How the Fiscal Responsibility Act could impact permitting

The Fiscal Responsibility Act is set to majorly impact environmental permitting and land development processes.

July 24, 2023

I claimed energy independence for my co-op last summer — Here’s what happened next

No community should be dictated what source of power generation they have to consume — and no group should be beholden to another group charging them ever-escalating and opaque pricing.

By Luis A. Reyes, Jr. • July 21, 2023

Explore the Trendline➔

Sustainability

Companies are pursuing increasingly ambitous sustainability goals around clean energy, but integrating rising amounts of renewables, minimizing environmental impacts, and achieving carbon reduction targets can be challenging.

By Utility Dive staff

America faces another high-wire moment: This one around its energy future

The debt ceiling bill included some much-needed reforms to improve the efficiency of the permitting process for energy infrastructure. But they were step one. The question is, what comes next?

By Amy Andryszak and Jason Grumet • July 18, 2023

Lawmakers urge NRC to address several issues in draft licensing framework for advanced reactors

Concerns include “inconsistent application of new programs and terminology,” the 20 senators and 44 House members said.

By Robert Walton • July 18, 2023

Federal appeals court strikes down FERC approval of Southeastern SEEM market

The market’s transmission rules may violate Federal Energy Regulatory Commission requirements that transmission owners provide open access to their systems, the court said.

By Ethan Howland • July 17, 2023

FERC reverses course, rejects SPP regional transmission cost allocation pathway for wind-heavy zones

After considering arguments from American Electric Power, OGE Energy and Xcel Energy utilities, FERC decided the Southwest Power Pool plan gave too much discretion to its board.

By Ethan Howland • July 14, 2023

The meaning of an ‘optimal’ clean energy investment is changing as prices rise, analysts report

Inflation Reduction Act incentives and supply-demand imbalances have developers and off-takers recalculating the value of clean energy.

By Herman K. Trabish • July 13, 2023

Evergy capital plan rises 64% in 4 years, reflecting surge in US utility spending: Kansas regulatory staff

S&P Global expects record-setting capital spending by utilities starting this year, partly in response to federal clean energy and infrastructure policy.

By Ethan Howland • July 12, 2023

Bigger meals require better receipts: A call for coordinated greenhouse gas emissions tracking

States need to work together to create a consistent, transparent and ironclad greenhouse gas accounting system, writes Abigail Anthony, a commissioner with the Rhode Island Public Utilities Commission.

By Abigail Anthony • July 12, 2023

How years of mismanagement and regulatory failures broke California’s utilities

There is a chronic misperception that Herculean efforts are required to overhaul utility infrastructure and set California back on the path of improvement. In fact, the solutions are much more basic than that.

By Jeffrey Conklin and Andrew Heath • July 11, 2023

How hourly tracking can prevent a ‘clean’ hydrogen boondoggle

Hourly matching is feasible, in use today and absolutely necessary for deploying clean hydrogen and building a clean grid.

By Ben Gerber and Killian Daly • July 10, 2023

State clean energy goals are ‘key driver’ for generation growth, but impact differs between regions: report

In Texas and the Midwest, renewables growth has “far outpaced RPS needs, driven by attractive wind energy economics,” says a Berkeley Lab report.

By Diana DiGangi • July 10, 2023

DC Circuit backs FERC decision in interconnection dispute between Hecate Energy, NYISO

The case centers on how detailed a grid operator’s tariff must be. A lack of clarity will delay renewable energy projects, according to Hecate Energy.

By Ethan Howland • July 10, 2023

From power to pharma, companies need better carbon emissions reporting

The key to progress is interoperability, or the ability to compare, share and use information across greenhouse gas accounting and reporting systems.

By Liv Watson and Marian Van Pelt • July 7, 2023

Tapping into DOE’s $250B of loan authority for projects that reinvest in US clean energy infrastructure

Potential projects include replacing retired infrastructure with nuclear energy or renewables with or without storage, retrofitting power plants, reconductoring transmission lines and more.

By Jigar Shah • July 6, 2023

Environmental advocates rally in support of EPA legacy coal ash rule

The groups urged the EPA to press forward with a proposed rule for certain legacy coal ash sites while pushing for further regulation.

By Jacob Wallace • July 6, 2023

$6.6B Mountain Valley Pipeline gets green light to finish construction

The much-delayed pipeline got permission from federal regulators to move ahead after years of legal challenges.

By Julie Strupp • July 5, 2023

Republicans seek FERC conferences to assess grid effects of EPA’s proposed power plant carbon limits

“EPA clearly lacks the expertise to project accurately the impact of its rulemaking on electric reliability without deeply informed and engaged participation from FERC,” said Sens. John Barrasso and Shelley Moore Capito.

By Ethan Howland • July 5, 2023

As Texas sweats, its electric grid has remained stable, in part due to renewables

The Public Utility Commission of Texas continues to develop a new dispatchable reliability reserve service and approved an 83% pay raise for the board of the state’s grid operator on June 29.

By Robert Walton • June 30, 2023

Energy workforce grew 3.8% last year; clean energy jobs increased in every state: DOE employment report

Clean energy technologies were the source of almost 87% of net new jobs in the power generation sector, according to the 2023 U.S. Energy and Employment Report.

By Robert Walton • June 29, 2023

On EV policy, states are making ‘incremental progress, not transformational’: ACEEE

Most state transportation policies ”scored poorly on equity metrics,” according to a new assessment by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy.

By Robert Walton • June 29, 2023

Hawai’i looks to tackle equity considerations of siting energy infrastructure as part of new docket

The state has some of the highest electricity rates in the country, and regulators opened a docket in December focused on ensuring more equity in its energy landscape. 

By Kavya Balaraman • June 28, 2023

New Mexico PRC cuts number of open meetings, adds closed sessions

The Public Service Company of New Mexico says regulators have “set a reasonable schedule” and can add additional open meetings as needed.

By Robert Walton • June 27, 2023

Vistra-Energy Harbor deal poses market power risks, say Ohio rate payer advocate, PJM market monitor

“Vistra currently has market power in the PJM energy and capacity markets … and adding the Energy Harbor nuclear units to its fleet will increase the incentive to exercise market power,” PJM’s market monitor said.

By Ethan Howland • June 26, 2023

Arizona Public Service reaches settlement with ACC, will raise rates to recover Four Corners investment

The utility will also be allowed to earn a higher return on equity after a court determined regulators overstepped their authority in lowering the ROE to punish the utility for customer service issues. 

By Robert Walton • June 26, 2023