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Energy: The Purple State Issue

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The 2012 presidential election was truly part of its time not only in the issues it addressed but in the way it was run and analyzed. Large data sets were gathered and poured over and drove not only the campaigns but the streams of analysis that surrounded their outcomes.

Voting data still emerging from the election shows a number of interesting trends, some expected and others surprising. For energy sector observers tracking the public reaction to one of the election’s most pivotal issues, surprises have continued to roll in, reflecting the evolving fortunes and the shifting geographical focus of the energy sector in the US since 2008. Keep reading →

 /  Published November 26, 2012 at 11:30 AM

The Psychology of Small-Scale Solar

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Solar’s economics are increasingly attractive yet often poorly understood. Does solar have an image problem?

Businesses small and large – but particularly those with high electricity costs – can achieve considerable savings and create long-term price certainty by installing a solar electric system instead of purchasing electricity from their utility. In fact, every business with a minimum of space (for the solar system) and high electricity costs should examine solar’s potential to reduce overhead in the short- and long-term. Keep reading →

 /  Published November 19, 2012 at 2:30 PM

Pipeline Safety Regulation Looms, Officials Warn

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A hole and a section of pipe remain in a neighborhood that was devastasted by a gas line explosion in September of last year on May 19, 2011 in San Bruno, California. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and U.S. Rep. Jackie Speier toured the San Bruno gas explosion site and a construction site where gas lines are being replaced.

President Obama’s re-election means “pretty aggressive” reforms of natural gas pipeline safety, undertaken in the wake of the fatal San Bruno pipeline explosion in California, will continue on schedule, a top safety official says, but the industry still needs better technology to improve safety. Keep reading →

 /  Published November 13, 2012 at 5:00 PM

Texas Keystone Pipeline Critics Resist Use of Eminent Domain

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While national opposition to the controversial Keystone XL pipeline project has focused on the environmental risks of pumping synthetic crude from Alberta’s oil sands across the United States to Gulf Coast refineries, it’s the issue of eminent domain that has riled critics in Texas.

Several appeals have been filed by Texas landowners trying to resist the efforts of pipeline company TransCanada to use a local law to force reluctant landowners to permit construction of a southern extension of the line from Cushing, Oklahoma to Nederland, Texas. Keep reading →

 /  Published October 25, 2012 at 8:30 AM

Could Cleanweb be New York’s Next Big Tech Industry?

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When most people think of clean technology, the images that spring to mind are often solar panels and wind turbines. However, the Cleanweb Hackathon in New York City, which took place three weekends ago, showed that computer code and social media are also changing how people interact with energy and other resources, and should perhaps also be on that list.

Hackathons, most often found used within digital industries, are weekend gatherings in which small teams build applications in just two intense days. Cleanweb, as defined by venture capitalist Sunil Paul of Spring Ventures, is “a category of clean technology that leverages the capability of the internet, social media, and mobile technologies to address resource constraints.” Keep reading →

 /  Published October 18, 2012 at 8:30 AM

Nuclear Power Debate Heats Up in NYCs Backyard: Relicensing Controversy Intensifies

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The battle lines have been drawn for years, but the fight over nuclear power’s risks and benefits reached a new stage in New York this week where issues including public safety, reliability, the environment and ratepayer costs are being disputed.

The Indian Point nuclear power plant run by Entergy generates over 2,000 MW approximately 30 miles north of New York City. Supplying roughly 25% of New York City’s and Westchester County’s electricity, the plant’s operating licenses are due to expire within the next few years and the federal hearings are drawing Indian Point’s proponents and critics into stark relief. Keep reading →

 /  Published October 16, 2012 at 2:30 PM

The Sun Could Be Setting on Arizona RECs

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The incentives offered by Arizona’s electric utilities have spurred their customers to install photovoltaic systems, which helps the companies comply with a mandate for renewable energy distribution. The incentives are renewable energy certificates, which are purchased by utilities from customers producing energy. But the RECs may soon become unnecessary – at least for the residential market – because the cost of producing PV energy is sinking towards parity with the cost for grid power.

This rapidly approaching reality is raising a tricky question: how will utilities demonstrate their compliance with the state’s renewable energy mandate without RECs? Keep reading →

 /  Published October 16, 2012 at 8:30 AM

Infrastructure Battle: Renewable Tidal Energy vs. Telecommunications

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Tidal energy and telecoms are proving testy neighbors in the Pacific Northwest.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is trying to broker a peace between Snohomish Public Utility District, which wants to install the first tidal energy turbines on the West Coast, and PC Landing, which operates a major telecommunication cable between Washington State and Japan. Keep reading →

 /  Published October 11, 2012 at 8:30 AM

Solar in North Carolina: Tax Equity Strategies

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Several members of our team spent last month at the Solar Power International (“SPI”) conference. Putting aside the usual excitement about falling panel prices and overall capacity increases, the two phrases heard most – and usually together – were: “North Carolina” and “Tax Equity.”

Solar in North Carolina Keep reading →

 /  Published October 9, 2012 at 9:30 AM

Bakken Shale Potential Benefits Infographic

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The Bakken Shale has already had a transformational impact on its region, with the lightly populated part of North Dakota experiencing an employment boom alongside serious strains on its infrastructure.

This infographic, pulled together by energy publishers Hart Energy, focuses more on what is next for the Bakken region and for the US as the possible further expansion of drilling for its oil and gas resources becomes a central component of the national conversation about energy independence, jobs in the oil and gas sector, and environmental tradeoffs. Keep reading →

 /  Published October 8, 2012 at 10:30 AM
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