Energy Politics are Combustible
Many in business back EPA, but the new Congress has yet to weigh in.
The comment period closes on EPA’s Clean Power Plan, but Congress is holding its cards close to the vest.
Law & Lawyers
Managing Assets is Not Asset Management
The real thing demands a culture shift toward long-range thinking.
Rather, it involves a culture shift: towards a broader view to encompass such business processes as life-cycle planning, performance analysis, and the entire value chain.
Integrated Energy
Distributed energy + distributed controls = distributed benefits.
Utility business models are at risk in a world of distributed energy resources and local intelligent controls, such as microgrids. But the real revolution may lie in customer expectations, where third parties threaten to take ownership.
In New York's Distributed Energy Future, Will Co-Generation Still Reign?
Distributed energy has a long history in the state – with co-generation, or combined heat and power, playing the dominant role. How is that portfolio changing today?
Combined heat and power still leads the Empire State in market penetration by distributed resources, but costs are not falling as fast as for storage or solar PV.
Digest (January 2015)
FERC approved the proposed merger of Exelon and Pepco Holdings; SunEdison and TerraForm Power agreed to acquire First Wind for $2.4 billion; NorthWestern Energy closed on its $900 million purchase of facilities from PPL Montana; Siemens Energy Management partnered with Microsoft and FuelCell Energy to develop the nation's first zero-carbon, waste-to-energy data center; ABB commissioned a power solution that will control power flow and enhance grid stability in Michigan; AES Southland was awarded a 20-year PPA by Southern California Edison to provide 100 MW of interconnected battery-based energy storage; Renewable Energy Systems Americas developed what will be the largest, fully commercial energy storage projects in North America; Westinghouse Electric, China's State Nuclear Power Technology Corp., and Electricity Generation Co. agreed to develop and construct a four-unit nuclear power plant site in the Republic of Turkey. And others ...
Public Power Road Show
Sue Kelly’s ‘world tour’ brings APPA home.
There’s no one in the energy industry – and I mean absolutely no one – who is more on-message than Sue Kelly, now winding up her first year as CEO of the American Public Power Association.
People (January 2015)
NRG Energy appointed Steve McBee as the first president and CEO of NRG Home; Atlantic Power appointed Teresa M. Ressel to its board of directors; Marvin McDaniel becomes senior v.p., revenue group, and president and CEO of Northern States Power Co.-Minnesota at Xcel Energy; plus management changes at Southern Co., Duke Energy, Entergy Nuclear, and AES; appointments at the U.S. Department of Commerce, NARUC, Nexant, and the OpenADR Alliance; and others.
Transactions (January 2015)
SunEdison and TerraForm Power agreed to acquire First Wind for $2.4 billion; Emera will sell its 49% interest in Northeast Wind Partners II to First Wind for $223.3 million; Calpine completed its acquisition of Fore River Energy Center from Exelon for $530 million; NorthWestern Energy closed its $900 million purchase of 11 hydroelectric facilities and one storage reservoir from PPL Montana; juwi solar sold ownership interests in a 50-MW solar facility to Dominion; Dominion acquired a 20-MW solar facility from Canadian Solar.
Segment and Conquer
To measure efficiency, you needn’t count every customer.
True believers don’t respond much to urging – they will save energy regardless. So why not just ignore them in measuring the success of energy efficiency programs?
Keeping a Lid on Coal Ash
EPA’s rule said to favor repurposing and recycling – over landfills or disposal ponds.
The EPA’s new final rule marks a turning point in the handling of coal fly ash. EPA has tried to balance the needs of utilities with existing coal ash deposits and the needs of communities that are worried that such ponds will leak into waterways, or even worse, burst open and wreak havoc. In the process, it’s pleased few.