Metro Jobs Report: Google’s New Job Search Engine, California Energy And More
Lets dig into the latest jobs news …
Rutgers Alternative Energy Earns 2nd Place at Dept of Energy Competition
In partnership with the Rutgers Business School, doctoral student Jubilee Prasad Rao has been rewarded for his alternative energy project that is designed to harnesses the power of waves, which are more predictable than solar and wind.
Cranfield School of Management Energy MBA Arriving In September
Starting this September, the Cranfield School of Management will welcome its first class of students for their new MBA in Energy program. The program will combine business education and energy and power—two of the university’s strengths—to enable MBA students to capitalize on the rapidly changing and expanding energy industry. Continue reading…
Cambridge Judge MBAs Create New Energy Startups
The energy landscape is changing. Fossil fuels are on their way out as half of the global R&D in the energy field has become devoted to developing low carbon alternatives such as solar and wind. The good news is that besides helping the environment, this changing landscape also opens up many unique business opportunities. That’s why schools such as the University of Cambridge’s Judge Business School are helping students explore possible solutions with new energy startups. Continue reading…
Columbia Prof Talks Solar Financial and Technological Woes
Columbia Business School recently published an article that explores the uncertain future of solar energy–strange, considering we are hot on the heels of a bona fide solar feeding frenzy due in no small part to federal tax credits and 70 percent drops in prices due to low-cost Chinese panels.
Columbia professor of professional practice Bruce Usher says, “The challenge to solar has long been who’s got the money to spend up front and who wants to take the risk.” The article explains that SunEdison figured out that the solution was leasing solar systems as opposed to selling them. Their model, which is ideal for reduced risk, spread like wildfire to competitors like Sunrun, SolarCity and Vivint. According to research, “more than 70 percent of residential installations in the three largest American solar markets—California, Arizona, and Colorado—were leased.”
Usher explains the underlying catch-22 of the solar explosion (or should I say implosion?): “In the majority of states today, consumers can switch to solar and save money.” But the squirreled-away cash is a result of net-metering, a process by which customers sell electricity back to the grid. “If you can’t sell electricity back to the grid, the economics of solar are terrible. The vast majority of power generated is in a five-hour window during the day. You can’t use it all, so you need to sell it back to the grid.”
Cameron explains that these grids are clunky, expensive, and nearly obsolete but discarding it altogether isn’t really an option: “A grid connection is a guarantee of power when you need it.” The Energizer bunny just ain’t gonna cut it.
“When it comes to net metering, residential consumers shouldn’t get the full retail rate, but they shouldn’t be cut off from the grid either. The answer is somewhere in between. The government needs to set those rules today, and set them in a way that reflects the way the whole energy system in this country is changing.”
Schools in Houston Metro Area Become Haven for Energy Workers
It’s undeniable that the energy sector all over the country is going through some changes. Last month 20,193 jobs were cut, according to the outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc.
While those numbers might seem glum, there is some hope on the horizon. It seems many of these refugees are headed for business schools to pursue MBA degrees. According to the Wall Street Journal, Rice University’s Jones Graduate School of Business and University of Texas at Austin’s McCombs School of Business have reported increases in applications for their two-year full-time MBA programs from energy-sector candidates. Continue reading…
