Our top story this month is that the U.S. Energy Information Administration announced that electricity generated from renewables surpassed coal in the United States for the first time in 2022. Renewables also surpassed nuclear generation in 2022. Growth in wind and solar significantly drove the increase in renewable energy and contributed 14% of the electricity produced domestically in 2022. Hydropower contributed 6%, and biomass and geothermal sources generated less than 1%. Gregory Wetstone, president and CEO of the American Council on Renewable Energy said, “This booming growth is driven largely by economics. Over the past decade, the levelised cost of wind energy declined by 70%, while the levelised cost of solar power has declined by an even more impressive 90%. Renewable energy is now the most affordable source of new electricity in much of the country.”
Greenwood Sustainable Infrastructure
Greenwood Sustainable Infrastructure (GSI) has announced the strategic acquisition of the solar and battery development portfolios of Saturn Power. That includes its team of developers and an approximate 1.4GW pipeline of early to late-stage solar and energy storage projects in five U.S. states and two Canadian provinces. The acquired pipeline includes 72 solar projects, 90% community solar projects, and six battery storage projects. The deal allows GSI to substantially bolster its development capabilities, building on over a decade of experience investing, developing, and overseeing the operations of clean energy projects. It also expands GSI's footprint from seven to 12 U.S. states, as well as expanding across Canada.
Wind industry can expect record installations
In global news the wind industry can expect record installations in both onshore and offshore markets by 2025. A new report from GWEC forecasts 680GW of new capacity by 2027. After a disappointing year in 2022, a fast-evolving policy environment has set the scene for a period of accelerated deployment over the coming years. The industry set to install 136GW a year, reaching a compound growth rate of 15%. The report has warned that policymakers need to act now to avoid a supply chain bottleneck stalling the deployment of wind energy from 2026. GWEC’s mapping shows that both the U.S. and Europe are likely to see supply bottlenecks for turbines and components from as soon as 2025, as the wind market sees the positive impact of the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act, increased ambition in Europe, continued rapid build out in China and large developing countries speeding up their deployment.
Lightsource BP is set to procure over 1GW of inverters
Lightsource BP is set to procure over 1GW of inverters for a group of solar projects in the Midwest and Southeast of the U.S. The firm said on Friday it had signed a volume frame agreement with German technology group Siemens AG to secure its solar inverter stations. Under the volume frame agreement, Lightsource BP will use more than 850MW of Siemens inverters, with an option to add 200MW more over the course of the next two years. The bulk of the projects will rely on Siemens central inverter stations rated at 4.3MW - 4.7MW including gas-insulated switchgear, step-up transformers and auxiliary power stations. Siemens’ team will also provide commissioning and installation services for the projects, Lightsource BP said. Separate from the volume framework agreement, Lightsource BP will receive more than 185MW of Siemens central inverter stations throughout the remainder of 2023.
Google and EDP Renewables have signed a framework agreement
Finally, Google and EDP Renewables have signed a framework agreement aimed at the development of more than 80 distributed solar projects with a combined capacity of 500MW AC, in six U.S. states. The deal between the tech giant and the distributed solar generation unit of EDP Renewables North
America represents the largest corporate sponsorship for distributed solar in the U.S., based on S&P Global and Bloomberg NEF data, the companies said as of Monday.
True Expertise Delivered
Keep up with the latest news from the US renewable energy market by following us on LinkedIn or Youtube.
Coalesce Management Consulting delivers expertise for renewable projects globally. Learn more about our services by getting in touch with our specialist management consultants - contact us today.