SoCalGas to provide water, energy conservation solutions to reach carbon emissions goals by 2045 August 19, 2022 SoCal Gas announced Tuesday that it would implement several measures to conserve water and energy as part of its plan to meet net-zero carbon emission goals by 2045. The company said it recently…
Pennsylvania energy companies increasing prices next month
Pennsylvania energy companies increasing prices next month Aug 10, 2022 The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission is notifying residents and businesses that electric generation prices for some customers are expected to rise on Sept. 1, 2022. According to PUC, approximately half of Pennsylvania’s major electric distribution companies (EDCs) will reset their…
Developers set to add 44 gigawatts of new generation to the U.S. grid, EIA says
Developers set to add 44 gigawatts of new generation to the U.S. grid, EIA says Energize Weekly, August 17, 2022 Fifteen gigawatts (GW) of new utility-scale electric generating capacity were added to U.S. grid in the first half of 2022, with another 29 GW projected to come online by year’s…
Study finds 100% renewables would pay off within 6 years
Study finds 100% renewables would pay off within 6 years AUGUST 8, 2022 New research from Stanford University researcher Mark Jacobson outlines how 145 countries could meet 100% of their business-as-usual energy needs with wind, water, solar and energy storage. The study finds that in all the countries considered, lower-cost…
Climate bill cuts carbon emissions and inflation while boosting economy, studies say
Climate bill cuts carbon emissions and inflation while boosting economy, studies say Energize Weekly, August 10, 2022 The climate, healthcare and budget bill passed by the U.S. Senate Aug. 7 will help curb both greenhouse gas emissions and inflation while providing a modest boost to the economy, according to three…
Utilities join Navajo Nation to bring electricity to thousands
Utilities join Navajo Nation to bring electricity to thousands AUGUST 1ST, 2022 In the year 2022, it is difficult for some to comprehend that over 14,000 families in the United States live without electricity and water, many of whom are Navajo people that reside on the Navajo Nation. With support…
NV Energy seeks right to stick ratepayers with Greenlink bill
NV Energy seeks right to stick ratepayers with Greenlink bill AUGUST 2, 2022 When NV Energy turned to Nevada lawmakers last year to salvage a massive transmission line project that state utility regulators had already partially denied because of the potential cost to ratepayers, the utility’s CEO testified any increase…
Facing trade, tax and economic uncertainties, clean power installations fall in Q2
Facing trade, tax and economic uncertainties, clean power installations fall in Q2 Energize Weekly, August 3, 2022 Beleaguered by uncertainties over the future of tax subsidies and trade policy, new clean power installations plummeted 55 percent in the second quarter of 2022 compared to the same period in 2021. Solar…
3 reasons US coal power is disappearing – and a Supreme Court ruling won’t save it
3 reasons US coal power is disappearing – and a Supreme Court ruling won’t save it July 26, 2022 The U.S. coal industry chalked up a couple of rare wins this summer. First the Supreme Court issued a ruling limiting the government’s ability to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from power…
Firm working for FPL took control of news site, let execs influence coverage, records show
Firm working for FPL took control of news site, let execs influence coverage, records show Jul 25, 2022 Operatives working for Florida Power & Light in the lead-up to the 2020 elections gained control over a Tallahassee-based political news website, making editorial decisions about its content – and allowing executives…
North American power grid faced extreme weather and cyberattack risks in 2021
North American power grid faced extreme weather and cyberattack risks in 2021 Energize Weekly, July 27, 2022 The North American electric grid faced unprecedented challenges from severe weather, cyberattacks and problems with natural gas supplies in 2021, but with except one exception – in Texas – utilities and grid operators…
Biden administration unveils new funding for domestic solar manufacturing
Biden administration unveils new funding for domestic solar manufacturing July 14, 2022 The Biden administration on Thursday said it would pour $56 million into programs aimed at spurring domestic manufacturing of solar energy products as the U.S. seeks to move its clean energy sector away from a dependence on Chinese-made…
Dominion Energy rolls out various energy efficiency programs
Dominion Energy rolls out various energy efficiency programs July 18, 2022 Dominion Energy is expanding energy efficiency and conservation programs, offering various voluntary programs from weatherization assistance for low-income customers to incentives for builders. Read more
DOE to award over $40M for energy efficiency improvements
DOE to award over $40M for energy efficiency improvements July 12, 2022 The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) awarded over $40 million to 21 organizations and five state agencies for energy efficiency improvements. The funding comes from the $3.2 billion Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP), which was created to help repair,…
New South Carolina law could help electric customers save millions
New South Carolina law could help electric customers save millions July 01, 2022 A new law recently passed in South Carolina could save electric customers in that state millions of dollars in costs to restore service after weather events, Duke Energy said Wednesday. The legislation – Senate Bill 1077 –…
Fossil-fuel electric generation challenged in Texas heat wave, raising reliability questions
Fossil-fuel electric generation challenged in Texas heat wave, raising reliability questions Energize Weekly, July 6, 2022 An early season heat wave in May tested the Texas grid, raising questions about the relation of baseload, fossil-fuel generation to wind and solar, according to analysis by the Institute for Energy Economics and…
US launches new federal-state partnership to grow domestic offshore wind supply chain
US launches new federal-state partnership to grow domestic offshore wind supply chain June 27, 2022 The White House has announced that it is joining with 11 governors from East Coast states to launch the Federal-State Offshore Wind Implementation Partnership, which is intended to accelerate America’s growing offshore wind industry. Read…
Ameren aims to charge customers for closure of Rush Island coal plant
Ameren aims to charge customers for closure of Rush Island coal plant June 21, 2022 The costs to close the region’s second-largest power plant, after decades of Clean Air Act violations, are rising. Electric utility Ameren has proposed the construction of $244 million in electric lines and other upgrades before…
New York grid operator sees generating margins shrinking, increased reliability risks
New York grid operator sees generating margins shrinking, increased reliability risks Energize Weekly, June 22, 2022 The buffer of extra generating capacity – the reserve or reliability margin – is shrinking in New York State as fossil-fuel plants retire faster than renewable sources are being added, according to an assessment…
DOE: Here’s where renewable costs are heading
DOE: Here’s where renewable costs are heading 06/14/2022 Recent challenges facing wind and solar likely won’t sink their longer-term progress in the United States, as industries figure out ways to keep the cost of renewable power on a downward slope, according to a new peer-reviewed analysis from Lawrence Berkeley National…
Indiana utilities brace for possible rolling blackouts, Kentucky meeting demands
Indiana utilities brace for possible rolling blackouts, Kentucky meeting demands Jun 13, 2022 Summer is kicking in with heat and humidity this week, and that puts a strain on the power grid to keep up with demand. Parts of Indiana could face rolling blackouts, according to the Midcontinent Independent System…
Lawsuit filed against Mon Power, FirstEnergy after 2021 house fire
Lawsuit filed against Mon Power, FirstEnergy after 2021 house fire June 10, 2022 A lawsuit filed this week in Monongalia County Circuit Court by a Taylor County couple names Monongahela Power Company (Mon Power) and FirstEnergy Solutions Corp. as defendants, along with Mon Power Supervisor for Distribution Technician James Connor…
U.S. Midwest in Danger of Rotating Power Blackouts This Summer
U.S. Midwest in Danger of Rotating Power Blackouts This Summer June 3, 2022 The power grid in the Central United States could be forced to impose rotating blackouts on some of the hottest days of the summer due to rising demand and plant retirements, federal energy officials said in an…
Demand for coal high, but obstacles slow opportunities
Demand for coal high, but obstacles slow opportunities June 4, 2022 Coal production is rebounding slowly in McDowell County as well as in the state, but with the current surge in worldwide as well as domestic demand, the potential market for coal is being hindered by many factors, from manpower…
Here’s what has to happen before CPS Energy can shut down its last coal plant
Here’s what has to happen before CPS Energy can shut down its last coal plant June 6, 2022 In recent months, and with San Antonio facing stricter air quality regulations, calls to diversify CPS Energy’s generation portfolio and speed up the closure of the J.K. Spruce coal-burning power plant have…
New England hits a record low in electricity demand thanks to distributed solar
New England hits a record low in electricity demand thanks to distributed solar Energize Weekly, June 8, 2022 It was a typical spring Sunday afternoon – sunny with temperatures in the 50’s and 60’s – but May 1 was also historic as the demand for electricity in New England dropped…
Duke Energy Wants to Quit Coal Early, But Regulators Say No
Duke Energy Wants to Quit Coal Early, But Regulators Say No May 26, 2022 Duke Energy Corp. planned to close its last six coal power plants in the Carolinas by 2030 to accelerate the company’s carbon-cutting goals. South Carolina regulators said no—ordering the US utility to keep the plants open…
NYSEG and RG&E Announce “Reliable Energy New York” Plans
NYSEG and RG&E Announce “Reliable Energy New York” Plans May 26, 2022 Today, New York State Electric & Gas (NYSEG) and Rochester Gas and Electric (RG&E), subsidiaries of AVANGRID, Inc. (NYSE: AGR), announced the companies have filed proposed changes to delivery rates with the New York State Public Service Commission…
FERC chair on grid: ‘The old way doesn’t work’
FERC chair on grid: ‘The old way doesn’t work’ 05/20/2022 The growing threat of power outages fueled by extreme weather calls for new approaches to grid oversight, the head of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission said yesterday, adding that utilities and grid operators should “think differently.” Read more
West and Midwest U.S. face summer electricity shortfalls due to heat, drought, and fire
West and Midwest U.S. face summer electricity shortfalls due to heat, drought, and fire Energize Weekly, May 25, 2022 The West and Midwest U.S. risk severe electricity shortfalls this summer due to high temperatures, drought, severe storms and wildfire – all driven by a changing climate, according to the North…
California Power Officials Warn of Power Shortfalls This Summer Amid Increasing Strain from Climate Change
California Power Officials Warn of Power Shortfalls This Summer Amid Increasing Strain from Climate Change May 6, 2022 California power regulators are warning of power shortages and possible blackouts this summer as the state’s electrical grid faces increasing strain from drought and extreme heat. “We know reliability is going to…
BPUB customers to see higher bills as program ends
BPUB customers to see higher bills as program ends May 8, 2022 After getting the go-ahead from the Brownsville City Commission on May 3, the Brownsville Public Utility Board announced on May 4 that it will be updating its electric, water and wastewater rates. Read more
Power demand to grow in Tennessee Valley as economy electrifies, TVA CEO says
Power demand to grow in Tennessee Valley as economy electrifies, TVA CEO says April 28, 2022 Tennessee will soon become the No. 1 state for electric vehicle production as part of a power shift that could nearly double electricity demand in the Tennessee Valley over the next three decades, the…
Renewable generation making major inroads on the grid in Texas and California
Renewable generation making major inroads on the grid in Texas and California Energize Weekly, May 4, 2022 The steady increase in renewable energy generation – primarily wind and solar – is beginning to show signs of dramatically impacting electric grids around the country as it claims a larger and larger…
Pennsylvania to join Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative
Pennsylvania to join Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative Apr 22, 2022 After more than 2 years in legal and legislative battles, Pennsylvania is poised to become the twelfth state to join the carbon-cutting effort known as the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative. A Commonwealth Court failed to block the state’s publishing of…
PG&E makes property tax and franchise fee payments to cities and counties
PG&E makes property tax and franchise fee payments to cities and counties 21 APRIL 2022 Pacific Gas and Electric Co. reported this week on the property tax payments it is making to cities and counties this month. The company, which serves more than 16 million Californians, is paying property taxes…
Biden administration unveils $6 billion program to keep nuclear power plants from closing
Biden administration unveils $6 billion program to keep nuclear power plants from closing Energize Weekly, April 27, 2022 The federal government has launched a $6 billion program to support the operation and prevent the closure of any of the nation’s nuclear reactors – seen by the Biden administration as a…
PGE offers a look inside its futuristic new ops center
PGE offers a look inside its futuristic new ops center Apr. 15, 2022 When you flip the light switch or turn up your thermostat, you expect the juice to start flowing. It’s as simple as that. But in an age of distributed power generation and storage, intermittent renewables, electric cars,…
U.S. Is Set to Launch a $6 Billion Effort to Save Nuclear Plants
U.S. Is Set to Launch a $6 Billion Effort to Save Nuclear Plants Apr 18, 2022 The Energy Department is expected to provide details as soon as Monday on a $6 billion program aimed at keeping uneconomical nuclear plants in service, providing a lifeline to an industry that’s seen a…
California utility to pay $55 million for massive wildfires
California utility to pay $55 million for massive wildfires April 11, 2022 Pacific Gas & Electric, the nation’s largest utility, has agreed to pay more than $55 million to avoid criminal prosecution for two major wildfires sparked by its aging Northern California power lines and submit to five years of…
Covid-19 boost in green spending still not enough, IEA says
Covid-19 boost in green spending still not enough, IEA says 04/12/2022 The world’s wealthiest countries are rapidly boosting spending on clean energy, but lower-income nations are struggling to do the same, with higher food and fuel prices bearing down on their already limited finances. The widening gap could challenge the…
Supply-chain issues hobble storage projects but installation still set a record in 2021
Supply-chain issues hobble storage projects but installation still set a record in 2021 Energize Weekly, April 13, 2022 Even in the face of supply-chain problems, energy storage installations set a record in the U.S., and the forecasts have domestic and global capacity growing twentyfold by 2030, according to industry analyses.…
Surging electric bills threaten Calif. climate goals
Surging electric bills threaten Calif. climate goals 04/05/2022 Millions of Californians pay among the highest prices in the nation for electricity, a potential threat to the state’s plans to electrify cars and homes as it battles climate change. Surging electricity prices of the three biggest utilities in the Golden State…
UN report on climate crisis confirms the world already has solutions – but politics are getting in the way
UN report on climate crisis confirms the world already has solutions – but politics are getting in the way April 4, 2022 The world is careening toward levels of global warming that will have irreversible impacts, a new landmark report says, but we already have the solutions — the only…
Xcel wants to close power plant near Pueblo barely a decade after going into operation
Xcel wants to close power plant near Pueblo barely a decade after going into operation Mar 27, 2022 The Colorado Public Utilities Commission tabled a request by Xcel Energy to once again shorten the operating life of the Comanche power station’s Unit 3 near Pueblo, the last of three generating…
Coal plant owners seek to shut 3.2 GW in PJM in face of economic, regulatory and market pressures
Coal plant owners seek to shut 3.2 GW in PJM in face of economic, regulatory and market pressures March 22, 2022 Power plant owners started the process of potentially retiring 3,228 MW of coal-fired generation in the PJM Interconnection’s footprint this month, according to the grid operator’s generator deactivation list. Another 1,024…
Supply chain problems and rising prices are pinching the U.S. solar industry
Supply chain problems and rising prices are pinching the U.S. solar industry Energize Weekly, March 23, 2022 Facing supply chain problems and rising prices, the U.S. solar industry delayed about a third of its utility-scale capacity in the fourth quarter of 2021, and installations are projected to be down in…
Judge wants more research on plan to shut down J.H. Campbell Power Plant
Judge wants more research on plan to shut down J.H. Campbell Power Plant Mar 11, 2022 A Michigan judge is recommending Consumers Energy and the Michigan Public Service Commission do more research before signing off on the utility company’s plan to completely shut down the J.H. Campbell Power Plant in…
Pacific Power seeking 12.2% rate increase in 2023
Pacific Power seeking 12.2% rate increase in 2023 Mar 3, 2022 PacifiCorp wants to raise electricity rates for Oregon customers by more than 12% in 2023 because of higher power costs, general inflationary pressure as well as increasing costs for wildfire planning and mitigation, according to proposals filed Tuesday with…
What the Russia crisis means for U.S. electricity mix
What the Russia crisis means for U.S. electricity mix 03/01/2022 Gasoline prices have spiked in the aftermath of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but the effects of the conflict are also spilling into the U.S. electricity sector, with implications for greenhouse gas emissions and energy policy. Although the crisis isn’t expected…
