In a story as much about political campaign finance as about oyster farming in Washington State, climate change, ocean acidification and business competiveness are major themes. “It used to be the canary in the coal mine,” Mr. [Gov. Jay] Inslee said in a recent interview. “Now it’s the oyster in the half shell. You can’t… Keep reading →
This week is shaping up to be rough for the US coal industry. The EPA is holding hearings on plans to dramatically cut carbon-dioxide emissions released from US power plants and the Obama administration just published a report on the economic consequences of waiting to act on climate change. It’s enough to make one wonder… Keep reading →
The leaders of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (known as the BRICS) recently met to launch a newly-created international fund called the New Development Bank (NDB). The BRICS represent roughly a fifth of the world economy and 40 percent of the global population. The NDB will have an initial capital pool of $50… Keep reading →
Thank your lucky stars, Australia. Ocean Power Technologies (OPT) left town before too much damage could be done. Meanwhile, a message to U.S. wave energy fans: Don’t lose faith. Oregon, which also suffered a big OPT disappointment, seems to be bouncing back just fine. First the Australia story: OPT last week pulled the plug on… Keep reading →
In June 2014, the EPA released its proposed carbon emissions rules to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from existing fossil fuel power plants. This so-called ‘Clean Power Plan’ proposed a regulatory framework that mandates US power plants reduce GHG emissions 30 per cent by 2030 relative to their 2005 baseline. Taking center stage in this proposal… Keep reading →
The changing utility business model has been a major theme in the news and industry circles this year, with many bemoaning that fact that as distributed generation and energy efficiency proliferate, utilities sell less of their product. The trend has even been dramatically called the “utility death spiral.” Scary. But while these are certainly challenges… Keep reading →
Summary Electric utilities have an opportunity to realize one of the greatest growth opportunities in history. Technology has changed the playing field and with an aggressive strategy, electric companies can take control of a huge new portion of America’s energy market. Big oil’s share of the American energy economy is at greater risk than it… Keep reading →
Germany, the UK and Poland have the dirtiest coal plants in the EU, where the share of coal in power generation is currently around 25%. The IEA says EU coal-fired generation needs to be below 4% by 2035 to combat climate change. Germany exported a record amount of power in 2013 as it generated more… Keep reading →
The growing controversy over the degree to which environmental group Natural Resources Defense Council influenced EPA’s new carbon emission regulations for existing power plants ratcheted up today. Coal lobby American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity blasted EPA for comments made in an internal memo – “obtained” by The Hill about the New York Times’ story that… Keep reading →
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently proposed new carbon emission standards for fossil fuel power plants under the Clean Air Act (CAA). The rules for new-build power plants fall under Section 111(b) and are known as the New Source Performance Standards (NSPS). This should not be confused with Section 111(d) that regulates existing power plants.… Keep reading →
