Deep Dive: Page 8
Industry insights from our journalists
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Danielle Ternes/Utility Dive
Wildfires pushed PG&E into bankruptcy. Should other utilities be worried?
Catastrophic wildfires, which can lead to billions of dollars in damages, present a unique financial risk that the utility sector will want to get ahead of, experts say.
Kavya Balaraman • Nov. 19, 2020 -
Adeline Kon/Utility Dive
To batteries and beyond: The storage technologies poised to play a key role in the energy transition
At least 33 U.S. utilities are aiming to become carbon-free or reach net-zero emissions by 2050. These are some of the technologies that could help them get there.
Kavya Balaraman • Nov. 17, 2020 -
MOPR reconsidered: Competitive generators move away from FERC's PJM order, toward carbon pricing
Though competitive suppliers initiated the complaint that led to the Minimum Offer Price Rule expansion, they are now pivoting toward more markets-based mechanisms, largely in response to state threats to exit the markets altogether.
Catherine Morehouse • Nov. 13, 2020 -
Transmission troubles? A solution could be lying along rail lines and next generation highways
Multiple studies show the need for interregional transmission is growing and proposals to streamline siting will help, but cost allocation remains a barrier.
Herman K. Trabish • Nov. 12, 2020 -
Could COVID-19 provide a windfall to utilities from shifting demand? Report says yes, but it's complicated
The global pandemic's impact on energy consumption is still being investigated, but a Tufts University researcher expects utilities could benefit financially. Edison Electric Institute disputes the report's conclusions.
Robert Walton • Nov. 10, 2020 -
Elizabeth Regan, Industry Dive
'The days of FERC being referred to as an obscure agency are over': Chatterjee reflects on chairmanship
In interviews with Utility Dive before and after his chairmanship was cut short, Neil Chatterjee reflects on his time as chair — his proudest moments and regrets.
Catherine Morehouse • Nov. 9, 2020 -
Danielle Ternes/Utility Dive
5 ballot initiatives poised to propel states, cities to 100% clean energy
At the local level, as in previous elections, energy is less prone to partisan politics in 2020.
Catherine Morehouse • Nov. 5, 2020 -
Danielle Ternes/Utility Dive
Ballot billions: Behind the efforts to fund and finance climate action
In a year that virtually depleted municipal budgets, ballot-derived tax and funding measures can be crucial to support city-level climate action. Outside of these measures, how else can cities secure cash?
Kristin Musulin, Chris Teale and Cailin Crowe • Oct. 30, 2020 -
Photo illustration by Danielle Ternes/Utility Dive; photograph by Svanblar and Luka Banda via Getty Images
Election 2020: Xcel Energy, municipalization advocates face off in Boulder
On Nov. 3, voters in the Colorado city must choose whether to trust Xcel’s commitments or the promise of a municipal utility.
Herman K. Trabish • Oct. 30, 2020 -
Photo illustration by Danielle Ternes/Utility Dive; photograph by Svanblar and Luka Banda via Getty Images
Election 2020: States accelerated renewables under Trump. Could a Biden win slow that?
The bipartisan push in favor of more renewable energy deployment at the state level could evaporate under a Biden administration that may lean toward federal mandates, experts say.
Emma Penrod • Oct. 29, 2020 -
Photo illustration by Danielle Ternes/Utility Dive; photograph by Svanblar and Luka Banda via Getty Images
Election 2020: For DOE, staffing, renewables spending, transparency at stake Nov. 3, analysts say
A Biden administration could refocus the U.S. Department of Energy on clean energy, transparency and environmental justice. Under Trump, expect more of the same push for deregulation.
Robert Walton • Oct. 28, 2020 -
Photo illustration by Danielle Ternes/Utility Dive; photograph by Svanblar and Luka Banda via Getty Images
Election 2020: Trump's FERC may need to shift course on clean energy, though Biden's road will not be easy
No matter what happens Nov. 3, the agency will have no choice but to address the industry's transition, even if it means backing away from some of its more controversial policies under the Trump administration, analysts say.
Catherine Morehouse • Oct. 27, 2020 -
Photo illustration by Danielle Ternes/Utility Dive; photograph by Svanblar and Luka Banda via Getty Images
Election 2020: Climate policy faces a tough road through Congress regardless of electoral outcomes
A Democratic Senate will attempt to pass Joe Biden's clean energy standard in the face of an expected Republican filibuster, while bipartisan support exists for more R&D spending on carbon-cutting technologies.
Matthew Bandyk • Oct. 26, 2020 -
As conflict rises over utility DER ownership, a Duke Florida program could offer a way forward
Regulators must decide how to separate regulated and private markets as both see ownership of rooftop and community solar.
Herman K. Trabish • Oct. 23, 2020 -
Adeline Kon/Utility Dive
To batteries and beyond: Lithium-ion dominates utility storage; could competing chemistries change that?
The industry is growing increasingly comfortable with lithium-ion, but its limitations open up a space for other technologies to compete in the storage mix.
Kavya Balaraman • Oct. 15, 2020 -
Adeline Kon/Utility Dive
To batteries and beyond: Compressed air, liquid air and the holy grail of long-duration storage
Proponents of the technologies are looking to carve out a niche for themselves in the market. In both cases, a key draw is duration.
Kavya Balaraman • Oct. 14, 2020 -
Adeline Kon/Utility Dive
To batteries and beyond: In a high-renewables world, pumped hydro storage could be 'the heavy artillery'
Experts say pumped hydro is notoriously difficult to site. But as more renewables come online, the industry is eyeing new locations and fresh technologies.
Kavya Balaraman • Oct. 13, 2020 -
Adeline Kon/Utility Dive
To batteries and beyond: With seasonal storage potential, hydrogen offers 'a different ballgame entirely'
The ability to provide long-term storage could give power-to-gas technologies an edge as renewables grow on the grid, some experts say. But larger questions remain around the infrastructure and policies to support it.
Kavya Balaraman • Oct. 12, 2020 -
California has a renewables curtailment problem. Can your Google and Facebook activity help?
A new study proposes data center processing loads be shifted to match wind and solar supply, but the issue will require a mix of solutions, including advances in energy storage, analysts said.
Lynn Freehill-Maye • Oct. 8, 2020 -
Kendall Davis/Utility Dive
Cities push ahead on Energy Efficiency as a Service as private sector plays catch up
Forms of EEaaS have existed for decades as alternative funding mechanisms in cities. Now, as technologies accelerate and COVID-19 continues, the private sector wants in.
Chris Teale • Oct. 5, 2020 -
Demand response failed California 20 years ago; the state's recent outages may have redeemed it
The West's recent heatwaves put California power users in the dark but showed how flexible demand response, including distributed storage, can keep the lights on.
Herman K. Trabish • Sept. 28, 2020 -
Politics disrupts San Diego's pursuit of an energy transition partner amid dissatisfaction with SDG&E
San Diego's 50-year-old franchise agreement with San Diego Gas and Electric expires in January, but city leaders can't agree on standards for the next provider, leaving bidders, including Berkshire Hathaway Energy, waiting.
Herman K. Trabish • Sept. 18, 2020 -
Duke-solar industry breakthrough settlement aims to end rooftop solar cost shift debates
A collaboration among Vote Solar, Sunrun, Southeastern environmental advocates and Duke Energy has produced a rate design that could be a new paradigm for pairing and growing rooftop solar and demand response.
Herman K. Trabish • Sept. 16, 2020 -
For nuclear plants operating on thin margins, growing climate risks prompt tough choices
Climate change creates a number of problems for nuclear power plants that some academics say the industry needs to address soon.
Matthew Bandyk • Sept. 10, 2020 -
GE Renewables
FERC summit highlights reliability concerns for renewables + storage, but has California found a solution?
In a day-long FERC conference on renewables+storage hybrids earlier this summer, system operators focused on reliability while advocates described new opportunities.
Herman K. Trabish • Sept. 3, 2020
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