Minnesota Power Wins Approval for 10-Megawatt Power Purchase Contract to Meet Solar Energy Standard

Virginia Regulators Turn Down Dominion’s Long-Term Resource Plan for ‘Forcing in Higher Cost Resources’

The Virginia Corporation Commission on Dec. 7 directed Dominion Energy Inc. to refile its 2018 integrated resource plan finding that the company failed to establish that the proposal is reasonable and in the public interest. The commission found that the plan includes resources that were not subject to modeling on a least-cost basis. The company…

PJM Proposes Market Design to Integrate Battery Storage

PJM Proposes Market Design to Integrate Battery Storage

PJM Interconnection LLC filed revisions with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission for market rules that would provide greater flexibility for energy storage resources participating in the wholesale market to manage system operations when charging, discharging or providing continuous electrical service across their full dispatchable range. PJM said the proposal includes modifications, where necessary, to the capacity, energy…

PJM Reports Adequate Resources to Meet Winter Peak Electricity Demand

PJM Reports Adequate Resources to Meet Winter Peak Electricity Demand

PJM Interconnection expects to have 185,611 megawatts of resources available to meet the forecasted peak demand of 135,506 megawatts, according to a Dec. 5 press release. The grid operator said its system is ready to meet needs despite a “less-certain winter weather forecast,” noting that climate models indicate a warmer season but similar studies point…

Texas Faces Tighter Power Reserves Amid Growing Demand for Oil, Gas Drilling, Cancelled Generation Projects

Texas Faces Tighter Power Reserves Amid Growing Demand for Oil, Gas Drilling, Cancelled Generation Projects

The Electric Reliability Council of Texas unveiled a report on Dec. 4, which forecasts planning reserve margin for summer 2019 to be 8.1 percent, which is 2.9 percent lower than the previous projection issued in May. The Capacity, Demand and Reserve report contains five-year projections for planning reserve margins – the difference between the total…

D.C. Shoots for 100 Percent Renewables by 2032, Joining Wave of Ambitious Clean Energy Mandates

D.C. Shoots for 100 Percent Renewables by 2032, Joining Wave of Ambitious Clean Energy Mandates

The Council of the District of Columbia voted unanimously on Nov. 27 to advance a bill that would double the renewable energy portfolio standard to 100 percent by 2032, from the current target of 50 percent. The bill, which amends the Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard Act of 2004, would require utilities operating in the District…

Duke Energy Progress to Return $104 Million in Federal Tax Cut Savings to North Carolina Customers

Duke Energy Progress to Return $104 Million in Federal Tax Cut Savings to North Carolina Customers

The North Carolina Utilities Commission on Nov. 26 approved Duke Energy Progress LLC’s proposed decrement rate to reflect about $103.88 million in annual revenue impact from the federal tax law that slashed income tax rates to 21 percent from 35 percent effective Jan. 1. The change will offset a rate hike slated to go into…

NV Energy Seeks to Add 350 Megawatts of Renewables, Storage in Nevada

EDF Renewable Energy Wins U.S. Approval for 500-Megawatt Solar Project in California

The Bureau of Land Management authorized EDF Renewable Energy Inc.’s Palen Solar Project, a 500-megawatt solar photovoltaic facility that would span 3,478 acres of federal lands in Riverside County, California. The project, expected to come online in 2020, would be located in the bureau’s Solar Energy Zone and Development Focus Area that has been designated…

PJM Finds ‘No Imminent Threat’ to Fuel Security, Seeks Market-Based Solutions to Address Long-Term Concerns

PJM Finds ‘No Imminent Threat’ to Fuel Security, Seeks Market-Based Solutions to Address Long-Term Concerns

PJM Interconnection LLC released its fuel security analysis on Nov. 1 finding that its system is reliable and can endure prolonged periods of highly stressed conditions. The study analyzed over 300 scenarios that could occur from 2023 considering generation retirements, customer demand, fuel delivery, and fuel disruptions. The results underscored that in a sustained cold…

Indiana Regulator Slashes Indianapolis Power & Light’s Revenue Hike by Half

Indiana Regulator Slashes Indianapolis Power & Light’s Revenue Hike by Half

The Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission approved a settlement increasing Indianapolis Power & Light’s annual revenues by about $43.9 million, resulting in a $5.18 hike in monthly residential bills, according the agency’s Oct. 31 press release. In February, the utility lowered its revenue request to $96.7 million from its initial request of $124.5 to account for…

NIPSCO to Retire 2.2 Gigawatts of Coal Generation in Indiana Over Next Decade in Transition to Clean Energy

NIPSCO to Retire 2.2 Gigawatts of Coal Generation in Indiana Over Next Decade in Transition to Clean Energy

Northern Indiana Public Service Company LLC, a subsidiary of NiSource Inc., on Oct. 31 filed its 2018 integrated resource plan with the Indiana Utility Regulatory Authority, detailing a strategy to retire its coal-fired generation portfolio over the next decade and transition to more cost-efficiency renewable energy. The resource plan charts a path to meet customer…

U.S. Energy Department Proposes New Cost-Saving Furnace Efficiency Rule

Massachusetts’ Three-Year Energy Efficiency Plan Envisions $8.5 Billion in Customer Benefits

Massachusetts electric and gas utilities on Oct. 31 filed a joint energy efficiency plan with the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities proposing an investment of $2.77 billion over three years from 2019 to 2021. The proposal seeks to invest over $200 million more in the new plan compared to the prior three-year period and achieve…

Florida Regulator Approves Cost Recovery for Second Phase of Tampa Electric's 600-Megawatt Solar Plan

Florida Regulator Approves Cost Recovery for Second Phase of Tampa Electric’s 600-Megawatt Solar Plan

The Florida Public Service Commission on Oct. 29 authorized Tampa Electric Company to recover costs for five solar projects totaling 260 megawatts under the second phase of the company’s solar plan. The projects raise the revenue requirement by $46 million resulting in a $2.46 increase in monthly residential bills, effective January 2019. The agency said…