PacifiCorp unveiled its draft long-term resource plan on Oct. 3 that proposes to retire 20 of its 24 coal units by the end of the planning period in 2038, reducing coal-fired generation capacity by about 4.5 gigawatts. The plan, which envisions about 7 gigawatts of renewables and storage by 2025, identifies battery installations as part…
The Illinois Commerce Commission denied a request by solar developer Sunrise Energy Ventures LLC to investigate the Illinois Power Agency’s Adjustable Block Program lottery conducted in April to select projects for renewable energy credit, or REC, contracts, according to an Oct. 2 order. The commission found that the lottery is within the discretion granted to…
Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom signed legislation on Oct. 2 directing the Public Utilities Commission to review each retail seller’s annual renewable portfolio standard compliance report and notify a seller if it may be at risk of not satisfying the requirement. The law requires the commission to ensure that load-serving entities carry out their integrated resource…
The Energy Information Administration projects that renewables will collectively provide almost 50 percent of global electricity generation by 2050, with solar being the fastest growing technology, according to its latest International Energy Outlook 2019. Resource availability, renewable policies, regional load growth, and declining technology costs drive EIA’s projected increase in global electricity generation from solar technologies.…
The Delaware Public Service Commission received Delmarva Power & Light Company’s annual renewable portfolio compliance report covering June 1, 2018, to May 31, 2019 compliance year, according to a September 23 filling. The company reports total retail sales of 8,080,249 megawatt-hours, with 17.5 percent from eligible energy resources, including 1.75 percent from solar photovoltaics. Established in…
Utility resource planning is becoming more complex in the fast-changing energy landscape, prompting intense scrutiny from regulators. State measures are transforming the way utilities procure energy in light of continued growth in intermittent large-scale energy, customer-sited generation, demand response, energy efficiency, and clean energy commitments.
The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities announced that state’s community solar program has received an overwhelming response, attracting over 250 applications that represent more than 650 megawatts of capacity, according to a Sept. 26 press release. The three-year pilot, launched in January, has a capacity limit of 75 megawatts for the first year. The…
The number of net-metered facilities in Maryland has been growing in recent years, but the current installed capacity of about 754 megawatts is just over half of the eligible cap, according to the Maryland Public Service Commission’s annual report issued on Sept. 24. The agency does not recommend changes to the cap as it is…
An unprecedented number of states are rushing to procure battery storage resources as the technology is seen as increasingly critical to balance supply and demand on power grids more saturated with intermittent supplies. Thanks to innovation and declining costs, battery technologies are increasingly presenting themselves in utility resource planning, interconnection procedures, renewable energy procurement, and utility pilots.
Duke Energy Corporation aims to achieve net-zero carbon emissions from electric generation by 2050, and cut emissions by at least 50 percent from 2005 levels by 2030, according to a Sept. 17 press release. The company plans to double its renewable energy portfolio by 2025, and continue deploying low-cost natural gas to speed the transition…
Louisiana’s utility commission is putting an end to the state’s net metering scheme for residents with solar generators at the end of the year as the regulator seeks to limit the costs the program imposes on all ratepayers. In a 3-2 vote, commissioners approved a staff proposal to set compensation for residential solar power sold…
The New York Public Service Commission on Sept. 19 authorized New York Transco, a consortium of major utilities, to borrow up to $400 million to upgrade transmission corridors that will allow increased transmission of renewable electricity across the state. In May, Transco sought approval to issue new long-term debt securities to complete the New York…