2020 – the dawn of the Solar+ Decade – kicks off with the official launch of California’s much heralded (and controversial) Building Energy Efficiency Standards Title 24 mandate that all new residential construction include a solar energy component. If you spent most of 2019 waiting out the end times inRead More

Not sure if you noticed, but California’s new home solar mandate is almost here (we’ve only written like 20,000 words on it so far, with more coming this week), but some homebuilders and utilities are still not that thrilled about it. Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) being the most notable afterRead More

Part IV of Solar Builder’s excellent Countdown to 2020 series about California’s new home solar mandate included this statement: “Speakers at the California Solar Power Expo… expect homebuilders to skip solar-only systems to comply with the Title 24 mandate and go straight to solar + storage systems.” Is that expectationRead More

The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) voted yesterday to approve program implementation for the Disadvantaged Communities – Single-family Solar Homes (DAC-SASH) program. A major new investment in expanding solar access, DAC-SASH aims to increase the adoption of clean, affordable solar power by low-income households in disadvantaged communities. It builds offRead More

California Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law important financial protections for Californians investing in rooftop solar energy. The law, AB 1208, extends a prohibition on cities and counties taxing the energy generated by rooftop solar panels for use by homeowners and businesses. The bill faced little controversy since it was introduced inRead More

Sunnova Energy International Inc. and PetersenDean Roofing & Solar announced a new strategic partnership that could shift the balance of power in the California new-build solar market. PetersenDean is one of the largest full-service roofing and solar companies in the United States and Sunnova is a national solar and storage installerRead More

Within the first day of accepting applications, California’s new Solar on Multifamily Affordable Housing (SOMAH) program is nearly fully subscribed, having received more than 240 applications representing over 74 megawatts (MW) of solar power generating capacity and $163 million in reserved funding. The high-volume of applications resulted in SOMAH’s first-yearRead More

Editor’s Note: the figure in this post has been updated. MCE is issuing cash outs totaling over $2.8 million to rooftop solar customers when they have produced more electricity than they used themselves. MCE’s Net Energy Metering (NEM) program currently provides incentives for rooftop solar customers, including paying premium ratesRead More

Our reporting on California’s solar + storage market for our Countdown to 2020 news series has revealed both big opportunities and obstacles, which are largely illustrated by its Self-Generation Incentive Program (SGIP). The California legislature passed a bill to re-authorize SGIP funding (up to $800 million) to further encourage storageRead More

California’s wind, solar, geothermal, and bioenergy industries are commending California Governor Gavin Newsom and legislative leaders for introducing legislation to stabilize California’s energy markets in the wake of unprecedented wildfires and climate catastrophes.  The recently introduced AB 1054 is designed to both stabilize and hold accountable the state’s largest utilitiesRead More