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?
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.
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.
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.
Europe's Largest Battery-Storage Project Becomes Operational in the UK
Submitted by aburr on Thu, 2014-12-18 12:58Europe's largest battery-storage project was officially opened by the Department for Energy and Climate Change at Leighton Buzzard in Bedfordshire, England. S&C Electric Europe, Samsung SDI and Younicos collaborated to deploy the technology onto a United Kingdom Power Networks substation.
Southern Company Subsidiary Selects First Solar to Build a 131-MW PV Plant in Georgia
Submitted by aburr on Thu, 2014-12-18 12:57Southern Company subsidiary Southern Power plans to develop a 131- MW PV solar project in Georgia. The electricity and associated renewable energy credits (RECs) will be sold to three Georgia electric membership corporations. Southern Power has selected First Solar to be the EPC contractor for the facility. Construction of the plant is scheduled to begin in September 2015, and the project is expected to achieve commercial operation in the fourth quarter of 2016.
Dominion Agrees To Acquire Carolina Gas Transmission
Submitted by aburr on Thu, 2014-12-18 12:56Dominion Resources agreed to purchase Carolina Gas Transmission (CGT) from SCANA Corporation for approximately $492.9 million. The company plans to close on the acquisition in January 2015. The transaction would include no assumption of debt and, upon closing, would be immediately accretive to Dominion's operating earnings per share. Subject to board approvals by Dominion and Dominion Midstream Partners, Dominion expects to contribute CGT into Dominion Midstream for a combination of debt and units by mid-year 2015.
FERC Approves a Construction Agreement for the Great Northern Project
Submitted by aburr on Thu, 2014-12-18 12:55Minnesota Power's Great Northern Transmission Line received another approval. FERC approved a facilities construction agreement required to build this 500-kV, 220-mile line that will run from the Canadian-U.S. border northwest of Roseau, Minn. to an expanded Blackberry electric substation east of Grand Rapids, Minn. The Great Northern Line, under development by Minnesota Power and the Manitoba Hydro subsidiary, has an anticipated in-service date of June 1, 2020.
Alstom to Build and Upgrade Eleven Electrical Substations in Germany
Submitted by aburr on Thu, 2014-12-18 12:55Alstom Grid was awarded eleven turnkey projects worth over $50 million by Netze BW to modernize their electrical network in Germany. The projects include the construction and upgrade of four gas-insulated substations (GIS) in Stuttgart city center and seven turnkey air-insulated substations (AIS) in rural areas, scheduled for completion by 2017. Alstom will supply the necessary electrical equipment to build and extend the gas-insulated and air-insulated substations. The turnkey projects include the related civil works.