In more of the US than ever before, wind and solar power are proving the cheapest source for electric generation in more of the country. That’s forcing more power companies to move away from coal. Meanwhile auto companies are looking into using solar panels on vehicles, most recently Hyundai. 

Korean car brands Kia Motors and Hyundai Motor will start adding solar panels to their vehicles in 2019. What’s interesting is the Hyundai Motor Group plans to incorporate solar panels into internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles as well as its hybrids and electric vehicles, to increase their power and efficiency. 

Thanks to grants from the TransAlta Centralia Coal Transition Grants Energy Technology Board (CCTGETB) 18 proposed solar projects, totaling $3.2 million, are set to get funding. The funding is part of $55 million that TransAlta is investing in the state as part of its deal to close the state’s largest, dirtiest coal-fired power plant by 2025, the Centralia plant. 

In the Carolinas Duke Energy continues to push for more renewable energy and to make it easier for homeowners, businesses, and other entities to access it. Earlier this week it filed with the North Carolina Utilities Commission (NCUC) to become a lessor, allowing it to help finance solar power for businesses. 

Across most of the US solar, wind and natural gas are now the cheapest sources of electric generation, that’s according to a newly updated research from the University of Texas at Austin’s Energy Institute. Moreover, the updated report found that solar power is now the cheapest form of energy in not just the US Southwest anymore but also in much of the eastern and northern parts of the US. 

Last week found that most states in the US are taking actions to change policies related to rooftop solar power that could change the value of solar power. A new set of tools is being made available in the southeast US to help people learn about costs and incentives for solar and states are adding in stronger community solar programs. 

More states are adopting shared renewables measures, which allow projects like community solar farms to help people and businesses use renewable energy when they can’t install it on their own properties or buildings. The Interstate Renewable Energy Council (IREC) just released its National Shared Renewables Scorecard ranking states and Washington, DC on their efforts to support shared renewables in their jurisdictions.

In the third quarter, 2018 edition of the N.C. Clean Energy Technology Center (NCCETC) of The 50 States of Solar, the center found that almost all states, 45, took policy actions on distributed solar power and rate designs. Overall 157 actions were taken in the states in the third quarter, with the majority surrounding customer fees, grid planning and solar compensation and metering issues. 

The value of solar power on the electric grid continues to increase, but as the amount of solar power increases its variability can add some challenges. However, solar farms can be used as a flexible resource to provide power and grid-reliability services, while reducing costs and emissions, a new study finds. 

While going solar on your home is easier than ever, thanks to the proliferation of solar installers across the country, sometimes the highest cost of going solar can come from your utility. Now a new tool from the Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC) is aimed at showing consumers in the US Southeast how much a utility either pays or charges customers for going solar.