Time was when solar energy was facilely dismissed as impractical, inefficient, and pricey. In recent years, however, innovations in technology, regulation, and financing have resulted in remarkable efficiency improvements and price reductions, thereby reversing the skepticism about this...

The Chinese government is vigorously promoting commercialization of renewable energy and bioproducts, given environmental issues plus food, energy, and national security concerns, according to Chinese industry experts at the August 2010 “China Bioenergy Workshop” and its related technical...

Financing renewable energy projects in the United States can be a complex, time consuming, and expensive process. Currently, most equity investment in new renewable power production facilities is supported by tax credits and accelerated depreciation benefits, and is constrained by the pool of...

Two legal instruments for promoting renewable energy production - renewable portfolio standards (“RPSs”) and feed-in tariffs (“FITs”) - are in use across the globe. Many studies pit these policies against each other, treating them as either-or options. Some analyses suggest that FITs...

The Obama administration has repeatedly identified the large-scale build-out of clean, renewable energy infrastructure as a key priority of the United States. The President's calls for a cleaner energy economy are often accompanied by references to other industrialized countries such as Germany,...

This article introduces and overviews U.S. renewable energy policy. It describes the shape, content, and contours of that policy, including its emphases and functions in both the electricity and transportation sectors of the U.S. economy. To do so, the article builds a conceptual model that can...

Open and competitive bidding process (toss a coin) promotes transparency, efficiency and cost reduction as compared to direct negotiations (shake a hand). This paper provides an overview of renewable energy interventions in Angola, Algeria, Cote Dvoire, Ghana and Nigeria. Further, best practices...

According to the official document of Romania's energy policy for the period 2020-2030, with a view to 2050, the main objective of the strategy is to increase the energy sector in conditions of sustainability by setting targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and promoting renewable...

This policy proposal makes the case for opening Master Limited Partnerships (MLPs) and Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) — both well-established investment structures — to renewable energy investment. MLPs and, more recently, REITs have a proven track record for promoting oil, gas, and...

Levelized cost is the preferred method of evaluating various energy technologies. Yet this ubiquitous technique is rarely questioned, and its history is poorly understood. This paper traces the history of levelized cost as a method and highlights its promise and pitfalls. The levelized cost of...