Energize Weekly, December 26, 2018 The rapid retirement of coal-fired and nuclear power plants can be absorbed by most of the nation, but could stress grids in the Central Plains, Southwest, Rocky Mountain region and the coastal Southeast, according to the North American Electric Reliability Corp. (NERC). NERC, the non-profit regulatory authority overseeing electric reliability…
Energize Weekly, December 26, 2018 New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has set a target of net-zero-carbon electricity generation by 2040, as a broad array of clean energy initiatives continue to move forward in the state. “The federal government still denies climate change, remarkably turning a blind eye to their own government’s scientific report,” Cuomo said…
Energize Weekly, December 19, 2018 The Trump administration solar panel tariffs have taken a bite out of the market with third quarter 2018 installations down 15 percent year over year and additions of utility-scale photovoltaic (PV) cells falling below 1 gigawatt (GW) for first time since 2015. The growth rate for 2018 compared to 2017…
Energize Weekly, December 19, 2018 Oil prices are projected to decline sharply in 2019 as demand remains flat due to slowing economies and weakening currencies—as well as more U.S. oil in the market, according to national and international energy agencies. The federal Energy Information Administration (EIA) last week slashed its projected price for Brent crude…
Energize Weekly, December 19, 2018 Washington Gov. Jay Inslee has unveiled a legislative package aimed at reducing the state’s carbon emissions by 25 percent over 1990 levels, led by phasing out fossil-fuel electricity generation by 2035. The plan focuses in five initiatives: 100 percent clean energy by 2045, moving to electric transportation, a clean fuel…
Energize Weekly, December 19, 2018 The plans to protect and respond to a U.S. grid power failure would be “outmatched” by a catastrophic outage, according to a study by the National Infrastructure Advisory Council (NIAC). The council, which advises the president, recommended a series of initiatives, ranging from action by the National Security Council to…
Energize Weekly, December 19, 2018 A rise in natural gas prices has made coal more competitive, but in the PJM Interconnection, the nation’s largest grid, the usual utility switching to the cheapest fuel has been hamstrung by the closure of mines and coal-fired units. “Conventional wisdom in PJM was that at times of high demand…
Energize Weekly, December 12, 2018 U.S. coal consumption in 2018 is projected by the federal Energy Information Administration (EIA) to fall to 691 million short tons—a 4 percent drop from 2017 and the lowest level in 39 years. “The decline in coal consumption since 2007 is the result of both the retirements of coal-fired power…
Energize Weekly, December 12, 2018 The majority of PacifiCorp’s 22 coal-fired units are more expensive to run that other power market options, the company said in a resource analysis. A total of $586 million could be saved by closing 13 units by 2022, according to the analysis, which is part of the utility’s bi-annual integrated…
Energize Weekly, December 12, 2018 Xcel Energy has set a goal of producing 100 percent “carbon-free” electricity by 2050—making it the first large U.S. utility to set a net-zero carbon standard. The investor-owned utility, which operates in eight western and midwestern states, has set a target of an 80 percent reduction in carbon emissions, from…
Energize Weekly, December 12, 2018 Global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, driven by increased fossil fuel consumption, jumped in 2018. Even with major initiatives to curb carbon, fossil fuels are likely to hold a dominant share of energy production through 2040, according to a series of new studies. Carbon emissions worldwide rose 2.7 percent in 2018,…
Energize Weekly, December 5, 2018 Japan is slowly bringing online nuclear power units, which were shut down in the wake of the Fukushima accident in 2011. In 2018, five units were restarted, raising the total operating units to nine. In 2013, Japan suspended its nuclear fleet—20 nuclear plants with 54 units—for mandatory safety checks and…
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