Stream SPE Ltd agreed to pay an administrative penalty for infringing on rules governing payment plans for outstanding customer bills, according to an April 23 settlement filed by the Texas Public Utility Commission staff. The agreement resolves claims related to the investigation into nearly 4,000 improperly applied switch-holds placed on customer accounts between Jan. 1,…
The Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission on April 24 turned down Southern Indiana Gas & Electric Company’s proposal to construct an 850-megawatt natural gas-fired power plant to replace its retiring coal power units. The agency said that the investment in the project, which is estimated to cost about $780 million, could become uneconomic over the long-term…
The Washington legislature on April 22 approved a measure requiring the state’s electricity supply to be carbon-neutral by 2030 and 100 percent carbon-free by 2045. The bill now moves to Democratic Governor Jay Inslee’s desk to be signed into law. Inslee said he looked forward to signing the bill, calling it the nation’s most forward looking…
The Colorado legislature approved legislation on April 24 to set a 10-megawatt maximum size requirement for community solar gardens, up from the current level of 2 megawatts. The bill removes the requirement that subscribers must be from the same county where the solar garden is located, or a county adjacent to that of the facility,…
Democratic Governor Andrew Cuomo on April 23 announced a solicitation for large-scale renewable energy projects in a series of annual procurements under New York’s Clean Energy Standard, which requires half the state’s electricity to come from renewable energy by 2030. The competition is expected to spur over $1 billion in private investment and support around…
The New York Public Service Commission on April 24 directed the state’s electric utilities to terminate the use of outcome-based earning incentives tied to interconnection, finding that the metric no longer presents an opportunity to earn revenue that is connected to improved customer value. The agency found that more effective tools have been developed and…
The Consolidated Edison Company of New York Inc. on April 23 filed a plan with the New York Public Service Commission to implement its “Community Power” project, which will examine ways to boost distributed solar access for low- and moderate-income customers. The company proposes to install solar arrays on the roofs of New York City…
U.S. exports of petroleum products hit a new high last year, reaching an annual average of 5.6 million barrels per day, an increase of 366,000 from 2017, according to an April 23 report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Distillate, propane, and motor gasoline together had the largest share of exports. The large volumes were…
A 26-member coalition of consumer and environmental groups on April 22 asked the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission to examine the ratepayer impacts of the Public Service Company of New Mexico’s planned purchase of its expiring leases of the Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station Unit 1 and Unit 2 in 2023 and 2024, respectively. The…
The Virginia State Air Pollution Control Board on April 19 approved a regulation to lower and cap carbon emissions from fossil fuel-fired power plants with more than 25 megawatts of generation capacity, starting in 2020. The rule will set an initial cap of 28 million tons of carbon dioxide. The agency said that the measure…
Duke Energy will produce or purchase a total of 602 megawatts of renewable energy from 14 projects under North Carolina’s Competitive Procurement of Renewable Energy, 6 of which are owned by the utility, according to an April 17 press release. The 14 projects represent the most competitive out of a total of 78 that were…
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issued its final environmental report for the Gulf LNG liquefaction project, bringing it one step closer to federal approval. The study found that the proposal would result in some adverse environmental impacts, which would be reduced to less than significant levels. The project, proposed by Gulf LNG Liquefaction Company LLC,…
