New York State Public Service Commission

Digest

Williams completes Transco pipeline expansion and plans a new one; Hudson Transmission electrifies underwater line between New Jersey and Manhattan; Northern Power wind turbines installed at Hawaii microgrid project; GE boosts efficiency of diesels powering remote Alaskan cooperative; Siemens installs supercapacitor on Oregon rail line; plus contracts and announcements from Bonneville Power Administration, Primus Power, Ameren, ComEd, Silver Spring Networks, Toshiba, Babcock & Wilcox, and others.

When Labor's Locked Out

ConEd, public safety, and the regulatory response.

Last summer’s union lockout at Consolidated Edison raised novel legal and regulatory questions that remain unresolved. Organized labor can strike, and management can respond, but do state utility commissions have authority to end a lockout that threatens service?

Planning for Efficiency

Forecasting the geographic distribution of demand reductions. Copyright © 2011 Consolidated Edison Company of New York, Inc.

As new energy efficiency programs proliferate, regulators increasingly will seek to use the associated demand reductions to reduce capital expenditures on new transmission and distribution assets. However, forecasting the expected geographic distribution of these demand reductions within the grid and integrating this information into a utility’s capital planning process is a challenging task.

Embracing Wind

Integrating renewables in New York.

New York has developed new market mechanisms intended to effectively incorporate large amounts of renewable energy in the future — up to six times the current levels of intermittent energy without impacting system reliability. New York ISO executive Rana Mukerji explains how the market will drive new investment in renewable energy in the state.

Federal-State Partnership

Transforming DR and smart-grid policies into reality.

Regulatory policies are evolving to make demand response and smart-grid planning a reality across the country. Cooperation between federal and state lawmakers will allow local flexibility within a uniform national framework.

People

(March 2007) Constellation Energy named Kevin W. Hadlock vice president, investor relations, and Robert L. Gould vice president, corporate communications. Subsidiary Constellation NewEnergy appointed Emily Neill as business development manager. Dynegy Inc. announced several organizational changes related to the company’s proposed combination with LS Power. Robert W. Best, chairman, president, and CEO of Atmos Energy Corp., was elected chairman of the American Gas Foundation’s board of trustees for 2007. And others...

People

New Positions:

People

New Positions:

Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, stepped into the role of chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, succeeding Rep. Billy Tauzin, R-La., who is leaving Congress.

Duke Energy named David Hauser as its permanent CFO. He had been acting CFO since November. He succeeds Robert Brace, who resigned.

Distributed Generation: Hype vs. Hope

Separating myth from reality in identifying DG applications.

Technological breakthroughs in distributed generation have not materialized as quickly as expected. Furthermore, manufacturers have continued to improve traditional generation technologies. So what role can DG play?

People

Secretary of Energy Bill Richardson has selected Daniel M. Adamson as deputy assistant secretary for utility technologies, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. Adamson had served as special assistant, Office of the Secretary since 1994.

Solar Mandate? Like it or Not, Consumers Pay

States earmark millions to fund solar projects via system benefits charges.

Making solar power a realistic choice for electric consumers is a burgeoning issue for state utility regulators. As part of electric restructuring, regulators are trying to finance the costs of solar installations.

Key to delivering commercial, on-grid solar power to new markets are state efforts, partnered with other government and industry actions. So far, the system benefits charge, or SBC, is the primary short-term incentive to develop solar, wind, biomass and other renewable resources.