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In December 2018, Hitachi Ltd. announced an agreement to buy ABBs Power Grids business for US$6.4 billion. On the Hitachi side, the move was seen as a grid grab that would enable the Japanese conglomerate to compete head-to-head with the likes of General Electric and Siemens AG in the electric sector. Not more than a few months later, General Electric began selling off many of its power businesses, while Siemens spun its gas and power businesses off into an as-yet-to-be-named entity with the placeholder name of NewCo.

What might be behind some of these power play spin-offs? And, are there more to come?

Behind the Spin-Offs

The first factor seems to be activist investors pushing for simplified pure-play companies. For ABB, that meant dropping its lower-margins grid business to focus on robotics and factory automation. In addition to carrying ABBs lowest return on assets in 2018, the companys grids business saw its third consecutive quarterly slide in the third quarter of 2018.

On the other hand, Hitachi has almost 800 separate businesses, spanning from construction machinery to health care and nuclear power. The company has stated it wants to streamline and focus on four core areas going forwardone of which is power and energy, thus the reason for ABBs Power Grids business.

Hitachi may have other things in mind, as well. For instance, by getting a piece of the power grid, the company may be able to help drive a global shift away from coal and toward renewable energy. The company also may be lining up grid services as a platform on which to deploy and connect its equipment to the massive internet of things (IoT) market, connecting sensors and devices through the internet for building controls in homes and businesses that can marry the opportunity of smart devices and smart buildings with the smart electric grid Hitachi will now help to build.

We believe that both companies will complement each other, said Anders Sjoelin, lead division manager, ABB Power Grids North America. Together, they cover the global energy value chain from generation to transmission and distribution. In addition, Hitachi sees areas like the integration of renewables into the power grid, smart mobility and cities as strategic pillars where ABB Power Grids can contribute significantly with its leading technology solutions.

The Siemens spin-off is of a slightly different nature, but perhaps has a similar goal. In May 2019, the German-based industrial giant announced the spin-off of its Gas & Power (GP) businesses as part of its Vision 2020+ strategy to focus its core competencies on digital industries and smart infrastructure. To be formed out of what was Siemens GP, the new company will be an independent one in which Siemens projects to have 30 billion Euros in orders and 80,000 employees based on former GP staff and the transfer of the Siemens renewable energy business, Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy (SGRE).

With Vision 2020+, were further sharpening Siemens focus and making our businesses faster and more flexible, said Joe Kaeser, president and CEO of Siemens, in a conference call with reporters announcing the move. These changes are laying the foundation for sustainable economic success in growth markets that will be attractive over the long term. Were also creating solid perspectives for those businesses that have to prove themselves in the structural transformation now underway and address new growth fields.

Kaeser added the new company will be well-positioned to offer a wide range of services in the electric industry, from power generation through gas-fired turbines and wind turbines to oil and gas services and high-voltage transmission. The success of Siemens businesses of the next generation will be determined by new factors, said Kaeser. Breadth, size and a one-size-fits-all approach will be replaced by focus, speed and adaptability.

Meanwhile, Lisa Davis, who has been CEO of Siemens GP for the last five years, will take over the reins of NewCo. She touts the new companys independence from Siemens as well as the opportunity to offer a wide range of power services in its new incarnation. Being independent will enable us to more effectively leverage our position of strength to further support our customers in rapidly changing energy markets, Davis said. Global electrification continues to be vital to economic and environmental progress around the world and, as the only company with a leading portfolio along the entire energy value chainin both conventional and renewable energywe are uniquely able to help both public- and private-sector customers benefit from these developments.

For Siemens, the companys Digital Industries and Smart Infrastructure operating companies will comprise its future industrial core, to be supplemented by company-wide technology and service units such as Siemens Healthineers and Siemens Mobility. Plans call for NewCo to be completely spun off with its own stock exchange listing in September 2020.

General Electric also is in the game of selling off power divisions. In March 2019, the company unveiled a $3.25 billion deal to sell its distributed power business, focused on the building of smaller gas-fired turbines used in backup, remote or cogeneration power opportunities. The sale to private equity firm Advent International includes the companys Jenbacher and Waukesha brands as well as manufacturing plants in the U.S., Canada and Austria.

GEs rationale apparently is different from that of ABB or Siemens, however. The company must shrink itself to pay down significant debt, a result of years of troubled acquisitions. Earlier this year, GE was kicked out of the Dow Industrial Average after more than a century on the prestigious company stock listing. For GE, the distributed power business is just the latest in a line of businesses being spun off, including both its fabled light bulb unit and GE Transportation, the companys 111-year-old railroad division.

The power business was not helping GE, as the company saw declines in revenue in recent quarters as power plants started moving more toward renewable energy to replace fossil fuels, especially coal.

Underlying Currents

Though GEs move differs from the moves of Hitachi-ABB and Siemens, all three signify changing times in the power and utilities sector, something that is more likely to continue than abate in the near term. These are definitely changing times for utility and energy companies, said Scott Smith, U.S. power utilities leader for Deloitte, before adding, It is going to continue. Decarbonization of power, energy efficiency, renewables, the customer experience being different [power companies and utilities] are going to have to adapt quickly, and I think they are.

In his 2019 U.S. Power and Utilities Industry Outlook, Smith wrote about what he calls the new normal for the sector, which features a period of transformation and profound change driven by technological and competitive forces, as well as changing customer expectations.

This is partly generational; younger users have become very comfortable with apps, social media, and always-on connectivity, Smith stated. And, its also partly a spin-off from the increasing ubiquity of e-commerce in all spheres, for products, services and entertainment. These developments are coming from all directions, not just the big-tech giants that are household names. Were seeing evidence of this new normal in electricity customer preferencesthe desire for choice, in rate plans, in sources of delivered electricity, and in options to tap into behind-the-meter or localized sources of generation, or to integrate electricity with other home services. Commercial and industrial customers are looking to combine more cost and utilization control with opportunities to self-generate and while setting themselves and their suppliers ambitious targets to reduce emissions from their energy use.

On the generation side, Smith argued, three dominant trends have been in place for years and look to continue:

Smith pointed to decarbonization as the driver but added these trends also have created opportunities for both new technologies and new business models in the sector.

On the new technologies side, Smith noted utilities are developing apps to give customers greater control over energy usage, even managing heating and cooling, lighting and window blinds from smartphones. Some utilities are entering the IoT market by offering smart appliances, such as washing machines, thermostats and hot water heaters. Wireless meters and sensors enable users to monitor energy use in real time, receive alerts if bills deviate too far from the norm, get outage alerts, and even get estimates of crew arrival times in the case of storms or widespread power failure.

Customer retention is no longer just a question of reliability and cost, Smith said of this new normal in the power and utilities sector. It is now a question of providing options, being connected, and allowing customers more control over their energy use.

When it comes to technology, utilities and power generators exist in an ecosystem ripe with opportunity, Smith contends. We could point to sources of generation, with the cost performance and scalability of wind and solar continuing to improve year over year at a rapid pace; to grid operations, where smart-grid technologies provide real-time information into all aspects of grid status (not just electron flows) and where batteries are now able to provide multiple services, such as load shifting, frequency regulation and localized reserves; to distributed or localized sources of energy for which utilities can partner with customers or communities to install and operate power systems customized for specific needs, Smith wrote in his report.

Smith summed it up that all this combined is opening the door for new business models for utilities as well as market structures allowing for the entry of new, nontraditional players. He specifically cited the rise of behind-the-meter generation, community energy projects and new options for households, such as rooftop solar coupled with battery storage. Utilities have a tremendous opportunity to develop new profitable businesses around offering services related to these developmentsfrom installation, maintenance, and reliability services to tracking and load balancing with on-grid resources, Smith wrote.

Smith sees the sector evolving into an entire energy tech ecosystem that could include traditional utilities, large device makers, tech companies, infrastructure players, and small- to medium-sized venture-backed energy technology companies and a host of other business models.

Smith proclaims himself not surprised at all by news of power and utility sector spin-offs and realignments. In fact, he predicts that, too, is part of the new normal for the sector.

By definition, the future is uncertain, so we know there will be surprises along the way, Smith wrote in his market report. The electric power business has proved increasingly resilient to some kinds of surprises, like hurricanes or snowstorms. Other kinds of surprises, from technology and new competition to customer expectations, may require more deep-seated cultural change. This promises to be an interesting year.

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Power Business Spin-Offs: Is This the New Normal? - Transmission & Distribution World

Cities, belching pollution, clogged with traffic and stuffed full of the buildings that are responsible for nearly 40 per cent of energy-related CO2 emissions, always appear as the villains of the sustainability narrative. They consume more than 75 per cent of all natural resources; they produce more than 50 per cent of global waste. They are monsters. Yet they are also, perhaps paradoxically, the most efficient and, potentially, the most sustainable way to live.

Cities can be compact and reliant on efficient public transport rather than cars; they can be walkable and cyclable; and, thanks to the proximity they foster between people and services, they can achieve impressive efficiencies in energy use. Even cities with harsh climates such as Oslo or Helsinki can develop communal heating systems as a byproduct of power generation that are clean and efficient compared with, say, the individual gas boilers that are the norm in the UK.

If the circular economy is about moving beyond a take-make-waste model of consumption, buildings can be a conspicuous case in point. Just look at two recent French housing projects, Tour Bois-le-Prtre in Paris and Cit du Grand Parc in Bordeaux, designed by architects Lacaton & Vassal and Frdric Druot. Both go radically against the conventional practice of demolishing old, nominally inefficient housing to build anew in more fashionable forms. Instead, they have managed to preserve existing social housing infrastructure and to keep tenants in place while transforming their slab blocks with a new outer layer of structure.

Boasting new terraces and winter gardens, formerly tired apartments now seem distinctly chic. No less important, both interventions conserve the huge amount of energy embodied in the existing structures; according to a report last year from think-tank Chatham House, cement production accounts for 8 per cent of the worlds annual CO2 emissions which, if it were a country, would make it the third-biggest emitter, after China and the US.

There are harder-to-quantify savings too: new construction often tears apart established communities, disrupting the networks that facilitate sustainable city living through small exchanges of favours and chores, through trust and company.

Cities are the most efficient and, potentially, the most sustainable way to live

When the original tower blocks were conceived and built, in the 1950s and 1960s, architects were in thrall not only to concrete but also to the car. Motorways, flyovers and car parks swept old buildings aside. Yet cars proved to be disastrous for cities, enabling the vast expansion of the suburb and the exurb, which are radically unsustainable not just in their distance from places of work and leisure, but also in their failure to build communities.

Mobility is the first problem, says Malo Hutson, associate professor of urban planning at Columbia University in New York. Not just the electrification of cars, but also of marine transport, perhaps even aviation. We need to approach the city in a different way how do we not build huge parking lots and [how do we create] more compact cities? Autonomous cars may change things for the better, he thinks, as they could readily lend themselves to sharing schemes; that in turn could reduce the need for parking spaces and allow more efficient land use.

But overcoming the consequences of decades of sprawl is a formidable task. The changes required are so huge that advocates are careful to frame them as a positive not only in terms of sustainability, but also in terms of economic growth. The Green New Deal sponsored by congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in the US is exactly such an attempt at reframing green imperatives in a Rooseveltian image, as a boost to the economy rather than a brake.

Friday, 22 November, 2019

We need an honest conversation about this, Mr Hutson says. There will be job losses and huge changes but also opportunities around construction and housing, new skills and innovation. A 2016 World Economic Forum report notes that 40 per cent of solid waste in the US derives from construction and demolition, and represents a significant loss of valuable minerals, metals and organic materials that could feed into a circular economy.

Perhaps the most interesting shift currently under way in urban thinking picks up this thought and runs with it. An EU-sponsored initiative known as Bamb Buildings as Material Banks aims to change the construction industrys approach to demolition, construing it as not a destructive but a constructive process, in which buildings are picked apart, their component parts and materials reused. Bamb wants buildings to be designed with this in mind; it advocates the use of material passports, which reside on a digital platform and define materials and show their circular pathways, their loops of use and reuse.

There is a change of attitude in taking down existing buildings, with buildings conceived as banks, says Georgia Price, an architect from global engineering group Arup. We could be using materials passports, tracking and tracing materials through their life. One possibility is to embed RFID chips in construction components, enabling them to be tracked from factory to building site to salvage depot. So far it is an idea that has gained little traction within the industry. The resulting database would be enormous and who would own the data?

Meanwhile several new non-profits are already trying to salvage materials from buildings before demolition and to sell them on at a fraction of their cost when new to architects with an interest in sustainability and an eye for a back-story. Among them are Rotor Deconstruction in Brussels and the School of Architectures Bank of Materials in Aarhus, Denmark. Both are beginning to scale up to offer a real choice to architects and contractors.

One crucial recent piece of legislation from the EU may accelerate the change in attitudes. In October, right to repair rules were introduced, which put the onus on manufacturers to design products capable of being repaired, instead of succumbing to planned obsolescence, the dubious design philosophy that became prevalent during the US postwar boom. If our expectations of washing machines and phones can change, perhaps they will similarly change regarding buildings and infrastructure.

In those latter cases, the ability to reimagine will be as important as the ability to repair or rebuild. Perhaps the seemingly defunct architectures of the recent past can be repurposed in the same way the industrial buildings of the 19th and 20th centuries have been made into lofts, galleries and restaurants.

A multistorey car park may seem the least adaptable of building types, yet one example in south London, Peckham Levels, has been reimagined as a cultural space, with artists studios, social enterprises, restaurants, and a now famous rooftop bar. Could similar ideas be applied to the ghost shopping centres and strip-malls of fading suburbs? Could they accommodate small workshops, markets, and hydroponics farms enterprises that could densify those suburbs into places of production and change, rather than just dormitories?

According to a report by Arup, in a circular city, products and assets are designed and built to be more durable, and to be repaired, refurbished, reused and disassembled. That will require a fundamental change in approach by planners and architects, and by the citizens they serve.

Yet in a way, it is all rather old fashioned. When imperial Rome collapsed and its buildings gradually succumbed to violence or neglect, the stones were taken and reused to build houses and churches, wells and piazzas. The fragments are still there.

See more here:
Theres nothing new about tomorrows city - Financial Times

As regional governments become increasingly aware of the social and economic threat posed by climate change, population growth and resource over-consumption, there is growing appreciation that improved energy efficiency, reduced use of non-renewable resources and environmental sustainability can only be achieved by successfully developing and harnessing new environmental technology clean technology, or cleantech.

As in other industries, it is likely that many of the disruptive cleantech solutions needed to address these challenges will come from new, startup companies and from other small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is already setting the pace for cleantech development in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region.

Abu Dhabi has set ambitious renewable energy and emissions targets and wants to generate 44 per cent of electricity from renewable sources and 6 per cent from nuclear power. It also wants to cut 30 per cent of its carbon emissions by 2030.

The UAE is the most attractive ecosystem in the Mena region for startups, says Steven Griffiths, senior vice-president of research and development and professor of practice at Khalifa University of Science and Technology.

Broadly speaking, the Mena region is incentivising local talent in the realm of environmentally sustainable startups.

We [in the Mena region] are seeing a lot of startups and SMEs developing really interesting cleantech solutions across the renewables, waste and marine space, says Dana Liparts, co-founder and director at Ecocoast, a sustainable marine technology developer.

The interest in cleantech specifically has been evident since as early as 2012, when Dubai-based peer-to-peer lending platform Beehive funded Enerwhere, a solar energy SME.

More recently, Abu Dhabi-based Catalyst a startup accelerator jointly organised by Masdar and BP has invested $10m since 2015 in eight cleantech startups engaged in renewable energy, agricultural technology, waste management and electric mobility.

In early 2019, New York-based Modus Capital launched a $75m Mena fund for startups through which it hopes to fund more cleantech companies, which founder Kareem Elsirafy says could include opportunities such as renewable and sustainable technology that mitigates negative environmental impact.

Still, investment and support for these are low compared to other types of technology startups.

In5 is a startup incubator that has supported more than 160 startups since it was founded in 2013. Data from the company website shows that only one business in each of the energy, sustainable agriculture and waste management fields received funding from the In5 technology centre.

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Lack of adequate funding and investment is a major issue, says Rishi Kohli, co-founder of Waterwise, a Dubai startup turned SME that has developed an eco-friendly car cleaning service that uses a biodegradable cleaning spray in place of water.

A few years ago, a lot of cleantech startups attracted large amounts of funding but had large amounts of monthly cash burn-out, which impacted cash flow and often made them unprofitable, he says.

Khalifa University of Science and Technologys Griffiths also highlights several financial challenges faced by startups and SMEs: Early-stage investors in cleantech face challenges in bringing deep tech to the scale-up. Software is not so hard, but capital-intensive technology development is yet to have a good supporting ecosystem.

He says he is impressed with certain industry-led cleantech investment initiatives, such as those of Saudi Aramco, but adds that we do not have a lot of examples in the region.

CEO of Catalyst, inar Kurra, adds that there are not many dedicated research and development (R&D) centres. Most research continues to happen at universities and government-funded entities, he says.

Market conditions can also prove difficult. Waterwises Kohli says that about 180 litres of water are used on each vehicle at UAE car wash facilities, despite the fact the UN classifies the country as one of the worlds most water-scarce nations.

Even so, Kohli has faced many difficulties when it comes to selling his product. Our initial plan was to redistribute our product to other car-washing companies, but that did not get much buy-in, so we decided to set up our own car-washing business.

When asked why this might be, Kohli notes that the adoption of cleantech products and services has been generally slow, and points to the largely price-driven priorities of many consumers, which can prejudice them against alternative, eco-friendly products and services that typically carry higher costs.

In the UAE, a compounding factor, especially on a large commercial scale, is what he calls green fatigue.

Consumers have failed to see the tangible benefits for eco-friendly products and services, he says.

Besides, says Liparts, were also seeing that a lot of the technologies are struggling to offer a real commercial advantage to the end-user over more traditional technologies. Cleantech startups and SMEs that can show a commercial value proposition to their technologies will face far fewer challenges when it comes to funding than those companies that are more costly than traditional.

This raises questions about consumer awareness and engagement when it comes to environmental issues.

Indeed, the high failure rate of new products and services especially those that call for behavioural changes on the part of individual consumers is a common problem for new enterprises. Catalysts CEO, Kurra, says that currently, only 2 per cent of all startups make a profit in the region.

A different approach could nevertheless significantly improve the uptake of cleantech.

At Catalyst, where a venture capital would look merely at growth potential, the firm provides not only funding but also access to R&D facilities at the Masdar Institute.

It also highlights the need for financial transparency, both as a precondition of funding and as a route to providing more appropriate guidance to startups.

As a startup accelerator, we would require more transparency in how cleantech startups are running their business, says Catalysts Kurra.

Griffiths also explains, Perhaps the best way cleantech startups can earn profits today is by building software, power electronics and other small services, and then selling them to large corporations.

Meanwhile, Waterwises Kohli advises that startups and SMEs should start with a limited number of products or services that have a low cash burn-out and quicker return on investment (ROI), then attract funding with the aim of scaling up.

By way of example, he explains that investment in agriculture and food-based cleantech has increased as the cost of producing such products has made ROI for the end-users and investors more attractive.

Lately, more cleantech businesses attract smaller investments from angel investors that allow them to grow with profitable margins, which in turn can then lead to venture capital funding, Kohli says.

Yet a great deal of activity in the sector continues to be government or public-sector led, leaving significant room for more initiative to be taken by private companies and individuals and especially by local entities to support innovative cleantech opportunities.

The author of this report, Sania Aziz Rahman, is a graduate of MA Data Journalism from the UKs Birmingham City University, with a special interest in reporting stories through data. Twitter: @saniaazizr

This article is sourced from Verdict Technology sister publication http://www.meed.com, a leading source of high-value business intelligence and economic analysis about the Middle East and North Africa. To access more MEED content register for the 30-day Free Guest User Programme.

GlobalData is this websites parent business intelligence company.

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Cleantech companies: in the UAE funding and trust are hampering efforts - Verdict

Updated December 05, 2019 15:42:37

It's going to be a long, hot summer for the Wilkes family.

Their home in Sydney's outer suburbs has westerly facing windows and last year, the first in their new build, the electricity bill for summer was $1,000.

This year, they're hoping it will be significantly less, having scraped together enough cash to install solar panels on the roof.

"It was definitely a stretch," said Crystal Wilkes, who is currently at home on maternity leave after having her third child.

"After tax time we were like, we've got a refund from tax. We decided to put that plus a small amount of savings [together] and cash flowed the rest.

"You get very good at eating beans and rice to get it together."

But have the Wilkes made the right decision? Is getting solar the best way to cut down on costs this summer?

About a decade ago, many state governments were keen to encourage solar uptake, introducing generous rebates and feed-in tariffs.

It created a lot of hype around the financial benefits of solar, and hundreds of thousands of homes took it up.

Those same offers are now long gone.

According to Chris Barnes from consumer group Choice, the answer is pretty clear.

"In almost all cases for almost all homes, yes, it's still worth it," he said.

"That's a reflection of the fact the price of the actual panels has gone down and the capacity of the solar panels has gone up. So really it makes sense to put as many on your roof as you can afford."

The Wilkes bought a 6.6-kilowatt system for $7,500 after the federal government rebate, which was about $4,000.

This out-of-pocket cost included the panels themselves and the inverter, which transfers the power into usable electricity.

That's about the average size and cost of a solar installation, according to Choice.

But prices do vary and could be between $4,000 to $8,000, after the rebate, and depending on the quality and the size you're after.

"There's a really wide range of pricing," Sarah Morton, from Green Energy, said.

"Solar panels definitely vary in quality. For more peace of mind you could choose Tier 1 panels, which have a better reputation for performance and quality."

Mr Barnes suggests getting recommendations and shopping around for installers, while avoiding door-to-door sales tactics.

He also says it's important to understand the product warranty on the panels and inverter.

For example, a 10-year product warranty on the panels and at least five years on the inverter is fairly standard.

"You'll often see a 25-year warranty mentioned. Be a little careful with that, because that's actually a performance warranty," he said.

"What they're saying is over its 25-year expected lifespan, this panel will deteriorate in a predictable and linear fashion and in the 25 years will still be producing 80 per cent of what they claimed."

This is where it gets a bit tricky.

In the past, different rebates have been offered separately by state governments and the federal government.

All states have stopped offering generous rebates for solar installation, except for Victoria, which still has a rebate of up to $2,225 for households earning less than $180,000.

Some other states are trialling schemes for low-income earners. It's worth looking at the Department of Energy website to see whether you can claim for this.

And on top of all of this, most households can still get a rebate from the federal government's small-scale renewable energy scheme.

"When you buy a solar panel system each will be rated to a certain number of certificates and each is worth a certain amount," Mr Barnes explained.

"At the moment they're worth just under $40 per certificate typically you're looking at about $600 per kilowatt of solar system you add on. So it does add up."

Usually the installer will process the certificates and consumers pay the balance of the cost.

It's always going to be different for each household. But for the Wilkes, they're thinking about four years.

Why?

Well, there's the size of the system itself, how much electricity a household uses, how much is sold back to the grid and where you live.

"If you live in a place that gets a lot of sun north-west Victoria or inland New South Wales or Queensland you're going to get more output from the same sized solar system than if you're living in southern Victoria or Tasmania," Ms Morton said.

With three young children under six, and the baby using cloth nappies, the Wilkes's washing machine is constantly on.

Like most Australians, the family tended in the past to use a lot of appliances in the evening, but since getting solar they've changed their habits.

They use an app to monitor their usage and set timers on their appliances to run during the day.

That way they're using the solar energy produced on their roof for free, rather than paying for electricity from the grid.

"I worked out how to set our appliances the dishwasher, washing machine, we've got a heat pump drier, so to put a delay on them to operate during the day when the Sun's up. We just don't use things overnight anymore," Ms Wilkes said.

"With the app we can also see the drain of the air-con when we do switch it on. We've learnt that after the house is cold we switch it to a dehumidifier setting which is a lot less expensive to run."

Any extra electricity they don't use is sold back into the grid, which means they get some extra money.

It also makes the payback period for their panels shorter.

Well, solar power is only generated during the day.

You need to ask yourself: are you better off using that during the day? Or keeping old habits and using the bulk of your electricity at night, essentially buying it from the grid?

"As a general rule for most people, you're far better off using your own solar power and using as little as you can from the grid," Mr Barnes said.

About a decade ago, retailers were paying up to 60 cents for every kilowatt hour that households fed back into the grid.

Only those who are still enjoying the benefits of a legacy contract get to keep reaping the benefits of that deal.

For everyone else, those days are long gone.

But every retailer can offer a different price for your power. It can vary from nothing to 30 cents a kilowatt hour in the Northern Territory.

"It varies significantly between retailers. Even within a state, it can vary a lot. People should shop around," Ms Morton said.

Victoria is the only state to have a mandatory minimum rate which is set by the Essential Services Commission. It can either be a single rate (which is currently 12 cents per kilowatt hour) or a varying rate depending on time of day (between 9.9 and 14.6 cents per kilowatt hour).

The Wilkes get about 11 cents per kilowatt hour for the electricity they send to the grid, but are paying double that for any electricity they buy.

In short, that's not an unusual story. It's common to pay way more for electricity than what you'd earn if you sold it back to the grid.

"At the moment we're actually ahead, we've just come in to credit. We're selling more back to the grid than we're using," Ms Wilkes said.

Despite being keen on sustainable energy, the Wilkes won't be getting a battery any time soon.

"We looked in to getting a battery but the payback was closer to 10 years and the battery's life is about 10 years. So it doesn't work out," Ms Wilkes said.

Mr Barnes agrees.

"Our view is that for most people, [batteries] don't make full economic sense yet," he said.

"If you're in the NT and you're getting a generous feed-in tariff, you're probably better off getting that than putting your surplus energy into a battery that may not pay for itself in time."

As technology advances, it's hoped batteries will either last longer, or the prices will come down.

"We're still watching and waiting for that magic moment to happen," Mr Barnes said.

Topics:solar-energy,alternative-energy,environment,box-hill-2765,nsw,australia

First posted December 05, 2019 05:59:32

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Solar panels seem like a good idea. But are they really worth it? - ABC News

> > Article Thursday, December 5, 2019| 34| 0| min read

Martin Davila, of Davila Construction, has been cited by the U.S. Department of Labors Occupational Safety and Health Administration for exposing employees to fall hazards at threeMissouri job sites.

OSHA also alleges Davila Construction violated electrical safety rules and allowed a gas can to be stored in close proximity to combustion engines. The residential roofing company is facing up to $205,098 in penalties.

OSHA said Davila Construction failed to properly train employees on how to manage safety hazards while working high above ground. The agency also said Davila Construction did not provide workers with training for safe ladder useor offer protection from pneumatic nail guns.

Davila Construction was cited in 2014 for not developing or maintaining a safety program.

Davila has 15 business days to comply, request an informal conference or dispute the findings.

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Roofing Contractor Cited for Exposing Workers to Fall Hazards| Workers Compensation News - WorkCompCentral

Roofing businesses on the central coast see a spike in service calls following the rainy weather

It seems like the rain may be sticking around a little while longer, and that has some local businesses seeing an increase in calls for service.

The owner of Golden State Roofing says he has been experiencing three times as many calls the last couple of days with the first big rain of the season on the central coast.

"People put their maintenance or their roofing off until it rains...or leaks that they didn't have before pop up. So yeah my phone rings off the hook," said Christopher McCluskey, owner of Golden State Roofing.

It is a sentiment felt by many roofers in the area and the proverb when it rains it pours could not be closer to the truth.

"It all depends on the situation. Anywhere between 500 and 5000. You never know- it just depends on the situation... the severity of the leak and how long they've let the condition of the roof deteriorate before taking care of it," said McCluskey.

With the start of the chillier rainy season on the central coast some heating and cooling companies are also seeing a spike in calls, but not everyone.

"I have other people in the industry that they see a swing during this time of the year. So as far as my business is concerned I'd probably say more so during the summer time," said Ryan Cruz, owner of WAYCO Heating and Air Conditioning.

Repairmen say maintenance is of the utmost importance... especially when dealing with more extreme temperatures.

"Not everyone looks at their roof and they don't realize that everything they own is underneath that roof. So if people payed more attention to it- it would definitely help them out in the long run," said McCluskey.

According to one owner of a roofing business, they are always monitoring weather conditions to know when to anticipate more of those service calls.

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Roofing businesses on the central coast see a spike in service calls following the rainy weather - KSBY San Luis Obispo News

Acquisition Expected to Add More Than $10 Million in Revenues Per Year

Poway, California--(Newsfile Corp. - December 3, 2019) - Solar Integrated Roofing Corporation (OTC Pink: SIRC), an integrated solar and roofing installation company specializing in commercial and residential properties with a focus on acquisitions of like companies to build a footprint nationally, announced today that the company has finalized its terms and acquisition agreement with Milholland Solar Electric and Roofing. Milholland expects to generate approximately $10 million in revenues for 2019.

David Massey, CEO of SIRC, commented, "We continue to execute on our business plan by finalizing our terms for acquiring Milholland capping an incredible period of growth for SIRC in 2019. Milholland is one of the most respected and lauded solar/roofing companies in Southern California. In 2016, Milholland was recognized by INC 5000 as one of the country's fastest growing private companies, ranked number 998 in the United States."

Commenting further, Massey said, "Once closed, the value-added of this acquisition is much more than the revenue and the net profit to SIRC. Brian Milholland brings solar expertise, engineering skills, and a very capable team which adds to the foundation we are building here at SIRC. They are the piece we need to take advantage of the new solar building codes in California and give us the ability to scale and take on any and all projects. Adding this with our solar marketing company makes our growth potential limitless."

Finally, Massey commented, "We are growing and becoming one of the leading solar/roofing companies in the Southern California markets and expect to continue to build on this foundation heading into 2020. By continuing to build our solar/roofing business, we continue to build shareholder value."

Brian Milholland founded Milholland Solar Electric and Roofing in 1990. A former 82nd Airborne Division Paratrooper in the US Army, Brian holds contractor's licenses in California and Arizona. In 2012, Brian was a BBB Torch Awards for Ethics finalist and was named 2015 SBA California Small Business Person of the Year. He is also a Sun Power Master Dealer and Tesla Certified Powerwall Installer.

About Solar Integrated Roofing Corporation

Solar Integrated Roofing Corporation is an integrated solar and roofing installation company specializing in commercial and residential properties with a focus on acquisitions of like companies to build a footprint nationally. For more information, please visit: http://www.solarintegratedroofingcorp.com

Forward-Looking Statements:

Any statements made in this press release which are not historical facts contain certain forward-looking statements; as such term is defined in the Private Security Litigation Reform Act of 1995, concerning potential developments affecting the business, prospects, financial condition and other aspects of the company to which this release pertains. The actual results of the specific items described in this release, and the company's operations generally, may differ materially from what is projected in such forward-looking statements. Although such statements are based upon the best judgments of management of the company as of the date of this release, significant deviations in magnitude, timing and other factors may result from business risks and uncertainties including, without limitation, the company's dependence on third parties, general market and economic conditions, technical factors, the availability of outside capital, receipt of revenues and other factors, many of which are beyond the control of the company. The company disclaims any obligation to update the information contained in any forward-looking statement. This press release shall not be deemed a general solicitation.

Contact:Marlena LeBrun760-566-9116marlenalebrun@gmail.comhttps://www.facebook.com/secureroofingandsolar/https://www.linkedin.com/company/sirc-stock/about/

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To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/50303

Read more:
Solar Integrated Roofing Corporation Finalizes Acquisition Agreement with Milholland Solar Electric and Roofing - Yahoo Finance

It was 1958, and Dale Lovell was heading to a job in Schuyler when he was pulled over by a state patrolman.

Lovell was driving a 1949 International flatbed pickup truck which, according to his son, Mike, everything that (could be) wrong with it was wrong with it.

No headlights, no taillights, (a) broken window, everything, Mike said. The state patrolman happened to know him by name and said, Dale, where are you going with this contraption? He said, Im going over to Schuyler, Ive got a job mopping up a roof. As soon as I get that done, Ill be able to get this fixed.

After his run-in with the patrolman, Dale began the job of mopping up a banks roof with hot tar. As he was doing his work on the roof, someone from a car dealership came up to him asking for an estimate for his roof.

He got done with the bank and went to the car dealership, Mike said. When he got done with that, the post office got a hold of him. So he went over and mopped the post office (roof). By the time he got done in Schuyler, he had done five jobs and he made pretty good money over there doing that.

Those five jobs proved to be the starting point for a long and fruitful career. Dale and his wife, Roberta, started Dales Roofing in Columbus in 1960, and from there, he earned a reputation across the town as a hard-working, committed roofer.

Over 59 years, his family estimates that he had worked on hundreds of roofs all over Platte County, and the business itself was a family affair. From his wife to his son, Mike, who became his business partner in 2006, the family had its hands all over the business and worked hard to make it one of the more prominent roofing companies in Columbus.

Next year will be the 60th year of Dales Roofing; however, its founder wont be there to see it. On Oct. 19, with his son in the room by his side, Dale died at the age of 88. Mike knew that health problems were affecting him, as there was a litany of issues he'd been dealing with prior to his passing.

He had congestive heart failure, kidney failure, he had Type-2 diabetes and he had macular degeneration, Mike said. At 88 years old, it led up to it. His health wasnt the best.

The news of his death touched the family that had spent so much time with him. His grandson, Jon, who works as a surveyor for a consulting group in Omaha, said that his commitment to his customers set him apart from others in the field.

He was loyal, he was generous, faith-driven, honest and hard-working, Jon said. He raised 10 kids, thats an accomplishment on its own. They never went hungry.

In addition to the 10 children, he had 28 grandchildren and 58 great-grandchildren. They all have plenty of memories of the late man in action, including one instance when Jon was in high school.

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When you look at a roof, you dont know whats underneath it. When you tear into something and you find bad wood or something, we would take the time to explain it to customers. Now, with a phone on your camera, you can take pictures and say, Heres what we have, because an older person cant get up on the roof. I would take pictures and show them, This is whats bad (and) this is what we have to do.

Link:
Lovell's roofing legacy to remain strong - Columbus Telegram

MERIDIAN, Idaho Many people spend Black Friday rushing to the mall or big box stores hunting for deals.

But employees at Signature Roofingdecided to spend the day doing something else: giving back to their community.

The roofing company is filling up gas tanks - for free - for single parents at Paul's Service Center at the corner of Main Street and Franklin Road in Meridian. Employees hoisted "Free Gas" signs and waved drivers into the station, where they were greeted with candy canes, Christmas music, and free coffee and hot chocolate along with the fill-up.

PREVIOUS: Signature Roofing gives out free gas to single parents in Meridian

Most of the people who turned in had some variation of the same question:Is this real? What's the catch?

No catch, says Koki Gonzalez, Signature Roofing's sales and marketing manager.

"We just want to let others know that we're out here and we care, we care about our community," he said.

Joel Cano, owner of the roofing company, agreed.

"We always say 'people first,' and that's what we're about," he said.

For Cano, the gas giveaway is a way to pay forward the kindness others had shown him growing up in a family of migrant workers, where money was often tight.

"If we didn't have enough money to play sports, I could name a dozen families that would help us play, and got us shoes," he said. "I'm entrenched in the community, I love it."

RELATED: Idaho Life: What are you thankful for?

This marks the second year Signature Roofing has filled up people's tanks for free. Last year, Gonzalez said, the company paid for about 1,500 gallons of gas total.

"Single parents that are needing just a little hand up on a day where everybody is spending some money, we'd like to give something back to them," he said.

They might break that record this year.

"If the good music keeps coming on, we might be here all night, we'll see how it goes," Cano said with a laugh. "We might go broke today, but we'll have a lot of fun doing it."

Read more:
Signature Roofing continues tradition of gas giveaway for single parents - KTVB.com

REPORTING FOR 2019-12-04 | WCX19.ORG: We have done an in-depth analysis of how BECN has been trading over the last 2 weeks and the past day especially. On its latest session, Beacon Roofing Supply, Inc. (NASDAQ:BECN) opened at 28.89, reaching a high of 28.98 and a low of 28.22 before closing at a price of 28.69. There was a total volume of 488527.

VOLUME INDICATORS FOR BEACON ROOFING SUPPLY, INC. (NASDAQ:BECN): We saw an accumulation-distribution index of 943.21145, an on-balance volume of 28.93, chaikin money flow of 15.88889 and a force index of 1.3248. There was an ease of movement rating of -0.00342, a volume-price trend of -3.5412 and a negative volume index of 1000.0.

VOLATILITY INDICATORS FOR BEACON ROOFING SUPPLY, INC. (NASDAQ:BECN): We noted an average true range of 0.71112, bolinger bands of 28.9474, an upper bollinger band of 27.8726, lower bollinger band of 28.22, a bollinger high band indicator of 1.0, bollinger low band indicator of 1.0, a central keltner channel of 28.69667, high band keltner channel of 28.60667, low band keltner channel of 28.78667, a high band keltner channel indicator of 1.0 and a low band keltner channel indicator of 1.0. There was a donchian channel high band of 28.22, a donchian channel low band of 28.22, a donchian channel high band indicator of 1.0, and a donchian channel low band indicator of 1.0.

TREND INDICATORS FOR BEACON ROOFING SUPPLY, INC. (NASDAQ:BECN): We calculated a Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) of 0.00853, a MACD signal of 0.00474, a MACD difference of 0.00379, a fast Exponential Moving Average (EMA) indicator of 28.22, a slow Exponential Moving Average (EMA) indicator of 28.22, an Average Directional Movement Index (ADX) of unknown, an ADX positive of 20.0, an ADX negative of 20.0, a positive Vortex Indicator (VI) of 1.0, a negative VI of 1.0, a trend vortex difference of 0.26029, a trix of -10.22423, a Mass Index (MI) of 1.0, a Commodity Channel Index (CCI) of 66.66667, a Detrended Price Oscillator (DPO) of 4.08065, a KST Oscillator (KST) of -126.33345 and a KST Oscillator (KST Signal) of -126.33345 (leaving a KST difference of 2.94112). We also found an Ichimoku rating of 28.935, an Ichimoku B rating of 28.935, a Ichimoku visual trend A of 32.58865, an Ichimoku visual trend B of 32.25505, an Aroon Indicator (AI) up of 4.0 and an AI indicator down of 4.0. That left a difference of 4.0.

MOMENTUM INDICATORS FOR BEACON ROOFING SUPPLY, INC. (NASDAQ:BECN): We found a Relative Strength Index (RSI) of 50.0, a Money Flow Index (MFI) of 50.75395, a True Strength Index (TSI) of -100.0, an ultimate oscillator of -22.88706, a stochastic oscillator of 844.44444, a stochastic oscillator signal of 844.44444, a Williams %R rating of 744.44444 and an awesome oscillator of 0.37017.

RETURNS FOR BEACON ROOFING SUPPLY, INC. (NASDAQ:BECN): There was a daily return of -12.63335, a daily log return of 1.33758 and a cumulative return of 1.34656.

What the heck does all of this mean? If you are new to technical analysis, the above may be gibberish to you, and thats OK (though we do advise learning these things). The bottom line is that AS OF 2019-12-04 (if you are reading this later, the analysis will be out of date), here is what our deep analysis of technical indicators are telling us for Beacon Roofing Supply, Inc. (NASDAQ:BECN)

DISCLAIMER: We are not registered investment advisers and the above analysis should be taken at face value only. We strongly advise against buying or selling Beacon Roofing Supply, Inc. (NASDAQ:BECN) based solely on our analysis above, and are not responsible for any losses that you may incur if you choose make any investment decisions based on the above.

Mailing address: Stresemannstr. 82, Wallerfangen Saarland, 66798Phone contact: 06831 88 85 65Email address: [emailprotected]

Originally posted here:
Beacon Roofing Supply, Inc. (NASDAQ:BECN) Is Moving Here's Why (2019-12-04) - WCX19