Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer has sent a letter to the U.S. Energy Department, in support of Holtec International’s application for a federal grant under the Civil Nuclear Credit, or CNC program, to save the Palisades Nuclear Facility in Southwest Michigan. Governor Whitmer noted that keeping Palisades operational is critical for the state’s competitiveness and future…...
The Bureau of Land Management on Sept. 9 announced the approval of two segments of the Gateway West Transmission line in Wyoming. The project is a part of PacifiCorp’s Energy Gateway Transmission Expansion, a multi-year plan to add about 2,000 miles of new transmission across the West. The lines would help integrate up to 765…...
Utility resource plans continue to manifest the changing power generation mix as more states pursue zero-carbon goals. The shift drives the need for innovative policy initiatives that optimize renewable energy sources and enhance grid reliability.
The Michigan Public Service Commission on Sept. 8 issued an order aimed to improve reliability in the electric distribution system and advance efforts on customer data and privacy issues. The move is part of the MI Power Grid initiative, a multi-year stakeholder initiative launched in 2019 to maximize the transition to clean and distributed energy…...
The U.S. Energy Department announced on Sep. 8 a new objective to make enhanced geothermal systems, or EGS, an extensive renewable energy alternative in the U.S. by reducing its expense by 90 percent to $45 per megawatt hour by 2035. As it stands, there are five terawatts of heat resources that exist in the U.S,…...
The U.S. Energy Department on Sep. 7 released a comprehensive roadmap identifying four key pathways – energy efficiency, electrification, use of low-carbon energy resources, and carbon capture – to decarbonize the industrial sector. The roadmap encourages the use of nuclear energy for heat and electricity, renewables, clean hydrogen, and biofuels. The report underscores the importance…...
The Southwest Power Pool announced on Sep. 6, 2022 that several entities in Arizona have pledged to support the next stage of the Markets + development. Arizona Electric Power Cooperative, Arizona Public Service Company, Salt River Project and Tucson Electric Power join seven other organizations that earlier pledged to support market development. Markets+ is a…...
Across the U.S., policy makers, regulators, and utilities are increasingly viewing energy storage as imperative to enable a transition to greater use of renewable energy, electrify buildings and transportation, and enhance grid reliability.
California lawmakers on Sept. 1 passed a bill to provide a $1.4 billion loan to extend operations at the state’s last operating nuclear power plant Diablo Canyon by an additional five years. The plant’s two units are scheduled to be retired in 2024 and 2025. The proposal, also part of Governor Gavin Newsom’s agenda, cleared…...
The Maine Supreme Judicial Court on Aug. 30 ruled that a ballot referendum in Maine that was voted in November 2021 to block the New England Clean Energy Connect transmission project is unconstitutional. The latest development provides renewed impetus to the $1 billion U.S. transmission line designed to transmit Canadian hydropower. The court states that…...
The U.S. Energy Department on Aug. 31 announced $46 million in funding for 22 biofuel projects to help reduce carbon emissions in the transportation and power sector. The grant aims to lower the cost of fuels and products made from algal feedstocks while increasing the positive greenhouse gas impacts that could be achieved by deploying…...
