Happy Friday, everyone. We’ll skip the banter this morning and cut straight to the chase…

Energy news this week has been dominated by a terrible oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Late yesterday, British Petroleum (BP) acknowledged that oil is seeping at a rate of 5,000 barrels per day — far faster than previously estimated. Welders are working to fashion a giant dome, which will be used to cap the well. But, according to experts, it may be 90 days before the flow of oil is stopped. The U.S. Navy has joined the response effort. Meanwhile, the White House announced it will place on hold plans for new offshore drilling rights until full investigation has been completed. When all is said and done, this Gulf spill could be larger and more damaging than the infamous Exxon Valdez spill in 1989. See pictures of the accident and ensuing mayhem, via Time.

BYD, the Chinese battery maker (not to be confused with PYT, the Michael Jackson classic) is coming to Los Angeles, California. The Chinese company will open a new U.S. headquarters in L.A., possibly at the site of a former car dealership at 1800 S. Figueroa Street, via the Contra Costa Times. Now, I don’t know BYD’s chairman, Wang Chuan-fu, but I sure like how he talks. Speaking about the company’s plans to open an HQ in America, he said “BYD stands for build your dreams. We have three dreams for here.” Let’s hope one of those dreams is creating super-efficient, low-cost batteries for the next generation of electrified cars in America. Imagine filling up your car with energy that comes at least partly from the sun.

This is the kind of story I love: a family-owned hardware store in Orange City, Florida, is installing a 10-kilowatt solar electric system atop its 6,000-square-foot building, via the Daytona News Bulletin.

The City of Cupertino, California will work with Siemens, the engineering firm, to lower its utility bills, via San Jose Mercury News. Among the items listed under the $2.1 million contract, Siemens will retrofit the city’s streetlights and irrigation system. Granted, these aren’t the sexiest of energy-efficiency upgrades. But every kilowatt-hour saved is a kilowatt-hour earned… These small measures really add up.

Atlantic City, New Jersey is putting solar on poles, via PressOfAtlanticCity.com. Atlantic City Electric will “begin testing a new way to power up the power grid: solar panel systems installed on utility poles.” Under a $515 million New Jersey solar energy plan, the state’s main utility, PSE&G, set out to install similar solar panel systems atop 200,000 utility poles across its service territory.

In Arizona solar news, APS — the state’s largest utility — is looking for somebody, anybody, to build a renewable energy project between two and 15 megawatts in size, via the Phoenix Business Journal. Requests for proposal (RFPs) are due June 24; a bidders conference is scheduled for May 20. APS is soliciting RFPs in an effort to meet its obligations under Arizona’s renewable portfolio standard (RPS). Had enough with the acronyms? Well, I’ve got one more for you.

T.G.I.F. Thanks for reading. Have a great weekend — we’ll see you back here on Monday.