Legal
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IIOT
Blockchain and Energy Innovation Marches On
Even in a pandemic, energy innovators are developing blockchain technology to implement powerful changes. From automating crude oil trading to amplifying the impact of renewable energy sources, innovations harnessing blockchain technology are likely to change the energy industry in profound ways. Inventors, enterprises, and investors who act today to obtain patent protection for their early […]
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Legal & Regulatory
Bird Policy Prepares for Another Migration With New Administration
The Trump administration’s final rule interpreting the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) to not prohibit the incidental take (accidental injury or death) of migratory birds recently hatched. But with the Biden administration taking the regulatory reins on Jan. 20, 2021, this lame-duck regulation will be quickly grounded. COMMENTARY Anticipating this, power companies should remain vigilant […]
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Commentary
Global Rush Toward Renewables Faces Challenges
Harold E. “Ed” Patricoff and Ana Sarmento The global trend toward renewable energy is undeniable and commendable. In 2018, 10Power announced that it would work to create commercial-scale solar and energy
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Plant Design
How to Plan a Successful Energy Construction Project
These Ten Steps May Help Power Companies Avoid Headaches, Delays, Higher Costs, and Legal Complications Jacqueline Greenberg Vogt, Esq. and Robert C. Epstein, Esq. The International Energy Agency projects the rapid growth of renewables, with solar at the center of this new constellation of electricity generation technologies. Hydropower remains the largest renewable source of electricity, […]
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Legal & Regulatory
In Search of Middle Ground Between State Public Policy and Federal Regulation
The tension between state and federal lawmakers is ages old, with a history marked by periods of outright assault or relative peace. On Dec. 19, 2019, the quiet in the energy sector was broken by an order from
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Commentary
Industry Wants Clarity on Trump Order About Foreign Equipment
President Trump on May 1, 2020, issued Executive Order (EO) 13920, titled “Securing the United States Bulk-Power System.” Trump said that the unrestricted foreign supply of certain electric equipment
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Legal & Regulatory
Supreme Court Revives Most Uses of NWP 12, Amid Uncertainty
In a one-paragraph, unsigned order issued July 6, the U.S. Supreme Court reinstated most uses of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Nationwide Permit 12 (NWP 12) for pipeline and utility trenching and
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Hydro
Rethinking Hydropower Eligibility for State Renewable Incentive Programs
In the absence of a comprehensive federal renewable energy policy, many states have established regulatory frameworks that incentivize or require utilities to purchase or develop a percentage of renewable
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Commentary
Filed Rate Doctrine: A Powerful Tool in Energy Litigation
The regulatory landscape for the energy industry has changed significantly in the past few decades, but a century-old Supreme Court canon—the filed rate doctrine—continues to be a valuable tool for
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News
Groups File Legal Challenges to ACE Rule
Legal challenges to the Trump administration’s Affordable Clean Energy (ACE) rule began in earnest April 17, as more than two dozen states and cities, along with several environmental activist groups, filed briefs with the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington, D.C., seeking a rollback of power plant regulations that also have been decried by coal […]