In a big win for clean local energy and resilience in the Santa Barbara region, the Santa Barbara Unified School District (SBUSD) Board unanimously voted last week to proceed with Solar Microgrid projects throughout the District, along with additional standalone solar projects. For the Santa Barbara Unified Solar Plus EnergyRead More

Earlier this summer, a study projected 16 tropical storms to hit the Caribbean and Atlantic coasts, eight of which would turn into hurricanes, making it a record-breaking year for hurricanes. This forecast, coupled with the heightened need for optimized health and critical infrastructure amidst the COVID-19 crisis, makes it clearRead More

Sunrun and Southern California Edison (SCE), the largest utility in Southern California and the country as a whole, are teaming up to launch a virtual power plant. The partnership between Sunrun and SCE will demonstrate how residential rooftop solar and batteries support California’s ongoing transition to clean, reliable, locally-generated electricity.Read More

At the start of 2020, climate change, natural disasters and public policy were the biggest concerns when it came to grid resilience. Fast forward just a few months, and grid reliability is taking center stage, as the world contends with the COVID-19 crisis. Maintaining reliable power for healthcare, work, educationRead More

Looking back at 2019, if I had to pick a pun moniker for the solar industry (and I do), it wasn’t so much a ‘solar-coaster’ as it was a ‘solar derby.’ Established companies, technologies and ideas were all bashing into each other, forming alliances and finding other competitive edges toRead More

As deadly wildfires and Public Safety Power Shutoffs (PSPS) become the “new normal” in California, communities are increasingly turning to renewables-driven microgrids to maintain power for their most critical loads during grid outages that can last for days or potentially weeks. To bring these communities unparalleled economic, environmental, and resilienceRead More

California’s first Community Choice Aggregation program MCE voted last week to commit $3 million to support resiliency projects for its customers. This major new investment is focused on funding local resiliency efforts in MCE’s four-county service area, specifically for critical facilities and sites serving vulnerable customers. This $3 million commitmentRead More

Siemens’ central research and development unit in the U.S., Siemens Corporate Technology (CT) US, was selected for a $6.4 million research award from the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) to advance solar energy’s role in strengthening the resilience of the U.S. electricity grid. This project will createRead More