July 1
Ameren Missouri Updates Net-Zero Timeframe
Top consumer smart energy news hand-selected and brought to you by the Smart Energy Consumer Collaborative.
The clean energy transition is moving at a faster clip than Ameren Missouri first anticipated, and in its latest update to its 20-year energy plan, the company announced accelerated clean energy additions and a bumped up net-zero carbon emissions goal set for 2045 rather than 2050. Reducing the company’s long-term goals by five years is a major accomplishment.
The Edison Electric Institute named Public Service Electric & Gas (PSE&G) the recipient of the 2022 Edison Award in recognition of its industry-leading efforts to protect New Jersey communities and customers from extreme weather conditions. The announcement was made at EEI’s Annual Convention and Expo in Orlando. PSE&G was recognized for initiatives that set a new benchmark for modernizing utility infrastructure.
Nissan, Middle Tennessee Electric, the University of Tennessee-Oak Ridge Innovation Institute and others are teaming up to launch an innovative second-life battery storage project. The rapid transition to EVs and the escalating need for energy storage is driving demand for innovative approaches to repurposing used EV batteries to enhance the resilience of America’s electric grid.
Since 2018, a partnership joining ComEd’s Home Energy Savings program and the Illinois Department of Commerce’s Illinois Home Weatherization Assistance Service (IHWAP) has helped more than 2,000 income-eligible homeowners improve their energy efficiency and save on bills. In that time, the pair reported last week, more than $13 million in free home retrofit services were doled out based on conditions unique to each home.
California CCA Marin Clean Energy (MCE) unveiled a Virtual Power Plant (VPP) program that is slated to launch in 2025. MCE said the program will provide bill savings and increase local grid reliability, safety and efficiency for low-income residents as part of Richmond, California’s Advanced Energy Community project.
Tesla and Pacific Gas & Electric have launched a program to aggregate the storage in ratepayers’ Tesla Powerwalls to provide emergency power to California’s grid when intense heat drives up demand on the system this summer and the summer of 2023. Participating residential and other distributed battery owners will be paid $2 per kWh for exporting power to the system when supplies are crimped from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. between May 1 and October 31.
Offshore wind power is surging around the world as countries adopt ambitious clean energy policies and as wind equipment costs decline. That growth is expected to explode over the next decade, even as the industry faces supply-chain snags and other headwinds. Those are the main takeaways from two new reports charting the recent progress and future trajectory of global offshore wind development.
PPL Corp., the parent company of Rhode Island Energy, has contributed $2.5 million to support the Rhode Island Commerce Corporation’s Renewable Energy Fund. The Renewable Energy Fund helps expand the role of renewable energy throughout the state, providing grants for renewable energy projects. These grants seek to produce clean energy projects and help stimulate job growth in the green technology and energy sectors.