Mercury Rising
How will the EPA's rulemaking affect U.S. energy markets?
EPA proposes a cap-and-trade program. How does that compare with a Maximum Achievable Control Technology standard?
Congress
What's New at the Firewall
Utilities search for ways to combat viruses and spam.
Spam costs utilities hundreds of thousands of dollars annually, but the threat from spam quickly is becoming a security issue as well.
Trading Spaces? Will CFTC Move Into FERC's House?
Will the CFTC move Into FERC's house?
As the law is written, PJM looks like a commodity futures exchange.
The Utility Sector: A Wall Street Takeover?
Financial players bring credit depth to energy markets, but will they play by the rules?
The center of gravity for energy marketing and trading is moving from Houston to Wall Street. Who’s in, who’s out, and who’s testing the waters?
Commission Watch: Grid Battle Is Joined
FERC's AEP ruling begs the question: Can the feds bypass states that block transmission reform?
A recent ruling puts the question squarely on the table: Can FERC overturn orders issued by the state public utility commissions that otherwise would stand in the way of its vision of regional transmission organizations with a standard market design?
FERC Throws Down The Gauntlet
The legal battle of the century is ready to begin.
A FERC order late last year — that AEP must join the PJM grid to meet conditions of its 2000 merger with Central and Southwest Corp. — was tantamount to a declaration of war with state regulators. At the center of the issue is whether FERC has authority to pre-empt the states on development of regional transmission organizations.
New Nuclear Construction: Still on Hold
A number of factors point to expanded nuclear generation. But when?
Skeptics believe investors will continue to shy away from nuclear in the coming decades, but conditions are changing, with several factors pointing to expanded nuclear generation.
Generation Roundtable: Power Flux
Generators struggle to plan for the future as they cope with an unstable present.
In a roundtable discussion, generation experts explain how environmental regulations, industry restructuring, investor confidence, and the bottom line are affecting their decision-making.
The Regulators Forum - States to Feds: Don't tread on Me
How far do states rights go in transmission planning?
Regulators from five states across the country discuss the fallout from the August blackout, and their battle with the feds over how to tackle the tough issues the states are facing.
Close to Load, Far From Consensus
Feds seek plug-and-play for distributed generation, but utilities want the power to stay local.
Pity the poor Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. With its market crusade out of favor, and transmission reform suddenly suspect after the Aug. 14 blackout, it could use a new agenda. Indeed, FERC this past July had proposed a new set of standards for the connection of small- and micro-sized power plants units to regional transmission networks, or even to radial or local distribution lines operating at low voltages.