The Virginia State Corporation Commission on Jan. 7 approved Appalachian Power Company’s proposal that allows customers the option to meet 100 percent of their electricity needs from renewable energy resources. Participating customers would pay a premium of $4.25 a month above the standard electric rate. State law permits utilities to design a tariff that customers…...
The power sector evolution continues unabated, marked by rapid growth of wind and solar, and a growing shift toward distributed energy resources such as rooftop solar, battery storage, and electric vehicles. Interest in batteries is accelerating as states seek to capitalize the multiple benefits the technology provides to the grid, while the smart grid evolution…...
Republican Governor Christopher Sununu wrote a letter requesting the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management establish an intergovernmental offshore renewable energy task force for the state, according to a Jan. 7 press release. Sununu said that the measure would facilitate coordination between federal, state and local governments on commercial leasing proposals. If the request is…...
Democratic Governor Dannel Malloy on Dec. 18 released a report detailing strategies from the Governor’s Council on Climate Change to help the state achieve its long-term vision for decarbonizing the economy. The recommendations center on three fundamental objectives of the vision – zero-carbon electricity, clean transportation, and building efficiency. Legislation enacted last year set a…
The Washington Department of Ecology adopted rules requiring new vehicles licensed in the state to continue meeting California’s standards, steadily reducing the release of greenhouse gases through 2025, according to a Jan. 2 news release. Democratic Governor Jay Inslee underscored the need for “collective actions of states” even as the Trump administration tries to relax…
The U.S. natural gas export trend continues thanks to increases in liquefied natural gas export capacity and expansion of the cross-border pipeline network into Mexico, according to a Jan. 7 report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. In 2017, the U.S. became a net exporter of natural for the first time since 1958. The agency…...
The Hawaiian Electric Companies submitted power purchase agreements for seven grid-scale, solar-plus-storage projects to the Hawaii Public Utilities Commission, according to a Jan. 3 press release. The projects total 262 megawatts of solar and 1,024 megawatt-hours of energy storage, with contract prices ranging from $0.08 to $0.12 per kilowatt-hour. The utilities said that the contracts…...
The Maine Public Utilities Commission on Dec. 17 granted solar installer Insource Renewables LLC’s request to exclude solar generation produced by medium and large non-residential customers of Central Maine Power Company and Emera Maine from gross metering provisions due to excessive costs that are shifted onto other ratepayers. The commission agreed that the cost of…...
New Hampshire House Democratic lawmakers Peter Somssich, Jacqueline Cali-Pitts, and Kenneth Vincent introduced legislation on Jan. 2 that would establish a task force to investigate the near- and long-term applications of microgrids to better manage demand on the primary grid, allowing for lower customer bills and more efficient use of electricity. (HB 238) The bill…...
The Dayton Power and Light Company, a subsidiary of AES Corporation, filed a distribution modernization plan with the Public Utility Commission of Ohio that proposes to invest $576 million in capital projects over the next decade, according to a Dec. 28 press release. The company said that plan is consistent with PowerForward, the state’s grid…...
The New Mexico Public Regulation Commission on Dec. 19 approved the Public Service Co. of New Mexico’s integrated resource plan which calls for retirement of the utility’s remaining units at the San Juan Generating Station by 2022 and withdrawal from the Four Corners coal plant when the its contracts with that facility end in 2031.…
The Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission on Dec. 31 issued a notice seeking comments on a draft rule for competitive resource acquisition by utilities. The proposal is a result of stakeholder workshops and public comment processes since the commission unveiled a proposal in 2016 to examine whether rules governing the integrated resource plan and utility…
