Data Center, Power Plant Plan Dies After UD Says No
A controversial plan to build a data center and a 279-MW power plant at the University of Delaware came to a halt last week, as the university terminated the lease agreement with the proposed developer, The Data Center LLC. A university working group decided the project didn’t fit in with the university’s plans for the site, a former Chrysler assembly plant that is now home to the university’s Science & Technology Advanced Research Campus.
The working group of faculty and administrators said the scale of the power plant raised doubt about Data Center’s claims of energy efficiency. The plan was “not consistent with a high-quality development and first-class science and technology campus,” the group said in a report. Gene Kern, president of the development company, said he disagrees with UD that the lease can be terminated for the reasons stated and is examining its legal options.
More: The News Journal
PSC Sets Hearing Schedule for Exelon, Pepco Deal
The Public Service Commission will hold three public hearings in September to gather comments regarding Exelon’s acquisition of Pepco Holdings Inc. The proposed $6.8 billion merger was announced in April.
The commission has said it will issue a final order on the merger by January. It will have a full slate of commissioners to do so, now that the state Senate has confirmed Wilmington’s former economic development director, Harold Gray, for a seat on the panel. Gray assumes the seat vacated by former commission member Arnetta McRae, who left the PSC in 2011 to take a job in the District of Columbia.
The merger needs the approval of state regulators in Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey and Virginia, as well as regulators in D.C. Federal regulatory approval is also needed. Pepco shareholders are expected to vote on the merger in August.
More: The News Journal
ILLINOIS
AG: Ratepayers Funding Com-Ed Bonuses
Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan slammed Commonwealth Edison for seeking ratepayer contributions to pay for $88 million in bonuses to employees. Madigan said she discovered the company’s request to have customers pay for the bonuses while examining ComEd’s rate request, now before the state Commerce Commission. In a complaint filed last week, Madigan said the company included in its request to recover $275 million in costs. She told the ICC that state law does not allow “incentive compensation expense that is based on net income or an affiliate’s earnings per share” to be funded by customer-borne rates.
More: The Chicago Tribune
INDIANA
State Looking for New IURC Member
The state is in the process of finding a new member of the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission. The slot opened when Commission Chairman Jim Atterholt accepted a position as Gov. Mike Pence’s chief of staff. The application deadline closed July 11, and the nomination committee is scheduled to have a public meeting July 30 to interview candidates. The committee will then send three names to Pence, who will select the replacement.
More: Newsbug
MICHIGAN
LED Streetlight Count Hits 10K in Detroit
Detroit installed its 10,000th light emitting diode (LED) streetlight on July 1 and plans to have 65,000 in place by the end of 2016. The new lights are more energy efficient and attractive, the city says, and will help reduce crime.
The Michigan Public Service Commission recently initiated a subsidy for LED streetlights. “This order itself wasn’t anything earth-shattering,” MPSC energy efficiency manager Rob Ozar said. “What is earth-shattering is that LED street lighting is taking the state by storm. We expect LED lighting to take 80% of the market share.”
The program allows rebates of $47 per bulb, Ozar said, which covers about half of the cost difference between an LED bulb and a typical bulb.
More: Midwest Energy News
NEW JERSEY
BPU Mulling Rules to Fight Fraud
The Board of Public Utilities is considering a proposal to prohibit third-party suppliers from making false or misleading statements to residential customers, and barring such companies from contacting customers if they don’t already do business with them. The move, which will be discussed in a July 17 hearing, is in response to a spate of complaints from customers dissatisfied after switching suppliers. Among the changes being considered are defining “guaranteed savings” from third-party suppliers, especially in connection with variable-price contracts.
More: NJ Spotlight
Town Unhappy with JCP&L Tx Line Plan
Leaders in a town that could be the site of a number of Jersey Central Power & Light transmission line expansions are unhappy with the way the proposed power line projects are being explained to them. Montville Township Mayor Dan Kostka said he and others noticed that the map JCP&L showed them of the proposed expansion didn’t match those showed to neighboring towns. JCP&L is considering updating a transmission line that could bring 100-foot towers and 230-kV lines to the town.
“Some of the routes that have been planned or proposed have not been presented to this governing body,” Borough Attorney Fred Semrau said. He is drafting a letter of objection to the Board of Public Utilities questioning whether JCP&L has been transparent during the process, he said.
More: The Morris County Citizen
OHIO
University of Dayton to Divest Fossil Fuel Holdings
The University of Dayton announced last week that it will divest all coal and fossil fuel investments from its $670 million investment pool, making it the first Catholic university to join the ranks of colleges and universities making similar decisions. The university said the move was made with an eye toward slowing climate change. “As a Catholic university, it’s our responsibility to serve as good stewards of the Earth. So we cannot ignore the negative consequences of climate change,” President Daniel J. Curran said. The move will affect about $35 million in investments, he said.
More: Dayton Daily News
PENNSYLVANIA
Another Town Objects to Sunoco NG Line
West Bradford Township supervisors announced last week they will officially oppose Sunoco Logistics’ effort to get public utility status for a proposed natural gas line that would pass through the town. Sunoco decided to seek public utility status for the Mariner East project in order to bypass local authorization after other towns balked at the plan.
Sunoco wants to build the line in order to bring gas extracted in western Pennsylvania to a refinery on the Delaware River. Marcus Hook Borough and several trade groups have announced support for the project.
More: The Daily Local
PPL Wants Customers to Pay for New Meters
PPL last week asked the Public Utility Commission to pass through to consumers $450 million in costs to install smart meters. PPL plans to replace its 1.4 million meters between 2017 and 2019.
The company said the program would boost customer bills by 58 cents per month in 2015, rising to $4.50 in 2020 and falling to $2.79 after 2021.
More: The York Dispatch
Met-Ed Finishing Tx Line in Berks County
Met-Ed is completing a $9.2 million project that rebuilt four miles of a 69-kV line and added five miles to the circuit. The project used more than 80 new poles and included new circuit breakers at substations. Both lines should be in service by the end of July, the company said. Met-Ed, a subsidiary of FirstEnergy, services 560,000 customers in 15 Pennsylvania counties.
More: PennEnergy
FirstEnergy Completes New Line in Armstrong County
FirstEnergy finished a $31 million project that included a new 345-kV substation and 1.6 miles of transmission line that will improve reliability in the Armstrong County area, the company said. A large transformer was built next to FirstEnergy’s deactivated Armstrong Power Plant, and a new control room was built to house controls that had been at the plant.
More: Renew Grid Magazine
WEST VIRGINIA
AEP Companies File for Rate Increase
AEP subsidiaries Appalachian Power and Wheeling Power have filed a request to increase revenue by $226 million, which would boost electricity rates by about 17%. The companies say the rate increase is needed to maintain transmission and distribution lines and to run its generating plants. The request cites costs resulting from two storms in 2012. Customer rates in West Virginia haven’t increased since 2011.
More: Coal Valley News