When the New York Public Service Commission (Commission) opened its historic “Reforming the Energy Vision” (REV) proceeding earlier this year, it recognized that the way utility companies have been regulated is out of sync with innovations in technology, business realities, and evolving customer needs, including the need to reduce harmful pollution. In order for utility… Keep reading →
This article is part of the Energy.gov series highlighting the “Top Things You Didn’t Know About…” Be sure to check back for more entries soon. 5. Holiday lights have a long, fiery history. Candles were the original holiday lights, posing fire hazards for generations until Thomas Edison created the first electric lighting display for the… Keep reading →
The United States and China made a big splash this past month with the announcement of an important climate agreement between the two superpowers. President Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping jointly pledged November 11 in Beijing to make significant CO2 reductions in the next two decades. The United States will reduce its net greenhouse gas emissions by 26 to 28% below 2005 levels by 2025, accelerating the pace of reductions already planned by 2020. China will peak its CO2 emissions no later than 2030, by which point the country will obtain 20% of its energy supply from non-fossil fuel sources. China’s commitment marks the first time the country has pledged to stop its rapidly increasing emissions; the nation has previously resisted calls for reductions, saying that as a developing country, the pollution increases are necessary for its growth. This agreement preceded a November 16 communiqué by G20 leaders to focus their policies and investments on cleaner and renewable energy sources with the goal of mitigating climate change. The next step began December 1 at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change conference in Lima, Peru.
Successful integration of ever-growing amounts of renewable energy into electric grids has been a constant quest for utilities over at least the past few years. Dr. McGrath outlines today’s challenges in renewables integration, the contributing factors utilities are or should consider in their planning, and a selection of available solutions. While her article is far… Keep reading →
The DOI will offer approximately 742,000 acres offshore Massachusetts for commercial wind energy development in a competitive lease sale scheduled for January 29, 2015. On November 26, 2014, the Department of Interior’s (DOI) Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) published a notice to offer approximately 742,000 acres of the Massachusetts Wind Energy Area (WEA) for… Keep reading →
Joseph Hezir Confirmed as Chief Financial Officer WASHINGTON – Joseph Hezir was confirmed by the Senate on December 4, 2014 as the Department of Energy’s Chief Financial Officer. “Joe’s experience in the energy, environmental and budgetary realms and his strategic approach to challenges make him a great fit as Chief Financial Officer for the agency,”… Keep reading →
Saudi Arabia Can’t Stop U.S. Fracking Boom National Journal: World oil producers have put oil prices into a free fall, refusing to pare back global supplies in the hopes that low prices will derail the fracking-backed production boom in the U.S. and preserve OPEC’s power over world energy markets. But global analysts are skeptical that the… Keep reading →
The following article was originally published in the San Francisco Daily Journal on December 3, 2014. Copyright 2014 Daily Journal Corporation, reprinted with permission.
The California Air Resources Board (CARB) is poised to readopt the Low-Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) regulation in early 2015. With its readoption, CARB hopes to put to rest challenges that required a redo of the environmental analysis supporting the LCFS regulation. If all goes as planned, transportation fuel suppliers operating in California will face a regulatory environment in 2015 that is at once both more certain — with legal challenges to the LCFS largely resolved — and more daunting, as transportation fuels come under the “cap” on greenhouse gas emissions imposed by California’s cap-and-trade program.
How much does the design of America’s energy market affect the environment? More than one might expect. Last week, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), the agency responsible for regulating the wholesale natural gas and electricity markets, issued a proposed policy statement designed to encourage pipeline operators to replace their leakiest equipment: compressor stations. Reciprocating compressors are… Keep reading →
Dr. Franklin Orr Confirmed as Under Secretary for Science and Energy WASHINGTON – Dr. Franklin (Lynn) Orr was confirmed by the Senate on December 4, 2014 as the Under Secretary for Science and Energy at the Department of Energy. “Lynn Orr is an outstanding scientist and has successfully led a major multidisciplinary program on energy… Keep reading →
