Extreme weather events are pushing consumers to solar and residential storage

Published

3 years ago

August 26, 2021

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Workers lift a solar panel onto a roof during a residential solar installation in Scripps Ranch, San Diego, California, U.S. October 14, 2016. Picture taken October 14, 2016.

Mike Blake | Reuters

Extreme weather events across the U.S. — from wildfires and drought in the West, to deep freezes and floods in the South and Southeast — have disrupted the electric grid this year. As a result, homeowners are buying solar and energy storage systems at rates never before seen, according to data from solar website SolarReviews.com.

As California faces devastating wildfires and record drought, the website saw a 358% year-over-year jump in solar estimate quotes requested by California residents between June 30 and Aug. 6.

The state has also faced numerous power outages over the past year. PG&E has cut the power on several occasions when dry conditions and high winds increase the risk of sparking a fire. The state has also had trouble on the power supply side, and the California Independent System Operator has issued flex alerts, calling on customers to cut usage when demand is expected to peak. In some cases, rolling blackouts have taken place when power availability comes up short.

A similar phenomenon played out earlier this summer in Oregon, when Portland hit an all-time high of 116 degrees. SolarReviews said that between June 25 and June 30 the website saw a 919% increase in solar estimate requests from the state compared to the same period in 2020.

It’s not only happening in the West. The deep-freeze that hit Texas and the South in February, leading to multi-day power cuts for millions of customers and more than 150 deaths, fueled interest in on-site energy systems. SolarReviews said it saw an 850% jump in quote requests between Feb. 13 and Feb. 17 in Texas.

“These folks that experience environmental difficulty gain a whole different perspective on what solar and batteries are,” SolarReviews founder and President Andy Sendy said.

Launched in 2012, SolarReviews has had more than 25 million unique visitors across its platform of websites that offer information on solar power, as well as highly localized quotes. The website has an option for visitors to request a quote, and SolarReviews makes money by then selling that data to companies that operate in the consumer’s location.

Growing sophistication

Sendy said customers’ questions about solar have become increasingly sophisticated. At first, queries included things like “do solar panels work?” Now, people will ask questions about the type of solar system they should get if they also want to hook up electric vehicles.

Sendy attributes much of this shift to word-of-mouth: Many people know someone who’s gotten solar panels, so their efficacy is now accepted.

But the potential saving on electricity bills has consistently remained the predominant driving force.

“[Customers] make the decision based on the economic benefits,” he said. “The bottom line is it makes money. So whether your motivation is environmental or financial you sort of come to the same decision.”

Sendy has also noticed another shift. At first, customers were interested in systems with the fastest payback. But in the past few years, more people are looking for systems that offer maximum power reliability.

In order for a solar system to operate normally when the central grid goes down, there also needs to be on-site battery storage at each house or building. Rooftop panels won’t function by themselves if service is cut, since to protect utility workers repairing wires, power can’t be flowing back into the grid.

A recent survey from SolarReviews found that battery storage installations have been growing since 2016, with nearly three-quarters of installations over the last five years taking place in 2020.

Installers with a national footprint such as Sunrun, Sunnova and SunPower offer storage options, using products from Enphase Energy and SolarEdge, among others. Goldman Sachs predicts the market for home energy storage will hit $1 billion for the first time in 2022.

A separate survey from SunPower showed similar trends, with a third of homeowners considering changing to solar citing power outages as a driving force. Nearly two-thirds of homeowners with energy storage said outages were a reason for their purchase.

“Against the backdrop of high-profile power outages, the next wave of solar owners view battery storage as a vital component of their solar energy system,” the study said.

Sophisticated software systems also allow customers to use their batteries even while the grid is running as normal. In states where there’s time-of-use pricing, for example, the battery can be charged when electricity prices are low, and it can then power the home when prices are high. Additionally, in some states net metering — where solar energy owners are credited for power they add to the grid — can make having a solar system with storage a particularly attractive option.

While the companies in the solar space that grab headlines are typically those with a national footprint, Sendy said he believes the best solar companies are the small, local ones, given the needed urgency when there are power problems.

“I believe solar is inherently a localized service business. I don’t believe in corporate solar,” he said. “They really haven’t gotten good at the after-sales service.”

Environment

Trump to shut down all 8,000 EV charging ports at federal govt buildings

Published

15 hours ago

February 21, 2025

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Trump to shut down all 8,000 EV charging ports at federal govt buildings

Trump EV charging federal buildings — Photo: Blink Charging

The Trump administration is shutting down EV chargers at all federal government buildings and is also expected to sell off the General Services Administration‘s (GSA) newly bought EVs.

GSA, which manages all federal government-owned buildings, also operates the federal buildings’ EV chargers. Federally owned EVs and federal employee-owned personal EVs are charged on those 8,000 charging ports.

The Verge reports it’s been told by a source that plans will be officially announced internally next week, and it’s seen an email that GSA has already sent to regional offices about the plans:

“As GSA has worked to align with the current administration, we have received direction that all GSA-owned charging stations are not mission-critical.”

The GSA is working on the timing of canceling current network contracts that keep the EV chargers operational. Once those contracts are canceled, the stations will be taken out of service and “turned off at the breaker,” the email reads. Other chargers will be turned off starting next week.

“Neither Government Owned Vehicles nor Privately Owned Vehicles will be able to charge at these charging stations once they’re out of service.”

Colorado Public Radio first reported yesterday that it had seen the email that was sent to the Denver Federal Center, which has 22 EV charging stations at 11 locations.

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The Trump/Elon Musk administration has taken the GSA’s fleet electrification webpage offline entirely. (An archived version is available here.)

The Verge‘s source also said that the GSA will offload the EVs it bought during the Biden administration, although it’s unknown whether they’ll be sold or stored.

If you live in an area that has frequent natural disaster events, and are interested in making your home more resilient to power outages, consider going solar and adding a battery storage system. To make sure you find a trusted, reliable solar installer near you that offers competitive pricing, check out EnergySage, a free service that makes it easy for you to go solar. They have hundreds of pre-vetted solar installers competing for your business, ensuring you get high quality solutions and save 20-30% compared to going it alone. Plus, it’s free to use and you won’t get sales calls until you select an installer and share your phone number with them.

Your personalized solar quotes are easy to compare online and you’ll get access to unbiased Energy Advisers to help you every step of the way. Get started here. –trusted affiliate link*

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Environment

Hackers steal $1.5 billion from exchange Bybit in biggest-ever crypto heist

Published

16 hours ago

February 21, 2025

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Hackers steal .5 billion from exchange Bybit in biggest-ever crypto heist

Ben Zhou, chief executive officer of ByBit, during the Token2049 conference in Singapore, on Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023.

Joseph Nair | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Bybit, a major cryptocurrency exchange, has been hacked to the tune of $1.5 billion in digital assets, in what’s estimated to be the largest crypto heist in history.

The attack compromised Bybit’s cold wallet, an offline storage system designed for security. The stolen funds, primarily in ether, were quickly transferred across multiple wallets and liquidated through various platforms.

“Please rest assured that all other cold wallets are secure,” Ben Zhou, CEO of Bybit, posted on X. “All withdrawals are NORMAL.”

Blockchain analysis firms, including Elliptic and Arkham Intelligence, traced the stolen crypto as it was moved to various accounts and swiftly offloaded. The hack far surpasses previous thefts in the sector, according to Elliptic. That includes the $611 million stolen from Poly Network in 2021 and the $570 million drained from Binance in 2022.

Analysts at Elliptic later linked the attack to North Korea’s Lazarus Group, a state-sponsored hacking collective notorious for siphoning billions of dollars from the cryptocurrency industry. The group is known for exploiting security vulnerabilities to finance North Korea’s regime, often using sophisticated laundering methods to obscure the flow of funds.

“We’ve labelled the thief’s addresses in our software, to help to prevent these funds from being cashed-out through any other exchanges,” said Tom Robinson, chief scientist at Elliptic, in an email.

The breach immediately triggered a rush of withdrawals from Bybit as users feared potential insolvency. Zhou said outflows had stabilized. To reassure customers, he announced that Bybit had secured a bridge loan from undisclosed partners to cover any unrecoverable losses and maintain operations.

The Lazarus Group’s history of targeting crypto platforms dates back to 2017, when the group infiltrated four South Korean exchanges and stole $200 million worth of bitcoin. As law enforcement agencies and crypto tracking firms work to trace the stolen assets, industry experts warn that large-scale thefts remain a fundamental risk.

“The more difficult we make it to benefit from crimes such as this, the less frequently they will take place,” Elliptic’s Robinson wrote in a post.

WATCH: Crypto stocks plunge

Crypto stocks plunge despite SEC dropping suit against Coinbase

Environment

Ford Mustang Mach-E is heavily discounted, you can even lease it for less than a Toyota Camry

Published

17 hours ago

February 21, 2025

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Ford Mustang Mach-E is heavily discounted, you can even lease it for less than a Toyota Camry

Ford is offering big savings opportunities right now on its electric vehicles. The Ford Mustang Mach-E can be leased for less than a Toyota Camry in some places despite costing over $10,000 more. Here’s how you can snag some savings.

Ford’s Mach-E is cheaper to lease than a Camry right now

With over 51,700 models sold in 2024, Ford’s Mustang Mach-E was the third best-selling EV in the US behind the Tesla Model Y and Model 3.

The electric Mach-E even outsold the gas-powered Mustang for the first time last year. To keep up with new models like the Honda Prologue and the 2025 Hyundai IONIQ 5, Ford introduced big discounts at the start of the year.

Ford extended its “Power Promise” program in January, offering all EV buyers a free Level 2 home charger. The company will even cover the cost of standard installation. If you already have a home charger, Ford will give you a $1,000 charging credit.

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According to online car research firm CarsDirect, the savings don’t stop there. Through March 31, the 2024 Ford Mustang Mach-E can be leased for as little as $229 for 24 months in Southern California.

With $4,329 due at signing, the effective cost is just $409 per month. The deal is for the base 2024 Mach-E Select with an MSRP of $39,995 and includes a $7,750 lease cash bonus.

In comparison, the 2025 Toyota Camry Hybrid LE (MSRP $28,400) is listed at $299 for 39 months and $3,598 due upfront, for an effective rate of $391 per month.

Ford-Mach-E-lease-interior — 2024 Ford Mustang Mach-E interior (Source: Ford)

Although that’s slightly less than the Mach-E, if you factor in Ford’s other incentives, it’s actually much cheaper. In addition to the $1,000 charging credit, Ford is offering current Tesla owners $1,000 in conquest bonus cash, which can be applied to the purchase or lease of a new vehicle.

The $2,000 in savings brings the effective monthly lease rate to just $326 per month. That’s even $10 cheaper than a 2025 Toyota Corolla LE with an MSRP of just $22,325, or over $17,500 less than the Mustang Mach-E.

Alternatively, Ford is offering the 2024 Ford Mustang Mach-E for 0% APR for 72 months plus $2,500 in bonus cash.

Ford also introduced new incentives on the F-150 Lightning last week. The 2024 F-150 Lightning now features a nationwide 0% financing for 72 months offer with additional savings of up to $5,000 off MSRP.

Ford-EV-lease-discounts — Ford Mustang Mach-E (left) and F-150 Lightning (right) (Source: Ford)

The new Flash trim now features an up to $3,000 retail cash bonus, XLT and Lariat trims get up to $4,000, and the Platinum model gets a $5,000 bonus.

Ford’s electric pickup is eligible for the $1,000 Tesla Conquest bonus and public charging credit offer. Ram owners can snag an extra $2,000 from a serperate conquest program.

If you’re ready to test drive Ford’s electric vehicles for yourself, we can help you get started. You can use our links below to find Ford F-150 Lightning and Mustang Mach-E models at a dealer near you.

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