June Newsletter
In our first Monthly News post, we’ve decided to give you some of the top stories in renewable energy news from June, as well as a bit of an update from N-Sci Technologies. Keep reading to find out what’s been happening with the solar industry, the wind power industry, and more!
Renewables News
Solar-Energy Market Had its Strongest First Quarter Yet
The solar-energy market has just had its strongest first quarter yet. Although residential solar only holds a small portion of the overall market, it has the most potential to grow in this sector. According to the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), in the first 3 months of 2019, the U.S. installed a record of 2.7 gigawatts of solar photovoltaic cells, which is the most solar installations in the first quarter of a year. Rooftop residential solar made up about 22% of the installations in the last quarter, and is increasing.1 This is great news for the solar industry in the United States, and shows promising growth that could extend into Canada.
Nova Scotia Power Generates 30% of its Power from Renewables
Nova Scotia Power has reported that 30% of its electricity it produced in 2018 came from renewable sources: 18% from wind turbines, 9% from hydroelectric and tidal turbines, and 3% from burning biomass. In addition, the province’s reliance on coal-fired plants has dropped from 76% in 2007 to 52% last year.2 More provinces should take notes from Nova Scotia!
BNEF Predicts 50% Wind- and Solar-Powered Grid By 2050
According to the latest predictions from BloombergNEF (BNEF), declines in wind, solar, and battery technology costs could result in a grid powered nearly 50% by wind and solar by 2050. In approximately two thirds of the world, wind or solar is the least expensive option for new power-generation. By 2050, electricity demand will increase by 62%, and will attract $13.3 trillion in new investments, of which wind will take $5.3 trillion and solar $4.1 trillion. According to BNEF, the projected growth of renewables through 2030 indicates that many nations can follow a path for the next decade and a half that is compatible with keeping the increase in world temperatures to 2 degrees or less. And they can do this without introducing additional direct subsidies for existing technologies such as solar and wind.3
Renewables set to outspend oil and gas exploration in APAC by 2020
According to Rystad Energy, investment in renewables energy in Asia (excluding China) will be greater than that of oil and gas projects, as soon as next year. Total capital expenditure in renewables will overtake exploration and production spending in 2020. It is very possible that by 2020, more and more customers will want to “ride the solar-coaster”, and solar energy (as well as wind) will be much more desirable. In Australia, solar panels, lithium ion batteries, and turbines will be conventional segments of its oilfield services.4
N-Sci Technologies News
We’ve been working on some new projects that we will be excited to share with you once completed! We have also been at our new location at 71 Black Road in Sault Ste. Marie, ON, for just over a year now, and we’re working on new signage so our customers can find us easily. We’ve hired three new employees so far in 2019 and we are excited to continue to grow our company. Follow us on our social media accounts on Twitter and LinkedIn to keep up to date with our latest projects and news!
References
1Cai, Sophia. (2019, June 20). Solar Power Is Starting to Shine: Here Are Some Stocks Poised to Benefit. Retrieved from barrons.com: https://www.barrons.com/articles/solar-energy-market-growth-battery-storage-sunrun-sunpower-seia-51560977243
2The Canadian Press. (2019, June 10). Nova Scotia Power says it now generates 30 per cent of its power from renewables. Retrieved from globalnews.ca: https://globalnews.ca/news/5373166/nova-scotia-power-renewable/
3Lillian, Betsy. (2019, June 19). BNEF Predicts 50% Wind- And Solar-Powered Grid By 2050. Retrieved from solarindustrymag.com: https://solarindustrymag.com/bnef-predicts-50-wind-and-solar-powered-grid-by-2050
4Renewable Energy World Editors. (2019). Renewables set to outspend oil and gas exploration in APAC by 2020. Retrieved from renewableenergyworld.com: https://www.renewableenergyworld.com/articles/2019/05/renewables-set-to-outspend-oil-and-gas-exploration-in-apac-by-2020.html