Vermont’s Second Largest Utility Seeks Moratorium on Renewable Energy Projects
Posted on Jan 2, 2013 in Corporate Governance, Environmental, Legislative & Politics, Regulation & Policy, Renewable Energy | Comments Off on Vermont’s Second Largest Utility Seeks Moratorium on Renewable Energy Projects
The board of directors of Vermont Electric Cooperative (VEC) has approved a resolution calling for a two-year moratorium on renewable energy projects following a large controversial wind project. VEC has several large wind projects in its portfolio, including the Lowell wind project, which has been the source of some complaints because of the noise created by the wind turbines. ...
Judge Denies Sierra Club’s Challenge to $3 Billion Mississippi Coal Plant
Posted on Dec 19, 2012 in Environmental, Legislative & Politics, Litigation, Permitting, Project Development, Regulation & Policy | Comments Off on Judge Denies Sierra Club’s Challenge to $3 Billion Mississippi Coal Plant
A Mississippi judge has ruled against the Sierra Club’s attempt to invalidate the licensing for a $3 billion coat plant granted to Mississippi Power Co. Inc. and South Mississippi Electric Power Association by the Mississippi Public Service Commission. The court held that policy decisions on long-term solutions for fuel diversity and price stability of fuels used in electric...
New Mexico Coops and Tri-State G&T in Rate Battle
Posted on Dec 11, 2012 in Legislative & Politics, Litigation, Rates, Regulation & Policy | Comments Off on New Mexico Coops and Tri-State G&T in Rate Battle
Kit Carson Electric Cooperative and two other New Mexico coops are battling a rate increase proposed by Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association, Inc. (Tri-State). Specifically, the coops filed a protest calling for a public hearing on the rate increase. The coops cited a New Mexico law that allows the Public Regulation Commission to call a hearing on rates if three or more...
Emerson to Lead NRECA
Posted on Dec 5, 2012 in Legislative & Politics, Regulation & Policy | Comments Off on Emerson to Lead NRECA
The National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA) has a new leader. U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson, a Missouri Republican, announced that she will be retiring from Congress in February to take the helm of the NRECA. When asked about the decision, Emerson stated, “. . . [t]hese are the people who provide electricity to my constituents…and the rural electric coops are what built...
Lawsuit Filed Against New Mexico Coop
Posted on Nov 29, 2012 in Land Use, Legislative & Politics | Comments Off on Lawsuit Filed Against New Mexico Coop
The Jicarilla Apache Nation filed a lawsuit in federal court claiming eminent domain rights over a portion of the Northern Rio Arriba Electric Cooperative’s (NORA) electric system that runs across tribal land. NORA responded to the complaint claiming that the Jicarilla Apache Nation lacked jurisdiction and failed to satisfy arbitration procedures in place under the parties’ franchise...
Alaskan Coop to Move Forward with LNG Project
Posted on Nov 29, 2012 in Financing, Legislative & Politics, Project Development | Comments Off on Alaskan Coop to Move Forward with LNG Project
Golden Valley Electric Association plans to move forward with a liquefied natural gas project after the termination of its joint venture with Flint Hills Resources. However, construction of the proposed $200 million plant will largely depend on whether Golden Valley can secure a state grant. The state governor is also considering an alternative plan under which the state would build...
House Democrat Calls for Grid Security Legislation
Posted on Nov 26, 2012 in Grid & Infrastructure, Legislative & Politics, Regulation & Policy, Reliability, Technology | Comments Off on House Democrat Calls for Grid Security Legislation
Massachusetts Representative Ed Markey, a top House Democrat, has called on the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s Republican chairman, Michigan Representative Fred Upton, to help corral GOP support and pass an electrical grid security bill the pair co-sponsored. Markey says that physical and cyber threats to power infrastructure were increasing and that the Grid Reliability and...
CFTC Provides Temporary Exemption for Coops
Posted on Oct 23, 2012 in Legislative & Politics, Regulation & Policy | Comments Off on CFTC Provides Temporary Exemption for Coops
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has passed a temporary “no-action relief” provision exempting most transactions among and between electric coops and other not-for-profit electric utilities from most Commodity Exchange Act regulations. Deals exempted include those involved with the physical delivery of electricity, generation capacity, transmission services, fuel, and...
Public Regulation Commission Rescinds Internet Spin-off Order
Posted on Oct 17, 2012 in Financing, Legislative & Politics, Regulation & Policy | Comments Off on Public Regulation Commission Rescinds Internet Spin-off Order
On October 16, the Public Regulation Commission (PRC) voted to rescind an order it made last year requiring Kit Carson Electric Cooperative (Kit Carson) to spin-off its Internet division in order to protect electric ratepayers from potential losses. Kit Carson did not provide official notice of the PRC order to the Rural Utilities Service (RUS), and as a result, RUS instituted a...
An Activist Framework for Cybersecurity Oversight
Posted on Oct 16, 2012 in Grid & Infrastructure, Legislative & Politics, Regulation & Policy, Reliability | Comments Off on An Activist Framework for Cybersecurity Oversight
Three recent initiatives by different arms of the federal government intended to help combat cyber threats to the nation’s critical energy infrastructure reveal an activist approach to regulating cybersecurity. At this juncture, it is difficult to ascertain the legal and political ramifications of the three initiatives, but members of the energy sector should pay attention — the...
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