New DOE Solar Funding Available to Cooperatives
Posted on Feb 27, 2013 in Financing, Renewable Energy | Comments Off on New DOE Solar Funding Available to Cooperatives
Cooperatives are eligible for two funding opportunities from the Department of Energy designed to make solar energy more competitive with other forms of energy. The programs are part of DOE’s SunShot Initiative and will each provide up to $12 million for administrative and physical costs associated with installation, interconnection and efficiency. To read more about these funding...
Dairyland Power Coop Rebuilding Transmission Line
Posted on Nov 14, 2012 in Innovation/Efficiency, Project Development, Reliability, Technology | Comments Off on Dairyland Power Coop Rebuilding Transmission Line
In September, Dairyland Power Cooperative (Dairyland) began a $22.5 million project to rebuild the 65-year-old, 20-mile Q1 transmission line that provides power to La Crosse, Wisconsin, and its surrounding areas. The project includes the addition of steel poles and a new conductor and foundations. Dairyland officials said that when the project is completed, it will eliminate...
Kentucky PSC Accepts Settlement in Big Sandy RECC Rate Case
Posted on Nov 7, 2012 in Energy Savings Programs, Litigation, Rates | Comments Off on Kentucky PSC Accepts Settlement in Big Sandy RECC Rate Case
The Kentucky Public Service Commission (PSC) accepted a proposed settlement in a rate adjustment case filed by Big Sandy Rural Electric Cooperative Corporation (Big Sandy RECC). The agreement allows Big Sandy RECC to receive its requested 3.7 percent increase in annual revenue. However, less of this increase will come from flat monthly customer charges and more will come from...
NRECA Recommends Amendments to the USDA Efficiency Plan
Posted on Oct 9, 2012 in Energy Savings Programs, Innovation/Efficiency, Legislative & Politics | Comments Off on NRECA Recommends Amendments to the USDA Efficiency Plan
The National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA) has announced its support for the proposed Energy Efficiency and Conservation Loan Program, an Agriculture Department initiative that would fund electric coops to help rural residents with the upfront cost of energy-efficiency upgrades. However, the NRECA caveated this support with a recommendation that the program provide...
USDA Announces Continued Funding and Support for Rural Electric Systems
Posted on Oct 5, 2012 in Financing, Grid & Infrastructure, Innovation/Efficiency, Legislative & Politics, Project Development, Technology | Comments Off on USDA Announces Continued Funding and Support for Rural Electric Systems
In a speech before the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, Under Secretary for Rural Development Dallas Tonsager announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will continue to make funding available for modernization and efficiency improvements, including smart grid technologies. This announcement follows USDA’s success in meeting its goal to finance $250...
Wisconsin Coop Receives Huge Federal Loan Guarantee for Renewable Power
Posted on Oct 4, 2012 in Climate Change, Environmental, Financing, Renewable Energy, Technology | Comments Off on Wisconsin Coop Receives Huge Federal Loan Guarantee for Renewable Power
Dairyland Power Cooperative (Dairyland) was awarded a $261.9 million loan guarantee from the federal government to reduce environmental impacts, update technology and improve distribution in a swath of the rural Midwest. Renewable energy sources make up about 12 percent of Dairyland’s electricity sales, which exceeds the state’s 2015 requirement that all Wisconsin utilities have at...
Colorado Coop Encourages Geothermal Installation
Posted on Aug 16, 2012 in Energy Savings Programs, Innovation/Efficiency, Renewable Energy, Technology | Comments Off on Colorado Coop Encourages Geothermal Installation
San Isabel Electric Association is offering rebates to customers who install geothermal heating and cooling systems. The systems are touted as being significantly more efficient at heating and cooling compared to ordinary systems. Read the full story.
Federal Loans Could Cut Rural Electric Bills
Posted on Jul 17, 2012 in Energy Savings Programs, Legislative & Politics, Regulation & Policy | Comments Off on Federal Loans Could Cut Rural Electric Bills
The U.S. Department of Agriculture is proposing a new federal loan program that would make federal loans available for rural electric coops to distribute to customers who want to make their homes and businesses more energy-efficient. A version of the program was piloted in South Carolina. There, 125 rural homeowners received loans averaging $7,200 to seal air leaks and replace...
Senate Agriculture Committee Approves RESPA
Posted on Apr 30, 2012 in Legislative & Politics, Regulation & Policy | Comments Off on Senate Agriculture Committee Approves RESPA
The Rural Energy Savings Program Act (RESPA), sometimes referred to as the Conrad-Lugar Amendment, includes four policy improvements designed to help rural families, farms and small businesses save money on their energy bills. Generally, the proposed legislation: (1) authorizes coops to provide low-interest loans to members for energy efficiency improvements; (2) changes the...
Settlement May Be Last Hurdle for Construction of Plant Washington
Posted on Apr 12, 2012 in Environmental, Permitting, Project Development | Comments Off on Settlement May Be Last Hurdle for Construction of Plant Washington
Power4Georgians, a consortium of four Georgia electric membership cooperatives, has reached settlement terms with environmental groups opposed to the development of one of its projects, Plant Washington (an 850-megawatt, coal-fired plant in Sandersville, Georgia). Once the opposition groups sign the settlement, Power4Georgians will have the final state permit for construction of Plant...
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