Environmentalists Oppose Proposed Gas Plants
Environmental groups are appealing the Public Utilities Commission’s approval of a 558-MW natural gas-fired power plant in the seaside town of Carlsbad on the grounds that power could be supplied more cleanly and cheaply by renewable resources.
A state appellate court will soon decide whether to hear the appeal of the commission’s decision. The plant would supply energy to San Diego Gas & Electric under a long-term agreement.
A decision in favor of judicial review could call into question a number of similar plants proposed in the state. SDG&E insists that gas-fired generation must remain part of the region’s resource mix.
More: The San Diego Union-Tribune
MICHIGAN
Senate Committee Advances Energy Package
The Senate Energy and Technology Committee passed a pair of bills that would phase out the state’s energy efficiency program and put restrictions on alternative energy suppliers.
SB 438 would establish a 35% clean energy goal by 2025 and expands the definition of renewable energy to include incineration. The bill would also phase out the state’s current energy efficiency program by 2021 and maintain the current 10% renewable portfolio standard. Proposed amendments to increase the RPS to 15% and 20%, and to extend the energy efficiency program to 2025, were defeated.
SB 437 maintains the state’s 10% cap on participation in electric choice and requires alternative energy suppliers to prove their ability to serve customers. The bill passed 6-1, with one Republican saying the provision would effectively kill the state’s retail choice program.
More: MLive; Midwest Energy News
MISSOURI
PSC Approves Ameren Rider Increase
The Public Service Commission approved a request from Ameren Missouri to increase its Energy Efficiency Investment Charge. The line item that appears on electricity customers’ bills will increase by about $2.22/month beginning in June.
The company said the increase was needed to align the costs of its three-year energy efficiency plan, approved by the PSC in February.
The charge, part of the Missouri Energy Efficiency Investment Act, is intended to encourage utilities to implement demand-side and energy efficiency programs.
More: The Caldwell County News
MONTANA
Renewable Groups, City Launch Clean Energy Campaign
Representatives of the renewable energy industry and Bozeman city officials joined forces last week to launch a campaign pushing the state to tap into its potential for wind and solar production.
Renewable Northwest and the Montana Renewable Energy Association launched a website to educate people about the opportunities for renewable energy and to advocate for the industry in a time when consumers are turning away from coal-fired power.
According to the campaign, the state’s energy economy is in crisis because of the expected demise of coal-fired generation.
More: Bozeman Daily Chronicle
NEVADA
Casinos Backing Effort To Deregulate State
Las Vegas casinos are bankrolling a proposed ballot initiative to end NV Energy’s monopoly over most of the state’s electricity supply and creating a competitive market in the state, according to financial disclosures.
Las Vegas Sands has contributed $500,000 to the Energy Choice Initiative, which seeks to put retail choice on the ballot. Initiative organizers must get 55,000 signatures by June 21. MGM Resorts International has also donated $10,000 to the effort.
Sands considered breaking with the utility and purchasing power on the open market, but changed course after the state’s Public Utility Commission said the move would entail a $24 million exit fee. MGM has said it would pay $87 million to drop NV Energy in October.
More: Las Vegas Sun
NEW YORK
Bill Would Cut All State Emissions by 2050
A dozen lawmakers have introduced legislation to codify Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s goal of completely eliminating the state’s greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
The bill would direct the Department of Environmental Conservation to issue regulations within a year that would require reporting of annual emissions from major sources. It would also be required to establish a registry and reporting system measured in tons of carbon dioxide equivalents.
The department would determine the 1990s emissions levels, then require statewide reductions to that same level by 2020, followed by deeper periodic reductions over the next 30 years.
More: The Associated Press
NORTH CAROLINA
McCrory Threatens to Veto Coal Ash Commission Bill
Gov. Pat McCrory says he would veto a proposed bill to restart a commission to oversee the cleanup of the state’s coal ash pits. McCrory, a former Duke Energy executive, dissolved a previous commission to regulate the utility’s efforts to clean up the dozens of coal ash impound pits and dumps, saying lawmakers were influencing the panel’s work.
The effort to reform the commission would still give the governor the ability to fill five of the seven positions, subject to General Assembly confirmation. The commission would guide the Department of Environmental Quality’s cleanup efforts. The bill would also give Duke until 2024 to clean up all of the coal ash pits.
Environmentalists say the measure still allows Duke too much leeway in cleanup efforts.
More: The Associated Press
State to Miss Poultry Waste RPS Requirement
The state will once again fall short of its poultry waste-fired generation target, after Duke Energy told regulators that it won’t be able to meet its requirement under the state’s renewable portfolio standard.
The statewide requirement for poultry power rose to 700 GWh from 170 GWh this year. Duke initially said it expected to be able to meet the requirement, but that was before one poultry project delayed its opening until later in the year. Another plant, owned by Prestage AgEnergy, was scheduled to open in spring but also had to be delayed because it would not have been able to meet environmental standards.
Turkey and chicken droppings are currently used by five state incinerators to produce electricity.
More: The News & Observer
OHIO
PUCO Approves AEP PPA Rehearing Request
After withdrawing its request for a power purchase agreement that would have provided guaranteed income for 3,100 MW of its generation in Ohio, AEP Ohio will get a hearing on a smaller proposal covering 440 MW it controls as part of the Ohio Valley Electric Corp.
The Public Utilities Commission granted the hearing request without discussion during newly installed Chairman Asim Haque’s first meeting last week.
PUCO has also said it would hear a revised plan from FirstEnergy. The hearings are not yet scheduled.
More: Columbus Business First
OKLAHOMA
‘Shamports’ Pop up in Response to Wind Farms
The Federal Aviation Administration has certified more than two dozen private airports in the state this year, giving landowners some leverage to keep new wind turbines at a distance.
The sudden popularity of private airports, which wind industry representatives deride privately as “shamports,” was triggered by a state law that went into effect in November that requires new turbines to be at least 1.5 nautical miles — 9,1000 feet — from a school, hospital or airport.
Most of the airports registered with FAA are turf runways mowed out of a pasture. “I don’t even like to fly,” said Jerry Condit, who registered Rooster Barn Regional and Condit Regional Airport on properties in Garvin County. “I’ve only ever been in an airplane but one time.”
More: The Oklahoman
VIRGINIA
Pipeline Developers to Face Project-Specific Regulations
The state Department of Environmental Quality instructed the builders of two proposed natural gas pipelines that they will need to meet erosion and sedimentation standards set specifically for their projects.
“The basic point here is we want to make sure that if we do end up with pipeline construction, that appropriate steps are taken to protect the environment around the commonwealth,” department spokesman Bill Hayden said. EQT, developers of the Mountain Valley Pipeline project, and Dominion, construction partner of the Atlantic Coast Pipeline, indicated they are willing to work under the conditions.
Both projects await FERC approval, and both are battling community opposition.
More: Richmond Times-Dispatch
WISCONSIN
WPL Requests Base Rate Increase
Wisconsin Power and Light has proposed a $12.9 million rate increase that includes a two-step boost to consumers’ monthly fixed-rate charge, from $7.67 to $18/month in 2018.
Under the plan filed with the Public Service Commission, the utility would boost residential rates by 4.7%, or an additional $4/month. Business customers’ rates would drop by an average 4%, and industrial customers would experience a 1.5% rate decrease.
WPL spokeswoman Annemarie Newman said the increase would fund environmental control projects at the Portage and Sheboygan power plants in addition to other investments. Newman said the filing is Alliant’s first residential rate increase request in six years. She said WPL’s residential customers pay the lowest bills in the state.
More: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Xcel Beginning LED Bulb Replacement Program
Xcel Energy has begun to replace about 25,000 old-fashioned city streetlights with more efficient LED technology.
Xcel’s Mike Herro said some 100-W streetlights are at least 30 years old, and LEDs provide better lighting at a lower wattage. “They don’t degrade in light quality, so at the end of their useful light quality, they’re still fairly bright,” he said.
The Public Service Commission approved the plan last year.
More: WKBT