EUCI Blog

By Mark Jaffe, EUCI energy writer U.S utilities have been caught “flat-footed” in the face of the soaring demand for electricity from data centers and manufacturing plants, according to a Wood Mackenzie study. Wood Mackenzie is tracking 134 gigawatts (GW) of proposed data centers across the U.S., a 68% increase from the 50 GW in…

By Mark Jaffe, EUCI energy writer The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has canceled $3.7 billion in grants to industries aimed at cutting carbon emissions and improving energy efficiency at facilities ranging from cement kilns to a ketchup factory. “DOE found that these projects failed to advance the energy needs of the American people, were…

By Mark Jaffe, EUCI energy writer The combination of coal-fired power plant closures, spurred by state and federal initiatives, and generous tax credits for new electric generation under the Inflation Reduction Act created a flood in renewable energy projects now waiting to get connected to the grid. “The surge in investment and development has overwhelmed…

By Mark Jaffe, EUCI energy writer The Southwest Power Pool (SPP) – serving all or part of 14 states from Texas to North Dakota – will need as much as $263 billion in new generation and transmission through 2050 to support a peak demand projected to rise 40% to 80%. Those investments can be made…

By Mark Jaffe, EUCI energy writer Efforts to expand and modernize electric grids around the world – to cope with growing demand for power and a shift to renewable generation – are struggling to keep pace in the face of supply chain bottlenecks, according to an International Energy Agency (IEA) report. “Prices and procurement times…

By Mark Jaffe, EUCI energy writer Facing uncertainty and financial risks over the potential impact of tariffs on Canadian electricity imports, New England and New York grid operators are seeking permission from federal regulators to add a surcharge to cover import duties. ISO New England said in a filing to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission…

By Mark Jaffe, EUCI energy writer Declines in hydropower output, caused by low stream flows in the Pacific Northwest, are forcing the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) to buy more wholesale power leading to a projected $44 million loss. The agency had set a target of $70 million in revenues – so the gap between the…

By Mark Jaffe, EUCI energy writer Frosty New England may not seem the best region for full-scale home-heating electrification, but while such a move might double demand, it could reduce the combined cost of natural gas and electricity by 29%, according to a Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) study. With its cold winters, significant rural…

By Mark Jaffe, EUCI energy writer New York State is exploring how advanced nuclear power can be part of the state’s push to clean and dependable electricity and will develop a “master plan” for nuclear development, while exploring cost-sharing options with other states. Gov. Kathy Hochul said the state will also support the plan by…

By Mark Jaffe, EUCI energy writer Six consumer advocates – across four states and the District of Columbia – have filed a complaint with federal regulators contending that the rate design of the country’s largest grid, the PJM Interconnection, is creating “crushing” capacity prices. For the 2025-2026 delivery year, those capacity prices jumped sevenfold to…

Four Kansas GOP members working to blunt federal power on transmission line corridor September 13, 2024 Four Republicans in the Kansas congressional delegation Friday offered support for legislation limiting federal authority to take control of private property for development of a national electric transmission corridor. The bill backed by U.S. Reps. Tracey Mann and Ron…

NTEC receives DOE funding to study Four Corners carbon capture September 16, 2024 A minority owner of the Four Corners Power Plant received federal funding to study retrofitting the coal-fired generating station with carbon capture technology. The Navajo Transitional Energy Company—an enterprise division of the Navajo Nation—announced this week that it has received $6.5 million…