Public Citizen last week called for a House and Senate investigation into the Commercial Energy Working Group, an industry association the watchdog says appears to be violating federal lobbying rules by not disclosing its membership.
The energy group operates out of the offices of D.C. law firm Sutherland, Asbill & Brennan, which has represented it in filings with FERC, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Federal Reserve and Congress.
In the second quarter of 2015, the firm reported to Congress $60,000 in lobbying income for the group, but the filing did not list the sources of that income despite a requirement that lobbyists disclose contributions of $5,000 or more, Public Citizen says. Based on records obtained through the Freedom of Information Act, Public Citizen said the group’s members appear to include Vitol, Royal Dutch Shell, NextEra Energy, ConocoPhillips and Hess Corp.
More: Public Citizen
NRC Engineers Urge Fix for Flaw in Most US Reactors
A group of Nuclear Regulatory Commission engineers is urging the agency to order U.S. nuclear plant operators to fix a problem that lurks in nearly all reactors.
In February, the seven engineers petitioned the agency to order immediate action to address a flaw that puts the reactors at risk of so-called “open phase events” where unbalanced voltage could cause motors to burn out and deactivate emergency cooling systems. Such an event happened at Exelon’s Byron 2 reactor in 2012, shutting down the unit for a week.
Although NRC alerted operators of that event, the agency didn’t require any action. Dave Lochbaum, a nuclear expert and frequent industry critic, said NRC has known about the issue and didn’t push for action. “Why the NRC snatched defeat from the jaws of victory, I don’t know,” he said. By NRC’s own procedure, the agency has until March 21 to respond to the engineers’ request.
More: Reuters
Delaware Riverkeeper Files Suit Against FERC
The environmental group Delaware Riverkeeper Network is suing FERC, charging that the agency’s oversight process for pipeline projects is “infected with bias” and demanding substantial changes to how the commission works.
The suit alleges that FERC is essentially financed by the industries it oversees through charges and fees. “Because FERC gets its funding from the big companies it is supposed to be monitoring, it has become, perhaps inevitably, a corrupt, rogue agency,” says Maya van Rossum, leader of the Delaware Riverkeeper Network. “That’s why FERC has approved 100% of pipeline projects — literally every single one of them — that it has considered since 1986.”
The suit, filed in U.S. District Court., seeks a declaration that FERC’s approval process is biased and that its funding structure is unconstitutional. The commission said it does not comment on pending lawsuits.
More: NJ.com
Chief Justice Rejects Request to Block MATS Rule
Chief Justice John Roberts on Thursday rejected a request from 20 states to block the enforcement of EPA’s Mecury and Air Toxics Standards.
Michigan and 19 other states asked for a stay or an injunction blocking enforcement of the MATS rule, noting that the court itself last year ruled 5-4 that the rule is illegal.
But EPA said a stay was not necessary as the agency was addressing the parts of the rule the court found invalid. “The requested stay would harm the public interest by undermining reliance interests and the public health and environmental benefits associated with the rule,” the agency said. “The application lacks merit and should be denied.”
Roberts acted unilaterally, without taking the question to the whole court.
More: The Hill
US Energy Storage Market has Best Quarter, Year
The fledgling U.S. energy storage market deployed 112 MW of capacity in the fourth quarter of 2015, more than in 2013 and 2014 combined. According to GTM Research and the Energy Storage Association’s U.S. Energy Storage Monitor 2015 Year in Review, 161 MW were added in 2015, bringing the U.S. total to 221 MW.
The report, broken down into residential, nonresidential and utility segments, notes the last segment continues to be the largest, accounting for about 85% of all new storage. Most of that was deployed in PJM, which saw 160 MW of new storage introduced.
But residential behind-the-meter systems grew at the fastest pace, showing an increase of 405% in 2015.
More: Greentech Media
NRC Tags Entergy for Palisades Storage Leak
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has put Entergy on notice for three apparent violations relating to a leaking storage tank discovered at its Palisades nuclear generating station in Michigan in 2013. The agency sent the company a letter alleging that Palisades deliberately failed to properly document the leak at a safety injection and refueling water storage tank during the event.
Entergy was cited for “willful failure” to document the leak, as well as failure to “perform adequate operability determinations” after the leak and to undertake additional testing of the leak site.
The company said the conditions have been corrected since the incident. “Entergy does not tolerate deliberately failing to follow procedures or falsifying or manipulating data in any way,” the company said.
More: Mlive
Feds Move to Drop McClendon Indictment After Fatal Crash
Authorities are taking steps to drop the indictment against former Chesapeake Energy CEO Aubrey McClendon, who died hours after the indictment was handed up last week. McClendon was under investigation for alleged bid rigging relating to natural gas leases.
A federal grand jury handed up the indictment Tuesday. McClendon died in Oklahoma City last week when his SUV crashed at high speed into a bridge abutment. That accident remains under investigation.
More: The Associated Press