Legal & Regulatory

The Department of Energy (DOE) has revised eligibility criteria for the first-award cycle of its $6 billion Civil Nuclear Credit (CNC) program and extended its application period to Sept. 6, 2022. The action responds to a request for adjustments from the California governor’s office to better address Pacific Gas & Electric’s (PG&E’s) 2,240-MW Diablo Canyon […]

Offshore wind projects have been bolstered by federal and state initiatives that support the technology to achieve emissions-reduction goals. However, development and grid integration of these projects

President Biden signed the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) into law late last year, cementing his administration’s support for carbon management technologies and their essential role

Reaction on both sides of the issue was swift after the U.S. Supreme Court in a 6-3 vote said the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) should not have the authority to broadly regulate emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG) from the nation’s power plants. The case, West Virginia vs. EPA, could have ramifications for federal government […]

The U.S. Supreme Court has curbed the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) options for limiting emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG) from power plants, an important environmental decision that could impact the federal government’s authority to enforce other regulations. The court in a 6-3 vote, with conservatives in the majority, on June 30 said the EPA does […]

California’s State Legislature has passed a bill that could extend the operating lives of existing generating facilities slated for retirement, potentially providing a new lifeline for the 2,240-MW Diablo Canyon Power Plant (DCPP), which has a premature closure date in 2025. Both houses on June 29 passed AB-205 Energy, an energy trailer bill that Gov. […]

The Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) on June 22 initiated the first step to lift a suspension of its National Electricity Market (NEM), citing a “clear improvement in market conditions.” The measure comes more than a week since it indefinitely suspended spot markets in all regions of its NEM, given critical power generation supply shortfalls […]

Although the electricity generation and transportation sectors account for a far greater share of greenhouse gas emissions than the residential and commercial building sector, policy makers are targeting building electrification as a means for making a significant contribution to economy-wide emission reductions. Federal, state, and local governments are using various policy levers toward this goal, […]

Renewable energy is not the future; it is the present. Nearly half the new electricity generation in the U.S. this year will come from renewable sources. And after last year’s signing of the Infrastructure

Iowa-based Summit Carbon Solutions last year announced plans to develop a new carbon capture and storage project across the Midwest. The project seeks to capture carbon dioxide emissions that otherwise would be emitted into the atmosphere from biorefineries, such as ethanol plants, compress the captured carbon dioxide, and transport it through a pipeline to North […]

Salt River Project Agricultural Improvement and Power District (SRP) is seeking a rehearing and reconsideration of the Arizona Corporation Commission’s (ACC’s) denial of a major gas power plant expansion, which the public power utility has stressed will be crucial for near-term system reliability and long-term renewable integration.  In a filing on May 16, SRP urged […]

Crafting solutions to address the pressing challenges of our time is Congress’s foremost job. There is no doubt that policy-making can be messy, take time, and require compromise. But, overall members and their staff do incredible work for the American public. During my tenure serving Indiana’s 9th Congressional District, I prided myself on working with […]

A long-awaited energy strategy published by the UK government on April 6 lays out bold commitments that tackle Great Britain’s multi-pronged challenges, including achieving net-zero carbon emissions while

The Biden administration is fully behind development of new nuclear power technology. It is encouraging the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to look at “new approaches to regulation” as advanced

Electric utilities will play a critical role in new broadband infrastructure deployment under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021, known as the Infrastructure Act. Whether access to the internet

Increased temperatures, precipitation, sea level, as well as the frequency and severity of extreme events, will inevitably have an impact on the amount of energy generated, transported, and consumed in the U.S. Climate change is increasing dangers to human health and safety, quality of life, and the rate of economic growth, introducing new risks and […]

When the White House signed an executive order to get to 50% electric vehicle (EV) sales share by 2030 while relying on American manufacturing, there were some serious concerns about whether the U.S. could make that many EVs, and then create the infrastructure in time to support that many new EVs on the road. COMMENTARY […]

A sweeping new proposed rule published in the Federal Register by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on April 6 establishes new nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions budgets that will require fossil fuel–fired power plants in 25 states to participate in an allowance-based ozone season trading program starting in 2023. The proposal, which builds on the agency’s […]

The Arizona Corporate Commission (ACC) has delivered a major blow to the Salt River Project Agricultural Improvement and Power District’s (SRP’s) urgent plans to expand the 575-MW gas-fired Coolidge Generating Station with 820 MW of fast-start capacity. The ACC in a 4–1 vote on April 12 denied approval of the public power utility’s Certificate of […]

The U.S. Supreme Court on April 6 reinstated a Trump-era environmental rule that limited state and tribal roles in enforcing a section of the Clean Water Act (CWA) related to project certification. The order is a temporary triumph for eight states and three energy trade associations, including the National Hydropower Association (NHA). The high court’s […]

The Biden administration in 2021 announced its goal of developing 30 GW of offshore wind energy by 2030. Deep water off the West Coast means that any wind energy generation on this side of the U.S. must float

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 […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission  (NRC) in a dramatic reversal on Feb. 24 threw out a key environmental review that staff applied to subsequent license renewal (SLR) approvals for units at Turkey Point and Peach Bottom nuclear plants in 2019 and 2020, deeming their applications “incomplete.” In a series of orders, the federal regulatory agency’s three […]

Notwithstanding the ongoing impacts of COVID-19, in 2021 the deployment of solar, solar + storage, stand-alone storage, wind, and other renewable energy technologies continued to rapidly expand across the U.S

In the race to generate and distribute renewable energy, developers must clear numerous regulatory hurdles. For many projects, this may include obtaining a voluntary “incidental take” permit under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act (BGEPA). The BGEPA incidental take permitting program has frustrated both developers and operators due to, among other things, uncertainty of […]

Handing a muted victory to proponents of nuclear and gas, the European Commission (EC) on Feb. 2 adopted a measure that labels some nuclear and gas energy activity as climate-friendly investments. However, it set out strict, potentially limiting technical screening criteria for those activities to qualify, prompting pushback from the nuclear and gas industries. The […]

In February 2021, a severe cold weather event, known as Winter Storm Uri, caused numerous power outages, derates, or failures to start at electric generating plants scattered across Texas and the south-central U.S. The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), which manages the power supply for about 90% of the load in Texas, ordered a […]

In late January, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit in Richmond, Virginia, took up a case that could play an important role in deciding the future of climate change lawsuits in the U.S. The immediate issue is a dry question of procedure—the grounds for removal of a case from state court to federal court. But […]

Even the most casual observers of the energy and automotive industries are aware that electric vehicle (EV) sales in U.S. markets are on the rise. Over the past 10 years, sales of plug-in EVs have steadily

Energy Transfer, a major pipeline firm that threatened to terminate natural gas service to five Vistra Corp. gas-fired power plants in Texas next week as part of a $21.3 million penalty payment standoff, has relaxed its ultimatum, though the underlying dispute continues. In a letter filed with the Texas Railroad Commission late on Jan. 20, […]