During the campaign, Donald Trump frequently used the bankrupt solar company Solyndra as an example of failed government policies. The company took a loan from the federal government to make a novel solar product, and it was heavily hyped by then President Barack Obama. The company went belly up, however, and took down $500 million […]
Obama Finalizes Review of Federal Coal Program
One of the final acts of President Obama’s Interior Department was to wrap up a major review of the federal coal leasing program. The Obama administration imposed a three-year moratorium on new coal leases on federal land back in January 2016 and then began a massive reassessment. This was a high-profile effort for the President, […]
Tech Companies Seek Grid Data
On December 20, technology companies and trade groups working in the energy business issued a white paper calling on utility companies to share data. The companies and trade groups included TechNet, SolarCity, SunRun, UtilityAPI, and the Silicon Valley Leadership Group. They say that traditional grid processes must be “reimagined” to deal with the growth in innovations […]
New Study Calculates Solar Production’s Impact
Fossil fuel supporters like to say that all types of electricity generation have an environmental cost. Solar panels and windmills may not give off exhaust, but they do take energy to build and they can cause some other harms, like bird strikes. However, a new study looking at solar panels has estimated that all the […]