Fortnightly March 2015 Digital Edition
Submitted by meacott on Fri, 2015-03-13 09:43McConnell Maligns Clean Power Plan
Submitted by meacott on Wed, 2015-03-11 17:47Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-KY, is now asking the states to disregard the EPA’s Clean Power Plan, saying it is economically disadvantageous. His calculus, however, fails to consider the financial gains from investments in modern technologies.
Those of us following the politics of coal country and throughout the Appalachia region understand the popular political sentiment there – that coal is the lifeblood of the area and that President Obama is poisoning the well. So it’s no surprise that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-KY is now urging not only his state but others to buck the Clean Power Plan, proposed last June by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and backed by the White House.
Splitting the Difference on Coal Ash
Industry wins exemption for ‘beneficial use’ but faces tighter rules on impoundments and landfills.
The EPA only has limited authority to implement and enforce a Subtitle D nonhazardous waste rule, like the coal combustion residuals rule. As a result, EPA had to promulgate the standards as “minimum federal criteria” that states are encouraged to adopt as part of their Subtitle D programs (but EPA cannot actually require states to adopt or implement these requirements.) Nonetheless, the new minimum criteria do indeed serve as legal standards that an owner or operator of a coal combustion residuals disposal unit must meet.
Digest (March 2015)
Pacific Gas and Electric and automaker BMW are teaming up to test the ability of EV batteries to provide services to the electric grid; MidAmerican Energy completed work on four of five wind farms across Iowa that make up its Wind VIII project; GE received an order from the Tennessee Valley Authority to supply two high-efficiency 7HA.02 gas turbine generators for the new combined-cycle Allen plant; Appalachian Power plans to rebuild the existing South Bluefield-Wythe 69-kV transmission line; Bechtel partnered with Westinghouse Electric to provide decontamination and decommissioning services for nuclear power plants throughout the U.S.; SunEdison and Omnigrid Micropower signed a framework agreement to develop 5,000 rural projects, representing 250 MW of electricity, throughout India; The Tennessee Valley Authority and DuPont partnered to generate power and steam at TVA's Johnsonville site in Tennessee; and others.
Reaching for the Cloud
Utilities house pools of data in the Internet ecosystem, striving for efficiencies.
Business decisions may be easier to come by at utilities now that new technologies are capturing their data from a multitude of sources and storing it in the “cloud” where it can be accessed by analysts and authorized personnel.
Electric Vehicle Charging: Tariffs and Tradeoffs
We examine various types of charging strategies and infrastructure available today and report on the experience gained from rate structures for electric vehicle charging now being offered at four different utilities. These findings lead us to provide recommendations to achieve more productive use of the electric grid.
Energy Storage: The Utility's Best Friend
Perhaps the best way to think of energy storage is as an injection of much-needed intelligence for the grid. Energy storage will fine-tune the relationship between a bewilderingly complex asset base and a sprawling, diverse and demanding spectrum of customers in real time. Energy storage systems will act like energy grid computers and control systems, not just bulk repositories for electrons.
Rethinking Regulation
Not so Fast: Why the Electric Industry May be Heading in the Wrong Direction
Utility regulation will often display the power of special interests, which may only appeal to a narrow set of interests. Public officials need to step and serve the broader public.
The Case for Smart Grid
Funding a new infrastructure in an age of uncertainty.
The world’s electricity supply will need to triple by 2050 to keep up with demand. What follows is a look at where we are, and what may lie ahead, with a focus on the the scope of the problem, regulatory reform initiatives now underway, and how to go about rethinking the business models that might evolve.