EUCI Blog

Energize Weekly, April 10, 2019 A Brazilian liquefied natural gas (LNG) power plant project, developed by an international joint venture, has received a $288 million loan from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a sister organization to the World Bank. The 15-year loan will cover development and operation of the plant in the state of Rio…

Energize Weekly, April 10, 2019 Duke Energy has filed a plan with North Carolina regulators for a three-year, $76 million pilot plan to add electric vehicle (EV) charging stations and promote the growth of the vehicles in the state. “North Carolina’s current pace of EV infrastructure availability cannot support the current and future pace of…

Energize Weekly, April 10, 2019 A well-designed electric vehicle (EV) program in Illinois could create $2.6 billion in consumer benefits, according to the Citizens Utility Board (CUB), a consumer watchdog group. The key to those benefits is simultaneously promoting the adoption of EVs and creating a rate structure that optimizes the charging of those vehicles…

Energize Weekly, April 10, 2019 The Colorado legislature has passed a sweeping oil and gas bill aimed at giving local government more control over drilling, but only after adding a few industry-friendly amendments. Gov. Jared Polis has indicated he will sign the bill. The legislation, Senate Bill 181, came in response to protests from residents…

Energize Weekly, April 3, 2019 The Maryland legislature is taking a second stab at raising the state’s standard for renewable electricity generation to 50 percent by 2030 from the current target of 25 percent in 2020. Last year, a similar effort stalled as a key committee—the House of Delegates’ Economic Committee—rejected the legislation. The 25…

Energize Weekly, April 3, 2019 U.S. natural gas consumption—led by demand from the utility sector—rose 10 percent in 2018 to a record 82.1 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d), according to data form the federal Energy Information Administration (EIA). While domestic natural gas use rose across all sectors, the sharpest year-on-year increase, 3.8 Bcf/d, was…

Energize Weekly, April 3, 2019 The cost of two of the most expensive clean electricity technologies—lithium-ion batteries and offshore wind turbines—are dropping in price more quickly than had been forecast, according to a Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) analysis. Since the first half of 2018, the levelized cost of lithium-ion batteries is down 35 percent…

Energize Weekly, April 3, 2019 Exports of U.S. coal reached their highest level in five years, 116 million short tons, in 2018, even as domestic consumption continued to decline. The figures are based on foreign trade data from the U.S. Census Bureau. The U.S. exported 15 percent of its coal production in 2018, particularly metallurgical…

Energize Weekly, April 3, 2019 Nearly three-quarters of the nation’s coal-fired electric generation could be matched or undercut on cost by local wind and solar installations, according to analysis by Energy Innovation and Vibrant Clean Energy. The report projects that the portion of the coal-fired fleet economically challenged by renewable generation will grow from 211…

Energize Weekly, March 27, 2019 Global wind power generation grew by 50.2 gigawatts (GW) in 2018, a 4 percent increase over 2017, according to energy consultant Wood Mackenzie’s Global Wind Power Market Outlook Update: Q1 2019 report. It was the third biggest year for wind installations, and the pace was set by China, with a…

Energize Weekly, March 27, 2019 Renewable and nuclear generation—which combined account for about 37 percent of the nation’s electricity—both set records in the U.S. in 2018, according the federal Energy Information Administration (EIA). Renewables generated a record 742 million megawatt-hours (MWh) in 2018, almost double the production in 2008 and accounted for 17.6 percent of…

Energize Weekly, March 20, 2019 U.S. natural gas production set records in 2018 for the largest year-on-year increase, 11 percent, and overall production, average 101.3 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d), according to the federal Energy Information Administration. Domestic gas production measured as market production and dry-gas production also set records at 89.69 Bcf/d and…