Electricity Price Plunge Continues in ISO-NE
ISO-NE said that prices and consumption remained low throughout New England in June.
The six-state region’s average real-time, monthly wholesale power price during June was $21.24/MWh, up 8.3% from June 2015’s average price of $19.61/MWh, but lower than May’s $21.29, which held the record for the third-lowest price since 2003 for only a month.
Total energy consumption during June was at the second-lowest level of any June since 2000, likely because of continued mild weather, the RTO said. The lowest average monthly price ever is $17.20/MWh, set in March.
More: ISO-NE
CALIFORNIA
Regulator to Probe SCE Long Beach Outages
The Public Utilities Commission has opened a penalty case against Southern California Edison over a series of underground electrical fires that caused explosions and cut power to thousands of customers in Long Beach last July.
The proceeding will determine whether the utility violated any regulations and provided an adequate emergency response to the events, which left some customers without service for as many as five days and caused explosions strong enough to blow manhole covers into the air.
More: KPCC
INDIANA
NIPSCO Electric Rate Increase Approved
The Utility Regulatory Commission sanctioned a 6% electric base rate hike for Northern Indiana Public Service Co. last week, the first change to base rates since 2011.
NIPSCO said it needs the money to pay for higher expenses and service upgrades. The utility said a typical residential customer will pay $5.70 more per month.
The base rate agreement was previously struck by the Office of Utility Consumer Counselor, NIPSCO’s industrial customers, a coalition of eight municipalities and the United Steelworkers in February. Consumer Counselor David Stippler called the agreement “a fair resolution for NIPSCO’s residential and commercial customers.”
More: NiSource
KENTUCKY
Court Nixes Utility’s Plan to Buy Power from Biomass-Burning Facility
A state Court of Appeals panel has struck down ecoPower Generation’s contract to sell electricity to Kentucky Power.
The court said there was no evidence that ecoPower’s biomass-burning plant would result in an economic benefit to customers or the region. The court cited testimony that the agreement would result in an increase of up to 7% in the average monthly residential bill in the first year and a jump of up to 13% in later years.
The ruling puts the future of the plant, which would burn wood and sawdust to generate enough electricity for 30,000 homes, into doubt. Kentucky Power is reviewing the ruling before it decides whether to appeal, a spokesperson said.
More: Lexington Herald Leader
MARYLAND
Delmarva Power Requests $66.2M Rate Increase
Delmarva Power, now under Exelon ownership, is asking regulators to approve a $66.2 million electric rate base increase to pay for reliability improvements and smart grid upgrades conducted over the past four years. The increase would boost a typical monthly bill by 14.5%.
If approved by the Public Service Commission, the rate adjustment would translate to a $21.42 increase on the monthly bill of residential customers using 1 MWh, to $168.64 a month.
Delmarva said it has spent more than $330 million on improvements in the state since 2012. Its last rate-increase request was in 2013.
More: Delmarva Power
MASSACHUSETTS
Pipeline Loop Opponents Head to State Court
Opponents of a proposed natural gas pipeline loop through a state forest want to block a water-quality approval certificate issued June 30.
A coalition of environmentalists and landowners appealed the state Department of Environmental Protection’s approval of Kinder Morgan’s 4-mile Connecticut Expansion Project with the agency. The final decision would come from DEP Commissioner Martin Suuberg.
More: The Berkshire Eagle
MONTANA
Developer: Low Rates Endanger Wind Project
Developer Greycliff Wind Prime’s proposed 25-MW wind farm is unlikely to move forward following the Public Service Commission’s decision to set its wholesale price to NorthWestern Energy at $45.49/MWh, about 16% lower than the price it says it needs to make a profit.
“It’s not a rate that works. It’s also not a rate that’s realistic,” said Steve Tyrell, a Greycliff stakeholder. Developers said they needed a price in the mid-$50s, which would have been similar to the rate for another NorthWestern renewable energy source.
Renewable energy projects are on a two-month losing streak with the PSC. The commission in June pulled the plug on guaranteed rates for small solar projects at the request of NorthWestern.
More: Billings Gazette
NEVADA
Peppermill Casinos Seeks to Sever Ties with NV Energy
Reno-based Peppermill Casinos became the third hotel casino operator in recent months to notify state regulators that it intends to leave NV Energy and acquire electricity from other sources.
The move will entail a costly exit fee. Las Vegas Sands reversed its decision to leave the utility after the Public Utilities Commission determined the company would have to pay $24 million to do so.
Peppermill has invested $9.7 million in onsite geothermal generation. “We are committed to continuing that investment in responsible and renewable energy sources,” a company executive said. Wynn Resorts and MGM Resorts International have also announced their intentions to leave NV Energy.
More: Reno Gazette-Journal
NORTH CAROLINA
Duke Energy on Track To Buy Piedmont Natural Gas
Regulators completed a two-day evidentiary hearing examining Duke Energy’s $4.9 billion acquisition of Piedmont Natural Gas, moving the merger toward a decision by the Utilities Commission as early as October.
The commission’s staff supports the merger, the costs of which will be charged to shareholders, not customers, the companies said.
Under the deal, Duke will give Piedmont’s customers in the state a $10 million break on bills over two years. It also will donate $17.5 million to charity over four years and earmark $7.5 million to help low-income customers and support community job training.
More: Charlotte Business Journal
Duke Asks Fed Judge To Block Ash Testimony
Duke Energy has asked a federal judge to block the testimony of a state toxicologist in a lawsuit, filed against the utility concerning its handling of coal ash, from being made public.
The company argued that the testimony of Dr. Kenneth Rudo, of the epidemiology branch of the state Department of Health and Human Services, about his views on the toxicity of coal ash and its effect on drinking water supplies is “largely hearsay” and would prevent the company from getting a fair hearing. The lawsuit was filed by environmental organizations.
Residents have received mixed messages from state officials about the safety of their drinking water, who were told to avoid using it last month after receiving assurances that it was safe. Testimony transcripts already released by the plaintiffs show disagreement among state scientists about the advice to give residents.
More: WRAL
NORTH DAKOTA
Application for State’s Largest Wind Farm Filed
A Renewable Energy Systems Americas subsidiary filed an application with the Public Service Commission last week for what would be the largest wind farm in the state. Glacier Ridge Wind Farm proposed a 300-MW project with nearly 100 turbines in Barnes County.
Glacier Ridge aims to start construction in November and complete work in 2019.
More: The Bismarck Tribune
OKLAHOMA
Regulators Approve Opt-outFees for PSO Smart Meters
The Corporation Commission approved a plan allowing Public Service Company of Oklahoma to charge a $28 monthly fee to customers who opt out of installing a smart meter. The three-person commission unanimously approved the fee. Customers will also need to pay a one-time fee of $71, which will increase to $110 next year.
PSO originally requested a $28 monthly fee and one-time fees between $183 and $261. Its customers already are paying $3.11 monthly fees for smart meter installation, part of a $133 million rate case settlement the commission approved in April 2015.
Commission Chairman Bob Anthony said estimating costs is tricky because the commission is starting from scratch on the opt-out program. “We haven’t done this before; we don’t know if there’s going to be 200, 500 or 1,000 people [who] sign up for this program,” Anthony said.
More: The Oklahoman
Fire Damage to GRDA Plant Could Reach as Much as $200M
The Grand River Dam Authority says its costs could reach $200 million to recover from a July 1 fire at its main generating facility in Chouteau. Officials from the state-owned utility say the final bill will depend on the cost of rebuilding the larger of the two coal-fired units affected.
The utility believes the fire was started by a lightning strike that knocked out the unit’s cooling pumps, causing it to overheat and creating a friction fire. The fire spread to the roof of the building and caused the other coal-fired generator, Unit 1, to automatically shut down.
Assessing the damage to Unit 2 and the building that houses both units is expected to take about a month. GRDA recently completed an $86 million environmental upgrade to the 30-year-old Unit 2.
More: Tulsa World
PENNSYLVANIA
FE Subsidiary Starts Work on 5-Year Grid Improvement Plan
West Penn Power, a subsidiary of FirstEnergy, is starting work on $17 million of grid improvement projects to enhance reliability for its 720,000 customers.
The projects are part of the company’s five-year infrastructure improvement plan approved earlier this year by the Public Utility Commission.
The long-term plan calls for $88 million to be spent through 2020 on upgrades, including installing protective devices on wires and poles, rebuilding transmission lines and installing automated and remote control devices.
More: FirstEnergy
RHODE ISLAND
Community Boos, Lambasts Governor over Gas Plant
Gov. Gina Raimondo offered little comfort to residents opposed to a 1,000-MW natural gas plant in Burrillville, where she said at a community meeting that gas-fired generators are needed to bridge the gap until clean generation is built at a larger scale.
“I’m for green energy and moving as fast as we possibly can from fossil fuels and towards cleaner sources of energy,” she said. “But I’m also for keeping energy prices as low as possible for the people of Rhode Island.” Raimondo has previously said that the $700 million plant proposed by Invenergy would create jobs and moderate electricity prices.
“What I need to do as governor is balance the interests of all the people,” she said. “In the near term, natural gas is a piece of that puzzle.” This final comment drew boos from those in attendance. Raimondo then had to fend off criticism from speakers.
More: Providence Journal