SoCal Edison Ready for Summer Without Nuclear Power

Southern California Edison (SCE) representatives say the Southern California utility should be able to meet demand for power even without the San Onofre nuclear power plant, as long as Fortune throws a few breaks its way -- and with the help of its customers.

"SCE and the California Independent System Operator (CaISO) are planning to get through summer without the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station," SCE's PR Director Charley Wilson told reporters at a briefing Friday at the utility's offices in Rosemead. "If we get transmission upgrades done in time, and no other disasters strike, we should be able to meet demand this summer without rolling blackouts.

Need Solar Energy? There's a Printer For That

Australian scientist Scott Watkins shows off a flexible printed solar cell | Photo: Victorian Organic Solar Cell Consortium

A team in Melbourne Australia has developed a way to create inexpensive solar cells using a standard industrial printer, offering the possibility of incredibly cheap photovoltaic cells -- but there are a couple of reasons not to declare the solar revolution over.

What It's Really All About: Solar For The 99%

Volunteers from SunPower install panel on a Palmdale rooftop | Photo: GRID Alternatives

Though rooftop solar is starting to make inroads into California's less-affluent communities, most of the state's millions of low- and moderate-income residents still have to pay their utility bills without much help from the sun. But a non-profit solar installer is trying to change that a little bit at a time. Last week, that "little bit" was two struggling households in Palmdale.

Clean Energy From Wind Turbines On Kites? Google Thinks So.

A Makani Airborne Wind Turbine launches in Alameda, CA | Photo: Makani Power

It sounds like a flight of fantasy: mount wind turbine generators on gigantic kites, then fly them a thousand feet off the ground to generate power. But one company pushing this literal "blue sky" concept got a huge real-world vote of confidence recently: Google bought them.

'Don't Tax the Sun!' Riverside County Slashes Solar Power Plant Fee

Former California desert | Photo: Shayan Sanyal/Flickr/Creative Commons License

Riverside County has cut the fee it wants to charge for utility-scale solar power developments in the county by two-thirds, following a contentious campaign by the solar industry to get it rolled back. In a 4-1 vote Tuesday, the county's Board of Supervisors reduced the fee from the $450 per acre per year, which was first proposed in 2011, to $150. The vote settles a legal battle between the county and solar developers.

Wind Industry Depends On Tax Credits More Than Other Renewables

San Gorgonio Pass wind turbines | Photo: Gillian/Flickr/Creative Commons License

A federal analysis of renewable energy tax credits indicates that wind power generation is significantly more dependent on federal tax breaks than all other forms of renewable energy. According to a study by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), the renewable energy Production Tax Credit (PTC), which Congress renewed in January, is likely to boost wind power capacity about 35 percent by 2016 while solar, geothermal, and other renewable energy sources would increase at about the same rate with or without the credit.

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