The U.S. Interior Department proposed to offer all available unleased areas in federal waters in the Gulf of Mexico for oil and gas leasing in November, according to a July 17 press release. The auction marks the seventh offshore sale under the 2017-2022 leasing program. The sale was initially scheduled for August, but was postponed…...
Renewables’ share of Colorado’s electricity generation grew from 10 percent to 25 percent between 2010 and 2019, according to a July 23 report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Wind generation more than tripled since 2010, providing nearly 20 percent of the state’s electricity generation in 2019. Renewable electricity generation increased by more than double…...
The Michigan Public Service Commission on July 23 issued six orders approving utilities’ renewable energy proposals, including eight power purchase contracts between Consumers Energy Company and the members of the Independent Power Producers Coalition of Michigan. The contracts are expected to reduce costs by nearly $2.6 million over the life of the contracts. Six of…...
The U.S. Interior Department on July 23 approved the issuance of rights-of-way permits for the Alaska LNG Project across federal lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management and National Park Service. The $40-$45 billion project, developed by Alaska Gasline Development Corp. in partnership with BP and ExxonMobil, is expected to be the largest in…...
The U.S. Energy Department on July 20 announced an investment of approximately $64 million in 2020 for 18 projects to support hydrogen research and development under the “H2@Scale” initiative. The program is focused on wide-scale hydrogen production and utilization across multiple energy sectors to support resilience in power generation and transmission. The funding will focus…...
The South Carolina Court of Common Pleas Thirteenth Judicial Circuit on July 21 approved a $520 million settlement to refund customers of state-owned Santee Cooper for costs incurred toward the construction of the abandoned VC Summer nuclear power project. The deal includes a four-year rate freeze by the utility, constituting an additional $510 million benefit…...
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat, on July 21 announced solicitations seeking up to 4 gigawatts of renewable capacity, including 2.5 gigawatts of offshore wind and 1.5 gigawatts of land-based large-scale projects. In addition, a solicitation for $400 million in multi-port investment requires offshore wind generators to collaborate with any of the 11 prequalified…...
The New York Public Service Commission on July 16 approved the “Make-Ready Initiative” to expedite the deployment of electric vehicle charging infrastructure. The initiative aims to deploy more than 50,000 charging stations by 2025, coinciding with the state’s goal of reaching 850,000 zero-emission vehicles by that year. The commission approved a budget of $701 million,…...
The U.S. Energy Department announced funding for cost-shared projects focused on developing the critical components required under its Coal FIRST initiative, according to a July 17 news release. The department selected seven projects to share the $37 million federal funding and released a new funding opportunity announcement for $81 million. The initiative aims to develop…...
The White House Council on Environmental Quality on July 16 updated regulations implementing the National Environmental Policy Act, the first comprehensive revision since 1978. The move seeks to facilitate timely reviews under the law, which requires federal agencies to consider the environmental impacts of major actions. The rule creates a time limit of one year…...
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on July 16 rejected a petition by the New England Ratepayers Association seeking federal jurisdiction over energy sales from rooftop solar and other distributed generation facilities on the customer side of the retail meter. The commission found that the association failed to identify a “specific controversy or harm” that should…...
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on July 16 revised regulations implementing the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978, or PURPA, which established requirements for utilities to purchase power from small independent electricity generators and cogeneration facilities. The final rule increases flexibility for states in establishing rates at which qualifying facilities sell their output and…...
