Staff members of the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission have reached a partial settlement with Avista on the company’s request to hike electric and natural gas rates for its customers, according to a Nov. 21 press release. The proposed settlement lays out an agreement that recovers in rates the remaining costs associated with Avista’s partial…
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Nov. 21 established a new method to determine the return on equity, or ROE, for setting jurisdictional rates charged by public utilities. The agency applied the new process in complaint proceedings against the transmission owners of Midcontinent Independent System Operator, concluding that their existing 12.38 percent ROE was unjust…
The New York Independent System Operator Inc. has adequate supplies to meet the projected demand for electricity and maintain necessary operating reserves during the 2019-20 winter, according to a Nov. 21 news release. The power system is expected to have a total resource capacity of 43,346 megawatts including generation, imports, and demand response this winter.…
Northern States Power Company proposed two residential electric vehicle charging programs to incentivize charging during off peak times, according to a Nov. 20 filing with the Wisconsin Public Service Commission. Customers would be provided with charging equipment and allowed to utilize time-of-use rates to charge their cars. To overcome the upfront cost barrier to EV…
Democratic Governor Phil Murphy signed an executive order on Nov. 19 that raises the state’s offshore wind generation target to 7.5 gigawatts by 2035, more than double the previous goal of 3.5 gigawatts by 2030. The target is the second largest in the nation, next only to New York, which aims to achieve 9 gigawatts…
The California Department of Conservation halted approval of new permits for wells that use high-pressure steam to extract oil from underground formations and instituted a scientific review of pending applications to conduct hydraulic fracturing and other well stimulation practices, according to a Nov. 19 news release. The new measures stem from legislation enacted last month…
California adopted a policy that prohibits state agencies from buying sedans powered by an internal combustion engine, except for certain public safety vehicles, according to a Nov.15 announcement by the Department of General Services. The department is also developing a policy, which will require state agencies, beginning next year, to purchase vehicles from manufacturers that…
The Missouri Public Service Commission has approved a series of changes to Summit Natural Gas of Missouri Inc.’s rates to reflect the wholesale cost of natural gas and the company’s Actual Cost Adjustment factor, according to a November 12 press release. For its Gallatin Division, residential customers will see a rate decrease from $0.43 per hundred cubic feet…
The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has prepared a final environmental impact statement for the Jordan Cove Liquefied Natural Gas project and the Pacific Connector Gas Pipeline, set to be the first natural gas export facility on the U.S. West Coast, stating it would result in some adverse long-term and permanent impacts on the environment, according to…
The Michigan Public Service Commission on Nov. 14 announced that the state’s utility customers will benefit from about $4.1 billion in refunds, following the final round of adjustments to tally the impacts of the federal tax law, which slashed the corporate income tax rate to 21 percent from 35 percent effective Jan. 1, 2018. The agency…
The Public Utility Commission of Texas approved a settlement against a retail electric provider, concerning over-billing of customers and ordering the payment of $35,000 in administrative penalties as well as refunds to 7,610 customers, according to a Nov. 14 press release. The retail energy provider had already provided refunds totaling about $10,500 to almost 40,000 of…
The Illinois Commerce Commission announced that Christy George has been named as its new Executive Director, according to a November 15 press release. When taking over on November 18, 2019, she will be the first female executive director, not serving in an interim capacity, to supervise the Commission Staff and oversee the management of the…