As evidenced by the more than 100,000 solar installations in New Jersey, solar rooftops are becoming more common and as homes with solar are resold or service contracts end owners may need a provider to service or insure their solar system is working. One company is stepping up with such a service regardless of who installed the system. Meanwhile a new bi-directional vehicle charger will be tested out as a way to provide energy locally and potentially increase renewable energy use. 

Renewable energy and electric vehicle advocates have for years discussed using EV batteries to not just power vehicles but to provide power to the electric grid as a means to stabilize the electric grid and add more renewable energy into it. Now Nissan and Fermata Energy piloting bi-directional EV charging systems in Tennessee and California.

Solar power warranties and coverage are getting better, but still some people with solar roofs may not have coverage for whatever reason. As more homes come with solar built in from day one, or are bought after solar was installed by a previous owner, insurance and warranty services are becoming more difficult. Now Sunnova Energy is launching its solar warranty, Sunnova Protect, to all solar home owners. 

The Garden State has been a leader in solar installations for years and now has more than 100,000 solar installations across the small mid-Atlantic state. While it’s a great achievement for the state, it’s also forcing the state to revaluate its solar incentives. 

A new concentrating photovoltaic (CPV) device developed by Germany’s Fraunhofer ISE has pushed the efficiency of solar power further than before, reaching 41.4 percent efficiency. That’s the highest rate of conversion efficiency for a solar device to date. 

Last Friday the Trump Administration released a key climate report showing that actions need to be taken now to reduce climate change. One of those keys is solar power, which another report showed has dropped in price by 99 percent over the past 40 years, but the growth of renewable energy is still hampered by outdated rules. 

Today (Nov. 23) the Trump Administration released the second volume of the Fourth National Climate Assessment (NCA). The report showed the climate change already is having serious impacts on people in the US. 

Solar photovoltaics (PVs) are now among the cheapest forms of generating electricity in the world as the cost of producing energy from solar power has dropped 99 percent over four decades. But how did it happen? A new study from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) found that government support and technology improvements were key to dropping the costs of solar power. 

Even though there’s more evidence than ever that wind and solar are now the least expensive forms of electricity in the US, growth of the clean energy technologies is still hindered. A new report from the Wind Solar Alliance (WSA) found that outdated wholesale market rules are preventing further growth of the technologies and keeping electric prices higher than they could be. 

The Salt River Project (SRP) in Phoenix announced plans this week to add in 200 megawatts of solar power each year between now and its fiscal year 2025, adding an accumulative 1,000 MWs of solar over the time period. That’s five times as much solar as it has online now and made the change because of customer demand and the decrease in solar costs.