What’s New In Solar?

Industry Experts, Technological Leaders. Renewable Solar is at the forefront of industry advancements, and quick to offer new technologies to clients. The articles below are intended to help you stay abreast of changes in the industry, product enhancements and key issues within the legislative environment.

Solar Developers Get a Breath of Certainty with New Commence Construction Guidance

By Comms Team

Since its historic extension in late 2015, the solar Investment Tax Credit (ITC) has been a critical mechanism for the rapid growth of solar power in the United States. The only thing missing was clear rules for when solar projects in development begin to qualify for the credit. That clarity finally came last Friday (6/22/18) when the IRS released crucial ‘commence construction’ guidance establishing rules for ITC qualification.Read More

IRS Issues Favorable Tax Credit Guidance for New Solar Projects

“In the absence of this commence-construction guidance, tax equity partners were growing cautious about project risk.”

By: JULIA PYPER

The Internal Revenue Service released a new guidance Friday that establishes when the construction of a solar facility starts to qualify for the solar Investment Tax Credit. The guidance, Notice 2018-59, provides two methods for determining the “commence-construction” date: 1) starting physical work of a significant nature or 2) meeting the “5 percent safe harbor test” by incurring 5 percent or more of the total cost of the facility in the year that construction begins.

New article gathers the evidence to address the sceptics

Summary: Some researchers doubted the feasibility of many of the recent scenarios for high shares of renewable energy. Now scientists have hit back with their response to the points raised. They demonstrate that there are no roadblocks on the way to a 100 percent renewable future.

Is the requirement really cost-effective? Solar lease or purchase? Will new homes be net zero? And answers to other burning questions.

Trending in storage: Battery costs continuing to decrease

May 20, 2018

By Kathie Zipp

Battery costs will continue to decrease, but at a slower pace than previous decades, according to GTM Research’s U.S. Front-of-the-Meter Energy Storage System Prices 2018-2022 report. Energy storage system prices are expected to decline at a rate of 8% annually through 2022.

Energy Efficiency Leads in Job Growth as Energy Sector Adds Over 130,000 Jobs in 2017

May 18, 2018

By Renewable Energy World Editors

The nation’s energy sector employed 6.5 million Americans in 2017, up 133,000 jobs from the year prior, according to a comprehensive report released today from the Energy Futures Initiative (EFI) and the National Association of State Energy Officials (NASEO). This two percent growth rate exceeded the national average of 1.7 percent.

“Ironically, there seem to be more tax equity investors after tax reform than before.”

MAY 17, 2018

By Emma Foehringer Merchant

Renewables tax equity market fares fine in Q1. Defying the fears that gripped the clean energy finance market at the end of 2017, investors seem to have fared well under the new tax scheme that took effect in January.

Overall, solar companies are looking for more specific software solutions to fix a narrower set of problems.

Low-carbon energy transition requires more renewables than previously thought

May 07, 2018

by Staff Writers, Solar Daily, Barcelona, Spain

The transition to a low-carbon energy society will require more renewable energy sources than previously thought if current levels of energy consumption per capita and lifestyles are to be maintained. This is one of the main conclusions of a study recently published in Nature Energy by Lewis King and Jeroen van den Bergh of the Institute of Science and Environmental Technology of the Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona (ICTA-UAB).

Tax Bill Largely Preserves Incentives for Wind and Solar Power

Dec. 16, 2017

By Brad Plumer

WASHINGTON — The final text of the Republican tax bill made public Friday largely preserves key tax credits for wind and solar power and electric vehicles, reversing language in earlier versions that could have slowed the growth of renewable energy across the United States.

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