Alaska Coop Seeking to Partner with State on Developing LNG Plant
Posted on Jul 30, 2013
Alaska’s Golden Valley Electric Association is one of four entities seeking to partner with the state in developing a small LNG plant at Prudhoe Bay, a spokesman for the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority said. The proposed LNG plant would process 9 billion cubic feet of gas per year and ship 300,000 gallons of LNG per day by truck to Fairbanks in Interior Alaska. For more information, click here.
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New Mexico Coop, Tribal Negotiations at Impasse
Posted on Jul 30, 2013
Jemez Mountains Electric Cooperative has been unable to obtain help from members of New Mexico’s congressional delegation, who say the federal government has no jurisdiction in the conflict between the coop and Indian pueblos over easement payments. The coop says that the fees charged by the tribes are too high, and the costs then must be passed on to the coop’s customers. In April, the coop’s board passed a resolution urging Congress to intervene in the dispute by passing special legislation to either put a cap on fees, fines and penalties the tribes can impose for easements across tribal...
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Coal Ash Bill Passes House – On to Senate
Posted on Jul 26, 2013
Backed by numerous coops and the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, the U.S. House has passed a bill that identifies states, rather than the Environmental Protection Agency, as the primary regulators of coal ash storage. The Coal Residuals Reuse and Management Act of 2013 received bipartisan support and will allow utilities to continue selling coal ash to companies that use recycled coal ash in construction materials. For more information, click here.
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Debate Arises over Issue of Sustaining Net Metering Projects
Posted on Jul 25, 2013
Some coops in the Northeast are concerned about the legal ambiguities of financing small renewable energy projects. Coops in Vermont are subject to a law that requires utilities to credit customers 20 cents for every kWh they produce through small renewable energy systems, or net metering systems, unless a utility’s total net metering surpasses 4 percent of its peak demand from the previous year. Coops are questioning whether they can continue to reimburse customers at a higher rate after hitting the 4 percent threshold. VTDigger has the full story.
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Maryland Coop Tops Rankings In J.D. Power Survey
Posted on Jul 25, 2013
For the sixth consecutive year, Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative topped out the rankings among mid-sized utilities in the J.D. Power Electric Utility Residential Customer Satisfaction Study. The study, now in its 15th year, measures customer satisfaction with electric utility companies by examining six factors: power quality and reliability; price; billing and payment; corporate citizenship; communications; and customer service. Click here for more.
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Oregon Utilities Consider Territory Transfer
Posted on Jul 25, 2013
The Eugene Water & Electric Board (EWEB), an Oregon municipal utility, is considering transferring a portion of its McKenzie River Valley service territory to Lane Electric Cooperative (Lane Electric). The transfer will only occur if EWEB and Lane Electric determine that such a transfer would make “technical, operational, business and customer sense.” Both EWEB and Lane Electric plan to solicit opinions and comments from their respective customers before making any decision on the proposed transfer. Read more about this story.
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FERC Grants Coop’s Appeal of NERC Registry Decision
Posted on Jul 25, 2013
On July 18, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued an order granting the appeal of the South Louisiana Electric Cooperative Association (SLECA) of a registry decision by the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC). This dispute stemmed from NERC’s registration of SLECA as a distribution provider and load-serving entity. SLECA claimed it was inappropriately listed on the NERC Compliance Registry and therefore subject to compliance with certain NERC Reliability Standards. To read the FERC order granting SLECA’s appeal, click here.
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Appeals Court Upholds Award in Dairy Farmer’s Suit Over Stray Voltage
Posted on Jul 23, 2013
An appeals court decided that a Waverly, Minnesota, dairy farmer can be awarded damages from a local coop because of the effects of stray electrical currents from the coop’s transmission lines on his dairy cows. Stray electrical currents, which were conducted through the ground rather than a neutral wire connected through the farm, were found to have killed and stressed a number of cows. The amount of damages that Wright-Hennepin Cooperative Electric Association will pay is to be determined by the county. Read more here.
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South Carolina Coop to Sell Security Company
Posted on Jul 23, 2013
Palmetto Electric Cooperative plans to sell Palmetto Security Systems on August 1 to the company’s former vice president. The coop board decided to sell the security company to focus on the coop’s core mission of providing electricity, according to a news release. Existing accounts will be served by a new company under the same name. For more information, click here.
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“NIMBY” Case Heads to Court
Posted on Jul 23, 2013
A case between a wealthy North Carolina video game developer, Tim Sweeney, and the Rutherford Electric Membership Corporation (Rutherford) is headed to court on August 12. Sweeney claims that his land will lose $10.6 million in value if the coop runs a power line through it as planned. The trial will focus on whether Rutherford needs to build the 12-mile line and whether there are viable options other than running it across Sweeney’s property. Compensation would be the subject of a separate trial. Click here for more.
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FERC Rolls Back Electric Reliability Obligations for Small Coops
Posted on Jul 23, 2013
In what is being heralded as a large first step in the small coop community, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has rejected the North American Electric Reliability Corporation’s (NERC) finding that a small, rural electric cooperative should be subject to mandatory electric reliability regulations. The order, involving the South Louisiana Electric Cooperative Association (SLECA), involved a dispute about whether SLECA should be included in the NERC Registry as a Distribution Provider and Load-Serving Entity, which presumes that SLECA is part of the Bulk Electric System. FERC’s...
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South Canal Hydro Project Goes Online in Colorado
Posted on Jul 23, 2013
Colorado-based Delta-Montrose Electric Association (DMEA) brought its South Canal Hydro project online in late June. The project was funded by the National Rural Utilities Cooperative Finance Corporation with $22 million in New Clean Renewable Energy Bonds (CREBs), and it will divert flow to generate an estimated 27 million kWh annually. Click here for more details on this story.
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Power Provider Meets Opposition from ACC
Posted on Jul 23, 2013
Mohave Electric Cooperative’s (MEC) power supplier, Arizona Electric Power Cooperative, Inc. (AEPCO), is seeking a rate decrease for its customers but has encountered opposition from consultants hired by the Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC), which must approve all rate increases or decreases. MEC Chief Executive Officer Tyler Carlson has testified before the commission in support of the AEPCO rate decrease. However, the commission’s consultants reportedly are worried that the cost of providing power to the electric coops may rise again, prompting the coops to seek a rate increase in...
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Wyoming Coop Set to Expand Into Colorado
Posted on Jul 18, 2013
High West Energy, Inc. plans to build a $7.3 million transmission line into Colorado to serve a large gas processing facility. The project will open up new opportunities in the surrounding area, including the potential for additional large-scale industrial customers. For more information, click here.
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