A rooftop solar feud hits CA

Good afternoon. We know it feels like déjà vu, but we’re back here again: Another hurricane is set to slam Florida tomorrow, just days after Helene wreaked havoc on the east coast. Hurricane Milton has rapidly intensified this week to a Category 5 storm, prompting Tampa Electric to tell customers to prepare for “extended outages.” We hope everyone affected stays safe.

— Reagin von Lehe, Energy Central Newsletter Writer

By the way: Don’t forget to hit reply and tell us what you think of this newsletter. We’re eager to hear your POV.

Who Can Install Rooftop Solar in California?

Who gets to install and service battery energy storage systems in a state that consumes 252 TWh of electricity per year? That’s the question California lawmakers are weighing this month.

Catch up quick:

• In California, contractors are permitted to maintain and augment rooftop solar energy systems that come with battery energy storage systems (BESS).

• But California’s Contractors State License Board (CSLB) wants to prohibit workers classified as solar contractors from installing BESS to bar them from performing “trade, crafts, and skills outside of their classification scope.” CSLB planned to enforce the new crackdown starting October 1.

• Then…solar energy groups and the Center for Biological Diversity sued CSLB over the regulation, arguing contractors can do the job.

Which brings us to now: A San Diego judge temporarily blocked the regulation, which means contractors can install and manage rooftop solar and BESS as per usual until the two sides can argue their cases.

Why this matters: More than half of residential solar installations were paired with battery storage in April, compared to just over 20% last October. Despite increased demand from customers, solar advocates and utilities have historically disagreed on distributed solar regulations. A Solar Rights Alliance advocate suggested to San Diego news outlet KPBS that the CSLB might have been under pressure from utilities and their unions.

Keep in mind: International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 6 supported the proposal to block solar contractors from battery installation, noting that it doesn’t significantly impact contractors—it just requires them to have the proper license.

The utility POV: Utilities in support of barring solar contractors from installing BESS argued it would improve battery safety amid fire and weather risks.

• A Berkeley Center for Labor Research and Education study found that solar contractor installations showed no instances of hazards or other harms to consumers among more than 100,000 projects in question.

• CSLB’s response to that data: “We cannot predict the future,” and “we need to protect consumers.”

DOE Puts Money on Transmission Improvements

The US Department of Energy announced a $1.5 billion investment into four projects designed to expand the transmission grid last week.

Zoom out: The investment comes from the Transmission Facilitation Program (TFP) authorized by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. The TFP is projected to build more than 3,000 miles of new transmission by early next decade.

The details each project under negotiation →

• Avangrid will use up to $425 million to build its 111-mile, 1,200 MW Aroostook Renewable Gateway project in northern Maine. This would link a region that lacks direct connection to the rest of New England with the ISO-NE network, which could in turn connect three wind projects to the market.

• Invenergy’s Cimarron Link Transmission asked for up to $306 million for a 400-mile line, sending 1,900 MW from Oklahoma’s panhandle to Tulsa in the east.

• Pattern Energy asked for $360 million to support its 320-mile line Southern Spirit Transmission project, connecting 3,000 MW from ERCOT to the Southeast.

• Grid United and Black Forest Partners’ joint $352 million Southline Transmission Project would add a 108-mile line to deliver 1,000 MW of capacity across New Mexico.

What are Energy Central experts saying? Transmission projects cost millions for utilities (towers being about 90% of the grand total) and aren’t built fast enough to keep up with growing energy demand. The DOE projects that 91,000 miles of new, high-voltage interregional transmission lines are needed by 2035, costing around $278 billion. For context, only 386 miles of high voltage transmission were built in all of 2021.

But? There’s reason to believe transmission grants and investments can make a difference. Here’s why.

A Tale of Two Storage Headlines: Hecate & RWE

The dual reality of modern storage: German energy company RWE broke ground last week on three battery energy storage systems in Texas, totaling 900 MWh. And just a few weeks earlier, Chicago-based Hecate Energy’s 2,400 MWh BESS project skidded to a halt after California city officials unanimously rejected its project proposal.

What’s behind the headlines?

• Size matters for Hecate’s proposed BESS—another Hecate solar project was rejected in New York earlier this year after locals protested the amount of acreage needed to get it off the ground.

• And location matters, too. BESS development is thriving in Texas while threats of BESS moratoriums loom over battery developers in California.

By the numbers: Texas is bringing 1.35 GWh of energy storage capacity online by the end of 2025. California crossed the 10 GW battery storage threshold this year, but a 40% drop in quote requests suggests a “downturn,” according to an EnergySage report.

The Energy Central Wire

The best of the rest in energy headlines

• The DOE issues a planning roadmap for grid expansion—including more renewables—to meet 2035 climate goals.

• New study shows solar projects actually increase property values, contrary to popular belief.

• FERC approves CAISO’s plan to reform the generator interconnection process.

• A DC court upholds FERC’s order for NextEra to install a nuclear plant circuit breaker at its New Hampshire site. The update is required for Avangrid’s $1.5 billion New England Clean Energy Connect transmission project.

• Goldman Sachs to invest $440 million for 31 GW of utility-scale solar projects by developer BrightNight.

Thank you for reading. See you back here on Thursday. Want to bring a friend? Forward them this email or send them here.