Category: Knowledge Center America

Streamlining Permits for Clean Industrial Projects in California

Streamlining Permits for Clean Industrial Projects in California

January 10, 2025 | , ,

This memo “Easing the Permitting Process for Clean Industrial Projects in California” by RMI outlines key challenges and solutions to begin improving the California permitting process for clean industrial projects ranging from clean fuel refining, to cement plants, to steel production, and more. It concludes that the permitting process in California is complex and work-intensive on both the side of the permit-seeker and the permitting agencies and local governments. As a result, improving the permitting process for clean industrial projects will require coordinated effort from both policymakers and project developers.

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Linking Europe and North America for a Sustainable Energy Transition: EMBER

Linking Europe and North America for a Sustainable Energy Transition: EMBER

December 18, 2024 | , , ,

This paper examines how transatlantic interconnection could help both North America and Europe to achieve a more secure and efficient transition to renewable electricity. The future electricity grids of North America and Europe will be increasingly impacted by weather as they seek to decarbonise their energy systems. This paper explores the weather complementarity between the two grids and concludes there is substantial value in interconnection, which can help provide security and efficiency between the energy systems of these two continents.

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Distributed Generation and Net Metering in Michigan: Report

Distributed Generation and Net Metering in Michigan: Report

December 16, 2024 | , ,

This report shows renewable energy projections through 2026 based on the renewable portfolio standard (RPS), voluntary green pricing programs (VGP), integrated resource plans (IRPs), public utility regulatory policies act (PURPA) resources, and the distributed generation and legacy net metering programs. There have been significant legislative changes that will transform Michigan’s electric generation portfolio in the coming years.

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Hydrogen Energy Development in Texas: Report

Hydrogen Energy Development in Texas: Report

December 13, 2024 | , , ,

In 2023, the Texas Legislature created the Texas Hydrogen Production Policy Council (Council) to study and make recommendations relating to the policy framework of the Railroad Commission of Texas for hydrogen energy development in Texas. The Council was established in December 2023 pursuant to House Bill 2847 (88th Legislature, Regular Session), and its initial report details the Council’s analysis and preliminary recommendations. The report’s recommendations are focused on ensuring effective and consistent regulatory oversight of hydrogen production, transportation, and storage, while maximizing economic opportunities for the development of the hydrogen industry in Texas.

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State-Level SAF Policies in US: Paper

State-Level SAF Policies in US: Paper

December 6, 2024 | , ,

Analysis highlights several shortcomings with many current policies. First, state support for some SAF production pathways may not lead to an increase in the total supply of low-carbon fuel; instead, fuel and feedstock could be redirected from other climate-friendly uses to take advantage of state SAF subsidies. Second, the short duration of some policies means they are unlikely to trigger investments in the advanced SAF pathways needed to meet aviation climate targets. And third, existing policy frameworks subsidize the use of SAF without also imposing a penalty on aviation emissions, violating the “polluter pays” principle.

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Commercial Solar Market in US: Report

Commercial Solar Market in US: Report

November 29, 2024 | , , ,

Solar Means Business tracks U.S. solar photovoltaic (PV) installations that support commercial activities at U.S. facilities. The report focuses on America’s largest companies but includes available data for companies of all sizes. Systems can be located on-site and provide electricity to the facility directly, or off-site and offset grid electricity costs for a company through Virtual Net Metering, Physical and Virtual Power Purchase Agreements (PPA), Green Tariffs or similar arrangements.

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Social License For Wind Projects in Latin America: GWEC

Social License For Wind Projects in Latin America: GWEC

November 8, 2024 | , , ,

Latin America is at a critical juncture in its renewable energy journey, with vast potential to harness its abundant wind resources to drive economic growth, reduce carbon emissions, and achieve Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This policy paper “Ensuring The Social License For Wind Projects In Latin America” by GWEC is designed to guide policymakers and stakeholders across the region, offering insights and strategies rooted in local experiences and best practices to overcome the barriers currently hindering the expansion of wind energy. 

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PJM’s Surplus Interconnection Service for Storage: Report

PJM’s Surplus Interconnection Service for Storage: Report

November 8, 2024 | , , ,

This report concludes that PJM’s current implementation of SIS unnecessarily constrains this vital option to address the region’s reliability puzzle. PJM needs more storage resources to support the system as it transitions to include more intermittent resources, yet it limits BESS’s ability to participate in SIS. PJM can achieve this result by adopting best practices for SIS implementation from other jurisdictions like MISO and SPP.

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Industrial Decarbonization in Houston: Report

Industrial Decarbonization in Houston: Report

October 24, 2024 | , ,

By leveraging available policy support for both existing technologies and research into new solutions, Houston’s industrial sector can accelerate its decarbonization efforts and continue the region’s position as a global leader in the energy transition. At the same time, by embracing decarbonization, Houston can maintain its competitive advantages in a world of rapidly changing consumer preferences. Industrial decarbonization investments in the Houston area will stem from upgrades to and replacements of the existing asset base in parallel with new assets being added to the regional portfolio to address growing global demand for emissions reductions and decarbonized products.

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Utility-Scale Solar Trends in US: Presentation

Utility-Scale Solar Trends in US: Presentation

October 18, 2024 | , , ,

Utility-scale PV continued to lead solar deployment in 2023, with Texas adding the most new capacity. 89% of new projects and 96% of new capacity feature single-axis tracking. The market value of solar fell in 2023 to $44/MWh on average, as energy prices returned to more normal levels. The generation costs of newer projects is less than their wholesale market replacement costs. Rising prices for new PPAs are now higher in some regions than solar’s energy and capacity market value in 2023. When accounting for climate and health benefits, solar generation delivered nearly $14 billion net-value in 2023.

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Roadmap for Federal Net-Zero in US: Report

Roadmap for Federal Net-Zero in US: Report

October 3, 2024 | , ,

This provides a high-level framework for agencies aiming to reduce emissions associated with their building and fleet portfolios. Leveraging existing resources and processes, agencies can achieve their clean energy and emissions reduction targets by adopting five main steps, referred to as the federal agency portfolio decarbonization action plan framework. These steps include collection and assessment; solution development; prioritization; implementation and training; and monitoring, reporting, and revising.

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Clean Energy Investments in America: Report

Clean Energy Investments in America: Report

September 20, 2024 | , ,

Key highlights from the report “Clean Energy Investing in America” by the American Clean Power reveal that over the past two years, the US clean energy industry has: Announced $500 billion in investment, invested $75 billion in clean power built, announced 160+ manufacturing facilities which includes – 95 for solar, 12 for offshore wind,  25 for battery storage, 19 for land based wind,  10 for transmission, announced 300+ GW of clean power capacity.

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Future of Vehicle Grid Integration in US: Report

Future of Vehicle Grid Integration in US: Report

September 13, 2024 | , , ,

In pursuit of achieving net-zero emissions, the US federal and state governments, alongside businesses, are escalating efforts to promote the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs). The document, developed with extensive stakeholder input, is a comprehensive guide that outlines a strategy for integrating EVs into the electric grid. It offers direction for stakeholders as they develop products, identify opportunities for standardisation, and design new policies, rates, and services, among other activities.

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Clean Hydrogen Economy in Latin America: Report

Clean Hydrogen Economy in Latin America: Report

September 6, 2024 | , , ,

Latin America, with its vast potential in renewable resources (solar, wind and hydro power) can unlock clean hydrogen production at competitive cost, positioning it to become a major clean hydrogen exporting region and hence a central player in the global clean hydrogen economy. This report has presented three distinct clean hydrogen pathways that countries in the region are likely to follow, each with its own specific objectives, challenges and enabling measures.

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Long Duration Energy Storage Technologies in US: Report

Long Duration Energy Storage Technologies in US: Report

August 30, 2024 | , , ,

Grid-scale energy storage is a critical element driving and supporting the evolution of the electricity system. Long-duration (10+ hours) energy storage technologies are needed to support a variety of clean energy and resilience applications. DOE formed SI 2030 to analyse pathways for the most promising technologies to meet future targets. The report analyse the potential of long duration capable energy storage technologies to achieve future goals and benefit from widespread deployment on the Nation’s electricity grid. They establish a systematic approach to engage with experts while quantifying the impact of innovation and will be revisited periodically to track progress. 

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Urgent Need to Accelerate Transmission Build-Out in US: Report

Urgent Need to Accelerate Transmission Build-Out in US: Report

August 23, 2024 | , ,

The report details the alarming slowdown in the construction of high-voltage transmission lines across the country. The report reveals a contrast between transmission spending and the dwindling expansion of new infrastructure, posing significant challenges to the nation’s energy future. It highlighted that construction of new high-voltage transmission in the US has slowed to a trickle over the past decade, with only 55 new miles (88.5 km) built in 2023. This is in contrast to the projected load growth that doubled in the last year, which requires expansion in transmission capacity. The US had only built 20 per cent as much new transmission in the 2020s as it did a decade ago in the first half of the 2010s.

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Untapped Potential Of Repurposed Energy in US: Report

Untapped Potential Of Repurposed Energy in US: Report

August 16, 2024 | , ,

Energy storage technologies and advanced geothermal energy are making significant progress as well, reducing the concerns associated with the variability of wind and solar energy. The enactment of the IIJA and IRA have already begun to steer hundreds of billions of dollars toward new and existing clean energy technologies, further reducing the cost of renewable energy projects and providing the foundation for a clean energy manufacturing renaissance in the United States. Because of these developments, more than 95% of new energy generation projects under development seeking to connect to regional electricity grids consist of wind, solar, and energy storage projects.

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GHG Reduction in Automotive Steel in US and EU: Report

GHG Reduction in Automotive Steel in US and EU: Report

August 16, 2024 | , , , ,

Addressing emissions associated with automotive steel manufacturing is thus essential for reducing emissions from both the steel and vehicle industries. This report “Technologies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from automotive steel in the United States and the European Union” by International Council on Clean Transportation examines the technologies and actions available to reduce the emissions associated with automotive steel manufacturing.

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Hydropower Supply Chain in US: Report

Hydropower Supply Chain in US: Report

August 9, 2024 | , , ,

This report “Hydropower Supply Chain Gap Analysis” by NREL summarizes WPTO’s efforts in the listed focus areas and complements the earlier work by further exploring the identified challenges and conducting a detailed gap analysis of the domestic hydropower supply chain. Specific, actionable recommendations are made to address gaps. The report summarizes recent legislation impacting hydropower deployment and/or its supply chain.

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