Gas, not renewables, driving coal, nuclear woes; DOE labs show how much

The findings have important implications for DOE's proposal to provide cost recovery for coal and nuclear plants. FERC is expected to respond to that proposal on Wednesday.  

By Herman K. Trabish • Jan. 5, 2018

Federal appeals court hears arguments in Illinois ZEC case

The hearing came after a federal court upheld the ZEC program in the face of a challenge mounted by merchant generators. 

By Peter Maloney • Jan. 5, 2018

Winter storm to test Northeast grid as FERC tees up decision on DOE grid rule

Forget coal piles: It's oil stockpiles that are keeping the lights on in New England this week.

By Gavin Bade • Jan. 4, 2018

Maintaining a fair market through price formation reform

PJM’s market proposal may unfairly benefit expensive and inflexible power plants, ACORE President and CEO Gregory Wetstone writes.

By Gregory Wetstone • Jan. 4, 2018

FERC approves $3.2B TransCanada pipeline projects

Federal regulators signed off on the Mountaineer XPress and Gulf XPress projects last month. TransCanada also said its Leach XPress pipeline became operational Jan. 1.

By Robert Walton • Jan. 4, 2018

Dominion-SCANA deal could rest on next move by South Carolina lawmakers

The deal is contingent on the usual regulatory approvals, but would require South Carolina lawmakers to step back from efforts to limit how much the utility can charge customers for the failed  V.C. Summer nuclear project.

By Peter Maloney • Jan. 4, 2018

Mariner East 2 pipeline permits suspended by Pennsylvania regulators

Regulators say the company must address all impacts to private water wells and submit a detailed operations plan for moving forward before resuming operations. 

By Robert Walton • Jan. 4, 2018

New Jersey nuke subsidy measure unlikely to see vote in lame-duck session

The measure would have provided hundreds of millions in subsidies to owners of nuclear generation in the Garden State.

By Robert Walton • Jan. 4, 2018

New York clean energy proposal seeks 1.5 GW of storage, coal phaseout

The plan also calls for solicitations in 2018 and 2019 for 800 MW of offshore wind and new energy efficiency targets by April.

By Robert Walton • Jan. 3, 2018

Why mandates still matter in the age of cheap renewables

Wind and solar are now competitive with legacy power resources, but analysts expect state RPS laws will continue to drive growth for both renewable leaders and laggards. 

By Herman K. Trabish • Jan. 3, 2018

Half of Puerto Rico still without power; utilities send 1,500 more workers to assist

Gov. Ricardo Rosselló initially aimed to restore 95% of the island's power by Dec. 15. The influx of new restoration workers brings the total to more than 5,500.

By Robert Walton • Jan. 3, 2018

Dominion, SCANA agree to $14.6B all-stock merger

If approved, the combined company would write off $1.7 billion in costs related to the abandoned V.C. Summer nuclear plant. 

By Gavin Bade • Jan. 3, 2018

New tax code means big rate changes, uncertainty for power sector in 2018

The tax law includes breaks for utilities and spared renewable energy deals, but critical details for other sector players remain up in the air.

By Peter Maloney • Jan. 2, 2018

Coal, oil get a boost from Northern cold snap

A third of ISO New England's energy is being produced by oil, and PJM Interconnection has called cold-weather alerts across its service territory.

By Robert Walton • Jan. 2, 2018

FERC aims to raise the bar for reporting cyber attacks with new NOPR

Cyber attacks on utility infrastructure have made the headlines, but have not showed up in NERC reports. FERC seeks to remedy that issue with the proposed rulemaking. 

By Peter Maloney • Jan. 2, 2018

EPA issues clean air designations, Northeast states sue over cross-border pollution

States and environmental groups previously filed suit against EPA for missing a key October deadline on ozone and SO2 enforcement.

By Gavin Bade • Jan. 2, 2018

After tax overhaul, utility regulators are pushing for lower customer rates

Multiple states have ordered utilities to examine any savings they see as a result of the lower corporate tax rate in effect this year, and to prepare to pass those savings back to customers.

By Robert Walton • Jan. 2, 2018

Report: Tesla's Australian battery project steps in after coal units fail

The Hornsdale Power Reserve project has now stepped in twice to maintain grid reliability when a major coal plant unexpectedly dropped offline, according to Australian media reports.

By Robert Walton • Jan. 2, 2018

After photos of Perry meeting, Bob Murray says he 'never proffered' grid resilience rule to DOE

Photos published earlier this month show the coal mining CEO handing over an "Action Plan" to Secretary of Energy Rick Perry that resembles the DOE's eventual proposal to subsidize fuel-secure generators.

By Gavin Bade • Dec. 28, 2017

Why 'secure' isn't secure enough in the utilities sector

With multiple vulnerabilities, companies should invest in a comprehensive cybersecurity approach that considers both protecting the communications layer and complementary physical security measures.

By Marco Berger • Dec. 27, 2017

Updated: Trump approves GOP tax overhaul bill

Utilities stand to benefit, renewables dodged a bullet and nuclear energy was left out in the cold as Republicans finalized their tax rewrite. 

By Gavin Bade • Dec. 22, 2017

SoCal Edison's new alternative energy plan could be 'nail in coffin' for Puente gas plant

But the utility's plan isn't all carbon-free: it would seek bids for gas-fired generation under 55 MW for local reliability needs in Goletta, Ca. 

By Robert Walton • Dec. 22, 2017

ERCOT reveals violations of pricing, disclosure rules in new filing

The Texas grid operator informed state regulators that it failed to comply with certain pricing posting requirements, describing an "inadvertent disclosure" of certain generator interconnection information.

By Robert Walton • Dec. 22, 2017

Entergy requests clarification for Indian Point closure deadlines

The state's grid operator concluded that closing down Entergy's Indian Point nuclear facility would not threaten grid reliability earlier this month. 

By Robert Walton • Dec. 22, 2017

FERC announces pipeline review, cyber, fast-start reforms in McIntyre's first open meeting

The new FERC head also said he does not "envision" asking for another extension on the Department of Energy's subsidy proposal for coal and nuclear plants. 

By Gavin Bade • Dec. 21, 2017