QUICK NEWS, November 10: WHERE SOLAR IS HEADED; BILLIONS COMING TO EAST COAST OCEAN WIND; EV DRIVERS CAN'T WAIT FOR CHARGING

WHERE SOLAR IS HEADED This is Why Solar Panels Will Boom Early Next Year; But the forecasts aren’t completely sunny in 2016. Here’s why.

Katie Fehrenbacher, November 9, 2015 (Fortune)

"The global market for solar panels is expected to soar to a record high in the first half of 2016 because of strong demand as well as favorable policies in the U.S. and China…[but in the second half of 2016 and into 2017] growth is expected to slow after the U.S. lowers its solar tax credits and a push by China to install more panels ends [ according to IHS Technology]…At the end of 2016, the U.S. will reduce an important 30% tax credit for customers to 10%. As a result, solar sales, particularly to utilities, are expected to slow in 2017…[And following a similarly policy-driven] solar push, China’s market will likely slow in the second half of 2016…Overall, the market for solar panels is expected to continue to grow globally beyond 2017. As the cost of installing and making solar panels continues to drop, the technology will increasingly be more attractive to customers as an alternative to fossil fuel-based energy.” click here for more

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BILLIONS COMING TO EAST COAST OCEAN WIND New Jersey is next for offshore wind energy; Two companies bid a collective $1.8 million to explore the potential of fledgling U.S. industry.

Daniel J. Graeber, November 10, 2015 (United Press International)

“Two energy companies won the rights to advance wind energy off New Jersey's coast, where the potential exists to power 1.2 million homes…RES America Development and U.S. Wind Inc. bid more than $1.8 million collectively for the rights to consider the potential to develop wind energy in the federal waters off the coast of New Jersey…The estimated 344,000 acres off the New Jersey coast has, by the federal government's estimate, the potential to generate enough wind energy to power 1.2 million average households…[The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management of the Department of the Interior also recently] started a review of Virginia's plans for offshore wind installations…There was no public information on when construction could begin off the New Jersey coast. Construction for what's expected to be the first commercial offshore wind farm in the United States, Block Island, began off the Rhode Island coast during the summer.” click here for more

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EV DRIVERS CAN'T WAIT FOR CHARGING Electric-Car Drivers Will Pay For DC Fast-Charging 12-To-1 Over Level 2

Stephen Edelstein, November 9, 2015 (Green Car Reports)

"A growing fleet of electric cars will need a comprehensive network of public charging stations…[It must] be useful to the public, but…also financially sustainable…Level 2 AC charging stations are relatively inexpensive and straightforward to install, but require cars to stay put for…at least a few hours…DC fast-charging stations allow much quicker charges, but are more expensive and place greater demands on electricity infrastructure…Network operator NRG eVgo recently surveyed a handful of its stations in the San Francisco Bay Area, and found…found drivers preferred fast charging 12 to 1…[T]he speed of DC fast charging is obviously a plus…Stations can charge most electric-car battery packs to 80-percent capacity in around 30 minutes…[Drivers] can fit a fast-charging session in while running a quick errand…” click here for more

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