Solar

Climatetech finance

Top home solar lender GoodLeap scores mammoth $800M investment

The company formerly known as Loanpal is making the leap from home solar and batteries to financing broader home efficiency improvements.

By Jeff St. John . 13 October 2021
Grid edge

Can customers' batteries, thermostats and EV chargers keep California's grid up and running?

AutoGrid and Clean Power Alliance are harnessing the full range of home energy devices for a new virtual power plant.

By Jeff St. John . 12 October 2021
Solar

What's behind solar's polysilicon shortage — and why it's not getting better anytime soon

One of the main ingredients in PV cells has been getting more costly all year, putting developers in a tight spot.

By Jason Deign . 7 October 2021
Solar

Newsletter: It’s time to ask for more from clean energy projects

Some projects reduce more carbon than others. Should they get paid more?

By Julian Spector . 21 September 2021
Clean energy

Location matters: The new science of siting clean energy to push more carbon from the grid

Where solar and wind is built matters when it comes to displacing dirty energy. Clean energy buyers are starting to pay attention.

By Jeff St. John . 20 September 2021
Opinion

Puerto Rico wants clean energy. Will the Biden administration listen?

In rebuilding the electric grid, FEMA should push to ditch fossil fuel infrastructure and shift to solar and batteries instead.

By Yesenia Rivera, Ruth Santiago . 14 September 2021
Video

How a company turned used Nissan Leaf EV batteries into moneymakers

The electrical grid needs more energy storage to handle the influx of renewables and electric vehicles.

By Julian Spector . 14 September 2021
Solar

How blockchain could help integrate rooftop solar and EVs into the grid

Australia is testing the tech behind Bitcoin to solve the grid's thorniest challenges using the power of distributed energy.

By Jeff St. John . 2 September 2021
Solar

Newsletter: How to hurricane-proof the grid

New Orleans is in darkness, maybe for weeks. The grid needs to be ready for more intense storms.

By Julian Spector . 31 August 2021
Solar

How to hurricane-proof a solar plant

PV arrays and microgrids on islands need to stand up to storms supercharged by climate change.

By Kiernan Dunlop . 27 August 2021