Finance

Investor-owned electric companies are thoroughly reviewing the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC’s) broad new proposed rule that requires registrants to disclose climate-related risks and governance, and plan to remain engaged with the regulatory agency as the rulemaking continues. The proposed rule, which the SEC approved 3–1 on March 21, has drawn intense interest from the […]

It is not an over-reaction to state that we are in the midst of a planetary emergency. We face the combined threats of climate, nature loss, and human health pandemics. Of the nine planetary boundaries that

GE’s first earnings release after the American conglomerate last November announced it would combine and spin-off its Renewable Energy, Power, and Digital business suggests flagging orders for onshore and offshore wind equipment and gas turbines amid a business environment wrought with uncertainty. GE on Jan. 25 reported revenues of $15.7 billion for its Renewable Energy business, […]

Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) efforts are factoring into merger and acquisition (M&A) deal activity within the power and utilities sector across North America, according to a report issued by PwC, a professional services firm serving the “Trust Solutions and Consulting Solutions” segments. “As policies are clarified and ESG strategies are strengthened, broad investor interest […]

A leaked draft of the European Commission’s proposal to label some natural gas and nuclear power plants as “transitional” or “green” investments has prompted pushback from some European Union (EU) members. Criticism is also mounting in South Korea, where liquefied natural gas (LNG) was included in its new green taxonomy guidelines—but nuclear was left out. […]

The fog of uncertainty that hangs over the global power industry is getting larger and denser as generating companies and utilities navigate ever more complex challenges.

If you’ve paid attention to the cleantech news cycle this year, you know it’s been a roller-coaster ride. I’ve been in the cleantech/energy transition sector for 20 years and wrote the first history on the term cleantech 15 years ago. I’ve seen the many ups and downs surrounding the industry. Today’s current playing field is […]

TORONTO – (Dec. 14, 2021) – eLeapPower, a technology innovator revolutionizing electric vehicles – inside and outside – with its Smart Inverter System, announced today that it raised $21 million CAD in Series A funding. The round was led by a consortium of pension funds and BDC Capital’s Cleantech Practice. eLeapPower’s initial contract is with […]

Houston, TX, December 14, 2021 — Octopus Energy Group announced a new long-term strategic partnership with Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments), one of the world’s largest pension funds and a global force in energy investing. This global partnership is formed of an initial US$300 million equity investment from CPP Investments with an aspiration […]

Dominion Energy is revving up its efforts to build the 2.6-GW Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) commercial project before 2027 to meet state requirements, it said in a detailed filing for the $9.8 billion project submitted to the Virginia State Corporation Commission (SCC) on Nov. 5.  CVOW, which will be sited on a federal lease […]

Many small- and medium-sized power projects are simply not large enough to gain the interest of highly sought-after institutional investors. The complexity and related costs of smaller projects means risks and

Stakeholders are increasingly pressuring corporations to become more sustainable, and often that means using renewable energy to help meet their electricity needs. Most non-power companies don’t want to take

Although Mexican economic history shows moments of tension between the private sector and the federal government—for example, during the administration of President Luis Echeverría (1970-1976)—never in the modern era has such tension reached the levels experienced at this time. The attacks on the private sector, including foreign investment, that the current federal administration has carried […]

In late 2013, Mexico embarked on a path to transform its energy markets. Then-President Enrique Peña-Nieto oversaw constitutional reforms that ended state-run monopolies, and opened Mexico’s power market to competition and investment from foreign and private companies. By most accounts, the policies were highly effective in spurring investments in renewable energy and efficient natural gas-fired […]

The group considered Texas’ oldest and largest electricity cooperative has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, saying it can’t pay money wanted by the state’s grid operator in connection with power outages during a major winter storm that hit in February. Brazos Electric Power Cooperative filed its bankruptcy petition March 1 in the U.S. Bankruptcy […]

It was about a year ago that COVID-19 gained the world’s attention. The first laboratory-confirmed case of COVID-19 in the U.S. was reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Jan. 22

In a milestone settlement that could resolve Duke Energy’s “last remaining major issues” on coal ash management in North Carolina, the utility has agreed to absorb $1.1 billion in cleanup costs anticipated between 2015 and 2030.  The proposed settlement, which Duke Energy filed with the North Carolina Utilities Commission (NCUC) on Jan. 25, is a […]

The power purchase agreement, commonly called a PPA, is a fundamental element to the development, construction, and financing of power generation projects. Like many things in the power industry, the PPA is

The last few months have seen the power sector plagued with enduring lower power prices, exacerbating the continued negative impact on power generation companies and electric utilities. There are a number of

Researchers at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) have found that a combination of lower capital, operating, and finance costs, in addition to better equipment performance, and longer useful lives, have driven power purchase agreement (PPA) prices and the levelized cost of energy (LCOE) for utility-scale wind and solar projects to all-time lows. The findings were […]

By Brad Handler and Morgan Bazilian Nearly 75%  of electricity generated from coal in the U.S. could be produced more cheaply with renewables, strengthening the environmental arguments to accelerate the retirement of coal plants. Yet such transitions to renewable sources have to factor in the costs—incremental, stranded and most pressingly, societal—of shutting down existing plants, […]

Strengthens Balance Sheet and Demonstrates Confidence in Operations Enhances Financial Flexibility for Continued Strong Project Execution and Pursuit of New Opportunities New Capital Commitment Provided By Certain Existing Lenders and Shareholders HOUSTON, Nov. 18, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — McDermott International, Ltd (“McDermott” or the “Company”) today announced that it has secured approximately $560 million in new capital […]

A pan-renewables organization has chastised the Department of Labor (DOL) for fast-tracking a new rule it has said is a “transparent attempt to slow the growth” of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investing.  According to the American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE)—a group that represents a wide range of renewables stakeholders including some of the […]

Joe Mease and Bryan Benoit, Grant Thornton LLP After serving as a primary source of electrical power generation for the last half-century, bankruptcies throughout the American coal mining industry in 2020 serve as the proverbial canary in the mine for the once dominant black nuggets found across the U.S. from the Appalachians to the Powder River Basin. […]

Arguments continue about the impacts of climate change, but there’s little debate when it comes to where banks and other investors are putting their money. Shareholders and institutional investors are

Key Facts National Rural Utilities Cooperative Finance Corporation (CFC) selected FIS Commercial Lending Suite to consolidate loan origination and back office servicing. FIS Commercial Lending solution will consolidate CFC’s legacy lending systems into one fully integrated front to back solution JACKSONVILLE, Fla., October 28, 2020 – Financial technology leader FIS® (NYSE:FIS) today announced that it […]

At a time when deal activity in the energy and natural resources sector has slowed dramatically—down 26.2% globally year-on-year—one development in particular may define the industry’s near-term future. In mid-May 2020, French oil major Total opted not to pursue a deal, announced in 2019, to purchase the African assets of Anadarko Petroleum, a U.S. producer […]

Costs for wind and solar power systems have been declining for years thanks to technology improvements, economies of scale, and fierce competition in auctions. In the second half of 2019, the levelized cost of