A dozen House Republicans asked the Federal Trade Commission to explore allegations of deceptive trade practices related to third-party solar leases.
Rep. Paul Gosar, R-Ariz., leading the effort, wrote a letter to FTC Chairwoman Edith Ramirez urging the commission to investigate “deceptive marketing strategies” that overpromise the benefits of home solar while understating the risks of entering into an agreement “that will likely exceed both the life of the roof and the duration of the lessor’s home ownership.” He characterized the booming third-party solar installation industry as “largely unregulated.”
“My letter to Chairwoman Ramirez simply asks the FTC to look into these practices and answer a series of questions,” Gosar said in a news release. “In order to protect consumers and expand domestic solar production, proper oversight of the emerging rooftop solar industry must be maintained.”
More: Rep. Paul Gosar; Daily Signal
FERC Approves Cheniere’s Corpus Christi LNG Terminal
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission last week approved Cheniere Energy’s planned liquefied natural gas terminal in Corpus Christi, Texas. The company now needs only approval from the Department of Energy to start construction.
Cheniere is the only company in the U.S. to have two active LNG export terminal projects underway. Its $10 billion Sabine Pass terminal in Louisiana is already under construction and scheduled to go into operation later this year. Construction at the Corpus Christi terminal should start this year, with an operational date of 2018.
More: Houston Business Journal
Environmental Groups Charge FERC Erred in Approving NY Pipeline
Environmental groups are asking the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to reconsider its December approval of the Constitution Pipeline, a proposed 124-mile natural gas pipeline that would run from Pennsylvania into New York.
The groups, including EarthJustice, the Clean Air Council and the Sierra Club, said FERC’s environmental review didn’t take into account habitat damage and runoff potential. “When the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issues a permit for a natural gas pipeline without fully assessing the environmental impact as required, concerned citizens must take a stand,” said Moneen Nasmith, an EarthJustice attorney.
More: Akron Beacon Journal
Burns Takes Reins at NRC, Replacing Macfarlane
Stephen G. Burns became the chairman of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission on Jan. 1, assuming the seat held by Allison Macfarlane, who left to take a professorship at George Washington University.
Burns, the commission’s former general counsel, has held various positions at the NRC for more than 33 years, but he has only been a commissioner since November.
More: Nuclear Street
Duke Energy’s Dry Cask Storage Plan for Crystal River OK’d
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has approved Duke Energy’s plan to use dry cask storage for spent fuel at its Crystal River Nuclear Plant in Florida.
Duke ordered the plant permanently shut down in 2013 after its previous owner, Progress Energy, botched repairs in 2009. The company estimates it will cost more than $265 million to build the fuel storage facility. The spent fuel rods are scheduled to be transferred in 2019.
More: Bay News 9
Republicans Asking FERC Commissioners About EPA Meetings on Clean Power Plan
Ranking House and Senate Republicans have asked each member of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to describe any meetings they had with the Environmental Protection Agency about the agency’s proposed Clean Energy Plan. The lawmakers suggest that commissioners had little interaction with the EPA before the agency released its new emissions standards. EPA officials have said there was sharing of information.
“Your views about the extent of collaboration between FERC and EPA on these matters, and especially about the details of your personal involvement or that of your staff in any or all of these meetings … will contribute significantly to the public record,” the legislators said in a letter.
It was signed by Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), ranking Republican on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, Rep. Fred Upton (R-Mich.), chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, and Rep. Ed Whitfield (R-Ky.), chairman of the Energy and Power Subcommittee.
More: Bloomberg News
Comment Period on Offshore Wind in Virginia Extended 2 More Weeks
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management has given a two-week extension for public comment on a pilot project to install two offshore wind turbines in Virginia.
The agency recently issued a 210-page environmental assessment on Dominion Virginia Power’s plan to install two 600-foot turbines and a sea-to-shore transmission line that would set the stage for a more ambitious offshore wind project. The deadline for comment is now Jan. 16.
More: The Virginian-Pilot
Colette Honorable Joins Commission
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission announced yesterday that Colette Honorable has been sworn in as the commission’s fifth member, replacing former Commissioner John Norris. Honorable, former chairman of the Arkansas Public Service Commission and president of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners, was confirmed to the position by the Senate in December.
FERC Schedules Workshop on NERC ATC Rules
The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission will conduct a workshop March 5 to discuss actions the commission may take to ensure that transmission providers are calculating available transfer capability (ATC) “in a manner that ensures nondiscriminatory access” to the grid.
FERC’s action (AD15-5) is a response to the North American Electric Reliability Corp.’s proposed changes to its ATC-related reliability standards and an initiative to replace them with business practice standards to be developed by the North American Energy Standards Board. The workshop will be held from 8:45 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the Commission Meeting Room, 888 First Street NE, Washington, D.C., 20426.