To many solar advocates chagrin, the European Commission announced it will recommend extending European Union (EU) trade restrictions beyond March 2017 by continuing to add 50 percent tariffs to the cost of photovoltaic (PV) products manufactured in China. The commission alleges Chinese companies are selling solar panels well below market value, exerting undue price pressure on EU manufacturers.

The solar industry had a record-breaking year in 2016. It looks like 2017 will continue that trend even with continued challenges to net-metering policies and a shift in federal policy regarding the fossil-fuel industry, according to Utility Dive’s panel of experts.

Sharp Electronics announced that Sunworks is choosing its SmartStorage battery system to integrate into commercial rooftop solar projects in California. The no-money-down energy storage system comes with a guarantee that Sharp will compensate customers the difference if promised peak demand reductions are not met. That’s thanks to Sharp’s predictive analytics software that manages the customer’s power needs and the lithium-ion battery system to avoid paying peak demand rates.

In the near future, investing in a rooftop solar array may be as easy as buying a television. That’s, at least if Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) and the Solar Energy Finance Association (SEFA) have anything to do about it. The organizations formed a partnership to help make it easier for homeowners to go solar. 

Vermont’s Green Mountain Power (GMP) said it is the first utility in the US to provide residential and commercial customers a chance to go off-grid. The utility is offering an incentive package that combines rooftop solar arrays, battery storage and home automation products.

Solar-Powered Mayflower Will Recreate Historic Journey Connecting 2 Plymouths

California’s Palo Alto is a fan of the sun and renewable energy. With its two latest utility-scale solar farms totaling 60 megawatts the city is now getting a third of its energy from solar power. In fact, its municipal utility City of Palo Alto Utilities (CPAU), is on track to produce 60 percent of its energy from renewables in 2017. 

In a move that will help re-invigorate the solar and wind industries in Ohio Gov. John Kasich (R) vetoed Substitute House Bill 554. The bill sought to keep freezing renewable energy development in the state by making renewable energy projects voluntary for 2017 and 2018. Initially passed by the Ohio State Senate with an 18 to 13 vote, the bill would have allowed investor-owned utilities to bypass making renewable energy investments for the next 2 years. 

Hawaii Electric Companies (HECO) introduced a new energy plan for the near future and it’s big on renewables—so much so that 48 percent of its electric generation will come from renewables by 2020. The ambitious plan projects that HECO will generate all of its electricity from renewable sources by 2040 and complete its obligation to a state mandate 5 years ahead of a state mandate.

The Public Utilities Commission of Nevada (PUCN) is moving forward to restore net-metering, encouraging more rooftop and utility-scale solar development in northern Nevada, in NV Energy’s Sierra Pacific Power Company (SPPC) territory. The move reverses its December 2015 decision to end net-metering for residential and commercial customers across the state.