Janet Jacobs

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Janet Jacobs practices in the Corporate, Securities and Finance practice group and the Renewable Energy practice group. Janet represents clients in corporate governance matters, mergers and acquisitions, corporate, securities and financing transactions, with an emphasis on the development, structuring, financing and acquisition of biofuels, solar and wind projects. She also advises her clients on their business operations and significant corporate transactions.

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PG&E Unveils its Smart Grid Deployment Plan

By Janet Jacobs on Posted in California, Smart Grid
Pacific Gas and Electric Company (“PG&E”) released its Smart Grid Deployment Plan which represents a disciplined and integrated approach to using new monitoring and control technology to provide safe, reliable, responsive and environmentally sustainable service to its customers in Northern and Central California.  The 290-page Plan includes future projects that will take advantage of a … Continue Reading

Report on CPUC Workstop on Electric Energy Storage Workshop

By Janet Jacobs on Posted in Energy Storage
On Tuesday, June 28, 2011, the CPUC held an Electric Energy Storage Workshop as part of its R10-12-007 proceeding for AB 2514, which defines the process by which the CPUC will consider electric energy storage standards for California’s investor owned utilities. A large number of interested stakeholders attended including Stoel Rives’ Seth Hilton and myself. … Continue Reading

DOE Awards $7.5 Million for Nex- Gen Wind Turbines

By Janet Jacobs on Posted in Wind
  Yesterday U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu today announced that six projects have been selected to receive nearly $7.5 million over two years to advance next-generation designs for wind turbine drivetrains.  Drivetrains, which include a turbine’s gearbox and generator, are at the heart of the turbine and are responsible for producing electricity from the rotation … Continue Reading

DOE awards $11M for Geothermal

By Janet Jacobs on Posted in Geothermal
The Department of Energy has selected eight projects to receive up to $11.3 million for the research and development of pioneering novel geothermal production technologies. The  projects (listed below) will conduct Phase 1 feasibility studies, which will include technical and economic modeling and component design. The Department of Energy will choose the projects that will proceed to … Continue Reading

Bar on Military Purchases of Chinese Solar Panels

By Janet Jacobs on Posted in Solar
In a blow to China’s position as the world’s dominant producer of solar panels, the new military authorization law  prevents the Defense Department from buying Chinese-made solar panels, but allows it to buy solar panels from any country that has signed the W.T.O.’s side agreement on government procurement. The W.T.O. Government Procurement Agreement, which requires free trade in government purchases, … Continue Reading

DOE to Fund up to $50 Million for Innovative, Cost-Competitive Solar Energy

By Janet Jacobs on Posted in Solar
Today, the Department of Energy issued a Notice of Intent regarding funding of up to $50 million to test and demonstrate innovative technologies that will lead to cost-competitive solar energy technologies. The Nevada National Security Site will be the test site for cutting-edge solar technologies which can be deployed in the Southwest areas of the United States where there … Continue Reading

$184 Million for Advanced Vehicle Research and Development

By Janet Jacobs on Posted in Cleantech
Today, the Department of Energy (“DOE”) announced that it is accepting applications for up to $184 million over three to five years to accelerate the development and deployment of new efficient vehicle technologies that will reduce U.S. dependence on foreign oil, save drivers money, and limit carbon pollution. Projects will span the broad spectrum of … Continue Reading

DOE Announces $30 Million for Next Generation Biofuels Research

By Janet Jacobs on Posted in Biofuels
DOE announced on December 14, 2010 that funds will be made available for small-scale process integration projects that support the development of advanced biofuels. The biofuels could replace gasoline or diesel without requiring special upgrades or changes to the vehicle or fueling infrastructure. The funding opportunity announcement, reference number DE-FOA-0000337 (the “FOA”) will provide up to … Continue Reading

First Federally Coordinated Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Export Initiative

By Janet Jacobs on Posted in Renewable
  On Tuesday, December 7, 2010, U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke, together with several other  government agencies, announced a Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Export Initiative.   The Initiative brings together the Trade Promotion Coordinating Committee Working Group on Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency,  the Export-Import Bank of the United States, the Overseas Private Investment Corporation,  the … Continue Reading

DOE Offers First Loan Guarantee for Transmission Project

By Janet Jacobs on Posted in Transmission
DOE announced on October 19 its offer of a conditional commitment for a $350 million loan guarantee to develop the One Nevada Transmission Line (ON Line). ON Line consists of a new 500-kilovolt transmission line that will run 235 miles from Ely, Nevada to just north of Las Vegas. The project will carry approximately 600 … Continue Reading

New Defender of the PACE Program

By Janet Jacobs on Posted in Solar
  There is new hope for the PACE financing program (the acronym stands for: “property-assessed clean energy”). The PACE program was started in Berkeley, CA in 2007 and made loans available to homeowners to help defer the cost of renewable energy/energy efficiency equipment and installations. The loan funds come from municipalities who raise the money through bonds … Continue Reading

Summary of Federal Biofuels Incentives

By Janet Jacobs on Posted in Biofuels
The Congressional Research Service has put out a useful and concise summary of federal programs that provide direct and indirect incentives for biofuels. The report lists over eighteen active programs administered by five different agencies including the U.S. Department of Agriculture; Department of Energy and Internal Revenue Service.   For each program, the report lists the authorizing … Continue Reading

United States and Iceland Collaborate to Develop and Deploy Clean Geothermal Energy

By Janet Jacobs on Posted in Geothermal
The United States and Iceland have signed a bilateral agreement aimed at increasing the world’s understanding of advanced geothermal technologies and accelerating their deployment. The new agreement is designed to allow the US and Iceland to exchange researchers, establish joint projects, and create educational opportunities to accelerate advanced geothermal development, and to identify key obstacles to … Continue Reading

DOE:$15 million for Innovative Geothermal Recovery Methods

By Janet Jacobs on Posted in Geothermal
On Friday, the US Department of Energy ("DOE") announved a $15 million funding opportunity for geothermal energy research and development projects that: Address the environmental risk factors associated with heat recovery from the earth’s subsurface (earthquakes, water consumption and pollution); Add innovative methods for extracting heat from geotlogic formations, particularly permeable sedimentary formations; and Reduce financial … Continue Reading

SHOW ME THE MONEY: DOE Offers $1.85 Billion in Solar Loan Guarantees

By Janet Jacobs on Posted in Show Me the Money
Saturday was a great day for solar energy: the DOE offered two conditional loan guarantee commitments: $1.45 billion loan guarantee to Abengoa Solar Inc. for the construction and start-up of a concentrating solar power (CSP) generating facility in Solana, Arizona and a $400 million loan guarantee to Abound Solar Manufacturing for the assembly of state-of-the-art … Continue Reading

DOE Issues RFI on Wind Energy Workforce Development Roadmap

By Janet Jacobs on Posted in Wind
  The DOE has issued a Request For Information ("RFI") to get the public’s input on the development of a Wind Energy Workforce Roadmap, which will provide details on the current workforce landscape in the wind industry as well as future steps necessary to train and develop a green workforce for the sector.  Ultimately, the … Continue Reading

DOE Awards $24 Million for Algal Biofuels Research

By Janet Jacobs on Posted in Algae, Biomass
    On Monday, the DOE announced that is had awarded up to $24 million to three research consortiums for the commercialization of algae-based biofuels. The three consortia include partners from academia, national laboratories, and private industries located across the country. Projects are expected to continue for three years.   The three awardees are: The … Continue Reading

DOI/DOE MOU for Offshore Renewable Energy Projects

By Janet Jacobs on Posted in Ocean/Wave Energy, Wind
  Yesterday, the Department of the Interior (“DOI”) and the Department of Energy (“DOE”)  entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (“MOU”) to bring together resources and expertise from both agencies as the US develops commercial-scale offshore wind and water energy projects on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf.   The wind and water resources off the … Continue Reading

$6 Million for Short Term Wind Energy Forecasting

By Janet Jacobs on Posted in Wind
  Yesterday DOE announced that up to $6 million to be awarded to one or two teams over two years to improve short-term wind energy forecasting, which will enhance the ability of utilities and electricity grid operators to forecast wind power generation.  One to two competitively-selected recipient team(s) will work with DOE and the National Oceanic and … Continue Reading

DOE: up to $11 Million for Biofuels Technology Development

By Janet Jacobs on Posted in Biofuels, Biomass
  The DOE announced today that it will provide up to $11 million over three years for improving the conversion via pyrolysis of non-food biomass to biofuels, that can use the existing fueling infrastructure. (Pyrolosis is the process that decomposes biomass using heat without oxygen to produce bio-oil.)   Successful applications for projects will (among … Continue Reading

DOE to Invest $6 Million in Midsize Wind Turbine Technology Development

By Janet Jacobs on Posted in Wind
  DOE today announced that it will provide up to $6 million over 2 years for the development, testing, and commercialization of domestically manufactured, midsize wind turbines (i.e. nameplate capacity of between 100 kilowatts and 1 megawatt). DOE anticipates making up to four grants under this competitive solicitation and is looking to support U.S. turbine manufacturers … Continue Reading

DOE: $25 M for Solid State Lighting

By Janet Jacobs on Posted in Smart Energy
  The DOE announced that it will allocate $25 million to two Solid-State Lighting (“SSL”) funding opportunities to advance R&D and market adoption of SSL technology. TThis will be the seventh round of such funding that has been awarded in recent years.   Funding is subject to congressional appropriations and will focus on the following: … Continue Reading

FOA: $20 Million for Innovative Geothermal Technologies

By Janet Jacobs on Posted in Geothermal
The U.S. Department of Energy (“DOE”) today announced up to $20 million for research, development, and demonstration of cutting-edge geothermal technologies. DOE want projects that demonstrate the technical and economic feasibility of certain non-conventional geothermal energy technologies, such as low-temperature fluids, geothermal fluids recovered from oil and gas wells, and highly pressurized geothermal fluids. Specifically, the funds … Continue Reading

May 11 Public Hearing Regarding Changes to Washington’s Renewable Energy System Cost Recovery Program

By Janet Jacobs on Posted in Tax
Our Seattle tax attorneys (listed below) have told us about Washington Department of Revenue’s  ("DOR") public hearing on May 11 regarding proposed amendments to its rule governing administration of the Renewable Energy System Cost Recovery program. Kim Risenmay at (206) 386-7525 or gkrisenmay@stoel.com Carl Lewis at (206) 386-7688 or cslewis@stoel.com Erin Toland at (206) 386-7563 … Continue Reading
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