October Clean Energy Headlines
Every month, we sift through hundreds of news items and research reports about clean, renewable energy and deliver the best ones directly to your inbox. California utility PG&E is shutting off the grid for millions of people in hopes of preventing another season of powerline-sparked wildfires. With extreme weather comes an increased risk of utility […]
Understanding the basics of electricity by thinking of it as water
Part of our Freeing Energy 101 series: a basic introduction to electricity. The article uses water as an analogy to explain voltage, current, resistance, AC, DC, power, and energy.
Puerto Rico after Maria: From generator island to a solar microgrid revolution (part 2)
In the aftermath of Hurrican Maria, Puerto Rico was left in darkness for months. Many communities responded by building their own solar microgrid, taking responsibility for their own electric power now and into the future.
Podcast #023: Jereme Kent – Can small-scale distributed wind allow companies to embrace clean, local energy?
Host Sam Easterby talks with Jereme Kent, CEO of One Energy, the largest provider of distributed wind solutions – offering clean, local energy for commercial and industrial customers.
Podcast #022: Peter Heintzelman – Can electric membership cooperatives light the way for clean local energy in the utility industry?
Host Bill Nussey talks with Peter Heintzelman, CEO of the electric utility, Cobb EMC, one of the largest and most forward-thinking electric membership cooperatives in the US. Peter and Bill discuss the rise of distributed generation and electric vehicles.
Six months without electricity – stories from Puerto Rico and Hurricane Maria (part 1)
Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico on Sept 20, 2017 and resulted in the worst blackout in American History. The lessons from this tragedy can teach us just how vital electricity has become for our modern society.
September Clean Energy Headlines
The biggest news and research on clean, local energy in September 2019: electric vehicles and the grid, tough news for nuclear, recording-breaking wind and solar+battery deals, and much more.
Podcast #021: Emily Morris – Can distributed hydropower provide clean local energy 24/7 without expensive dams?
The Freeing Energy host Bill Nussey talks with Emily Morris of Emrgy about how distributed hydro power can provide clean, local, affordable energy 24/7/365.
How electric vehicles will drive over the electric monopolies, part 2
Electric vehicles will unleash a new set of competitive forces that will reshape the century-old electric monopoly business model
How electric vehicles will transform the grid, part 1
Electric vehicles (EVs) will transform transportation, and along the way, they will also transform the electric grid, in both positive and disruptive ways. I share some take-aways from a panel on EVs I recently led at the Center for Distributed Energy.
Podcast #020: Alan Russo: Can artificial intelligence turbocharge local energy?
Bill Nussey talks with Alan Russo of STEM, a leading clean energy company in storage, microgrids and, most recently, AI software that ties it all together.
Does the intermittency of solar and wind make electricity more expensive?
Energy from the wind and sun is intermittent and often unpredictable. Critics point to this as the fatal flaw of renewable energy and the reason electricity prices rose in places aggressively adopting it. Is this true?
August Clean Energy Headlines
Every month, we sift through hundreds of news items and research reports about clean, renewable energy to bring the best ones directly to you. Getting to 100% renewables requires cheap energy storage. But how cheap? According to new research out of MIT, a grid that runs entirely on renewables is more feasible than you might […]
Podcast #019: Mike Dudgeon: An insider’s guide to navigating the state politics of clean energy policy
The Freeing Energy hosts interview Mike Dudgeon, an engineer, the co-founder of a successful tech company, and a ground breaking politician. Mike offers a balanced, insider’s view on the politics of clean energy.
Podcast #018: Bill Nussey and Sam Easterby: Separating fact from fiction about renewable energy.
The solar market is experiencing explosive growth. Freeing Energy Hosts Sam Easterby and Bill Nussey talk about the long term environmental impacts of solar. Is there really enough land and how will we dispose of the panels when they need to be retired?
Will waste from retiring solar panels overrun our landfills?
As solar continues to increase its share of global energy production, people are starting to wonder what we’ll do with all the panels when they reach their end of life. How big a problem will this become?
July Clean Energy Headlines
Among the top news and analysis in July:
* After months of debate, Ohio nuclear bailout bill becomes law.
* Tesla opens new V3 Supercharger with solar and battery.
* Europe set to race past US in battery manufacturing.
* Energy transition prompts more insurers to back away from coal.
Podcast #017: Anya Schoolman and Solar United Neighbors: Can we change the future of energy at the community level?
Freeing Energy Podcast Host Sam Easterby talks with Anya Schoolman, the founder and Executive Director of Solar United Neighbors, an organization that is accelerating the clean energy transition one neighborhood at a time across the US.
A simple and affordable plan to address the intermittency of solar and wind
A future powered by clean energy requires batteries to balance the intermittency of solar and wind. Experts say those batteries will be too expensive. Fortunately, by thinking differently, a clean energy future may be possible sooner than they think.
Podcast #016: Paul Gibbs & Paul Grana – Folsom Labs: Can software help accelerate adoption of Solar Power?
Folsom Lab founders Paul Gibbs and Paul Grana talk with Host Bill Nussey about how their easy to use software tools help solar power system installers keep pace with demand and create projects that are profitable, safe, and competitive.