures from Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry indicate 11,012 megawatts of non-residential photovoltaic projects were approved since the start of the FIT policy and the beginning of this year.
Toronto Star: Solar much more than panels slapped on a rooftop
By
Tyler Hamilton
Energy Minister Chris Bentley, in a letter last month directing the power authority to restart the feed-in-tariff program, also asked the agency to design a sub-category within the program that is geared to solar projects on “unconstructed buildings.” The new category needs to be implemented by the end of this year, and 15 megawatts of capacity on the grid is supposed to be earmarked for such projects in 2013. . .
