The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities will consider changes to the solar renewable portfolio standard at its Feb. 27 meeting. The board issued a straw proposal last December to phase out the current Solar Renewable Energy Certificate, or SREC, Program following legislation enacted in May 2018, which closes the program when 5.1 percent of…...
The Connecticut Light and Power Company submitted its final procurement plan for the approval of 15-year contracts to purchase class I renewable energy credits from renewable energy projects in the state, totaling $2.83 million per year in contract commitments from low emissions renewable energy projects and $5.6million per year for medium and large zero emission projects. The company’s Year…
The Ohio Public Utilities Commission on Feb. 20 approved rate reductions for Duke Energy’s electric customers to account for the federal tax law, which slashed the corporate income tax rate to 21 percent from 35 percent, effective Jan. 1, 2018. Customers will see a $2.13 decrease in their monthly bills. The company will refund $8.1 million…...
The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission on Feb. 20 adopted requirements that each of the state’s regulated utilities must adhere to in filing integrated distribution plans. Utilities must submit their filings biennially starting on Nov. 1, providing a five-year action plan, as well as a ten-year plan for distribution system development. Each utility is required to provide system…
The Arizona Public Service Company is set to install 850 megawatts of energy storage and at least 100 megawatts of new solar by 2025, according to a Feb. 21 press release. The first part of the new plan is upgrading existing solar plants with 200 megawatts of battery storage systems. The utility is partnering with…
The Missouri Public Service Commission has decided to open a proceeding to study ways of accelerating the development and deployment of electric vehicle charging infrastructure in the state, after a court decision last year determined that these assets were under the commission’s jurisdiction. The process is open to any input from stakeholders, but the commission…
The Connecticut House Energy and Technology Committee Committee discussed legislation on Feb. 22 that would better define the requirements imposed on electric suppliers regarding telesales calls and face-to-face marketing as well as empowering the state regulator to enforce them. The bill defines telesales calls and face-to-face marketing, setting rules for these interactions with customers such as recording the entirety of the…
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Feb. 21 cleared Venture Global Calcasieu Pass LLC’s proposed liquefied natural gas export project in Cameron Parish, Louisiana and TransCameron Pipeline LLC’s associated natural gas pipeline. Commissioner Cheryl LaFleur voted for the project commending the commission’s new approach to calculate the direct greenhouse emissions of the project. Commissioner Richard…...
New England’s power system is strong, but the changing resource mix, driven by industry trends and state policies, is making operations more complex, according to a Feb. 20 briefing on the state of the region’s grid by Gordon van Welie, president and CEO of ISO New England Inc. Nuclear, oil, and coal-fired power plants that…...
The California Energy Commission on Feb. 20 approved the installation of a battery storage system to the Russell City Energy Center, a 600-megawatt natural-gas fired power plant, to provide black start capability. The project consists of installing 6 to 10 megawatts of lithium-ion batteries, which would be used to start the gas turbines, in order…...
The California Independent System Operator Corporation on Feb. 20 announced that its reliability coordinator service, named RC West, established an oversight committee to “provide guidance and foster consensus on reliability compliance.” RC West has completed 39 service agreements with balancing authorities and transmission operators across the west. The ISO announced last month that it is…...
The Oregon Public Utilities Commission on Feb. 19 opened a proceeding to examine the implementation of the federal Public Utilities Regulatory Policies Act, or PURPA, which requires utilities to purchase power from small independent electricity generators at the “avoided cost” or the cost the utility would spend to procure the electricity itself. The move stems…...
