Plug into Energy Storage Event at MAE on March 25 

On March 25, the Michigan Public Service Commission, Michigan Agency for Energy, and the Michigan Energy Office will be hosting an event on energy storage in Michigan. The event is focused on the opportunity to incorporate energy storage into Michigan’s electric market. This event is in direct response to House Resolution 387 and Senate Resolution 170 that passed last year calling for increased consideration of energy storage. Michigan EIBC filed a card in support of the resolution.
Michigan EIBC and our partner the Institute for Energy Innovation have provided input for the convening and will be presenting on the the opportunity for utility-scale storage in the Michigan market based on recently completed modeling of storage scenarios. 

The event will run from 9am to 4:30pm on Monday, March 25 at the Michigan Agency for Energy offices at 7109 W. Saginaw Highway, Lansing. Lunch will be provided. Please register here by 5pm on March 21.  

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Campaign Emerges to Undermine Rooftop Solar

Distributed solar has come under attack in recent weeks in Michigan. The efforts have been led by a group called “Michigan Energy Promise.” The organization, which has backing of a number of community groups, appears to be largely supported by DTE Energy. Over the last several weeks, there have been many articles (you can find a couple here and here) outlining concerns with the group. DTE is preparing to submit its long-term energy plan, including a proposed distributed generation tariff that is expected to hurt rooftop solar users.

DTE is the first utility to file a rate case which includes a proposed distributed generation (DG) program tariff.  At a high-level, the DTE proposal would replace net metering with a tariff based on an inflow/outflow system. The inflow would have net metered customers pay retail rates for the electricity they use, and the outflow that is in excess of the inflow would be paid a far lower rate. Many solar industry advocates say that DTE’s proposal does not adequately value the benefits of distributed solar. Multiple studies, including one released this week and another authored by the Institute for Energy Innovation in 2017, have found distributed generation and its benefits to be significant and to be consistently undervalued.

A more detailed timeline of commission activities relating to the distributed generation program can be found here.  

AMM Panel Announced: Convergence of Disruptive Technologies

The electricity sector is being re-defined by new and innovative hardware and software solutions that are disrupting traditional business models and the ways that we interact with the built environment. At our Annual Member Meeting on April 23, Michigan EIBC is excited to feature a panel that dives into this topic and tackles how technologies like distributed solar, battery storage, electric vehicles, and home energy management devices are converging to transform everyday life and business. Join Michigan EIBC on April 23 for our 7th Annual Member Meeting. Register here!

Convergence of Disruptive Distributed Technologies Panel

This year’s keynote speaker is Vince Faherty, Head of Northeast and Midwest Energy Partnerships at Google. Leading Midwest business development activities for Google, Mr. Faherty works to accelerate the deployment of Google Hardware products and services, including the well-known Nest products. Such hardware products help increase energy efficiency, provide demand response services, and improve end-user experiences. Housed at one of the leading tech companies in the world, Mr. Faherty will share his distinct perspective on the trends in the electricity sector and how smart hardware and software solutions are transforming how customers engage with utilities and energy companies.

Event Sponsors

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Michigan Energy News

• Student activists at the University of Michigan say it is “highly disappointing” to have representatives from the state’s two largest utilities on a campus sustainability commission.
• Southeastern Michigan emerges as a hub for electric vehicle development.
• Solar advocates say DTE Energy’s latest rate case is an attempt to control customers’ ability to generate their own power.
• Advocates say a Michigan utility’s long-term clean energy plan is at a “crossroads” after a judge recommends rejecting it.
• DTE Energy today announced that its Pine River wind park, located in Gratiot and Isabella counties, is operational, providing enough clean energy to power more than 54,000 homes.
• One month after an Isabella County Planning Commission meeting, Apex Clean Energy is working on several issues as it prepares to make its wind farm in Isabella County a reality.
• Consumers Energy has awarded General Motors Co. $2.8 million for energy-saving upgrades at the automaker’s Flint, Mich., plants. GM has completed 21 projects in the last year at its Flint Assembly operation, including a new energy-efficient body shop and building wide lighting upgrades.
• The Friends of the Huron Mountains (FOHM) commissioned the creation of a map showing where wind turbines in a wind farm proposed for L’Anse Township would be visible. FOHM worked with researchers at Michigan Technological University (MTU) to create both a two-dimensional map and a three-dimensional virtual viewer.
• Consumers Energy’s plan for a second urban “energy district” in Michigan attracts attention from microgrid advocates who see room for growth in the region.
• Ford joins the Smart Electric Power Alliance to work on strategies for electric vehicle deployment and grid management.
• Ford’s top executive says electric and autonomous vehicles are redefining transportation: “Really, every bit of our business is being disrupted.”
• DTE Energy sponsors a play traveling to elementary schools in mid-Michigan about the benefits of renewable energy.
• A mid-Michigan county now has the largest wind project in the state at 161 MW.

National Energy News

• Most policies designed to compensate customer-owned clean energy still doesn’t properly value distributed generation, a report finds.
• US energy storage market is expected to more than double in 2019 a recent report says.
• Lawmakers in Minnesota and Iowa look to increase fees on electric vehicles and hybrids to make up for lost gasoline-tax revenue.
• An executive with Minnesota-based 3M discusses how the company plans to hit 100 percent renewable energy targets.
• After tariffs on imported panels led to a slowdown last year, U.S. solar installations are projected to grow by 14 percent this year thanks to lower equipment prices, according to a consultancy’s outlook.
• Entergy’s CEO says utilities have to “reshape the grid” and that the utility is updating technology across its divisions.
• Energy efficiency employers project a 7.8% growth rate for jobs this year, more than double the increase last year, in what the latest U.S. Energy and Employment Report deemed the “toughest hiring climate.”
• Midwest states are among the world leaders for the percentage of electricity that comes from wind and solar power.
• Corporations locking into long-term solar contracts face financial risk if prices continue to decline with the growth of the industry.
• Advocates say Connecticut’s solar industry faces an “existential crisis” if lawmakers don’t reverse a decision to eliminate net metering.
• New York released its implementation plan to reach 3 GW of energy storage by 2030.
• Solar power is growing in areas typically dominated by wind generation as a federal wind tax credit steps down.
• At an event unveiling Tesla’s latest vehicle, Elon Musk says 2019 will be the “the year of the solar roof and power wall.”

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Michigan Energy Events  

The Michigan Energy Office is sponsoring four sessions on agricultural solar energy development in Michigan hosted by Michigan State University Extension. Click here to register for a meeting. Sessions will take place from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. as follows:

• March 19: Fillmore Government Complex – Main Conference Room, 12220 Fillmore St., West Olive, MI 49460
• March 28: AgroLiquid Conference Center, 2055 W M-21, St. Johns, MI 48879
• April 10: Upper Peninsula Research and Extension Center, E3774 University Dr., Chatham, MI 49816

Members Only: Michigan EIBC members are invited to join us in Lansing on Friday, March 15 for an in-person Policy Committee meeting at Dykema in Lansing. This meeting replaces March’s Policy Committee conference call. 

Members of Advancing Women in Energy (AWE) are invited to a members-only lunch on Friday, March 22 in Lansing for a discussion on perspectives on the energy landscape in Michigan.

On Monday, March 25 join the Michigan Agency for Energy offices at 7109 W. Saginaw Highway, Lansing for an event on energy storage. Lunch will be provided. Please register here by 5pm on March 21. 

April 16-18, attend the Midwest Renewable Energy Summit in Chicago, Illinois.

Join the Michigan Energy Innovation Business Council for its 7th Annual Member Meeting, featuring cutting-edge energy topics including the convergence of distributed technologies and new load growth. April 23 in East Lansing, MI. Register today!

Members Only: Michigan EIBC members are invited to join us in downtown Lansing on Wednesday, April 24 for Lobby Day. During Lobby Day, Michigan EIBC staff, members, and our lobby team at Dykema meet one-on-one with Michigan State Legislators and their staff to discuss current and future issues for the advanced energy industry.

Save The Date – on Thursday, May 2nd from 8am-2pm, member company Lean & Green Michigan is hosting a PACE Summit at the IBEW Local 58 Zero Net Energy facility in Detroit.  Further details to come!

Save the date for the U.P. Energy Summit on Friday, June 14 at Northern Michigan University. Free to attend. Additional details will be made available on the U.P. Energy Summit website.

The IEEE Transportation Electrification Conference & Expo (ITEC) www.itec-conf.com will be held in Novi, MI. 19-21 June 2019. (ITEC’19) is aimed at helping the industry in the transition from conventional vehicles to advanced electrified vehicles.

National Energy Events    

The Solar Power Finance & Investment Summit is March 19-21 in San Diego.
 
Attend the Midwest Renewable Energy Summit on April 16-18, 2019, in Chicago, IL.