As the year winds to a close it’s becoming clearer than ever that just about everyone wants more renewable energy, states, utilities and cities, alike. Meanwhile, another piece of the clean energy puzzle, transportation, also is growing quickly. To that end Volkswagen is introducing a mobile charger for electric vehicles (EVs). 

As Volkswagen ramps up its efforts to put millions of electric vehicles on the road, like the all-electric microbus I.D. Buzz, it’s also looking into how to charge the EVs up. This year it will introduce a new, mobile charging and energy storage unit that could be powered by renewables in remote locations and charge up to 15 EVs on one charge and power up four vehicles at a time.

New Jersey’s Solar Renewable Energy Certificate (SREC) program has helped the state surpass 1000,000 solar installations, but is nearing its end. Now the state is proactively seeking to replace the program with a new solar incentive program that aims to build on the success of the SREC program and its utility board has issued a straw proposal signaling it’s open to ideas. 

In Nevada, NV Energy will add in 1,001 megawatts of renewable energy and 100 megawatts of energy storage as it retires one of two coal plants in the state four years early. The Warren Buffet-controlled company is making a $2 billion investment for the company that promises to keep energy costs in the state low. 

Philadelphia is among the cities that are moving to 100 percent clean energy. Last week it took a major step towards that goal as Philadelphia signed on to get 70 megawatts of its energy from the 70 megawatt Adams Solar farm. In all the power from the project will provide about 22 percent of the electricity used by Philadelphia’s government buildings by 2020. 

Last week both New York and Washington, DC announced plans to convert to 100 percent clean energy, with setting the most aggressive goals yet. Meanwhile a new AI (artificial intelligence) developed by Stanford University found that there are far more solar powered homes in the US than previously reported.

Under a new proposal unanimously supported by Washington, DC’s city council, the district would move to 100 percent clean energy by 2032, a more aggressive move to clean energy than any other state or district in the US has thus enacted or proposed. Under the Clean Energy D.C. Omnibus Act of 2018, the district, the nation’s Capitol, would require all electricity sold to residents and businesses, as well as federal government, to come from renewable sources by 2032.

New research conducted by Stanford University using an AI called DeepSolar found that there are roughly 1.47 million solar rooftops across the US, higher than previous leading estimates. The findings can help utilities, regulators, solar companies and others understand who goes solar and why, as well as how to encourage local grid reliability. 

It’s not even on the road yet, but Lightyear, the Dutch startup aiming to bring Lightyear One, a solar-powered electric vehicle (EV), for the masses to the market already is working to make it easy for people to get access to the sedan, which has a purported range of 800 kilometers (497 miles). That’s thanks to a new partnership with LeasePlan Netherlands, which offer leasing and purchasing options for the car. 

Yesterday (Dec. 18) New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) announced that by 2040 the state would get all of its electricity from carbon-free sources. He made the announcement as part of a larger, ambitious agenda, asserting “New York's Declaration of Independence from Washington.” The move was heralded by solar and renewable energy advocates.