Watch: Unveiling the Five Pillars of Energy Democracy

Date: 6 Feb 2015 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

Exciting changes are on the horizon for our century-old utility structure as solar power, energy storage, and electric vehicles open new avenues for utility customers to produce their own power and control their energy use. Utilities are scrambling to remain relevant in this technological firestorm, and energy wonks are envisioning a new business model––Utility 2.0––that keeps … Read More

Are We Sunk? The Electric Utility’s Titanic Problem

Date: 6 Feb 2015 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

In my recent report on the utility business model of the future, I laid out 5 pillars of a democratic energy system. It’s hard not to notice the contrast between this vision of the future and the 15-year business plan laid out by Xcel Energy in Minnesota, the incumbent monopoly serving about half the state’s electric … Read More

Watch: Utility and Advocate Debate Value of Solar

Date: 30 Jan 2015 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

At a Minnesota Solar Energy Industries Association conference in November 2014, ILSR’s Director of Democratic Energy John Farrell tilted with Xcel Energy’s Rick Evans about the state’s dormant value of solar policy and whether it was likely to be adopted in the near future. Click the following links to see some of the biggest questions and … Read More

Listen: How to Maximize Municipal Energy Options for Santa Fe

Date: 23 Jan 2015 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

Santa Fe, NM, is battling with its electric utility, PNM, over the utility’s continued heavy reliance on large-scale fossil fuel power plants in a state with some of the best sun and wind resources in the country. Director of Democratic Energy John Farrell joined Santa Fe City Councilor Patti Bushee to discuss options for Santa Fe’s … Read More

Watch: Roundtable on the Minneapolis-Utility Clean Energy Partnership

Date: 13 Jan 2015 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

What can we expect from the first-in-the-nation clean energy partnership between the City of Minneapolis and its electric and gas utilities? Check out this video conversation from a November 2014 MNSEIA conference in Minnesota with the utilities, the city, and the lead grassroots organization about the history, the agreement, and the hopes for this novel partnership. … Read More

Electricity’s Un-Natural Monopoly

Date: 9 Jan 2015 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 3 Facebooktwitterredditmail

The U.S. electricity system is undergoing the biggest change in its 130-year history, undermining the rationale for monopoly ownership and control. Until recently, electricity service was similar to water or roads, where a natural monopoly was most efficient. Only a single, standardized electric grid was needed to connect each building. Technology options were limited to steam-powered … Read More

The Three Biggest Solar Charts of 2014

Date: 6 Jan 2015 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 3 Facebooktwitterredditmail

The rise of solar power allows a further democratizing of the electricity system, and these charts illustrate how 2014 was a banner year for solar, but particularly distributed solar power. Apologies for the re-post of these charts, but I wanted to do a year-in-review approach to these solar charts. First, the following chart shows that 2014 opened … Read More

Distributed Solar a Substantial Portion of 2014 Power Plant Capacity

Date: 18 Dec 2014 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

Renewable energy continues to grow substantially in the U.S. and in 2014 it remains a large portion of new power plant capacity – 30% or more through the first three quarters. Often overlooked, distributed solar on residential and commercial property is making up a substantial share of new electrical generating capacity.  The following chart illustrates the … Read More

A $48 Billion Opportunity for U.S. Electric Customers

Date: 15 Dec 2014 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

Electricity customers in the U.S. got good news last week. A new report from Accenture highlighted a potential revenue loss for U.S. utilities of $48 billion per year by 2025 due to distributed solar and energy efficiency. But where does that money go? If we pursue a democratic energy system as outlined in ILSR’s new report … Read More

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