Illinois lawmakers are considering a bill known as the Path to 100, which would boost the state’s renewable portfolio standard to 40 percent by 2030, up from the current 25 percent by 2025, as well as improve opportunities for utility-scale renewable projects to get approval and begin construction, putting the state on a path to 100 percent clean…
The Kansas Corporation Commission decided that there is no need for utilities to offer an alternative metering solution for customers who wish to opt out of advanced meters, according to a March 14 order. The agency said that implementing an opt-out program would be difficult, given the high costs and administrative burden. Such a program…...
Democratic Senator Chris Brooks introduced legislation on March 18 that would raise Nevada’s renewable portfolio standard to 50 percent by 2030 from the current level of 25 percent by 2025. The bill would also set a goal of achieving all of the state’s electricity from carbon-free resources by 2050. The legislation adds to the number…...
U.S. states are plowing ahead in setting market compensation rules for battery technology, laying the foundation for future growth of the fast-maturing technology in retail and wholesale markets. While progressive states California, New York and Massachusetts are charging ahead in how to value the resource, others are still grappling with how to regulate a system that fails to fit squarely in any one box and that raises a range of jurisdictional and ownership questions.
The Puerto Rico Energy Commission on March 14 found that the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority’s proposed integrated resource plan did not comply with the agency’s regulation and prior orders. The agency said that the plan includes a scenario titled “Energy System Modernization Plan,” which does not meet the regulatory requirement to use a capacity…
The Maine legislature passed a bill on March 15 that would reestablish net metering for consumers with solar installations, doing away with the previous administration’s gross metering policy. The legislation, introduced by State Representative Seth Berry, a Democrat, will likely be signed by fellow Democratic governor Janet Mills. Gross metering was developed by the Maine Public Utility Commission with…
The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California on March 11 ruled that the bankruptcy code is adequate to decide the future of Pacific Gas & Electric Company’s wholesale power purchase contracts. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission claimed that the agency has concurrent jurisdiction with bankruptcy courts over wholesale contracts that the utility…
The New Mexico House of Representatives passed the Energy Transition Act on Tuesday afternoon, which orders the state to source all of its power from carbon-free supplies by 2045. The bill passed the Democratic-controlled state legislature with 32-9 votes in the Senate and 43-22 in the House. Democratic governor Michelle Lujan-Grisham is expected to sign it into…
The U.S. added 31.3 gigawatts of generating capacity in 2018, the largest since the 2003 capacity addition of 48.8 gigawatts, according to a March 11 report from the Energy Information Administration. Natural gas accounted for 62 percent of utility-scale additions, while wind and solar photovoltaic represented 21 percent and 16 percent, respectively. Coal accounted for…...
The spread of advanced meters across the U.S. has come a long way, with over half of the nation's 152 million electricity consumers now hooked up to the devices. But further deployment of the technology, seen critical for a more responsive and reliable grid, is at risk amid heightened scrutiny from regulators, who are increasingly bowing to concerns over the costs to consumers.
Rocky Mountain Power, a division of PacifiCorp, proposed three innovative utility programs to explore vehicle-to-grid power flow management, study the value of behind-the-meter grid optimized solar-plus-battery installations, and improve outage response by deploying line sensor technology on distribution circuits, according to a March 8 filing with the Utah Public Service Commission. The initiatives form the…...
The Retail Energy Supply Association expressed support for a market-determined price for solar renewable energy certificates, or SRECs, in New Jersey’s successor program, as the state transitions to a new distributed solar regime. In its comments filed with the the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities on March 5, the group said that the alternative…...
