HYDROVISION International is the premier gathering of global hydro, marine energy, and dams\/civil market professionals. As the largest industry event worldwide, it brings together over 1,200 hydro visionaries from power producers, utilities, consultants, large-scale hydro energy users, and engineering, procurement & construction firms from 50+ countries to connect, learn, and discover new solutions. Our conference & exhibition offers unparalleled education and sourcing opportunities that cater to all aspects of hydropower, including Operations, Maintenance, Civil Works, Dam Safety, Policies, Regulations, Equipment, Technology, Market Trends, and Asset Strategies. Sessions are led by industry experts, thought leaders, and innovators. But that\u2019s not all. We offer peer-to-peer networking events that foster professional development and cultivate innovation, to help keep the market momentum flowing.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/div>\n
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Follow @EngelsAngle<\/a><\/scrip<\/p>\n For an industry accustomed to experiencing the highest of highs and the lowest of lows, 2022 tested clean energy’s tolerance maybe more than any other. <\/p>\n From a transformational legislative victory to a war, persistent supply chain constraints, and trade disputes\u2014 2022 had it all. Unprecedented optimism was matched, or sometimes surpassed, by the urgency of human rights abuses in solar and worsening climate threats.<\/p>\n Here’s a look back at the five biggest stories from the year.<\/p>\n Russia’s invasion of Ukraine heightened the importance of energy independence and a transition away from fossil fuels, as the Kremlin’s bankroll is directly tied to oil and gas profits. <\/p>\n G7 countries have imposed an oil price cap<\/a>, while the European Union banned Russian seaborne imports<\/a> of crude oil and oil products, in an attempt to stunt Russia’s revenues, which directly fuel Vladimir Putin’s war machine. Germany, meanwhile, plans to invest 28 billion euro <\/a>($30 billion) through 2026 to expand its solar and wind power generating capacity and reduce its dependence on fossil fuels imported from Russia.<\/p>\n A direct assault on Ukraine’s electric power infrastructure began in October as Russia began a systematic shelling of Ukrainian energy infrastructure. International concerns were elevated as battles raged around a Ukrainian nuclear power plant that ranks as Europe’s largest. At the same time, unconfirmed reports circulated of attacks on Ukrainian hydropower assets.<\/p>\n Moscow has focused missile and drone attacks on energy facilities and other key infrastructure in an apparent bid to break the will of Ukrainian civilians and force Kyiv to negotiate on Russia\u2019s terms. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said the bombardments have destroyed half of his country\u2019s infrastructure.<\/p>\n Even with no end to the war in sight, Ukraine is working to repair <\/a> its electricity grid with the help of global partners. <\/p>\n The clean energy industry celebrated a moment on Aug. 7 that would have seemed impossible<\/a> weeks or months earlier: The Senate passed a budget measure that included the largest investments in clean energy and climate change in U.S. history.<\/p>\n At $369 billion, incentives for clean energy deployment and climate change mitigation made up nearly half of the Inflation Reduction Act<\/a>. The package was signed into law by President Joe Biden on Aug. 16.<\/p>\n In the months that followed, a U.S. clean energy manufacturing base began to take shape<\/a>.<\/p>\n Qcells and parent company Hanwha announced plans to increase manufacturing capacity at their Dalton, Georgia, facility from 1.7 GW to more than 3 GW. First Solar plans to invest<\/a> up to $1 billion in a new 3.5 GW module factory in Alabama, while an additional $185 million will be dedicated to adding nearly 1 GW of new manufacturing capacity to the company’s facility in Ohio. Toledo Solar, meanwhile, said it would increase<\/a> its domestic solar module manufacturing capacity to 2.8 GW by 2027 in response to the Inflation Reduction Act.<\/p>\n The Factor This! <\/em>podcast, recorded live from RE+ in Anaheim, analyzed the impact of the Inflation Reduction Act on domestic solar manufacturing. “The race is on to meet demand with made-in-America solar modules<\/a>” featured Lightsourcebp Americas CEO Kevin Smith, Cypress Creek Renewables VP of Engineering Luke O’Dea, and Qcells North America Head of Market Strategy and Public Affairs Scott Moskowitz. Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts<\/a>! <\/p>\n The Inflation Reduction Act is having an impact overseas, as well. <\/p>\n European leaders and policymakers are now in pursuit of their own clean energy industrial policy<\/a> in response to the U.S. action. <\/p>\n With support from the European Union, the European Solar PV Industry Alliance (ESIA) launched <\/a>on Dec. 9, with a goal to reach 30 GW of committed European solar PV manufacturing capacity by 2025 across all value chain segments.<\/p>\n Formation of the alliance came just days after U.S. and European leaders met<\/a> to discuss the impact of America’s climate law, which incentivizes domestic manufacturing across the solar value chain.<\/p>\n Italy’s Enel, for example, announced plans to build a 3 GW cell and module plant<\/a> in the U.S. in response to the Inflation Reduction Act. The company’s subsidiary, 3Sun, operates a 200 MW solar manufacturing facility in Italy with plans to expand production capacity there to 3 GW.<\/p>\n The U.S. and Europe agreed to move forward with discussions about how to resolve concerns related to the climate law. While no deal was reached at an early December meeting held in Maryland, the group pledged to form a new Transatlantic Initiative for Sustainable Trade to support shared climate goals.<\/p>\n While the U.S. clean energy industry races to take advantage of incentives for domestic manufacturing in the Inflation Reduction Act, it continues to face near-term supply chain constraints linked to trade disputes and human rights concerns. <\/p>\n On Dec. 1, the Department of Commerce issued a preliminary determination<\/a> in the Auxin Solar tariff case, which alleged that solar modules imported from Southeast Asia were circumventing duties against China. The countries targeted by the investigation — Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Thailand — account for 80% of U.S. solar module supply. <\/p>\n Commerce identified the Thailand operations of Canadian Solar and Trina Solar, as well as BYD Cambodia and Vina Solar Vietnam, for violating AD\/CVD rules. Other companies also under investigation \u2014 New East Solar Cambodia, Hanwha Q CELLS Malaysia, Jinko Solar Malaysia and the Vietnam operations of Boviet Solar \u2014 were cleared as part of the investigation.<\/p>\n Word of the investigation brought the industry to a halt<\/a> earlier in the year. In June, President Joe Biden granted some relief by pausing any new tariffs<\/a> on modules imported from Southeast Asia for two years. But Commerce signaled that new tariffs could be on the way once the moratorium expires. <\/p>\n The Factor This! podcast<\/a> broke down all angles of the Auxin Solar tariff petition in a four-part series<\/em>, which included an exclusive interview with Auxin Solar CEO Mamun Rashid. Subscribe today wherever you get your podcasts. <\/em><\/p>\n Pt. 1: Who is Auxin Solar? An exclusive interview with the CEO behind the bitter solar tariff fight<\/a><\/p>\n Pt. 2: Inside the solar industry\u2019s $5 million fight against new tariffs<\/a><\/p>\n Pt. 3: Rebuilding domestic solar supply chains will hinge on incentives, not tariffs, experts say<\/a><\/p>\n Pt. 4: How the solar industry swayed Biden on import tariffs<\/a><\/p>\n Update: Commerce Department issues a preliminary determination in the Auxin Solar case<\/a><\/p>\n On top of the Auxin Solar case, the U.S. solar industry faces a gigawatt-sized supply problem<\/a> due to forced labor concerns.<\/p>\n Passed by Congress and signed by President Biden in December 2021, the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) is intended to reinforce U.S. policy to curb the importation of goods made with forced labor. <\/p>\n Credible evidence has circulated since 2020 that ethnic Uyghars living in the Xinjiang region of China are being forced to work in extracting and refining raw materials that go into the production of polysilicon that then is used to produce solar cells and modules.<\/p>\n Customs and Border Protection officials reportedly targeted<\/a> some 838 entries valued at more than $266.5 million as recently as August. Enforcement of the UFLPA has depressed near-term solar installation forecasts and delayed the impact of the Inflation Reduction Act, according to a recent market report<\/a> from the Solar Energy Industries Association and Wood Mackenzie.<\/p>\n While it’s clear that enforcement of the UFLPA is negatively impacting the U.S. solar market, Paula Mints, a solar market analyst, is quick to point out that what’s happening to the Uyghars is far more important.<\/p>\n “If you are essentially a modern slave in China, do you really care that a few modules are being held up in the port? Who is suffering?,” Mints said.<\/p>\n California regulators voted on Dec. 15<\/a> on changes to the state\u2019s booming rooftop solar market that they say will more evenly spread the cost of energy and help reduce reliance on fossil fuels in the evening. <\/p>\n The policy, which transitions the state from a net metering to a net-billing structure, incentivizes the co-location of solar panels with batteries. Industry advocates said the decision will slash solar customer compensation by 75%. <\/p>\n California has long led the nation in the adoption of home solar panels. Today, more than 1.5 million California houses have solar panels on the roof. The California Public Utilities Commission decision is expected to have broad implications for the rooftop solar industry. <\/p>\n While advocacy organizations, like Vote Solar, acknowledged that it was time to move on from the net metering era, they fear the proposal adopted by the CPUC doesn’t offer a smooth enough glide path for the industry to transition. They also believe the policy doesn’t appropriately promote solar adoption in historically disadvantaged communities. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n The U.S. took meaningful steps in 2022 to support its nascent offshore wind industry. <\/p>\n The federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) held lease auctions for the rights to develop waters off New York, North Carolina, and California. The auctions bring the U.S. within reach of the Biden administration’s goal of deploying 30 GW of offshore wind by 2030. <\/p>\n In February, BOEM held the New York Bight auction<\/a>, which netted a combined total of $4.37 billion from winning developers. The six lease areas off New York and New Jersey are expected to bring online 5.6-7 GW of offshore wind power, enough to power 2 million homes. <\/p>\n New York Bight<\/a> is an area of ocean off the coasts of New York and New Jersey that was divided into six leases for offshore wind development.<\/p>\n The expected installed capacity for the 488,000 acres within New York Bight is expected to be between 5.6 GW and 7 GW, enough to power 2 million homes. BOEM said capacity could be even higher depending on development plans.<\/p>\n Five of the six winning bidders were from companies with European roots, a nod to the continent’s more advanced offshore wind market. Europe’s offshore wind capacity totaled 25 GW at the end of 2020, while the U.S. has only two small offshore wind installments in operation \u2014 the Block Island Wind Farm<\/a> off Rhode Island and the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind<\/a> test pilot.<\/p>\n German energy giant RWE and British utility National Grid had the most expensive offshore winning bid at $1.1 billion. The pair partnered to form Bight Wind Holdings LLC and won development rights to OCS-A 0539 \u2014 the largest area up for grabs in the New York Bight in terms of both acreage and expected installed capacity.<\/p>\n The other winning bids with European partners included EnBW and TotalEnergies, EDP Renewables and ENGIE, and Shell and EDF Renewables. Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) won a lease on its own.<\/p>\n A lease auction for the rights to develop offshore wind off the coast of the Carolinas brought in $315 million combined.<\/p>\n1. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine accelerates energy transition<\/h2>\n
2. U.S. passes Inflation Reduction Act – historic climate law spurs domestic manufacturing<\/h2>\n
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\n3. Trade disputes and human rights concerns upend clean energy supply chains<\/h2>\n
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\n4. California NEM 3.0 – rooftop solar’s harsh reality check<\/h2>\n
5. U.S. begins to realize offshore wind potential<\/h2>\n
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