During last week’s power crisis in Texas, prices surged to the market price cap of $9,000 per megawatt-hour for several days, resulting in some huge bills for a lot of homeowners. (To put that in perspective, the state’s seasonal average is $50 per megawatt-hour.) The entire US, not just Texas, has a lot of infrastructure work to do in order to avoid more power crises like this. But in the meantime, how can consumers protect themselves from exorbitant surprise power bills when extreme weather increasingly occurs?

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In today’s EGEB:

• The largest wind/solar/storage project in the US is coming to Oklahoma.
• Senators introduced the American Energy Efficiency Act of 2019.
• A California natural gas company earns astroturfing accusations.
• Guess who’s spent millions lobbying against the Green New Deal?

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A newly released report tracks the progress of American cities when it comes to clean energy efforts, and finds that fewer than a dozen are currently on pace to meet greenhouse gas emission goals.

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In today’s EGEB:

• US energy efficiency standards have reached a state of uncertainty due to the DOE.
• South Australia plans to be “net” 100% renewables by 2030.
• A study shows how much Pennsylvania has to gain from solar.
• Maryland gets a tall meteorological tower before its offshore wind farm.

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Much has been made about the coming SmartHome – it started with the Jetsons and their robots, however the reality has been a bit slow coming. Last week, EnergySage+WiseAir+Schneider launched an offer of $300 cash back if you install solar power and a smart thermostat. Back in February, SolarCity+Nest+Tesla introduced the “Smart Energy Home” that combines solar panels, battery storage, smart electric water heaters and the Nest Learning Thermostat. Vermont utilities are renting PowerWalls. It has become clear the home energy generation & management is on the path into powering the SmartHome.

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