Record Low Price | More Delays | Clear Solar
Happy Valentine’s Day.
Let’s start off with some news to love. From Bloomberg Green, “Shell, EDP Set Record-Low Price for U.S. Offshore Wind Power. Royal Dutch Shell Plc and EDP Renovaveis SA agreed to sell power from a wind farm they’re building in the Atlantic Ocean for a record-low price. The 804-megawatt Mayflower wind farm, located south of Martha’s Vineyard, will supply electricity to utilities in Massachusetts for $58 a megawatt-hour over the life of the contract. That’s less than a previous deal for $65 agreed to with the similarly located 800-megawatt Vineyard Wind project, state energy officials said on a conference call Tuesday. ‘The Commonwealth has now solicited two cost-effective projects at prices far below what industry experts had projected a few years ago,’ Kathleen Theoharides, secretary of energy and environmental affairs for Massachusetts, said on the call. Wholesale electricity prices averaged $40.24 a megawatt-hour in day-ahead trading in the New England grid over the past five years, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Offshore wind costs are higher, but the renewable technology is gaining in use in Europe and Asia, driving down the lifetime sales prices.”
Next up #Absencemakestheheartgrowfonder. From WBUR, “Vineyard Wind Announces New Delay In Offshore Wind Project. Vineyard Wind no longer expects its 800-megawatt project to become operational by 2022, the company said Tuesday after federal officials announced a new — and longer-than-anticipated — timeline for their review of the project and offshore wind sector generally. ‘We have received updated information from the Department of Interior that indicates the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for the Vineyard Wind I project will be published later than what was previously anticipated,’ Vineyard Wind CEO Lars Pedersen said in a statement. ‘While we need to analyze what a longer permitting timeline will mean for beginning construction, commercial operation in 2022 is no longer expected. We look forward to the clarity that will come with a final EIS so that Vineyard Wind can deliver this project to Massachusetts and kick off the new US offshore energy industry.’ On Tuesday, BOEM published a new ‘one federal decision permitting timeline,’ which envisions the issuance of a record of decision by Dec. 18, 2020.”
While this new technology was modeled using tomatoes, perhaps it will work with roses too. From Futurity.org, “Clear Solar Panel Could Power Future Greenhouses. Greenhouses of the future could become energy neutral using see-through solar panels to harvest energy, according to a new study. The panels would harvest the energy primarily from the wavelengths of light that plants don’t use for photosynthesis, the researchers say. ‘Plants only use some wavelengths of light for photosynthesis, and the idea is to create greenhouses that make energy from that unused light while allowing most of the photosynthetic band of light to pass through,’ says corresponding author Brendan O’Connor, an associate professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at North Carolina State University…The end result is that, for many greenhouse operators, the trade-off could be a small one—particularly for greenhouses in warm or temperate climates. For example, in Arizona, the greenhouses could become energy neutral—requiring no outside source of power—while blocking only 10% of the photosynthetic band of light. However, if growers are willing to block more photosynthetic light, they could generate twice as much energy as they required to operate the greenhouse…In Wisconsin, greenhouses couldn’t become energy neutral using the semitransparent solar cells—keeping the greenhouse warm in winter requires too much energy. However, the solar cells could meet up to 46% of the greenhouse’s energy demand.”
That’s the recap for this week. Enjoy the long weekend.
Natural Gas/Oil/Pipeline/Drilling
Why fossil-fuel generators oppose the CMP hydropower corridor, Bangor Daily News
Area residents criticize Columbia Gas at hearing, Eagle Tribune
‘I Feel Victorious’: BU Professor Ends Hunger Strike Over Weymouth Compressor, WBUR
United in Opposition to the No. Weymouth Gas Compressor Station, Boston University
Iroquois Gas to build system in Milford to help increase New York’s natural gas supply, Stamford Advocate
Oil production on public lands exceeds 1 billion barrels, The Hill
Carbon capture wins fans among oil giants, Wall St. Journal
Pennsylvania shale permits plunge in January as gas prices collapse, S&P Global
Renewables/Climate Change/RGGI
Want Unlimited Clean Energy? Just Drill the World’s Hottest Well, Wired
Geothermal heating district could rise in Mattapan, Boston Globe
The fastest way to cut carbon emissions is a ‘fee’ and a dividend, top leaders say, Washington Post
Energy Markets Need Winter, and Climate Change Is Taking It Away, Bloomberg Green
Antarctica Sets Record High Temperature: 64.9 Degrees, New York Times
Net-zero emissions measures advance despite cost concerns in Mass. Senate, Telegram & Gazette
Attleboro area senators say climate change legislation could empower cities, towns, Sun Chronicle
Gov. Charlie Baker: TCI proceeds will not be ‘pumped into Boston’ to pay off MBTA debt, MassLive
A Trillion Trees: How One Idea Triumphed Over Trump’s Climate Denialism, New York Times
Why university students are uniting for divestment this week, Boston Globe
Climate Change: 50 Ways We’re Taking Action Now, Vineyard Gazette
Researchers Propose New Strategies to Adapt to Climate Change, Clean Tech
For Sweetgreen, 2020 is the year kelp becomes cool, Washington Post
Hundreds of freshwater fish wash ashore on Easton’s Beach in Newport, ABC6
Why concrete has a huge carbon footprint, CNN (video)
The Climate Crisis Is Threatening Bees. Here’s What’s Helping To Save Them., HuffPost
Crossing the Line: A Scientist’s Road From Neutrality to Activism, Inside Climate News
The Cool Way Scientists Turned Falling Raindrops Into Electricity, Popular Mechanics
Wind
Good news, bad news on offshore wind, CommonWealth Magazine
Vineyard Wind Announces New Delay In Offshore Wind Project, WBUR
Price of wind power continues to fall with Mayflower contract, Herald News
Shell, EDP Set Record-Low Price for U.S. Offshore Wind Power, Bloomberg
Mayflower Wind will stage in New Bedford: 2nd wind turbine company looking for lease agreement for South Terminal, South Coast Today
Wind farm cables to be lengthened for reburial, Block Island Times
Connecticut Port Authority approves plan to turn State Pier into wind hub, The Day
Gov. Ned Lamont touts approval of wind power deal that will rebuild State Pier in New London while Senate Republicans complain about a lack of oversight, Hartford Courant
Some Fans, Some Not, for Wind Farm Project, Ocean City New Jersey Daily
Red lights on Lowell Mountains won’t dim soon, National Wind Watch (via Hardwick, VT Gazette)
Court filing challenges Guilford wind farm approval, Binghamton Press & Sun Bulletin
Solar
Researchers develop a roadmap for growth of new solar cells, MIT News
Clear solar panels could power future greenhouses, Futurity.org
Fitch: Solar Projects Much More Reliable Performers Than Wind Farms, Greentech Media
Green Bank’s Solar MAP Eases Solar Transition, Solar Industry Magazine
Why Cheap Solar Could Save the World, NPR
Report: Vermont lagging in solar capacity, Rutland Herald
Chemist develops technique to improve solar cells, Phys.org
Firm lays out plans for large solar farm, maybe sheep, Portland Press Herald
Yarmouth committee recommends purchase of ‘remote’ solar energy, Portland Press Herald
Energy Efficiency/Storage
MIT’s solid-state battery breakthrough may see phones last for days, New Atlas
Live Efficient: Choose Energy Star appliances for efficiency, Seacoastonline.com
BPU Plan Would Reimburse Utilities for Sales Lost to Energy Efficiency Programs, NJ Spotlight
$58M project to make Portsmouth Naval Shipyard energy resilient, Seacoast Online
EVs
ChargePoint commits $1B to expand EV charging as Ocasio-Cortez, others unveil bills for a national network, Utility Dive
ConEd developing $13M curbside EV charging program with AddEnergie, Utility Dive
Nuclear
NRC Extends Comment Period Regarding Indian Point, WAMC
The U.S. May Soon Have the World’s Oldest Nuclear Power Plants, Bloomberg
How the next generation of nuclear reactors could be smaller, greener and safer, PBS
Market/Grid/Policy/Prices
Advanced Attack Groups Increasingly Threaten North American Electric Utilities, Security Boulevard
Massachusetts has 3rd highest number of deaths from out-of-state air pollution, study finds, Boston Globe
GAO urged to probe energy project ‘double standard’, Telegram & Gazette
The U.S. power grid desperately needs upgrades to handle climate change, Science News
Company that studied grid may have had conflict of interest, Associated Press
Midwinter drop in energy costs gives Mainers unexpected relief, Kennebec Journal
AARP opposes Eversource’s proposed rate hikes, New Hampshire Union Leader
Expanding or starting a business? National Grid may have a grant for that, Business Journals
Editorial/Opinion
Jennifer Benson: Senate’s climate change proposal a good start, Daily Hampshire Gazette
Erect solar panels in places that make sense, The Day
State council, residents ready to take action on climate change, Portland Press Herald
Letter: Some help in connecting the air quality dots, Westerly Sun
Maine Compass: It’s time to reconsider going solar, Kennebec Journal
Susan Raymond: Sununu’s energy initiatives are a grand election stunt, Conway Daily Sun
Maine Compass: Don’t expect Maine ‘public power’ plan to deliver on its big promises, Kennebec Journal
Falmouth Turns Into A 2.5 Million Wind Turbine Dump, Patch.com
Pier remake could cost state three times $93 million estimate, The Day via National Wind Watch
New Massachusetts Program A Threat To Local Solar Installers, AltEnergyMag.com
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