Latest
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Renewables
Can Angela Merkel, the So-Called “Climate Chancellor,” Hold Germany to Its Greenhouse Targets?
On Sunday, September 24, Germany finalized voting in its 2017 federal elections. Citizens were able to vote by mail ahead of Sunday’s election or they could chose to efficiently breeze through a voting center, make a physical “X” next to, first, the local direct candidate of their choice. And then make a second mark next […]
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Legal & Regulatory
ITC: Imported PV Cells Hurting U.S. Solar Industry
In a unanimous decision, the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) on September 22 found that photovoltaic (PV) solar cells being imported into the U.S. are causing “serious injury, or threat of serious injury, to the domestic industry.” The decision comes in a highly contested case filed by bankrupt solar panel manufacturer, Suniva, and SolarWorld. The […]
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O&M
Four Tips for Protecting Power within One of the World’s Most Critical Industries
New report highlights criticality of utilities. As more and more industries increasingly rely on information technology (IT), the ability to ensure IT systems stay up and running is more critical than ever. But which industries absolutely, positively must stay up and running? Which industries are most critical? That’s the question answered by a team of […]
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Legal & Regulatory
Feds Subpoena Documents Related to 2016 Bechtel Audit of V.C. Summer Nuclear Expansion
SCANA Corp. and Santee Cooper—utility partners that recently abandoned a two-unit expansion at the V.C. Summer nuclear plant—have received federal subpoenas for documents associated with a much-guarded February 2016 assessment report conducted by Bechtel, documentation of meetings with the firm, and documentation of site walk-downs and real-time observations at the half-built project. A copy of […]
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Renewables
CAISO Expansion, 100% Zero-Carbon Bids Flatline, But Bills for Energy Storage, DERs Thrive
California’s legislature last week wrapped up its 2017 session without authorizing the broad expansion of the California Independent System Operator (CAISO) into other Western states or passing a zero-carbon bill, which would have put the state on a path to 100% clean energy by 2045. It did, however, succeed in passing bills to encourage development […]
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Renewables
CAISO to Extend Contract for Oil-fired Units in Bid to Ensure Reliability
Three 55-MW oil-fired units at Dynegy’s Oakland plant in renewables-heavy California will be needed through 2018 to ensure reliability in a region served by the California Independent System Operator (CAISO), the grid entity has deemed. CAISO’s board of governors on September 19 extended a “reliability must-run” (RMR) contract for the three Oakland units. An RMR […]
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Legal & Regulatory
UK Supreme Court Rules on Robin Rigg Wind Farm Case [PODCAST]
The UK Supreme Court ruled unanimously in favor of E.ON in a long-running dispute over foundation problems identified at the 174-MW Robin Rigg offshore wind farm located between Scotland and England. The judges said Danish contractor MT Højgaard must bear the approximate €26 million cost of remedying failed grouted connections between monopiles and transition pieces […]
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Legal & Regulatory
Appellate Court Decides in Favor of Duke in Rooftop Solar Case
In a split decision, the North Carolina Court of Appeals affirmed a decision of the North Carolina Utility Commission that an advocacy group has infringed on Duke Energy’s state-sanctioned monopoly on the sale of electricity. The September 19 decision concerns an agreement between the North Carolina Waste Awareness and Reduction Network (NC WARN) and a […]
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Nuclear
Decision on Vogtle Project May Come in February 2018
State regulators in Georgia could decide the future of the troubled Vogtle nuclear expansion project in February 2018, and have scheduled a series of hearings in December of this year to discuss spending for continued construction of two new units at the plant near Waynesboro, Georgia. The Georgia Public Service Commission (PSC) on September 19 […]
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Legal & Regulatory
Long-delayed Expansion of Kansas Coal Plant Now Considered Unlikely
Chances that an 895-MW project to expand Sunflower Electric Power Corp.’s coal-fired Holcomb Station in Kansas will ever be completed are “remote,” a key project partner said. Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association—a Denver-based power generator owned by 43 electric cooperatives that partnered with Sunflower in 2005 to build the new unit—in an August 10-Q […]