Utilities Feel Effects of Rail Disruptions
Posted on Apr 14, 2014 in Grid & Infrastructure, Rates, Reliability | Comments Off on Utilities Feel Effects of Rail Disruptions
On April 10, representatives for companies that rely on rail shipments appeared at a Surface Transportation Board (STB) hearing to highlight the problems that recent rail shipment disruptions have caused in their industries and to ask STB to take steps to reduce these disruptions. In the utility sector, delays in shipping coal could lead to higher costs for energy or a decrease in...
North Dakota Sees Rapid Electric Coop Growth
Posted on Apr 1, 2014 in Grid & Infrastructure, Project Development, Rates, Regulation & Policy, Reliability | Comments Off on North Dakota Sees Rapid Electric Coop Growth
North Dakota’s rural economic development is being sparked by the state’s oil and gas boom, which is benefiting electric coops. The Public Service Commission in the state has now approved two additional units for a Basin Electric Power Cooperative power plant. These two units will add 90 MW of capacity by late 2014, a much needed step towards keeping up with the unprecedented load...
Texas Coop Settles Suits from 2011 Labor Day Fire
Posted on Apr 1, 2014 in Grid & Infrastructure, Litigation | Comments Off on Texas Coop Settles Suits from 2011 Labor Day Fire
Texas-based Bluebonnet Electric Cooperative (Bluebonnet), which was accused of negligence in one of the most destructive fires in Texas history, has settled a number of lawsuits filed as a result of the 2011 Labor Day fire. The fire, which burned about 34,000 acres and resulted in two deaths, was caused when fallen trees knocked down Bluebonnet power lines, sparking a wildfire,...
New Mexico City to Receive Power from Coop
Posted on Mar 31, 2014 in Grid & Infrastructure, Mergers/Acquisitions, Rates | Comments Off on New Mexico City to Receive Power from Coop
The City of Gallup, New Mexico, will buy its wholesale power from Continental Divide Electric Cooperative (CDEC) after its City Council voted unanimously to award CDEC an eight-year contract. Four other bidders sought the contract, and Public Service Company of New Mexico (PNM) has been Gallup’s provider for more than 50 years. Gallup will save about $6.4 million during the first...
New Mexico Coop Under Fire for Wildfire
Posted on Mar 27, 2014 in Grid & Infrastructure, Litigation, Reliability | Comments Off on New Mexico Coop Under Fire for Wildfire
Local ranchers sued the Mora-San Miguel Electrical Cooperative in state court alleging that the coop failed to trim or remove trees that ultimately damaged power lines and caused a large wildfire in the area last summer. The Albuquerque Journal has the full story.
ODEC Receives Approval for 1,000-MW Natural Gas-Fired Plant
Posted on Mar 27, 2014 in Grid & Infrastructure, Legislative & Politics, Permitting, Project Development, Regulation & Policy | Comments Off on ODEC Receives Approval for 1,000-MW Natural Gas-Fired Plant
Old Dominion Electric Cooperative (ODEC), a Virginia-based G&T, obtained approval from the Maryland Public Service Commission for its planned 1,000-MW natural gas-fired plant to be built in Cecil County, Maryland. The project, known as the Wildcat Point plant, is expected to come online by June 2017 and will be built next to the existing Rock Springs generating facility in Rising...
Coops Collectively Investing in 517-kW Solar Project
Posted on Mar 25, 2014 in Financing, Grid & Infrastructure, Innovation/Efficiency, Project Development, Renewable Energy | Comments Off on Coops Collectively Investing in 517-kW Solar Project
Four electric utility coops in the Midwest will become joint owners of a 517-kW solar project developed by Dragonfly Solar, a commercial solar developer based in Lakeville, Minnesota, and SolarWorld, the largest U.S. solar manufacturer. This is the first U.S. solar project to be jointly owned and developed by utility coops. For more details and to see which four coops are involved,...
FERC Approves Revisions to Definition of Bulk Electric System
Posted on Mar 20, 2014 in Grid & Infrastructure, Regulation & Policy, Reliability | Comments Off on FERC Approves Revisions to Definition of Bulk Electric System
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) recently approved revisions by the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) to its definition of “bulk electric system,” effective the first day of the second quarter after issuance of the order. The definition largely dictates which facilities are within NERC’s jurisdiction as FERC-Certified Electric Reliability...
FERC Issues Order on CIP 5 Reliability Standards
Posted on Mar 20, 2014 in Grid & Infrastructure, Regulation & Policy, Reliability | Comments Off on FERC Issues Order on CIP 5 Reliability Standards
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) recently granted requests for clarification of, but denied requests for rehearing of, Order No. 791, which approved version 5 of the North American Electric Reliability Corporation Critical Infrastructure Protection (CIP) 5 Reliability Standards. The requests were filed by several trade associations, including the National Rural Electric...
NRECA Responds to WSJ Article on Grid Security
Posted on Mar 17, 2014 in Grid & Infrastructure, Innovation/Efficiency, Regulation & Policy, Reliability | Comments Off on NRECA Responds to WSJ Article on Grid Security
Jo Ann Emerson, CEO of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA), issued remarks on the electric coop industry’s efforts to protect the nation’s critical transmission system after a recent Wall Street Journal (WSJ) article released sensitive information on the subject. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission recently ordered the North American Electric Reliability...
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