FEATURES AND NEWS
San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) has added 20-megawatts of energy storage and 18.5 MW of energy efficiency projects that will allow the California utility to supply more renewable energy to its customers and help them reduce energy usage in commercial buildings. The 20-MW lithium ion battery project — the largest ... Read more »
Companies that do business in California may soon have to comply with new regulations — many would say burdens — under the state’s chemical-warning law, Proposition 65. The 30-year-old Prop. 65 law requires businesses to disclose the presence of chemicals known by the state to cause cancer or reproductive harm. ... Read more »
The U.S Consumer Coalition (USCC), a nationwide advocacy and watchdog group, launched a Fair Energy Initiative on March 30, pledging “to be a powerful voice for all Americans faced with a complex and changing energy industry.” USCC said it hopes to start a dialogue across with state and federal officials, the media, energy ... Read more »
The Foodservice Packaging Institute has launched an online toolkit with free resources for recycling and recovering cups, containers, boxes, bags and other foodservice packaging. The toolkit provides information for companies at all stages of the packaging recovery process, from those in the foodservice packaging supply chain to the recycling and ... Read more »
The changing energy template is like a game of musical chairs: when the music stops, the players need to have a place to sit or they are out of the game. The same is true now that the electricity suppliers are compelled to become full-service energy consultants — or those ... Read more »
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The benefits of LED retrofits are widely known: The light is better quality, the equipment lasts longer, operations are less expensive and the environment impact far less severe. LEDs are a good thing. But to deploy enough to make a difference generally is a big project. Consultant Jody Cloud, the ... Read more »
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Energy (DoE), through the Energy Star program, have commended 149 organizations in 35 states. The story from at the DoE website gives special mention to Beazer Homes USA; Pella Corp.; Verizon; General Motors; Ivey Residential; DirecTV; The Home Depot and ... Read more »
A study by The National Renewable Energy Laboratory has concluded that almost 40 percent of electricity needed by the United States could come from solar photovoltaics. The study, according to a report on the research at Greentech Media, suggests that 1.118 gigawatts could be produced. That would almost double the last ... Read more »
Last week, the American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE) held its annual National Renewable Energy Policy Forum in Washington, DC, where leaders in clean energy business, policy and finance gathered to assess progress, debate new approaches and help shape policy visions for continued sector growth. “Policy still matters” was the ... Read more »
Between them, Berkshire Power, Power Plant Management Services and the plant’s former operation and maintenance company, EthosEnergy Power Plant Services, will also pay more than $4 million in civil penalties. EthosEnergy will pay a $1.1 million civil penalty, and make a $200,000 payment to fund the installation of electric vehicle ... Read more »
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Microsoft has big plans for cloud computing. It wants to build “the most hyperscale public cloud that operates around the world in more regions than anyone else,” which involves big investments in data centers — and has the potential to exponentially grow Microsoft’s carbon and water footprints. In addition to ... Read more »
In a ratepayer revolt, a suburb of Chicago has compelled FirstEnergy Solutions to slash its electricity price in order to retain its local customers. The Oak Forest City Council on March 22 voted 7-0 (Agreement No. 2016-03-0224A) to amend its aggregation agreement with the energy supplier, according to a report ... Read more »
Montana District Court Judge Mike Menahan has affirmed (Cause No. ADV-2015-459) a 2015 Public Service Commission (PSC) order denying NorthWestern Energy’s request to decrease the amount paid to small wind and solar projects for their excess electricity fed back into the grid. In a ruling issued March 3, Judge Menahan ... Read more »
Paired with a nitrogen generator, this system can provide a continuous stream of deaerated water at nearly half the cost of membrane filter or vacuum pump systems, the company says. The nitrogen gas injector was fed 5 CFM of nitrogen @25 psi to produce 500 gallons of de-aerated water in ... Read more »
Energy managers have a lot of projects that deserve attention. They need to keep things running smoothly, enhance efficiency and institute programs that in other ways save money or improve processes. They can’t do this alone, however. The first thing that the need is money. And, for money, they have ... Read more »
The New Hampshire State Senate has narrowly approved Senate Bill 492, which would increase funding to energy efficiency initiatives in schools, town offices and for low-income residents, according to The Concord Monitor. The bill, the story says, redistributes proceeds the state receives from the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), which is a ... Read more »
The MIT Technology Review reports that researchers at Xerox PARC are working on a digital printing process that could reduce the cost of mass producing concentrated photovoltaic systems. The process could increase efficiency dramatically by using lenses to concentrate the light onto small cells in the panel. The piece says ... Read more »
Massachusetts will investigate whether ExxonMobil lied to the public and investors about climate change risks to its business, joining New York and California in investigating the oil giant. Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey announced the probe yesterday, at a press conference with New York attorney general Eric Schneiderman, former vice ... Read more »
Short-Term Price Benchmark Trends The ERC average price benchmark for retail electricity in restructured states was relatively stable last week, with only a slight increase of 0.18% to $0.0723 per kilowatt hour. The greatest increase occurred in Pennsylvania (+1.49%). Illinois (-0.76%) and New York (-0.60%) had slight declines. The price ... Read more »
Clean Power Plan supporters — including environmental and health organizations, states, power companies and clean energy trade groups — yesterday filed briefs asking the DC Circuit court to uphold the power plant emissions regulation. On June 2 the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit will hear oral arguments ... Read more »
The Indiana Office of the Utility Consumer Counselor (OUCC), industrial customers, the LaPorte County Board of Commissioners, the Indiana Municipal Utility Group, and Northern Indiana Public Service Company (NIPSCO) announced on March 24 that they had reached a settlement agreement on the utility’s proposed seven-year infrastructure improvement plan. NIPSCO, one ... Read more »
On March 28, the Maine Public Utilities Commission (PUC) opened Docket No. 2016-00055 to initiate a request for comments on the standard offer bidding procedure for the Emera Maine – Maine Public District (EM-MPD) service area. Emera Maine has 154,000 customers in the Maine Public District service area. The regulated ... Read more »
Biofuels company Aemetis will use technologies from LanzaTech and Edeniq at its 60 million gallon per year ethanol production facility in Keyes, California. Aemetis said it acquired carbon recycling company LanzaTech’s waste-to-fuels technology to use at its Keyes facility, which will allow it to convert local California biomass wastes — including ... Read more »
It makes sense that Matt Livingston knows a lot about protecting HVAC systems. After all, part of his job is to train insurance adjusters to assess those that are damaged. Livingston is the Director of Customer Education and Vendor Programs for HVAC Investigators, an organization that inspects HVAC and refrigeration systems ... Read more »
The Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta is the first in the United States to earn ISO 50001:2011 certification, according to AECOM. The certification is awarded for creating a “systematic framework to manage energy performance and drive continual improvement.” AECOM worked with the Department of Aviation (DOA) and Asset Management and ... Read more »