Energize Weekly, July 3, 2019 The cost of transforming the U.S. electric grid to totally renewable energy in the next 10 to 20 years would be $4.5 trillion given current technology, according to a study by energy-and-industry consultant Wood Mackenzie. At a time of competing climate plans among Democratic presidential candidates and the Green New…
Energize Weekly, June 26, 2019 The value of global fuel subsidies was pushed up to their highest levels in five years, according the International Energy Agency (IEA). IEA data show the estimated value of these subsidies at $424 billion, a 33 percent annual increase. The subsidy estimates for oil, gas and fossil-fuel generated electricity all…
Energize Weekly, June 26, 2019 There is adequate generating reverse to meet summer electricity demands in most of the U.S., while Texas, California and the West may face challenges, according to the North American Reliability Corp. (NERC) 2019 summer assessment. NERC, a nonprofit corporation overseeing regional electricity reliability in the Lower 48 United States, Canada…
Energize Weekly, June 26, 2019 A bill passed by the New York state legislature sets the goal of boosting renewable power, including poorer communities in the transition to clean energy and getting the state to net-zero carbon emissions by 2040 for all economic activity. The legislation, passed on June 20, is supported by Gov. Andrew…
Energize Weekly, June 26, 2019 The strong growth in global energy demand in 2018 is a sign that the world is on an “unsustainable path,” according to the BP Statistical Review of World Energy. Global energy demand was up 2.9 percent and carbon emissions grew by 2 percent in 2018, faster than at any times…
Energize Weekly, June 26, 2019 After Colorado and New Mexico passed clean energy laws giving them more oversight of the Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association, the wholesale power provider is considering seeking federal regulation to blunt the state initiatives. Westminster, Colo.-based Tri-State provides 95 percent of the electricity to 43 rural electric cooperatives in four…
Energize Weekly, June 19, 2019 Some of the most robust state solar energy plans are in states such as Massachusetts and New Jersey, but the most robust solar resource is, perhaps not surprisingly, the Southwest based on performance analysis by the federal Energy Information Administration (EIA). In the analysis of photovoltaic (PV) solar generating capacity…
Energize Weekly, June 19, 2019 Two of the four coal-fired units at Colstrip Power Plant in eastern Montana will close at the end of the year – 30 months ahead of schedule, the operator, Talen Energy, announced on June 11. A controversial legislative effort to save the Colstrip plant died in the Montana legislature this…
Energize Weekly, June 19, 2019 A multipronged, draft energy plan aimed at getting New Jersey to 100 percent clean energy by 2050 was unveiled June 10 by the state Board of Public Utilities (BPU). The plan looks to address transportation, energy consumption by buildings, grid modernization, as well as a net-zero carbon electricity generation and…
Energize Weekly, June 19, 2019 Wind generation, which has been the dominate form of renewable energy for corporate clean energy in power purchase agreements, is running “neck and neck” with solar in 2019, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF). Globally, companies had signed deals for 2.8 gigawatts (GW) of solar and 2.8 GW of…
Energize Weekly, June 19, 2019 U.S. crude oil imports from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) fell in March to 1.5 million barrels a day, the lowest level in 33 years, based on data from the federal Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) “Petroleum Supply Monthly.” The drop to a level not seen since March…
Energize Weekly, June 12, 2019 Massachusetts energy officials have proposed doubling the state’s offshore wind capacity by adding another 1,600 megawatts (MW) by 2030. The state has already awarded one 800-MW offshore project and is set to select another 800-MW project in the fall. After an economic analysis and a review with stakeholders, the Massachusetts…