Topics: Carbon Emissions, Energy Policy, Power Generation, Energy Finance, Legislation, Distributed Energy, Renewable Energy, Wind

In a previous post, we detailed how pro-renewables groups, like the Green Tea Party, are making significant inroads in many traditionally conservative states – such as Georgia, Florida, and Louisiana – that, in the past, have largely rejected policies that support renewable energy development. These groups, an unusual mix of conservatives and environmentalists, are breaking down political partisan barriers with a unified message that renewable energy development promotes national security, free market competition, and technological innovation.

Topics: Energy Policy, Energy Finance, Distributed Energy, Solar Energy, Renewable Energy

Topics: EPMA, Energy Efficiency, Energy Finance, Legislation, Distributed Energy, Solar Energy, Renewable Energy

Cuba’s classic cars are not the only relics from the 1950s on the island; Cuba’s electricity grid, a dirty and inefficient infrastructure suffering under five decades of a U.S. embargo and a state-run economy falls into the antique category as well. With the Obama administration’s recent announcement that Cuba has been removed from the U.S. list of countries sponsoring terrorism, the door for trade and investment has been cracked open for the first time in many years. The question now is how and when U.S. investment dollars can begin flowing to relieve the island nation’s economic isolation.

Topics: Energy Policy, Energy Finance, Distributed Energy, Solar Energy, Renewable Energy

In the absence of a national green infrastructure bank that could provide financing for clean, renewable energy and energy-efficiency projects, individual states have stepped up to fill the gap and provide financial incentives and promote and facilitate investment. We discussed earlier in this blog how New York and New Jersey are rethinking energy finance and embracing green banks to support investment in renewable energy and distributed energy resources.

Topics: Energy Policy, Structured Transactions & Tax, Energy Efficiency, Energy Finance, Distributed Energy, Solar Energy, Renewable Energy

Renewable energy is back on the docket for the Senate Finance Committee, and Chairman Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) is likely to release the draft of his bill as early as this week. The Committee is considering a two-year extender for tax incentives for new wind, geothermal, biomass, landfill gas and ocean energy projects during a markup. Also being considered is the extension of second generation biofuel producer tax incentives for production of biodiesel and renewable diesel. The extenders package covers 52 items concerning a wide range of industries in addition to renewable energy, including mortgage lenders, education, and retail and restaurant improvements. The 30% investment tax credit for solar and fuel cell projects is not expected to be on the table. The Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) urges the solar community to advocate the investment tax credit, which is set to step-down in 2016 without an extension.

Topics: Biofuels, Biomass, Energy Policy, Structured Transactions & Tax, Energy Finance, Distributed Energy, Renewable Energy, Wind

Topics: Utilities, Energy Policy, Structured Transactions & Tax, Energy Storage, Energy Efficiency, Microgrid, Energy Finance, Distributed Energy, Energy Management, Solar Energy, Renewable Energy, Public/Private Partnership, Wind

In Sullivan & Worcester’s most recent quarterly newsletter, the EDGE Advisory, we address one of the major advancements in distributed energy clean-tech, the microgrid. This year has seen major headway in the deployment of hybrid distributed energy resources and microgrids, along with accompanying innovation in financing for these solutions. Several leading players in solar, battery storage and advanced power management automation have announced major investments in new microgrid adaptable technologies.

Topics: Energy Security, Power Generation, Microgrid, Energy Finance, Distributed Energy, Energy Management, Renewable Energy

The problems encountered by the Solana Generating Station, a solar thermal facility, illustrate that sponsors may be able to negotiate for a favorable position despite operating at well below the agreed upon output. For example, Solana has experienced fluid leakage and fires due to the intense heat generated by its mirrors. Although not publically available, it seems that the sponsor, Abengoa,

Topics: Structured Transactions & Tax, Energy Finance, Solar Energy, Renewable Energy

While the solar market has been exploding over the past few years, the small commercial segment of the market, made up of locations like apartment buildings, office buildings, small businesses, factories, warehouses, and hospitals, has been extraordinarily slow to develop. Residential installations, built on standardized transactions and easy access to financing because projects can be pooled based on homeowner credit scores, is red hot as large investors with cheap capital are attracted to homogenous amassed projects and the perception of well-understood credit risk. The utility scale solar market also continues to grow (despite fewer available long-term power purchase agreements) on the strength of declining costs and abundant liquidity in the form of very low cost capital driven significantly by yieldcos.

Topics: Energy Efficiency, Energy Finance, Distributed Energy, Solar Energy, Renewable Energy