California

CEOs are Charged Up

But guiding their companies in times of change is a challenging task.

It’s a new era for utilities and their consumers. Today’s leaders are atop those economic, political and technological happenings.
Byline: 

Ken Silverstein and Herman Trabish

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Rooftop Solar 2.0

Hawaii and California grapple over net energy metering.

While the underlying questions in each state regarding net energy metering are much the same, the two PUC's will approach the issue from different perspectives.
Byline: 

Bruce W. Radford

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The Driving Ambition of Elon Musk

An electric car in every driveway, a battery in every garage.

Tesla’s Elon Musk is driving the electric car off the lot and onto the premises of America’s electric utilities, proposing to build and sell energy storage batteries on both a residential and grid-wide scale – ideas that the chief executive will fully flesh out at the Edison Electric Institute’s annual meeting in New Orleans this June.
Byline: 

Ken Silverstein

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NRC Requires Additional Earthquake Risk Analysis for Two Western U.S. Reactors

Submitted by aburr on Fri, 2015-05-29 13:42

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission set a June 2017 deadline for two of three Western U.S. operating nuclear power plants to conduct in-depth analyses of their updated earthquake risk. The NRC is requiring Columbia (Benton County, Wash.) and Diablo Canyon (Avila Beach, Calif.) to submit their detailed risk analysis by June 30, 2017. The NRC continues to examine information from Palo Verde (Wintersburg, Ariz.); if the agency concludes the plant needs the in-depth risk analysis it must complete the work by Dec. 31, 2020.

Dominion Acquires a 20-MW Solar Facility in California from E.ON

Submitted by aburr on Thu, 2015-05-14 13:43

Dominion acquired a 20-MW solar facility in California from E.ON North America. The facility is expected to enter service in the second quarter of 2015. Alamo Solar is located in San Bernardino County near Helendale, Calif. It has secured a 20-year PPA and an interconnection agreement. Financial details were not disclosed.

Digest (May 2015)

Sonoma Clean Power will build the largest floating solar array in the U.S., scheduled to be completed in 2016 and will create enough energy to power 3,000 houses; GE announced the construction of two service centers focused on the operation and maintenance of wind turbines in Brazil; Open Systems International was awarded a contract by Seattle City Light to implement a new energy management system; FirstEnergy expects to invest about $225 million on distribution and transmission infrastructure projects in north-central West Virginia; APR Energy commissioned an expansion of its power plant in Myanmar; The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission approved Westinghouse Electric’s testing approach for the Westinghouse small modular reactor design; FuelCell Energy agreed to sell a 1.4-MW fuel cell power plant project to NRG Energy; ABB and Samsung SDI signed a memorandum of understanding to promote microgrid solutions globally; And others ...
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Enron's Lessons

Are regulators managing market manipulation?

Some will stray from ethical behavior. But markets must be regulated to maintain confidence.
Byline: 

Ken Silverstein, Editor-In-Chief

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Con Edison Development Enters into Agreement to Procure GE Energy Storage System

Submitted by aburr on Fri, 2015-04-17 15:14

GE will supply Con Edison Development (CED) with an 8-MWh battery energy storage system in Central Valley, CA. The new storage solution will utilize GE's Mark VIe-based plant control system, Brilliance MW Inverters, and packaged lithium ion battery modules. The system will provide two MW of power over a four-hour period, and the deal includes delivery of a complete energy storage system, with associated long-term service agreements.