Commentary

What separates investor-owned utilities (IOUs) and public power companies these days? Less than you might imagine. In early June, while the Edison Electric Institute (EEI), the trade association for IOUs, was holding its annual meeting in New Orleans, I was in Minneapolis at the annual conference of the American Public Power Association (APPA), which represents […]

What separates investor-owned utilities (IOUs) and public power companies these days? Less than you might imagine. In early June, while the Edison Electric Institute (EEI), the trade association for IOUs, was holding its annual meeting in New Orleans, I was in Minneapolis at the annual conference of the American Public Power Association (APPA), which represents […]

I’m sure readers of this magazine have noticed the increased emphasis in the U.S. recently on promoting STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) education. That’s a good thing, but it’s not enough. To improve the odds of achieving the goals that STEM promoters have—including a better-trained workforce and economic leadership—we should be adding an “A” […]

Our country’s energy landscape is rapidly changing. For the first time in decades we’re producing more barrels of oil in the United States than we import from other countries, thanks in part to shale oil production. Newly developed natural gas resources have enabled the U.S. to begin transitioning from a modest net importer of natural […]

Unless you’ve been in a cave the last 24 hours (or at least off the internet), you’ve no doubt heard about Tesla’s move into the battery storage field. I attended the event last night and reported on it for POWER in the wee hours afterward. (The announcement came at night so Tesla CEO Elon Musk […]

As I write this column at the beginning of spring, I have two kinds of spring fever: excitement about warming temperatures that bring spring flowers and the “hay fever” caused by tree pollens. I have mixed feelings about spring. I mention this only because the power industry is experiencing a spring fever of its own. […]

If you have been paying attention to renewable energy growth in the U.S. during the past decade, you likely know that Texas leads the nation in wind power development. In fact, the portion of the state that is served by the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT)—about 75% of land area and about 90% of […]

This summer, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will finalize its Clean Power Plan under Section 111(d) of the Clean Air Act, requiring existing fossil fuel–fired electric generating units (EGUs) to cut carbon dioxide emissions to 30% below 2005 levels by 2030. The rule will require states to meet specific reduction goals and also allow states […]

Renewable energy is on the rise, and the Export-Import Bank of the United States (Ex-Im Bank) is playing its part to support American renewable exporters in the global marketplace. Global installed capacity of renewable electricity over the last 10 years has increased by over 100%, to 1,560 GW, and now accounts for 23% of all […]

What turns a trend from trendy to established? In the energy industry it can be any number of things, from a technology breakthrough, to a new market, to forces of nature. The shale gas boom in the U.S. is the most well-known example of a technology trend that has changed the economics for all power […]