CleanTech Industry and Policy
When it Comes to Energy and Equity, Metrics Aren’t Enough.
Guest Blog by Justin Schott, Energy Equity Project – Measuring the impact of clean energy investment is important. But measurement alone is only part of the journey. And in isolation, it may even be dangerous. In a post last year, Meredith Fowlie wrote “What gets measured will get managed. And possibly manipulated.” So, the Energy Equity Project set out to create a national framework for measuring and advancing equity in clean energy programs and investments. Here's a preview.
A Year After Winter Storm Uri, a Look at Smart Solutions to Strengthen the Grid
By Cavan Merski, data analyst, Pecan Street Inc. – Microgrids get name-dropped a lot. And for good reason. The promise of a smarter, more resilient, and cleaner grid is enough to make any energy geek swoon. But given all the buzz, there’s a short supply of guidance on how we can deploy microgrid technology at scale. Pecan Street’s new analysis puts our energy data expertise to work to answer part of the microgrid riddle – how can big data enable widespread microgrid deployment?
We need energy data to combat climate change, and we need a data utility to make that happen.
Heading into COP26, how can leaders ensure energy data meets its full climate potential? Our experience with energy data has led us to the answer: support the development of a data utility staffed with data scientists, computers scientists, cybersecurity experts and domain experts that would prioritize customer privacy and protection, limit profiteering, require transparency, and advance the integration of data and computer science into our nation’s grid system.
Federal Clean Energy Stimulus Can Make or Break U.S. Clean Power Goals
There is no silver bullet in the fight to address climate change – we must consider all the tools at our disposal. Extending clean energy tax credits and passing a federal CES put us on the path to achieving our goal of 100 percent clean power by 2035. In concert, these policies would result in the most ambitious approach to reaching 100 percent clean power. However, without legislation enacting a CES, extending the PTC and ITC are still meaningful policies that would result in more clean energy deployment, better health and equity outcomes, and increased job growth and economic activity.
Addressing an Electrification Roadblock: Residential Electric Panel Capacity
Pecan Street’s new analysis explores the opportunities for policymakers and utilities to remove a significant barrier to residential electrification. By incentivizing electric service panel upgrades for existing homes and requiring larger capacity panels for new construction, we can clear the path for full residential electrification.
Turning Biden’s EV charging agenda into a game-changer for American transportation
By Colin Rowan, director of strategy & communication, Pecan Street – We outline the principles the Biden administration’s electric vehicle charging strategy should follow to maximize the impact its investment will have on EV adoption. Download our new paper here.
Pecan Street to Develop Toolkit for Distributed Energy Resources Adoption at Historically Black Colleges and Universities
(AUSTIN, TX — June 22, 2021) The Cynthia & George Mitchell Foundation awarded Pecan Street Inc. a $40,000 grant to bring its unique data and research capabilities to developing a Distributed Energy Resources (DERs) Toolkit for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). Pecan Street will partner with Huston-Tillotson University in Austin to develop resources that support DER deployment on HBCU campuses to provide new revenue opportunities and support community resilience centers. The effort will produce an online DER planning and implementation toolkit geared towards the unique aspects of Texas HBCUs and technical support resources.
Pecan Street on CNN: Texas goes it alone on electric power.
Pecan Street OpEd on CNN.com – Texas grid independence is being called into question after ERCOT failed to meet unprecedented electricity demand and millions of Texans went without power for days in sub-freezing temperatures. To put it mildly, people are mad. But despite a lot of political finger-pointing, I've seen few people pointing in the right direction.
What’s Holding Back the Energy Future We’ve Been Promised?
Over the last 10 years of conducting research on electricity use and advanced technologies like electric vehicles and solar systems, my colleagues at Pecan Street have found there are four key technology roadblocks that are holding back innovation and adoption of cleantech products, services and systems.
States Remain in the Driver’s Seat of the Just Transition
Guest blog by Rory Christian, principal of Concentric Consulting Group – In some states, laws treat access to natural gas as a customer’s right and utility’s obligation. In others, incentives and capital investments remain focused on gas efficiency, but do little for electrification. These policies encourage the continued use of natural gas and serve to subsidize the cost of adding new customers, spreading it out among existing customers.