SOLAR: New Jersey regulators will stop the state’s practice of using ratepayer funds to provide solar incentives at the end of this month, leaving installers with more uncertainty as a new system is not yet in place.(NJ Spotlight)
ALSO:
• A community solar company in New York joins a national trend during COVID-19 of switching to virtual meetings and social media instead of relying on “kitchen table’ sales. (Greentech Media)
• Solar demand in New York could plummet as much as 30% this year due to the coronavirus pandemic. (E&E News, subscription required)
• A passive home powered by solar is able to provide comfort even in a harsh Maine winter. (Inhabitat)
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OFFSHORE WIND:
• A coalition of advocates and industry representatives work to provide fishing interests a seat at the table in discussions of offshore wind development in New England. (Energy News Network)
• Researchers at Northeastern University are designing a light floating wind turbine that can be towed out to sea and fixed to deep ocean floors. (News@Northeastern)
UTILITIES: A union official says utility workers should be classified as first responders due to the essential services they provide during crises like the coronavirus pandemic. (Platts)
TRANSMISSION: Maine’s secretary of state invalidates more than 2,000 signatures on petitions supporting an anti-transmission line referendum but organizers still have enough to place it on the ballot. (Portland Press Herald)
EFFICIENCY: Energy efficiency installations grind to a halt in Boston, New York City and up to 20 states as fallout from the coronavirus pandemic spreads. (Utility Dive)
OIL & GAS: A multi-day hearing this month on a liquified natural gas terminal on the Delaware River is postponed. (Kallanish Energy)
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STORAGE: An energy storage advocate says Massachusetts’ clean peak standard will cause a boom in battery storage nationally. (PV Magazine)
COMMENTARY: Energy professionals urge New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo to postpone this month’s closure of one of the Indian Point nuclear reactors due to uncertainty caused by COVID-19 and collapsing energy markets. (Gotham Gazette)