About 42 gigawatts of new power generating capacity is expected to come online in 2020, with solar and wind accounting for almost 32 gigawatts of the capacity, according to a Jan. 14 report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Wind represents the largest share at 44 percent, followed by solar at 32 percent and natural…
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration issued a final rule addressing safety issues related to underground natural gas storage facilities, according to a Jan. 13 news release. The rule stems from legislation enacted in 2016 that directed the agency to establish minimum federal safety standards for these facilities, following a…
Continued growth in U.S. natural gas production is expected to result in 9 percent lower average prices this year compared to 2019, according to a Jan. 15 report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Natural gas production, which set a new record last year, averaging 92.0 billion cubic feet per day is forecast to rise…
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit on Jan. 7 vacated a permit issued by the Virginia Air Pollution Control Board for Dominion Energy Inc. for the construction of a compressor station to support natural gas transmission through the 600-mile Atlantic Coast Pipeline. The court remanded the permit back to the agency for…
Southern California Gas Company has more flexibility to meet natural gas demand this winter than last year after California regulators approved new rules that make it easier for the company to withdraw gas from its Aliso Canyon storage facility, according to a Dec. 13 report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Working natural gas inventory…
Year-over-year increases in U.S. proved reserves resulted in record-high levels of crude oil and lease condensate, up 12 percent, and natural gas up 9 percent in 2018, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s U.S. Crude Oil and Natural Gas Proved Reserves, Year-End 2018 report. Strong oil and natural gas prices in 2018 drove the increase in…
The Michigan Public Service Commission accepted portions of Upper Peninsula Power Company’s integrated resource plan, including a 125-megawatt solar power contract as the lowest-cost energy supply option, according to a Dec. 6 news release. The agency recommended removal of the company’s proposal to build a 20-megawatt natural gas-fired unit, and called for a more robust…
Venting and flaring of U.S. natural gas reached its highest average annual level of 1.28 billion cubic feet per day in 2018, with North Dakota and Texas accounting for 82 percent of the amount, according to a Dec. 6 report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. As crude oil production has outpaced the buildout of…
Coal-fired power plants with higher operating and maintenance costs are more likely to retire, with about 66 percent of units in the highest operating cost group expected to close between 2019 and 2030, compared to 36 percent in the lowest cost group, according to a Dec. 3 report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The…
The staff of the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission recommended rejecting Puget Sound Energy’s requested electric and natural gas rate hikes, proposing smaller increases instead, according to a Nov. 25 press release. In June, the company applied for $139.9 million, or 6.9 percent, in additional electric revenue and an extra $65.5 million, or 7.9 percent, in…
U.S. energy sector carbon emissions rose by 2.7 percent last year compared to 2017, reaching 5.27 billion metric tons, according to a Nov. 26 report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Emissions in 2018 rose for the first time since 2014, driven by higher natural consumption to meet demand during extreme weather conditions and transportation-related…
Democratic Governor Andrew Cuomo on Nov. 25 announced a settlement with National Grid plc to immediately lift the moratorium on gas service in Long Island, Queens and Brooklyn. The move follows Cuomo’s notification earlier this month threatening to revoke National Grid’s operating license over its inability to provide reliable supply. The utility committed to short-term…
