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Wednesday, Jan 30, 2013

Residential Photovoltaic Energy Systems in California: The Effect on Home Sales Prices (2011)

The Working Group III Special Report on Renewable Energy Sources and Climate Change Mitigation (SRREN) presents an assessment of the literature on the scientific, technological, environmental, economic and social aspects of the contribution of six renewable energy (RE) sources to the mitigation of climate change. It is intended to provide policy relevant information to governments, intergovernmental processes and other interested parties. This Summary for Policymakers provides an overview of the SRREN, summarizing the essential findings. The SRREN consists of 11 chapters.

Wednesday, Jan 30, 2013

Photovoltaic (PV) Pricing Trends: Historical, Recent, and Near-Term Projections

The installed capacity of global and U.S. photovoltaic (PV) systems has soared in recent years, driven by declining PV prices and government incentives. The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) SunShot Initiative aims to make PV cost competitive without incentives by reducing the cost of PV-generated electricity by about 75% between 2010 and 2020.

Wednesday, Jan 30, 2013

Electricity Bill Savings from Residential Photovoltaic Systems: Sensitivities to Changes in Future Electricity Market Conditions

Customer-sited photovoltaic (PV) systems in the United States are often compensated at the customer’s underlying retail electricity rate through net metering. Calculations of the customer economics of PV, meanwhile, often assume that retail rate structures and PV compensation mechanisms will not change and that retail electricity prices will increase (or remain constant) over time, thereby also increasing (or keeping constant) the value of bill savings from PV.

Wednesday, Jan 30, 2013

Solar Valuation in Utility Planning Studies

This webinar was presented by the Clean Energy States Alliance and featured Andrew Mills of Lawrence Berkeley National Lab (LBNL) discussing new research on solar valuation that he and his colleague, Ryan Wiser, have recently published.

Tuesday, Jan 29, 2013

Impacts of Regional Electricity Prices and Building Type on the Economics of Commercial Photovoltaic Systems

Business owners often have a choice between multiple electricity rate options. For businesses with photovoltaic (PV) installations, choosing the right rate is essential to maximize the value of PV generation. The complex interaction between PV generation, building load, and rate structure makes determining the best rate a challenging task. We evaluated 207 rate structures across 77 locations and 16 commercial building types and identified the impacts of regional electricity prices and building type on the economics of solar PV systems.

Tuesday, Jan 29, 2013

Maximizing the Value of Photovoltaic Installations on Schools in California: Choosing the Best Electricity Rates

Schools in California often have a choice between multiple electricity rate options. For schools with photovoltaic (PV) installations, choosing the right rate is essential to maximize the value of PV generation. The rate option that minimizes a school’s electricity expenses often does not remain the most economical choice after the school installs a PV system. The complex interaction between PV generation, building load, and rate structure makes determining the best rate a challenging task.

Tuesday, Jan 08, 2013

NERC: 2012 Long-Term Reliability Assessment

This assessment was prepared by North American Electric Reliability Corporation in its capacity as the Electric Reliability Organization1 and provides an independent view of the 10‐year reliability outlook for the North American BPS,2 while identifying trends, emerging issues, and potential risks.

Tuesday, Jan 08, 2013

NREL: Updating Small Generator Interconnection Procedures for New Market Conditions

This report recommends reforms to federal and state interconnection procedures to meet the demands of a growing national marketplace for solar photovoltaic (PV) and other small renewable generators that interconnect to electric distribution systems.

Tuesday, Dec 11, 2012

Assessment of Incentives and Employment Impacts of Solar Industry Deployment

An independent research report by the Howard H. Baker Jr. Center for Public Policy at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, found that solar energy is following the same path to commercialization as other traditional energy sources spurred by federal incentives. The study, titled "Assessment of Incentives and Employment Impacts of Solar Industry Deployment," also estimates that the U.S. solar industry could employ hundreds of thousands of Americans by the end of the decade.

Wednesday, Dec 05, 2012

Solar Market Insight Report 2012 Q3

U.S. Solar Market Insight™ is a collaboration between the Solar Energy Industries Association® (SEIA®) and GTM Research that brings high-quality, solar-specific analysis and forecasts to industry professionals in the form of quarterly and annual reports. Released December 11, 2012.

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