News

A new report released by the State and Local Energy Efficiency Action Network (SEE Action) prepared by researchers at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory provides guidance and recommendations on methodologies that can be used for rigorously estimating energy savings from residential behavior-based efficiency programs. The report was designed for regulators, evaluation professionals, program... Read more

Residential behavior-based energy-efficiency programs have been identified as a potential major source of new energy savings. A new report and presentation by EMP researchers provides guidance on methodologies for rigorously estimating those savings. However, the widespread adoption of these programs faces obstacles, including questions about whether observed energy savings are valid and... Read more

A study released today by researchers at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) identifies steps that energy efficiency program managers can take to deliver significant savings on home energy bills to middle-income households."Middle-income households have been hit hard by the recent recession, and sagging home prices have undermined the traditional reliance of middle-income... Read more

A new policy brief on the value of energy performance and green attributes in buildings, authored by Elizabeth Stuart, is available. Labels, certifications, and rating systems for energy efficiency performance and "green" attributes of buildings have been available in the U.S. for over 10 years, and used extensively in the European Union and Australia for longer. Such certifications and ratings... Read more

The installed cost of solar photovoltaic (PV) power systems in the United States fell substantially in 2010 and into the first half of 2011, according to the latest edition of an annual PV cost tracking report released by the Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab). The average installed cost of residential and commercial PV systems completed in 2010 fell by... Read more

A new policy brief for energy efficiency contractors and program managers describes how adding sales and business skills to contractor technical skills and certifications can increase the rate of customer conversions from home energy assessment to comprehensive home energy upgrade. It was prepared by Megan Billingsley and Elizabeth Stuart of the Electricity Markets and Policy Group of the... Read more

The U.S. Department of Energy has released six fact sheets to assist American Reinvestment and Recovery Act grantees and end-users in benchmarking energy efficiency upgrade costs and expected annual savings. The fact sheets are directed at municipal, state, and federal government buildings, healthcare facilities, universities, colleges, and K-12 schools. The fact sheets provide information on the... Read more

Despite a trying year in which wind power capacity additions declined significantly compared to both 2008 and 2009, the U.S. remained one of the fastest-growing wind power markets in the world in 2010—second only to China—according to a report released today by the U.S. Department of Energy and prepared by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab).... Read more

Two Berkeley Lab Scientists Were AuthorsA recent report examining the potential role of renewable power in reducing emissions of climate-altering greenhouse gases concludes that a high percentage of the world's energy supply could be met by renewables by mid- century if backed by the right enabling public policies.Two researchers in the Environmental Energy Technologies Division of Lawrence... Read more

New research by the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory finds strong evidence that homes with solar photovoltaic (PV) systems sell for a premium over homes without solar systems.... Read more

Launched in 2006, over 8,700 residential energy upgrades have been completed through Austin Energy's Home Performance with ENERGY STAR (HPwES) program. The program's lending partner, Velocity Credit Union (VCU) has originated almost 1,800 loans, totaling approximately $12.5 million. Residential energy efficiency loans are typically small, and expensive to originate and service relative to larger... Read more

Governor Jerry Brown has appointed Carla Peterman to the California Energy Commission.Peterman is a doctoral candidate in the Energy and Resources Group, University of California Berkeley and a graduate student researcher with the Environmental Energy Technologies Division of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Her primary research interests are renewable energy, technology innovation, and... Read more

Environmental Energy Technologies Division researchers at the Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) have released a new study on the installed costs of solar photovoltaic (PV) power systems in the U.S., showing that the average cost of these systems remained largely unchanged from 2008 to 2009, before beginning a steep decline in 2010.The number of solar PV... Read more

Charles Goldman, a scientist in the Environmental Energy Technologies Division, has been given a special award by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy in recognition of the "Electricity Markets and Policy Group's critical achievements and leadership in the energy efficiency field." Goldman is the leader of this research group.The award was presented at a reception during the... Read more

Researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) released a new study Thursday documenting the design of and early experience with state-level renewables portfolio standard (RPS) programs in the United States that have been specifically designed to encourage solar energy. The study finds that these state-level RPS programs have already proven to... Read more

Hundreds of millions of dollars in public money are flowing into programs to support improvements in home energy efficiency. Ensuring that these funds have their maximum impact by motivating homeowners to seek out home energy improvements is the subject of a new report from researchers at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab)."Convincing millions of Americans to divert their... Read more

The U.S. was one of the fastest-growing wind power markets in the world in 2009, second only to China, according to a report released today by the U.S. Department of Energy and prepared by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.... Read more

The Section 1603 Treasury cash grant program appears to have stimulated incremental renewable power capacity additions in 2009, thereby supporting U.S.-based renewable energy jobs, according to a new report by Mark Bolinger, Ryan Wiser, and Naïm Darghouth, all researchers in the Environmental Energy Technologies Division of the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.... Read more

Researchers at the Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) released a new study on the bill savings received by residential customers with solar photovoltaic (PV) power systems, under the net metering rates currently offered by California's two largest electric utilities. The report focuses on California, as it is the largest PV market in the U.S.... Read more

A new study by scientists at the Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) examines the workforce needs of the energy efficiency services sector, and finds that the speed with which employment will grow will depend in part on how effectively the nation deploys training and education programs for the energy efficiency workforce.... Read more

A new analysis by scientists at the Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) for the Western Governor's Association explores renewable resource decisions in the West. The report's "sensitivity analysis" examines how decisions about which renewable sources are chosen, and how transmission lines are expanded, are affected by changes in policies and other... Read more

The stimulus package passed in 2009 by Congress may help shovel-ready community wind projects move ahead, according to a new report by Mark Bolinger, a scientist in the Environmental Energy Technologies Division of the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Bolinger analyzed the impact of two new incentives for wind power that were included in the Recovery Act.... Read more

Over 30,000 megawatts of wind energy capacity are installed across the United States and an increasing number of communities are considering new wind power facilities. Given these developments, there is an urgent need to empirically investigate typical community concerns about wind energy and thereby provide stakeholders involved in the wind project siting process a common base of knowledge. A... Read more

Researchers at the Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) released a new study on the installed costs of solar photovoltaic (PV) power systems in the U.S., showing that the average cost of these systems declined by more than 30 percent from 1998 to 2008. Within the last year of this period, costs fell by more than 4 percent.... Read more

A new study on the installed costs of solar photovoltaic (PV) power systems in the U.S. shows that the average cost of these systems declined significantly from 1998 to 2007, but remained relatively flat during the last two years of this period.... Read more