Kentucky Coop Faces Breach of Contract Complaint
Posted on Oct 31, 2013
Nolin Rural Electric Cooperative and Trico/Tiger Development LLC (Trico/Tiger) face a complaint removed to federal court that alleges the two entities deprived a joint venture of profits stemming from a shale development project in Fort Knox, Kentucky. The joint venture, ITC Renewable, LLC, had been created by Trico/Tiger, ITI Group Corporation and Consolidated Energy Services Global, LLC to develop alternative energy projects in Fort Knox. View the original complaint and learn more by clicking here (subscription required).
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Webinar: Patronage Capital Litigation
Posted on Oct 29, 2013
Since 2009, at least 14 cases have been filed against electric cooperatives over patronage capital (or capital credits) in eight states: Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Missouri, New Mexico, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Texas. To help coops understand the surge in this type of litigation, Sutherland will present a live Webinar, “Patronage Capital Litigation,” for electric cooperatives nationwide on Tuesday, November 5, 2013, from 1:00–2:30 p.m. EST.
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Coops Urge EPA to Slow Down Carbon Rule for Existing Plants
Posted on Oct 29, 2013
The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) first “listening session” for its pending Clean Air Act emissions standards had a strong showing from coops. The National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, along with individual coops from three states, proposed a fair solution that recognizes the billions of dollars already invested by coops to clean up existing plants and allows coops to continue to provide affordable power for members. Opponents outnumbered supporters of the new standards at this meeting. Read more here.
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USDA Makes $960 Million Investment in Rural Electric Utility System Improvements
Posted on Oct 28, 2013
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack has announced funding for rural electric utility system improvements that will benefit residential and business customers in 23 states, including more than $14.3 million to implement smart grid technology and nearly $11 million to improve electric service for Native Americans. The $960 million in USDA loan guarantees will go towards building 3,587 miles of line and will impact approximately 17,000 rural residential and business customers. Including this latest investment, the Obama Administration has invested $152 million in smart...
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NRECA, Electric Coops, DOE Collaborate on Solar Energy
Posted on Oct 28, 2013
The National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA), 15 electric cooperatives in a dozen states and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) are collaborating on a jointly funded project called the SunShot Initiative, which is aimed at bringing down the cost of utility-scale solar projects by controlling the costs of labor, procurement and materials through standardization. NRECA’s Cooperative Research Network is coordinating the project. The SunShot Initiative partners will collaborate on 23 megawatts of solar photovoltaic (PV) power that participating coops are planning to develop. ...
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House Passes Bill Protecting Access to Low-Cost Hydropower
Posted on Oct 25, 2013
The U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill by a margin of 417-3 that limits the ability of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to change its hydroelectric projects in ways that could result in increased rates for coops. Read the full story here.
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Coops Working to Make Smart Grid Data More Accessible and Useful
Posted on Oct 25, 2013
As more coops and their members adopt smart meters and smart grid technology, the next step is to find ways to use this data to meet members’ needs. A number of coops have hired the Atlanta firm Verdeeco Inc. to help implement methods for coop members to better monitor and manage their energy use. Click here for more on this story.
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MISO Will Not Allow Shutdown of Presque Isle Power Plant
Posted on Oct 22, 2013
The Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) says We Energies’ Presque Isle coal-fired power plant in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula needs to remain operational for reliability reasons, despite a bid by We Energies to suspend operations. We Energies had discussed retiring the power plant several years ago but changed its mind after Wolverine Power Cooperative (Wolverine) agreed to install pollution controls and take an ownership stake in the plant. For more information on compensation to We Energies and the possible effects on Wolverine, click here.
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Dairyland to Retire Alma Station
Posted on Oct 22, 2013
Dairyland Power Cooperative (Dairyland) has announced plans to shutter two boilers of one of its coal-fired generating plants in Alma, Wisconsin, because of the age of the facility, demand, market prices and regulations. Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) obligations require that Dairyland produce a quarter of its electricity from renewable energy sources by 2025. Currently about 88 percent of Dairyland’s power is generated with fossil fuels such as the coal-fired Alma Station. Click here for the full story.
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EPA Emission Standards Face Supreme Court Review
Posted on Oct 18, 2013
The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case against the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) arguing that the EPA has overreached its authority under the Clean Air Act by regulating greenhouse gas emissions from fossil-based power generation facilities. Oral arguments for the case (Utility Air Regulatory Group v. EPA) are expected in February or March 2014. Click here for more information.
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South Carolina Attorney General Seeks Investigation of Phone Scam
Posted on Oct 16, 2013
South Carolina’s Attorney General has requested that the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division investigate a state-wide phone scam targeting utility customers. Utility consumers around the state have been receiving calls from phone scammers who pose as electric cooperative employees and threaten disconnection of service if the customers do not make immediate payments. The scammers then instruct customers to purchase prepaid debit cards to pay the “bill”. The chief targets of the scams have been South Carolina’s Hispanic communities and small business owners. Read more about this story...
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Oglethorpe Announces New CEO
Posted on Oct 16, 2013
Oglethorpe Power Corporation has announced that Michael L. Smith has been appointed as its new President and Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Smith previously served in the same position for Georgia Transmission Corporation. To read more, click here.
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BPA Penalties May Trickle Down to Customers
Posted on Oct 15, 2013
The electric coops, municipal systems and public utility districts that are customers of the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) in the Pacific Northwest may be stuck paying for an investigation of the agency’s flawed hiring practices, according to an October 8 report of the Department of Energy’s inspector general. Because the BPA is a self-funded, non-profit federal agency, its ratepayers pick up its outlays. The likely cost of the investigation is more than $3 million, which would cover the cost of re-reviewing about 1,200 employment files and compensating those harmed by BPA’s hiring...
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Industrial Standards Group Rejects Limits on Water Heaters
Posted on Oct 14, 2013
In a victory for the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association and electric coops, an industrial standards organization has rejected water heater restrictions that could have cost coop members millions of dollars. The International Code Council voted down water heater limits recommended by the Natural Resources Defense Council at its code hearing in early October. As a result, the proposed change will not be included in the 2015 International Energy Conservation Code, which is up for revision every three years. The next code revision process will be for 2018. Click here for more on...
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