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Crowdfunding Could Brighten Michigan’s Clouded Solar Future

Solar Power | February 24, 2015 | By Jim Dulzo

Want to invest in a hot technology, earn a decent rate of return, create Michigan jobs, and battle climate change—all at the same time? Thanks to an innovative state law that allows “crowdfunded” investments by state residents in new or existing businesse...

Say ‘Yah’ to da U.P.’s Sunshine, eh?

Solar Power | September 29, 2014 | By Jim Dulzo

Abhilash Kantamneni, a Ph.D. candidate in computer science at Michigan Technological University, has an unexpected, spot-on message for Michiganders living in the cold, snowy, and, when it comes to energy costs, pricey Upper Peninsula: There is a large, u...

Traverse City Solar Conference Aims to Boost Michigan Jobs

Solar | September 10, 2014 | By Jim Dulzo

The Solar Powering Michigan conference on Sept. 12 in Traverse City could be arriving at just the right time, as more lawmakers and advocates are exploring ways to make sure solar is part of Michigan's clean energy future. Organizers say the conference is...

Special Report: Putting Solar Power to Work in Michigan

Solar power | July 25, 2014 | By Jim Dulzo

Michigan is far behind other states in generating solar power. But it’s hardly a cloud-cover problem: After all, solar is soaring in states no sunnier than ours. What Michigan has is a solar policy problem. A “solar work group,” composed of MPSC staff, ut...

DTE and Consumers: Time to Let the Sun Shine In

Solar power | July 23, 2014 | By Jim Dulzo

What if a profitable monopoly with an unshakable grip on its customers refused all pleas to establish a program that, cost free, would create lots of good jobs in Michigan and aid the rise of a crucial global industry here? That’s Michigan’s situation, th...

No Consensus on Pay Rates for Rooftop Solar Electricity

Solar power | July 23, 2014 | By Jim Dulzo

Four months of meetings have failed to produce an agreement among state regulators, solar energy advocates, and the state’s top two utilities about expanding the companies’ highly popular customer-owned rooftop solar programs....

MPSC Releases Draft Report on Solar Working Group

Solar power | June 14, 2014 | By Jim Dulzo

Solar advocates and staff from Michigan’s two largest utilities are mulling over a draft report that suggests ways the state could start catching up with the nation’s accelerating, jobs-rich boom in roof-top solar energy without raising customers’ rates s...

As Sun Sets on Solar Work Group, State to Suggest Next Steps

Solar Work Group | June 4, 2014 | By Jim Dulzo

All the slide shows and presentations are handed in; advocates and opponents have made and rested their cases; and the state’s Solar Working Group has had its last meeting on the future of sun power in Michigan. Now it’s the Michigan Public Service Commis...

National Rooftop Solar Foe to Address Work Group

Solar Work Group | May 20, 2014 | By Jim Dulzo

The SWG holds its last information-gathering meeting May 20 before the state issues a draft report in June that could recommend new ways to develop more customer-owned, rooftop solar power in Michigan. The meeting might be contentious: It features a prese...

Solar Owners Rate Michigan’s Net Metering, Utility Pilots

Solar | April 16, 2014 | By Jim Dulzo

As work group meetings continue, interviews with solar panel owners confirmed that they are glad they built their systems, but have suggestions for improving the utilities’ solar pilots and the state’s net metering rules....

Solar Installers Sound Off on DTE, Consumers Programs

Solar power | April 8, 2014 | By Jim Dulzo

Five years ago, when DTE Energy and Consumers Energy launched small pilot programs offering premium rates to customers for power from their solar panels, Oak Electric and Four Elements Energy became very busy installing solar systems on homes and small bu...

DTE, Consumers Weigh In on Expanding Rooftop Solar

Solar | March 21, 2014 | By Jim Dulzo

Representatives of Michigan’s two largest utilities, DTE Energy and Consumers Energy, made their first presentation to the state’s solar work group, and expressed little enthusiasm for expanding the use of customer-generated, jobs-producing, clean solar e...

For What It’s Worth: Former Utility Exec Talks Value of Solar

Clean Energy, Solar | March 10, 2014 | By Jim Dulzo

Karl Rábago's crowning achievement, so far, is his success at Austin Energy, where he parlayed an obscure phrase—Value of Solar—into a guiding principal that helped the public electric utility’s customers “go solar,” big-time. Value of Solar shows in exac...

Work Group, Meet ‘Value of Solar’

Clean Energy, Solar | March 4, 2014 | By Jim Dulzo

About 40 energy experts gathered in Lansing last week for their second discussion about ways the state’s top utilities can spur more solar power development in Michigan, which is now well behind many other states in deploying the booming clean-energy tech...

State, Top Utilities, Energy Groups Eye Next Steps for Solar

Solar | February 25, 2014 | By Jim Dulzo

A specially assembled “solar work group” of state regulators, officials from the state’s two largest utilities, and clean-energy business advocates is considering ways to deploy more solar energy in Michigan that help, not hurt the firms’ bottom lines; pr...

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