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Monday, Nov 03, 2014

Photovoltaic System Pricing Trends

With significant variance in estimates of cost and price within the solar market, DOE's Sunshot Initiative with scientists from National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and Lawrence Berkley National Labs, have released their report that seeks to address these differences.

Monday, Jun 02, 2014

Survey of State-Level Cost and Benefit Estimates of Renewable Portfolio Standards

The report summarizes state-level RPS costs to date and considers how those costs may evolve going forward given scheduled increases in RPS targets and cost containment mechanisms incorporated into existing policies. The report also summarizes RPS benefits estimates, based on published studies for individual states, and discusses key methodological considerations.

Tuesday, Apr 01, 2014

National Labs Explore Differences in Installed PV Pricing between U.S. and Japan

A recent joint report from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory finds that installed PV system prices in Japan are 6% lower than U.S. prices in the residential sector, and 20% lower than U.S. prices in the small commercial sector. Some of this difference is attributed to lower soft costs in Japan.

Thursday, Dec 05, 2013

Chip Bircher Joins Solar Heating and Cooling Alliance

WASHINGTON, DC – The Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) today announced that Chip Bircher, longtime coordinator of the Department of Energy’s Utility Solar Water Heating Initiative (USH2O), will be joining SEIA’s Solar Heating and Cooling (SHC) Alliance.

Monday, Nov 25, 2013

NREL Report Provides Most Granular View of Soft Costs to Date

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) recently released a report that breaks down the ‘soft costs’ associated with the installation of residential and commercial photovoltaic systems in greater detail than ever before, with detailed looks at customer acquisition and system design costs, as well as permitting, inspection and interconnection costs.

Tuesday, Nov 19, 2013

New NREL Report Explores REITs and MLPs for Solar

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory recently released a report discussing the opportunities and challenges inherent in utilizing Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) and Master Limited Partnerships (MLPs) as investment vehicles for the solar industry. The authors also discuss proposed rule changes that could enable renewable energy REITs and MLPs and possible investor reaction to those changes.

Tuesday, Oct 01, 2013

Study Finds Effects of Power Plant Cycling to be Negligible

A new study from the National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL) finds that operating costs associated with additional power plant cycling caused by the integration of renewables to the grid are negligible when compared to fuel costs offset by displacing fossil fuels with renewable energy.

Tuesday, Sep 17, 2013

National Labs Find Continued PV Installed Price Declines in U.S.

A new briefing released from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) documents continued installed price declines in U.S. photovoltaic installations. The authors find price declines of 6-14% from 2011 to 2012, and 6-7% per year since 1998.

Monday, Oct 01, 2012

Help Reduce PV Installation Soft Costs

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) is working to reduce the soft costs (non-hardware) associated with PV installation.  As part of this effort, they are collecting data from PV installers across the country who have installed residential or commericial systems in the first half of 2012.  The collected data will be used to help develop best practices in regulation and permitting, while allowing NREL to develop baseline models to guage progress and develop strategies going forward.  With recen

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