The owner of the 40-MW White Pine coal-fired power plant in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula blasted MISO after receiving a 90-day notice that the grid operator will terminate its $7.3 million annual system support resource agreement with the 60-year-old plant on Nov. 26.
White Pine Electric Power, a subsidiary of Traxys North America, said the decision jeopardizes reliability until 2020, when 170 MW of new natural gas-fired plants will come online. “This is a short-sighted decision by MISO that they claim is about utility rates,” said White Pine board Chairman Brent Zettl.
The utility claims that the study MISO used to make its decision did not properly evaluate emergency scenarios, arguing that the plant provides a failsafe against unplanned outages.
More: White Pine Electric Power
Duke Adds Former Nuke Exec to Board
William E. Webster Jr., former executive vice president for industry strategy at the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations, joined Duke Energy’s board of directors effective Sept. 1.
Webster retired from INPO on June 30, ending a career there that began in 1982. While at INPO, he also served in “on‑loan” leadership positions with FPL Group and Arizona Public Service’s Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station.
He received his senior reactor operator certification at Duke’s Brunswick nuclear plant and has a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Villanova University.
More: Duke Energy
Xcel Adds Another Wind Farm to Portfolio
The 200-MW Odell Wind Farm began generating power in southwestern Minnesota last week under a 20-year power purchase agreement with Xcel Energy, its fourth wind facility in the Upper Midwest.
Owned and operated by Canadian company Algonquin Power & Utilities, Odell consists of more than 100 turbines erected in four counties.
Xcel gets 14% of its power from wind sources in the Upper Midwest and predicts the share will rise to 22% in 2020. Xcel’s ultimate goal is 42% from wind.
More: Star Tribune; La Crosse Tribune
Former NYPA CEO Joins NYISO Board
NYISO has named former energy executive Roger B. Kelley to its Board of Directors, effective this month. He replaces Vikki L. Pryor, whose term expired in April.
Kelley has more than 40 years of experience in the electric generation and transmission business. He previously served as CEO of Peregrine Midstream Partners in Houston. He was also CEO of Midland Cogeneration Venture in Midland, Mich.; CEO of Fortistar Renewables, based in White Plains, N.Y.; and CEO of the New York Power Authority.
“Roger has extensive experience in the energy industry, including as president and CEO of the New York Power Authority,” said Michael Bemis, NYISO’s board chair. “We appreciate his willingness to serve as a director. I’m confident we will benefit from his judgment and counsel.”
More: NYISO
Tesla-SolarCity Filing Reveals Cash-Strapped Companies
Prior to agreeing to a merger with Tesla, SolarCity considered selling its Buffalo solar panel manufacturing plant, which is scheduled for completion next June with $750 million in state assistance, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
SolarCity eventually decided a sale of the plant, a centerpiece of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s Buffalo Billion economic development program, would not provide an adequate return for company shareholders. But the filing reveals how strapped for cash SolarCity is, even as it considered being acquired for $2.4 billion. The company’s operations rely heavily on a business model that allows customers to install rooftop solar with no upfront costs, forcing it to constantly raise money from investors.
The filing also reveals at least three other firms declined to acquire SolarCity before it accepted the offer from Tesla, which is facing a cash crunch itself. The company will have to pay $422 million to bond holders in the third quarter. Tesla’s debt-to-equity ratio was 145.5% as of June 30; SolarCity’s was 375.6%.
More: The Buffalo News; The Wall Street Journal
Developer Wants to Double Up Indiana Plant
Development Partners, which is building a $500 million, 700-MW natural gas plant in northern Indiana, has asked MISO to allow it to double the size and the cost of the plant.
The White Plains, N.Y., company wants permission to add two more turbines to the St. Joseph Energy Center near the Michigan border. The first phase of the project is scheduled to be completed in 2018.
After Development Partners gets interconnection approval from MISO, which it hopes to earn by the end of the year, the developer would work with local officials to approve a site plan.
More: South Bend Tribune
Enbridge Puts Minnesota Pipeline Project on Hold
Enbridge Energy Partners, which recently invested $1.5 billion into a rival oil-pipeline project, has put its proposed Sandpiper Pipeline in Minnesota on hold, saying current demand for crude oil no longer supports the need for the project.
Sandpiper, which was initiated three years ago, aimed to carry up to 225,000 barrels of oil from North Dakota through Minnesota and then on to Superior, Wis. The proposal faced heated opposition from Native American tribes and environmental groups who objected to the proposed path, which would have crossed numerous lakes and rivers.
Enbridge stopped short of saying the project was dead, but it did say the five-year projection of production in North Dakota’s Bakken region doesn’t forecast the need for more pipeline capacity. The decision comes just after its recent $1.5 billion investment in the Bakken pipeline system, which includes the Dakota Access project.
More: MPR News
Oregon Coal Plant to Run Full Biomass Test
Portland General Electric is exploring the possibility of converting its coal-fired Boardman power plant in eastern Oregon to biomass.
The utility plans to run the 550-MW facility on woody biomass for one full day this year as an experiment, following a successful test last year using a 10-to-1 mixture of coal and biomass. The process will entail pulverizing wood debris into the substance before feeding it into the plant’s boiler.
Boardman is slated for closure in 2020, but the use of biomass could extend the life of the plant. Success of the project will hinge on plant conversion costs and securing a steady supply of fuel.
More: East Oregonian
Southern Co., Kinder Morgan Close Deal on Pipeline System
Southern Co. has acquired 50% of Kinder Morgan’s Southern Natural Gas pipeline system, the companies announced. The 7,000-mile system runs from wells in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama to markets in the southeast. Terms of the acquisition were not announced. Kinder Morgan will continue to operate the pipeline system.
Southern CEO Thomas A. Fanning hinted at other deals possibly in the works. “With our new ownership stake in Southern Natural Gas, we look forward to working with Kinder Morgan to explore future opportunities to deliver natural gas to customers,” he said.
More: Southern Co. and Kinder Morgan
Talen Notifies NRC it is Canceling Nuclear Plant
Talen Energy withdrew its request for an operating license from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for the proposed Bell Bend nuclear station in Berwick, Pa., saying that the reactor design company’s decision to suspend its certification process left it no choice.
The Allentown, Pa., company said that it had posted a $122 million loss associated with the project when it released its second-quarter results and that it would stop attempts to get a license for the plant. The reactor design company, Areva, asked NRC in 2015 to stop its design certification process. A Talen spokesman said seeking another design company wasn’t feasible.
Talen said the decision was not related to is pending merger with Riverstone Holdings.
More: The Morning Call
GE Joins MIT Energy Initiative
General Electric is joining an energy research program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology that aims to cut carbon emissions.
GE is contributing $7.5 million to the MIT Energy Initiative for research, particularly in solar power, energy storage, advanced power grids and carbon sequestration, company officials said.
“This partnership really is about advancing the state of the art in low-carbon technologies,” said Steve Bolze, chief executive of the $29 billion GE Power division.
More: The Boston Globe
EnerNOC Wins BQDM Contract from Con Ed
EnerNOC has been awarded a multi-million-dollar contract by Consolidated Edison for the Brooklyn-Queens Demand Management program, part of New York’s Reforming the Energy Vision initiative. The program’s aim is to reduce demand in certain areas of New York City, delaying or eliminating the need for a $1.2 billion substation.
The BQDM project has been described as the largest modern “non-wires” alternative program in the U.S. relying on the use of energy efficiency and demand-side management in lieu of traditional generation and distribution infrastructure.
More: EnerNOC
Duke, Solar Devs Reach Interconnection Agreement
Duke Energy and 33 solar developers reached an agreement that will allow many solar generation projects to go forward and interconnect with the utility’s grid.
Earlier this summer, Duke announced that so many solar projects are seeking interconnection with their grid that it might cause problems and was going to require each new project to undergo a technical review. The new agreement allows the projects to connect while preserving Duke’s right to disconnect if problems arise. There are 3,300 MW of solar projects in various stages of planning and construction in North Carolina.
“In some areas of our system, we’re reaching a saturation point with solar, and in some places it is ill-placed,” a Duke spokesman said. The intermittent nature of the generation could cause problems with some of the lower-voltage circuits, the company says.
More: The Charlotte Observer
Riverside County officials are advancing a plan to create an alternative retail electricity supplier that would supplant Southern California Edison in unincorporated areas of the county. The officials say that the community choice aggregator, which would purchase power directly from producers, would allow county residents to lower their costs and increase reliance on renewables.
Regulators have approved a 2% rate hike for Duke Energy customers to help the company pay for its beleaguered Edwardsport coal-gasification plant.
The Utilities Board unanimously denied landowners’ request for a permanent stay of construction of the Dakota Access pipeline pending a court ruling on whether eminent domain can be used to access their properties.
The Public Service Commission has scheduled two public hearings to discuss PEPCO’s request to increase its electric distribution rate by $104 million for 560,000 customers in Prince George’s and Montgomery counties. A typical residential customer would pay $13 more a month under the proposed rate. (Case No. 
Lincoln Electric System will dedicate the state’s first commercial solar energy park next month and commemorate the event with tours for customers who helped finance the project.
The Division of Rate Counsel said it will argue against FirstEnergy’s plan to spin off Jersey Central Power & Light’s transmission facilities into a new company to be called Mid-Atlantic Interstate Transmission. The assets include about 2,500 miles of transmission lines and towers.
The Public Regulation Commission is being criticized for its decision last week to reopen hearings for Public Service Company of New Mexico (PNM)’s proposed rate increase. Commissioners said that the case could be extended through December if the utility decides to submit more evidence showing that its energy investments are prudent.
The New York Power Authority will pay Entergy a $35 million termination fee if the sale of the FitzPatrick nuclear plant to Exelon falls through.
A diverse group of energy businesses are partnering with the University of North Dakota to develop carbon capture and sequestration technology.
American Electric Power has asked the Public Utilities Commission for permission to increase the fixed monthly distribution charges for all of its customers to make up for the number of residential customers who are installing rooftop solar and energy efficient technology.
About 300 people attended a public meeting held by the Public Utilities Commission to gather comments on a proposed wind farm north of Avon.
Environmental advocates at a Sunset Advisory Commission hearing on the Railroad Commission urged state lawmakers to require coal companies to set aside resources to cover the cost of cleaning up mines. Coal companies are currently allowed to self-bond, a process that could leave residents on the hook for more than $250 million in environmental cleanup costs if the companies renege on their obligations.
FirstEnergy asked state regulators to approve a $6.9 million rate surcharge for MonPower and Potomac Edison customers to pay for upgrades at two coal-fired plants.
One ratepayer said she was charged eight extra times for the same $135 bill, and $1,215 was automatically withdrawn from her account.
Dominion Virginia Power has applied with the Virginia State Corporation Commission to replace the existing 500-kV Carson-Rogers Road Line in Greensville County. The project, if approved, would cost about $52.9 million and be completed in December 2018.
Great Plains Energy and Westar Energy shareholders will vote on Great Plains’ proposed $12.2 billion acquisition of Westar in separate but concurrent special shareholder meetings Sept. 26. The deal would pay Westar shareholders $51/share plus $9/share in Great Plains stock.
Public Service Company of Oklahoma last week named Tommy Slater as vice president of the company’s generating assets. Slater, currently a plant manager at sister company Southwestern Electric Power Co.’s Welsh Plant in Texas, replaces Gary Knight, who is retiring after 35 years with PSO.
A Delaware bankruptcy judge approved the Chapter 11 plan of Luminant and TXU Energy, the two main operating businesses of Energy Future Holdings.
In the 1990s, Ameren decided to switch to a new, ultra-low-sulfur coal rather than install new controls. This resulted in operational problems at the plant, leading the company to make $72 million worth of upgrades, including boiler modifications and a new turbine. It also led, EPA argued, to increased electricity output and, thus, increased emissions.
Federal regulators have cited R.E. Ginna nuclear plant owner Exelon for a safety violation because the station’s emergency plan contained a sentence that misused less-than symbols.
The Federal Aviation Administration is standing by its previous determination that the proposed Chapman Ranch wind farm in South Texas would “not have an adverse effect on the safe and efficient use of the navigable airspace” primarily used by the U.S. Navy for training pilots out of Kingsville and Corpus Christi.
The Tennessee Valley Authority has filed a request with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to allow power uprates at its Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant.
Environmentalists are challenging a Bureau of Land Management plan to lease more than 19,000 acres of federal land in Montana for oil and gas exploration.
