That would provide a boost for Brazil’s nascent solar industry, which supplies less than one percent of the country’s electricity. Sunlight in the region is almost twice as strong as Germany, according to the U.S. National Renewable Energy Laboratory.

“The main objective of this auction is to start developing the solar market in Brazil” Thais Prandini, director at the energy consulting Thymos Energia, said in a telephone interview. “We must have solar-panel plants in the country and we are going to have the opportunity to be part of this sector’s production process.”

The worst drought in eight decades is reducing output from the most important hydroelectric plants in Brazil, and the country is seeking to diversify its energy sources.

Solar developers applied to sell power from 400 power plants in the auction, with total capacity of 10.79 gigawatts. Companies will compete for 20-year contracts to sell power from projects that must go into operation by October 2017. Developers also registered 626 proposed wind farms and eight biogas projects.

Ceiling Price

The country’s energy regulator Aneel set a 262-real ($109) a megawatt-hour ceiling price for solar power. In Brazil’s power auctions, the government sets a top price and developers bid down the rate at which they are willing to sell power. The lowest offers wins long-term contract to sell electricity.

“The general feeling in the market is that this time it’s for real,” said Helena Chung a Sao Paulo-based analyst for Bloomberg New Energy Finance. “This price is OK, even if it will still make the projects’ margins tight.”

Brazil is still a small market for solar power. China is expected to install as much as 14 gigawatts of solar farms this year. Japan may add almost 12 gigawatts and the U.S. is expected to develop more than 5 gigawatts, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance.

High prices for solar panels have limited the development of a photovoltaic industry in Brazil. Solar panels aren’t produced domestically and Brazil taxes imported ones at 12 percent.

“Brazil is not a technology developer and the government was waiting for the technology to be advanced in order to spur the industry,” said Prandini.

Copyright 2014 Bloomberg

Lead image: Brazil flag via Shutterstock

ROCKVILLE, MD.—(eSolarEnergyNews)—Upon its completion in December, a 2.1 Megawatt (MW) solar array in Pocomoke City, MD will be the largest municipally-owned system in the state. Standard Solar, Inc., a leader in the full-service development, construction, integration, financing and installation of solar electric systems, developed and is installing the ground mount solar system at the City’s wastewater treatment facility. ClicktoTweet

The 6,150 panel array, which is expected to produce 2.9 million kilowatt-hours of power per year, will offset 2,067 metric tons of carbon dioxide which is equal to the CO2 emissions from the electricity use of 284 average American homes for one year or the annual carbon offset of a 1,639 acre forest.

“Pocomoke City calls itself ‘The Friendliest Town on the Eastern Shore’ and now thanks to the foresight of City officials and this innovative solar project, it is well on its way to being known as the greenest town on the Eastern Shore,” said Tony Clifford, Chief Executive Officer, Standard Solar. “With no financial outlay required by the City, sizeable savings in electricity costs and positively contributing to its citizen’s environmental future, more and more municipalities are seeing the short- and long-term advantages of going solar.”

Total cost savings are estimated to be more than $52,000 annually. Electricity produced by the system is expected to reduce the City’s electricity bills by more than $37,000 a year. Additionally, several local nonprofit organizations will participate in the City’s network to reduce their bills by nearly $15,000 annually, including the Delmarva Discovery Center, MARVA Theater, Samaritan Shelter and the Worcester County Developmental Center.

“Pocomoke City is proud to be in the forefront of Maryland municipalities when it comes to solar energy,” said Bruce Morrison, Mayor of Pocomoke City. “Our new solar system will not only help the town economically, but it also speaks to our commitment to environmental sustainability and will serve as an educational opportunity for all of us to learn about the importance of renewable energy.”

State Senator Jim Mathias, who represents Worcester, Wicomico and Somerset Counties, noted “As a member of the Senate Finance Committee, I work tirelessly with my colleagues and business leaders to help grow industries like solar energy. I am excited to see solar come to Pocomoke City, and am eager to see our citizens continue to benefit from the innovative approach of these and other alternate energy sources. Thank you to the great partners at Standard Solar, and I look forward to continuing to work with them; together we make investments and create jobs and opportunities in Pocomoke City.”

“The completion of this large solar project in Pocomoke City will make the southern Eastern Shore one of the leading solar areas in the state,” said State Delegate Norman Conway, who represents Worcester and Wicomico Counties. “These solar systems are helping our regional economy by allowing our local governments, educational institutions, businesses and homeowners to generate substantial savings on their electricity bills.”

The project was financed through a long-term Power Purchase Agreement by SunEdison, who will own the array.

Pocomoke City is home to approximately 5,000 residents and is located on the banks of the Pocomoke River, one of the top scenic rivers in America.

TEMECULA, CA —(eSolarEnergyNews)— The Renzoni family recently completed the construction of their new tasting facility in the Southwest Riverside County agricultural area, known as the Temecula Wine Country, home to 40 wineries. Transitioning most of their electric usage to solar power was an early-stage plan, as was implementing a state-of-the-art water harvesting system, which is already operational. These efforts are making Robert Renzoni Winery the area’s leader in conservation, sustainability and fiscal responsibility.

While the Renzoni family, fourth-generation winemakers, is conscious of the benefits and goodwill of sustainability, financial considerations drove the timing on their decision to go green this year. “We are going solar now to blunt the ever-rising cost of commercial electricity,” said Fred Renzoni. “The latest news we received from SoCal Edison is that they will make effective January 1st, 2015, a utility rate based on time of usage. So, if you want to get the cheapest rates, you need to be open at 3am.”

Utilizing solar for one’s power in California, on the other hand, plays directly into the hand of the Time of Use rate. It allows property owners to make their own power, at a reduced cost, during the time they would have traditionally been paying the most for it. Ambassador Energy was able to articulate this and other benefits, winning the flagship installation in Temecula Wine Country. Said Fred, “We chose Ambassador because they were the most knowledgeable presenters and their pricing was competitive. They have also demonstrated great follow-up since we signed the contract.”

Ambassador Energy committed to deploying their best team for the Renzoni solar installation. The team is primarily comprised of United States military veterans, who were solar-trained by their education arm, Ambassador Energy College and the 501(c)(3) non-profit, The Veteran Asset.

“The Renzoni’s are leaders here in our valley,” said Kelly Smith, president of Ambassador Energy, “and, I think a lot of people are waiting to see how it goes. I started this dance with Fred more than two years ago, and am very proud to be a part of this first significant solar deployment in Temecula Wine Country. We are confident that Robert Renzoni Winery will be a shining example of solar, saving money and being good stewards of this amazing agricultural land. We hope it is the first winery of many to go solar! ”

MINNEAPOLIS, MN —(eSolarEnergyNews)— As Minnesotans hover on the brink of yet another cold winter and concerns about energy costs come to the forefront, renewable energy experts at JJR Power in Excelsior, Minnesota today said they’ve seen an unprecedented demand for solar power thanks to incentives and grants created last year by the Minnesota Legislature. As utility rates climb and prices for solar power drop, JJR Power officials say they’ve developed solar solutions for a range of businesses and organizations in nine states, including schools, community hockey arenas, and a water treatment plant. They say they’ve helped them navigate the complexities of adding solar power to their energy picture in the most economical way.

“Utility rates have gone up 40 percent in the past decade and Xcel Energy’s rates are set to go up another 6-7 percent just in the next two years,” said John Jaffray, president and founder of JJR Power. “It’s a growing industry. People are demanding solar, but where do you start? It’s not about the technology, it’s not about the efficiency of the panels, it’s about whether or not solar is a good fit for your company or organization. We help guide you through the decision-making and grant process.” Solar energy legislation passed last year in Minnesota requires local, investor-owned utilities like Xcel Energy to provide millions of dollars in financial incentives over the next five years to promote installation of solar energy systems. “Now’s the time to make an informed decision about solar,” said Mike Woodley, Director of Business Development, “and we help our customers do that.”

Meanwhile, solar costs continue to drop steadily. The average installation cost per watt of capacity has fallen from $4.50 in 2009 to $2.50 currently, according to Jaffray. By 2020, it’s expected to drop to below $1.50. “It’s a broad trend—not a new trend, but absolutely a trend we expect to continue,” Woodley said. “These falling costs plus the government incentives, which won’t be around forever, have made solar power a viable, cost-effective solution for many businesses and organizations.”

About JJR Power
JJR Power is a Minnesota-based energy and finance firm founded in 2006. We work with installers, constructors, developers and organizations interested in financing and developing solar projects. We’ve capitalized on opportunities in the energy sector and have created a vehicle for investing in assets with long duration, excellent credit quality and high risk-adjusted returns. For the past 8 years, JJR Power has been active in power markets across the United States, beginning with memberships in MISO, PJM, and ISO-NE. In 2009, we began advising, developing and financing companies and nonprofit organizations on their solar power installations in Colorado, California, New Mexico, Hawaii, North Carolina, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Connecticut and Minnesota. We provide increased value for off-takers, installers and developers, optimizing yield and safety of return for investors in the solar, wind and renewable energy space.

For more information, go http://www.jjrpower.com or call (952) 715-3082.

GUELPH, ONTARIO —(eSolarEnergyNews)— Canadian Solar, one of the world’s largest solar power companies, today announced that it completed the supply of 3.1 MW of CS6X-300P modules to a solar photovoltaic (PV) project in Tipitapa, Nicaragua. This PV plant, entitled Planta Solar Zona Franca Astro Nicaragua, will power 26 companies and supply approximately 30% of total energy consumption for the Zona Franca Astro Nicaragua industrial park.

Financed by two local banks, Centro America Renovables and Energia Solar Aplicada, the PV plant will be completed in 2014. At its completion, this plant will become the largest private solar farm among industrial parks in Central America, as well as the largest private grid-connected solar array in Nicaragua.  Planta Solar Zona Franca Astro Nicaragua will create over one hundred local jobs and contribute significantly to the region’s local renewable energy efforts.

Mr. Gregorio Kim, General Manager in Astro Nicaragua, S.A. said, «After evaluating several different PV module suppliers, we chose Canadian Solar because of the company’s excellent quality, performance, and experience in global solar projects. In addition, Canadian Solar’s dedicated post-sales team gives security to financial entities.»

«As a leading developer of worldwide solar projects, Canadian Solar’s corporate operations span over fifteen countries,» commented Dr. Shawn Qu, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Canadian Solar. «The market outlook for Canadian Solar in Central America is robust, and we expect our opportunities in this region will continue to expand in 2015 and beyond. We are pleased with the successful completion of this solar project and the positive impact that Canadian Solar has had on the local economy in Nicaragua.»

JAIPUR CHENNAI, INDIA  —(eSolarEnergyNews)— SunEdison, a leading global solar technology manufacturer and provider of solar energy services, today announced that it has won 5 solar photovoltaic (PV) projects totaling 150 megawatts (MW) from Karnataka Renewable Energy Development Limited (KREDL) as announced by the Government of Karnataka. SunEdison or SunEdison affiliates, including Yieldcos, are envisioned as the ultimate owner(s) of these solar projects, and will sell the electricity generated to various entities via Power Purchase Agreements (PPA’s).

«This is yet another milestone in the journey of SunEdison in India to build a strong pipeline of projects that will be developed and commissioned in the coming years,» said Pashupathy Gopalan, president Asia Pacific Operations, adding that the PPA’s are likely to be signed in the next two to three months.

While 44 developers responded to KREDL’s tender for 500 MW of grid-connected solar power plants, SunEdison’s 150 MW represents the largest share awarded to any single company.  Following SunEdison’s recent announcement of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for 5 gigawatts (GW) with the Rajasthan Government, this award solidifies SunEdison’s position as the clear leader in India’s rapidly growing solar market.

As gubernatorial candidate Charlie Crist noted in the recent debate, the corrupting influence of Florida’s electric utilities has blocked efforts to help Florida transition into a fair and free-market renewable energy economy. The impact of this powerful fossil fuel lobby has been demonstrated as they funnel resources to influence the outcome of the Florida governor’s race. Renewable energy, in particular solar energy, will without a doubt have a significantly positive economic impact on Florida’s natural and economic environment. But the first step for the Sunshine State is a changing of the guard in the executive office.

Billionaire Tom Steyer has made a significant personal investment to bring renewable energy to the forefront in Florida. Steyer’s NextGen Climate Super PAC has spent nearly $2 million on political ads attacking incumbent Governor Rick Scott. This resulted in little more than Governor Scott agreeing to a short meeting with climate scientists. Governor Scott’s views on renewables have still not evolved. During the recent debate he reiterated his standard line on solar saying, “it’s got to be reliable and it’s got to be cost-effective.” An expected answer straight out of the utilities and the fossil fuel sectors’ playbook.

Governor Scott’s views on this issue are in clear contrast with the campaign of former Republican Governor, now Democratic challenger Charlie Crist. Throughout the campaign Governor Crist has boasted about his solar support. It’s prompted environmental activists to host rallies across the state and put public pressure on regulators to crack down on Florida’s fossil-fuel-reliant electric utilities. Unfortunately, renewable energy issue is still not dominating the news cycle, but after the recent debate the distinction between the candidates is clear.

Even if former Governor Christ wins in November, Florida still has an uphill battle. The state gets nearly sixty percent of its energy from fossil fuel, mostly in the form of natural gas, and then an additional twenty one percent from burning coal. This is compared to renewable energy that generates only about 2.2 percent of the state’s household-energy use.  

Florida should be poised to be the next big solar state. The Sunshine State ranked 3^rd in potential, but only 16^th for capacity installed. The reason for such low renewable energy adoption rates stems from powerful electric utilities that support incremental state level policies as a way to maintain the fossil-fuel heavy status quo.

However, with many jobs and economic benefits at stake, renewables are not likely to go away anytime soon. The biggest issue for most U.S. utilities still lies ahead; whoever wins the upcoming election will also oversee Florida’s implementation of  the new federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rules, known as rule 111(d), for reducing carbon emissions from existing power plants 30 percent less than their 2005 levels by 2030.

Many state policymakers are still looking backwards because it works for them politically. The majority party uses the same outdated political narratives, and continues to resist federal initiatives in the face of the necessity to change. And we should expect the Florida Republican party to continue fighting the EPA carbon-emissions regulations and support the electric utilities as they continue to fight against pro renewable energy policies in Florida.

Although Crist is pitching his intentions to be a “green” Governor, a state legislature with enough opposition could work against his renewable energy agenda. This will result in Florida continuing to lose ground, putting clean energy technology on a longer hold while increasing electric rates and utility construction costs get passed on to ratepayers. 

Ultimately, the voters can make a big statement on behalf of renewable energy this fall.  It’s up to them to both put pressure on incumbents and vote for elected officials who support policies that will bring more renewables like solar to the state.  Florida is behind the curve, but well positioned to join the growing list of states that have embraced solar.

Lead image: Florida flag via Shutterstock

This capacity, experts agreed, was needed urgently to cover for solar PV and onshore wind production during periods of uncooperative weather, to obviate reliance on coal-fired plants to back up renewables, and to stabilize the growing supply of renewable energy in Germany’s system. After all, solar PV and onshore wind are the backbone of the Energiewende in the power sector, and will be in the future as Germany drives forward to switch to a renewables-based power supply.

Different means of storage — pumped water, batteries, small-scale distributed, hydrogen, compressed air, Nord Link (a Norway-Germany cable) — are among the costly options that Germany is pursuing for electricity, heating, and transportation. Just recently, Germany’s minister for energy and economy, Sigmar Gabriel, proudly unveiled Europe’s to-date largest (and most expensive: $7.5 million) commercial battery plant, which is powered by 25,600 lithium-ion batteries and has a storage capacity of 5 MWh.

But this autumn, one of Germany’s leading energy think tanks, Agora Energiewende (financed by the Stiftung Mercator and the European Climate Foundation), dropped a small bombshell on the Energiewende community. In a study carried out by Agora and other high-profile, independent research institutes, it concluded that significant storage capacity for renewably generated electricity would not be needed for another 20 years — until Germany has at least a 60 percent share of renewables in its power sector. The study is a hot potato that has, so far, incurred considerable critique from peer institutes and lobby groups.

«The key insight here,» explains one of the authors, Daniel Fürstenwerth of Agora Energiewende, «is that the Energiewende can continue investing massively in renewable power right now. We will need to invest in power-to-power storage capacity in the long term, but not today. We have to keep the Energiewende cost-efficient or the German people, industry, and the political establishment won’t go for it.»

The essence of Agora’s argument is that Germany’s energy system can maintain the flexibility it needs even as renewables expand by other, less costly means than new power-based storage technology. These alternative options include demand-side management, flexible conventional power plants, and grid expansion both in Germany and across its borders.

Demand management is an idea central to the work of Agora Energiewende, a young think tank that burst onto the scene in Germany two years ago. «It’s about making the electricity demand flexible so that it meshes better with a fluctuating power supply,» explains its website, as well as «making the power system as a whole more flexible in order to ensure security of supply.» Agora’s analysts argue that energy demand management can be spurred by market incentives, regulatory guidelines and new technology that will reduce investment costs in the Energiewende and help ensure supply security.

Load control, load shifting, energy efficiency and conservation, for example, are all ways to manage demand. One Agora study shows that Germany’s industrial producers can shift more than a gigawatt of their power demand for short periods, a phenomenon that on a larger scale could go a long way to ensure security of the regional power supply. Pilot projects in Bavaria and Baden Wurttemberg have already brought encouraging results.

Moreover, inflexible conventional power plants like Combined Heat and Power (CHP) plants can be made more flexible by adding hot water towers. In Germany today there are already CHP plants in places like the German cities of Flensburg and Nuremburg that turn surplus power into hot water, opening the way for renewables to provide supply when the weather dictates. «It’s a relatively cheap solution,» says Fürstenwerth.

The other cornerstone of Agora’s argument is that Germany’s current grid and the expansions underway — an additional 2,650 kilometers of new high-voltage grid is currently being laid — will provide the flexibility necessary to accommodate more renewables. Agora assumes that grid construction will proceed as planned — in Germany as well as in neighbor countries — which will better enable grid operators to match supply and demand. And the better Germany is linked to its neighbors, the more it can balance by trading on the European market.

The Agora’s skepticism about power-to-power storage in the near future, notes Fürstenwerth, does not extend to storage technologies in other sectors, such as batteries in electric vehicles and power-to-chemicals in industry, which Agora believes are likely to develop strongly in the coming decades.

Industry Reacts

The study elicited a strong response, first by the heavy-hitting German Energy Agency (DENA), a well-respected partly government-funded body dealing with renewable energy and energy efficiency. Its executive director Stephan Kohler shot back at Agora: “Electricity storage facilities are essential for the Energiewende. Anyone who alleges otherwise is damaging the Energiewende and, in the end, is risking the supply security in Germany.”

DENA’s argument for rapidly expanding storage capacity by means of pumped-storage plants and other technologies is based on the same rationale that has dominated in Germany for years. Storage can compensate for short-term fluctuations in electricity generation by absorbing excess electricity from wind and solar power plants and feed it into the system later.

By 2025, says Kohler, photovoltaics and wind power plants will account for a total capacity of 130,000 MW in Germany. “When the sun shines and the wind blows,” he says, this full volume of power should be fed into the grid. Without additional storage facilities,” says Kohler, “we must sell the electricity produced from renewable sources, which is subsidized by German electricity consumers, to other European countries at minimal prices. We should not make the same mistake as we did with grid expansion. We waited too long there, and are now struggling to catch up.”

One problem is that pumped-storage potential is limited in Germany, and even where it is technically feasible, there are NIMBY protests against it. So other avenues must be aggressively explored, says DENA’s Kohler.

Not surprisingly, the Eurosolar, the European Association of Solar Energy, and the German Energy Storage Association (BVES) also criticized the Agora report. DENA too has a vested interest, financed in part by private sector actors involved in pumped-storage development.

A neutral observer, Wolf-Peter Schill of the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW Berlin), argues there’s a middle ground between the two positions. “Model-based evidence shows we’re not going to need a lot of storage capacity soon,” he says.

“But to err on the cautious side, a moderate expansion of storage capacity, like pumped storage, wouldn’t be too expensive and might be insurance for the Energiewende,” argues Schill. There are a number of aspects of the Agora scenario that might not pan out — like the benefit of European interconnection or the increased flexibility of conventional and renewable energy producers and the demand side — which would change the whole equation, he says.

This lively debate isn’t going to change German policy tomorrow. But it has already added complexity to the kind of discourse that must transpire in a society pushing into the unknown the way Germany is with the Energiewende.

Lead image: Impala horns via Shutterstock