DNV KEMA's 6th Annual Utility of the Future Leadership Forum

Submitted by Joe Paparello on Wed, 2013-04-24 08:52

Energy and utility leaders face dramatic changes. Global economic turmoil, regulatory uncertainty, shifting demand, and the expanding role of natural gas are at the forefront. At the same time, policy makers and the public are frequently at odds; investors and companies have vastly different time horizons; sovereign debt and partisan gridlock put business decisions at risk. How can energy leaders manage through this turbulence?

Green REITs, MLPs, and Up-Cs

Submitted by mburr on Wed, 2013-04-17 20:08
As tax equity investors are moving away from renewable power facilities, political and market forces are creating the need for additional project financing. Fortunately, three non-traditional capital vehicles offer low-cost financing alternatives.
As tax equity investors are moving away from renewable power facilities, political and market forces are creating the need for additional project financing. Fortunately, three non-traditional capital vehicles offer low-cost financing alternatives.

Digest

TVA moving ahead with Babcock & Wilcox mPower small modular reactor; Bechtel begins refueling and uprate work at Xcel's Monticello plant; NRG starts operations at 66-MW PV facility; NIST starts developing cybersecurity framework under presidential order; BPA to upgrade HVDC converter station; PacifiCorp working with CAISO to create real-time energy market; Cupertino Electric to install 230-kV line for 200-MW PV plant; plus contracts and announcements from Alstom, Siemens, Echelon, EPRI, Sempra, and others.
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Sandy and the Smart Grid

Disaster shows the need for grid modernization. Is technology up to the challenge?

With a road map for planning, utilities can realign organizations, integrate systems, and satisfy stakeholders. The destination: a more resilient grid

Byline: 

John D. McDonald

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Bottling the Genie

Why deregulation is easy and reregulation is hard.

Even with convincing evidence that deregulation has failed to deliver promised benefits, efforts to restore public oversight face tough resistance. The reasons involve policy inertia—and blind faith in free markets.

Byline: 

Douglas N. Jones

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Looking Beyond Transmission

FERC Order 1000 and the case for alternative solutions.

How FERC Order 1000 gives short shrift to NTAs (non-transmission alternatives) in regional system planning—while consumers pay the price.

Byline: 

Elizabeth Watson and Kenneth Colburn

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Build to Order

Engineers and constructors adapt to serve an industry in transition.

From gas pipelines to PV arrays, the nation’s contractors are seeing growth in utility infrastructure. Fortnightly talks with executives at engineering and construction firms to learn what kinds of projects are moving forward, where they’re located, and what lies over the horizon.

Byline: 

Michael T. Burr

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No Fuel, No Power

Lessons from New England on electric-gas market coordination.

Despite the hype about cheap gas, pipeline constraints are creating new risks. New England’s wholesale power prices ran three times as high this past February compared to the same month in 2012.
Byline: 

Bruce W. Radford

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