QUICK NEWS, August 19: LOW-PRICED WIND ENERGY ATTRACTS UTILITIES; TEXAS SUBURBS BLOCK SOLAR; WHAT UTILITY CUSTOMERS WANT
LOW-PRICED WIND ENERGY ATTRACTS UTILITIES DOE promotes wind power in reports
Timothy Cama, August 18, 2014 (The Hill)
“…[A] series of reports released [by the Department of Energy (DOE)] found that the United States ranks second to China in wind energy installation and wind power provides 4.5 percent of the country’s electricity, among other conclusions…DOE used the reports to advocate for reinstatement of the wind energy [production tax credit (PTC), a tax break for wind energy production that expired last year…A Senate panel voted earlier this year to renew the credit, but the proposal did not move forward. The tax break has proven extremely controversial in Congress…One [report] focuses on the market for wind energy technology and the other is about distributed wind energy, which is installed at homes, businesses or other sites that are not utility-scale generation facilities…Utility-scale wind power is in 39 states and territories, and spurs $500 million in exports annually…Wind power is at an all-time low price, and utilities are buying it to save money…Distributed wind power accounts for more than 80 percent of all wind turbines in the United States…” click here for more
TEXAS SUBURBS BLOCK SOLAR Texas law lets developers ban solar panels while subdivisions are growing
Wendy Hundley, 16 August 2014 (Dallas News)
"…[D]espite a Texas law that bans HOAs from restricting the use of solar power…the law allows builders to restrict solar-energy devices while a housing development is under construction…Solar advocates call this a legal loophole that creates unnecessary obstacles for homeowners who want to go green. But builders say it’s an exception that protects investments in new housing…Developers object to the solar devices for aesthetic reasons…[and] the ban lasts only until the neighborhood is built out and the builder relinquishes control of the HOA board to residents…But green-energy advocates say solar panels are no more unsightly than air-conditioning units and cite…[a 2011 study by the National Bureau of Economic Research] found that solar panels can add 3 to 4 percent to the value of a home…” click here for more
WHAT UTILITY CUSTOMERS WANT Survey Reveals What U.S. Consumers Expect From Their Utilities
August 15, 2014 (Up Front via Renew Grid)
“…[A GE Digital Energy business survey] found that millions of Americans are willing to pay $10 more on their monthly bills for better power reliability…[The Grid Resiliency Survey], conducted by Harris Poll, [found] 82% of U.S. customers would like their utility to do more to encourage energy conservation and share ideas to improve energy efficiency in their homes. Meanwhile, 81% expect their utilities to use higher levels of renewable energy in the future to meet power needs…56% of U.S. adults were without power for an hour or more during their latest outage…If the power goes out and consumers’ electronic devices are not charged, nearly half of U.S. adults (39%) also would be frustrated with the absence of their smartphones, with laptops following closely behind (25%)…[T]he survey found that 50% of U.S. adults believe natural disasters and weather-related events are the greatest threat to the U.S. power grid…41% of Americans living east of the Mississippi River are willing to pay an additional $10 per month to ensure the grid is more reliable, compared to 34% of those living west of the river…” click here for more
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