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New Jersey creates community solar pilot, a first step in a establishing a permanent program

Energize Weekly, January 30, 2019 The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) has approved a three-year pilot for developing community solar projects, also known as solar gardens, which is seen as a key component in newly elected Gov. Phil Murphy’s clean energy agenda. The “Community Solar Pilot” will provide for up to 75 megawatts…

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Demand for frac water and wastewater treatment set to soar by 2021, says Rystad Energy

Energize Weekly, January 30, 2019 The demand for water for hydraulic fracturing of oil and gas wells has more than doubled in the last three years and is projected to reach more than 6.3 billion barrels by 2021, according to an analysis by Rystad Energy. Hydraulic fracking sends water, chemicals and sand into wells under…

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DOE announces $38 million program aimed at making coal-fired power plants more efficient

Energize Weekly, January 30, 2019 The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced a $38 million, cost-share program to support projects aimed at making the country’s coal-fired power plants more flexible and compatible with renewable energy.  The stated goal is to develop “enhancing technologies that improve the overall performance, reliability and flexibility of the nation’s existing…

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Led by wind and natural gas, 49,000 megawatts of new generation to come on line in 2019

Energize Weekly, January 30, 2019 New generation is slated to grow by 49,000 megawatts (MW) in 2019 while 8,050 MW of coal-fired units will be closed or converted to natural gas, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence. Wind will account for the largest portion of new generation at 22,475 MW—45 percent of all planned additions.…

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Global clean energy investments fall in 2018 as solar takes a big hit

Energize Weekly, January 23, 2019 Global clean energy investments were down slightly in 2018 to $332 million, but it still marked the fifth year in a row with more than $300 billion in expenditures, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF). Investments were off 8 percent when compared to 2017, led by a fall in…

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EIA forecasts oil prices edging up in 2019 while natural gas prices decline

Energize Weekly, January 23, 2019 Brent oil prices will rise to $61 a barrel in 2019 and $65 a barrel in 2020, while natural gas prices will remain below 2018 levels for both years, according to federal Energy Information Administration (EIA) forecasts. West Texas Intermediate crude oil prices will average about $8 a barrel lower…

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DOE launches programs for new coal markets and to enhance oil and gas recovery

Energize Weekly, January 23, 2019 The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has launched programs to find new markets for coal and boost oil recovery from shale plays. Under the Maximizing the Coal Value Chain program, $9.5 million in federal cost-sharing funds will be available for developing ways to improve coal as a fuel, as a…

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NY Gov. Cuomo proposes Green New Deal with $1.5 billion in energy grants

Energize Weekly, January 23, 2019 New York Gov. Mario Cuomo has begun to roll out specifics of his proposed “Green New Deal,” including $1.5 billion in grants for large-scale renewable energy projects and a $70 million fund to help communities absorb tax losses from shuttered coal-fired power plants. The programs were outlined in Cuomo’s State…

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Utilities must redefine their relations with customers to deal with emerging issues, J.D. Power says

Energize Weekly, January 23, 2019 Utility companies need to redefine how they interact with their customers to deal with emerging issues, such as time-of-use rates, electric vehicles (EVs) and rooftop solar, according to an analysis by marketing research company J.D Power. “There is a need for traditional utilities to engage with their customers as things…

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Transportation bottlenecks pose a $2.1 billion risk to wind industry, Wood Mackenzie says

Energize Weekly, January 16, 2019 The wind industry’s practice of end-loading projects to the fourth quarter of each year could lead to serious bottlenecks and jeopardize some of the 23 gigawatts in the pipeline over the next two years, according to a Wood Mackenzie study. Nearly a quarter of the 23 gigawatts (GW) projected to…

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Natural gas-fired plants dominated 2018 new generating capacity, renewables set to rebound in 2019

Energize Weekly, January 16, 2019 New natural gas-fired generation capacity in 2018 accounted for nearly three-quarters of the total 24,808 megawatts (MW) installed for the year—and was double the amount of gas-fired capacity installed in 2017, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence data. The 18,550 MW of natural gas-fired capacity more than offset the 16,900…

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EV sales set a record in 2018, almost doubling the number of electric vehicles sold

Energize Weekly, January 16, 2019 Electric vehicle (EV) sales soared in 2018, surpassing record-breaking 2017 by 81 percent with 361,307 vehicles sold, according to Inside EVs, a market-tracking website. December also set a monthly record with 49,900 plug-in vehicles sold, nearly double the number sold in December 2017. Each of the last three months of…

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