Power and Renewables

How Enverus Beats Public Data

byDavid Watson

As the process to successfully build profitable renewable assets becomes more challenging, the need for accurate and up-to-date data on the power grid is needed more than ever. Asset owners, developers, engineers and suppliers need to comprehend the power market at scale to be able to make well-informed decisions in a time where the smallest misunderstanding in data can lead to project failure. 

Project data is published across many different websites and in a variety of formats. It can be laborious and inefficient to gather it and make the necessary connections independently. Usually, companies end up relying on a few respected organizations as their source of truth. Commonly trusted sources are independent system operator (ISO) interconnection queues and reports from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA).  

But what happens when this data is not published in a timely manner or is published with incorrect information? Opportunities can be missed, leading to delays in project development, increased costs and losing out to competitors. In an industry where timing and precision are crucial, missing key opportunities can mean the difference between success and failure in securing new projects or investments. Those working in the energy industry need to feel confident in the data they are working with to stay ahead of their competition and set themselves up for the best opportunities. 

This is why many businesses in power markets are turning to trusted data partners to access the most up-to-date and reliable information. However, not all data is created equal, and when millions of dollars are on the line, it’s critical to work with a partner that can deliver the highest quality data with confidence.  

Enverus stands out as the only provider offering the most comprehensive, analytics-ready data, with broader project coverage and delivering more value across the power markets than any other energy data provider. Additionally, Enverus has a dedicated team of analysts across the world who not only parse through data and make connections but also apply their own expertise to uncover insights and enhance the value Enverus provides. Every source is cross-checked and verified before the data is integrated into the Enverus PRISM® platform.  

The team of analysts makes new updates to the dataset every day from major sources like ISO queues, EIA, FERC, utility queues, PUCs, IRPs, RFPs and more. Enverus also goes beyond traditional data sources by tracking information published in less formalized methods, such as reading news articles from across the country and integrating the information, engaging in project contact outreach and searching for project-specific websites.  

In addition to public sources of information, Enverus has also built models to track physical project construction via satellite imagery that allows for better timelines and more exact coordinates. It accurately tracks key project events including land clearing, solar panel installation and the completion of panel installation. Because of our in-depth tracking across many sources, we are often able to find updates in a timelier manner or even improve upon conflicting or unclear information.  

The Amite Solar Project in Tangipahoa County, Louisiana

The Amite Solar Project in Tangipahoa County, LA, first entered the MISO Interconnection Queue in July 2017 and was immediately added to the PRISM platform by our analysts. MISO reported this project as under construction in November 2019; however, there was no physical construction seen in satellite imagery to confirm this status change. In March 2024, Enverus analysts found a news article that confirmed NextEra had just broken ground on the project. Using this news article and satellite imagery as confirmation, Enverus was able to provide a more accurate picture of this project’s development timeline and projected operating date. In this instance, relying solely on MISO information would have resulted in confusion over where this project was being constructed and incorrect assumptions over the length of the construction period. 

Incorrect timeline data from public sources can easily mislead developers, EPCs, suppliers and asset owners, derailing project expectations and significantly affecting long-term opportunity planning. These missteps can lead to delays, cost overruns and missed contracts, including critical PPAs, putting the entire project’s viability at risk. 

The Hopkins Solar Project in Hopkins County, Texas 

The Hopkins Solar Project in Hopkins County, TX, first entered the ERCOT Interconnection Queue in April 2019. Over the next four years, Enverus continually tracked changes to the commercial operation date, capacity, status and involved companies via the ERCOT Interconnection Queue, public documents, news articles, and Texas Chapter 313 applications. Minor land clearing was seen via our in-house solar imagery tracking system in the second half of 2022. In February 2023, major construction was detected. At this point, Enverus changed the project status to under construction. ERCOT does not provide under construction status updates, so this is a value add from Enverus. EIA does provide under construction status information; however, Hopkins Solar was not added to the EIA 860m report until April 2024 – over a year after construction had kicked off. The project was reported to be operational by ERCOT the following month. In this instance, relying solely on EIA results in extremely outdated data that is published too late to result in any business opportunities. Relying solely on the ERCOT Interconnection Queue results in a decent understanding of the project, but key details like exact coordinates, construction status and suppliers would not be available. 

Picture of David Watson

David Watson

David has been with Enverus for almost 4 years, starting as a contractor. He joined the Power and Renewables Research team in 2022 as a Research Analyst. His work encompasses renewable project news, FERC filing integration, utility queue integration and value add, and data clean-up.

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