QUICK NEWS, July 30: SOLAR AND UTILITIES SHAPE EACH OTHER; ‘HIDDEN’ WIND COSTS DWARFED BY ‘HIDDEN’ FOSSIL COSTS; GM’S RUN FOR THE 200 MILE CHARGE

SOLAR AND UTILITIES SHAPE EACH OTHER SEPA Analysis Identifies Major Trends in Growth of U.S. Solar Generation Market; First Quarter of 2014 Shows 229 Percent Year-Over-Year Jump in Utility-Scale Installations

July 28, 2014 (Solar Electric Power Association)

“…[There was] a 49-percent growth in the utility-scale solar market in the United States from 2013 to 2014…[and total] accumulated solar capacity now stands at 10.7 gigawatts (GW) at more than 475,000 locations across the county [according to the seventh annual Utility Solar Trends report from the Solar Electric Power Association (SEPA)]…[It describes three important] market drivers…[1-Key] issues of customer compensation and rate design – that is, net metering, value of solar and customer fees – have come to the fore as utilities and, solar industry and consumer stakeholders seek fair and cost-effective paths toward increased levels of distributed solar adoption. Solutions will differ across states and utilities…[2-Utility] solar is now the industry’s largest market segment. But uncertainty has emerged…as utilities close in on meeting state-mandated renewable energy standards and developers anticipate the step-down of the federal investment tax credit coming in 2017…[3-Utilities] are in the early phases of developing new and innovative solar options…” click here for more

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‘HIDDEN’ WIND COSTS DWARFED BY ‘HIDDEN’ FOSSIL COSTS ‘Hidden Cost’ Of Wind Power vs. Conventional Power Plants

Tina Casey, July 27, 2014 (Clean Technica)

“…[A so-called hidden cost of wind power] has been touted by the fossil fuel industry as an argument against integrating more wind power into the grid, but according to [calculations by the American Wind Energy Association] the ‘hidden cost’ for conventional power plants in Texas is 17 times more than wind…[The] calculations apply to the cost of contingency reserves needed in case of power plant failure…[A] typical Texas household with a monthly electricity bill of $128 per month would be shelling out 4.3 cents per month for the additional contingency reserves required by wind power…[Using the example of Texas grid operator ERCOT, which requires 2800 megawatts of fast-acting contingency reserves for a conventional power plant failure, the cost is] 76 cents per month for a typical Texas household…In order to make the case that wind energy is more expensive to integrate into the grid, the fossil fuel industry has been ignoring the [17 times higher] cost of integrating conventional power plants…” click here for more

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GM’S RUN FOR THE 200 MILE CHARGE GM isn't alone in race to 200-mile electric car; New rumors don’t change my view: GM will have two different plug-in electric car platforms in the next one to three years.

July 28, 2014 (MSN)

“A few days ago, the Internet was again abuzz with rumors about a future electric car from General Motors…[that] would have 200 miles of range, be available by the end of 2016 and be part of the Chevrolet Sonic nameplate…LG has recently said that it will have a battery capable of providing 200 miles of range by 2016. LG is GM's [and other automakers’] current battery supplier…At its core, GM likely has two separate plug-in cars planned for release in the next one to three years: [A] plug-in hybrid to replace the current Chevrolet Volt and Cadillac ELR…[with an electric range of approximately 40 miles, and then a gasoline engine adding normal car range]…Most industry observers think GM is taking close to $8,000 in cost out of the Volt, for this all-new 2.0 model…[T]he second, and far more difficult, electric GM car…would be a 200 mile range pure electric car that could be sold at a profit for as little money as possible…” click here for more

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