Natural gas contributed nearly half of California’s electricity generation mix to meet peak demand during an extreme heat wave in early September, according to a Sept. 21 report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The heat wave during the week of Sept. 4 led to record demand for electricity, amid elevated air conditioning use. Moreover,…...
The U.S. Energy Department on Sep. 19 announced a $156 million grant to establish a unique refinery facility for separating rare earth elements and critical minerals from mining wastes and other unconventional sources. Rare earth elements and critical minerals are considered important for clean energy technologies’ manufacturing. The funding, provided by the 2021 Infrastructure Investment…
New York Governor Kathy Hochul on Sept. 20 signed an executive order to expedite attempts to make state operations more sustainable. Moreover, the Governor also declared that state organisations and government departments, accounting for an anticipated $50 billion in funds, have pledged to attain net zero emissions in their investment portfolios by 2040. The announcement…...
The U.S. Joint Office of Energy and Transportation has given California the go ahead to begin using federal infrastructure funding to develop electric vehicle charging stations across the state’s interstates and highways resulting from the latest federal authorization of a joint proposal by Caltrans and the California Energy Commission. The approval of the California Deployment…...
Hurricane Fiona made landfall on Puerto Rico on Sept. 18 as a category 1 hurricane with torrential rain and damaging winds – at 80 miles an hour – leading to an island-wide power outage, as the electric system experienced several transmission line disruptions. The storm hit nearly five years after Hurricane Maria destroyed 80 percent…...
The Virginia State Corporation Commission on Sept. 16 authorized a rise to the fuel rate for customers of Dominion Energy Inc. that involves a mitigation plan, which would lay out the recovery of the $1.02 billion projected fuel deferral over three years. Moreover, the commission approved a provision under which Dominion agreed to renounce recovery…...
The Biden administration on Sept. 15 announced that it will aim to deploy 15 gigawatts of floating offshore wind capacity by 2035 and create a “Floating Offshore Wind Shot” to reduce floating technology costs by over 70 percent by 2035 to $45 per megawatt hour. The initiative targets deep-water lease areas to reach the 15-gigawatt…...
The U.S. Transportation Department, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Housing and Urban Development, and U.S. Energy Department have entered into a memorandum of understanding to coordinate efforts to advance innovative solutions and technologies towards achieving a decarbonized transportation sector, according to a Sept. 16 press release. The transportation sector is a major source of greenhouse gas…...
The New York State Public Service Commission has launched a proceeding to commence the implementation of the Utility Thermal Energy Network and Jobs Act, according to a Sept. 15 press release. The law, enacted in July, is part of initiatives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through decarbonizing buildings and homes throughout the state. The law…...
The New York Public Service Commission on Sept. 15 commenced its review of a number of its innovative clean energy programs, incorporating utilities’ endeavour’s under New Efficiency: New York, or NENY and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority’s Clean Energy Fund, or CEF. Collectively, these initiatives represent approximately $10 billion in customer…...
The 2021 supplier diversity spend reported by Illinois’ six investor-owned utilities showed that of the $5.1 billion spent among the utility companies, 2.2 billion – 44 percent – was diverse spend. The largest investor owned electric, natural gas, water, and sewer companies in Illinois on Sept. 16, presented progress reports at the Annual Utility Supplier…...
The U.S. nuclear energy sector is now on the verge of a revival after years of premature plant closures and dim forecasts. Investments and tax incentives included in the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), enacted in August, add new momentum to the nuclear power industry.