Federal climate report: US energy, transportation sectors not prepared for warming

Experts say humans have about a decade to prevent the most catastrophic impacts of climate change and the U.S. is behind the necessary pace of emissions reductions.

By Gavin Bade • Nov. 26, 2018

Brown mandates a 'greener' Golden State

As California inches closer to a renewable-only grid, S&P Global Ratings Director of Sustainable Finance Michael Ferguson assesses which assets from a credit perspective could stand to either benefit or face heightened risks.

By Michael Ferguson • Nov. 26, 2018

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

FERC rejects generator proposal for CAISO capacity market

Generators said growing renewable energy is putting them out of business, but FERC determined they failed to identify where CAISO market rules are unreasonable or any serious reliability problems that could result.

By Gavin Bade • Nov. 21, 2018

FERC nominee McNamee slams renewables, green groups in Feb. video

The nominee told Texas lawmakers that renewable energy "screws up the whole physics of the grid" and portrayed industry lawsuits with environmental groups as a "constant battle between liberty and tyranny."

By Gavin Bade • Updated Nov. 21, 2018

New Microsoft contract could expand corporate renewable energy deals to smaller buyers

The "volume firming agreement" could mitigate some of the risk and volatility of renewable energy power purchase agreements, helping to expand procurement beyond large corporate buyers.

By Herman K. Trabish • Nov. 20, 2018

Chicago challenges businesses to power buildings with renewable energy

Participants in the Chicago Renewable Energy Challenge pledge to keep their buildings powered with renewable sources for at least 10 years, and to track and share their progress.

By Jason Plautz • Nov. 20, 2018

Connecticut moves to keep Dominion's Millstone nuclear plant afloat

Connecticut joins states like Illinois and New York in developing mechanisms to keep existing nuclear plants online.

By Robert Walton • Nov. 20, 2018

PG&E reports second line fault in Camp Fire area

The report adds to the utility's involvement with the record blaze just days after California's head regulator assured investors the utility would not go bankrupt.

By Gavin Bade • Nov. 19, 2018

24 of 26 Duke coal ash ponds in Carolinas not compliant with CCR rule

Nearly all the ash basins violated rules that requires the bottom of a disposal facility to be five feet above groundwater aquifers and stipulate there can be no connection between aquifer and disposal facility. 

By Catherine Morehouse • Nov. 19, 2018

NY simplifies interconnection standards to ensure 'robust' clean energy pipeline: PSC chair

"If you want people to do something, make it easy," Public Service Commission Chairman John Rhodes told Utility Dive.

By Robert Walton • Nov. 19, 2018

Trump to nominate acting EPA head Wheeler for permanent top spot

Wheeler has directed multiple efforts to roll back environmental regulations, including vehicle efficiency standards and rules on coal plant mercury emissions, carbon pollution and ash disposal. 

By Gavin Bade • Nov. 19, 2018

California PUC chair says state won't let PG&E go bankrupt

The utility withdrew its revolving credit lines this week as its equipment was linked to the deadly Camp Fire, a move that can presage a bankruptcy filing. 

By Gavin Bade • Nov. 16, 2018

FERC nominee McNamee distances himself from Trump coal bailout at hearing

Despite helping craft the White House's ill-fated coal and nuclear bailout last year, McNamee told senators he would view the issue differently if confirmed to a seat on FERC.

By Gavin Bade • Nov. 15, 2018

PJM, states clash over market jurisdiction at NARUC conference

PJM CEO Andy Ott said some states in his market had entered a "compact" to allow generation decisions to be determined by competitive markets, sparking spirited responses from state regulators.

By Gavin Bade • Nov. 14, 2018

APS spent millions defeating Prop 127. Is a clean energy compromise ahead?

The utility beat the push for 50% renewables, then started talk about an 80% clean energy standard.

By Herman K. Trabish • Nov. 14, 2018

PG&E debt drawdown raises concerns of potential bankruptcy due to fire costs

The utility withdrew all the cash from its revolving credit lines on Nov. 13, a move financial experts say could presage a bankruptcy filing or other serious financial problems for the utility.

By Gavin Bade • Nov. 13, 2018

Locational value of DER is essential to grid planning. So why hasn't anyone found it?

Policymakers want to identify the precise value of DER to their power systems, but the system may be changing too fast to make that possible right now.

By Herman K. Trabish • Nov. 13, 2018

Report: CPUC launches PG&E, SCE probes after 3 deadly fires

Lawsuit threats loom after two of the state's largest investor owned utilities alerted regulators to transmission issues near ground zero of blazes that started last week.

By Iulia Gheorghiu • Nov. 13, 2018

South Carolina tackles unprecedented interstate interconnection issues

Duke Energy sought to waive the state's rules to allow renewable projects to participate in a renewables program initiated by North Carolina, opening a can of worms, writes IREC Regulatory Director Sara Baldwin Auck.

By Sara Baldwin Auck • Nov. 13, 2018

Report offers 10 options to preserve utility role amid clean energy transition

The collaboration among Rocky Mountain Institute, America's Power Plan and Advanced Energy Economy Institute, examines ideas such as revenue decoupling, performance-incentive mechanisms and multi-year rate plans.

By Robert Walton • Nov. 12, 2018

Clean energy platforms win at the state level as 7 governor seats shift blue

Several Democratic candidates ran their campaigns on clean energy in stark contrast to their opponents, which observers say may have helped win them the election.

By Catherine Morehouse • Nov. 12, 2018

For RTOs & ISOs: 'Don't call it a market' (props to LL Cool J)

The term "market" for the fully restructured RTOs/ISOs was brilliant PR, but a category error in describing what amounts to an alternative regulatory model, write attorneys Ray Gifford and Matthew Larson.

By Raymond L. Gifford and Matthew S. Larson • Nov. 12, 2018

PG&E shares hit multiyear low as deadly Camp Fire rages

While the cause has not been determined, the utility reported that a line outage coincided with the most destructive blaze in California history, which has killed at least 29 people and burned 6,700 buildings.

By Iulia Gheorghiu • Nov. 12, 2018

New York issues 800 MW offshore wind solicitation as tax credits wind down

The solicitation has been anticipated all year, following Gov. Andrew Cuomo's goal to develop 2,400 MW of offshore wind.

By Iulia Gheorghiu • Nov. 9, 2018

Storage will replace 3 California gas plants as PG&E nabs approval for world's largest batteries

Installation of more than 2,200 MWh of storage will be the first time a utility directly replaces multiple major fossil fuel generators with batteries.

By Gavin Bade • Nov. 9, 2018