SEC Announces Second Round of Charges against Underwriters under MCDC Initiative
Posted on Oct 6, 2015
On September 30, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced enforcement actions against 22 municipal bond underwriters, the second round of enforcement actions brought by the SEC under the Municipalities Continuing Disclosure Cooperation Initiative (MCDC Initiative). The SEC brought these enforcement actions based on the underwriters self-reporting potential continuing disclosure-related violations of federal securities law. The SEC’s Division of Enforcement announced the MCDC Initiative, which offered standardized settlement terms to underwriters and issuers who self-reported...
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Historic Flooding Hits South Carolina’s Electric Coops
Posted on Oct 6, 2015
Epic rainfall over South Carolina is inundating electric cooperative substations, flooding ground-mounted transformer vaults and toppling trees with weakened root systems into power lines.
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Mississippi Considers Net Metering
Posted on Oct 6, 2015
The Mississippi Public Service Commission (Commission) is considering a plan to mandate that utilities pay solar panel owners for power they generate. Electric cooperatives, which serve 767,000 Mississippi customers, argue the Commission can’t legally force them to adopt net metering.
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Hawaii Coop to Offer Daytime Discounts
Posted on Oct 5, 2015
Kauai Island Utility Cooperative (KIUC) is planning to roll out the pilot version of a program that would discount customer-members’ rates for electricity used during the day. KIUC has identified 300 residential customers whose rates between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. would be shaved by 25 percent. The innovative concept, which may initially appear counterintuitive when compared to off-peak incentives offered by many utilities for usage during night hours, is driven by the abundance of solar energy available to KIUC and its members.
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Appalachian Electric Cooperative Set to Begin New Solar Project in Fall
Posted on Oct 2, 2015
Appalachian Electric Cooperative is set to begin construction of a new 1.373-megawatt “community solar” facility this fall. The facility will include 9,468 photovoltaic cells that will generate enough renewable electricity to power approximately 115 homes for an entire year. The new project will be funded in part by a grant from the Tennessee Valley Authority and is one of only two programs to receive such funding.
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EPA Finalized New Power Plant Wastewater Rule
Posted on Sep 30, 2015
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized a rule setting a limit on the amount of toxic metals in power plant wastewater. Current regulations have been in place since 1982, and the EPA asserts that these regulations do not adequately address the presence of toxic metals in power plant wastewater. The new regulations will not apply to power plants that are smaller than 50 megawatts.
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Tri-State’s Mine Plan Approved by Department of Interior
Posted on Sep 25, 2015
A subsidiary of Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association, Colowyo Coal Co., received approval from the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) for its mine plan for a mine located in northwest Colorado. The DOI’s finding of “no significant impact” will allow the mine to continue producing low-sulfur, sub-bituminous coal and providing fuel for the Craig Station power plant near Craig, CO.
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Endangered Species Protection Not Needed for Greater Sage-Grouse
Posted on Sep 22, 2015
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service ruled Tuesday that the greater sage-grouse does not require protection under the Endangered Species Act, a win for the energy industry, ranchers and other landowners in the West.
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Sulphur Springs Valley Electric Cooperative Signs 20-year PPA with SunPower
Posted on Sep 18, 2015
SunPower is constructing a 20MW ac solar PV SunPower® Oasis® Power Plant system in Arizona and has agreed to sell the electricity generated to Sulphur Springs Valley Electric Cooperative (SSVEC) when the plant commences operating by the end of 2016. SSVEC has an option to purchase the facility at a later date.
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Coop Installs Montana’s First Community Solar Project
Posted on Sep 15, 2015
Flathead Electric Cooperative recently installed a 356-panel community solar project in Whitefish, Montana. Members can purchase a panel for $900 and then receive credit for the energy the panel produces for the life of the project.
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Kaua’i Island Utility Cooperative Signs PPA with SolarCity for Battery-Stored Solar Power
Posted on Sep 11, 2015
Kaua’i Island Utility Cooperative (KIUC) has agreed to purchase electricity from SolarCity’s proposed 52-MWh battery system project, believed to be the first utility-scale system in the U.S. capable of dispatching stored solar power. The project, when completed, will provide 13 megawatts of solar power to the grid in the evening, when demand is highest. The power purchase agreement will enable KIUC to pay a lower rate than the current cost of conventional generation while reducing its use of imported fossil fuels and cutting its greenhouse gas emissions.
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SMEPA will Buy Power from New Origis Energy Solar Facility
Posted on Sep 8, 2015
South Mississippi Electric Power Association (SMEPA) will buy power from a new 52 MW solar facility in Lamar County to be built by Origis Energy. SMEPA buys, generates and transmits power to the 11 electric cooperatives in southern and western Mississippi that own it.
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CoServ Begins Final Testing
Posted on Sep 8, 2015
CoServ Solar Station (CoServ), the largest coop solar installation in Texas, has begun final testing of its 2.7 MW solar farm in Denton County, Texas. The facility is powered by 8,448 solar panels and is one of 14 pilot projects of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Solar Utility Network Deployment Acceleration project.
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Coop Adds Landfill Gas Generation to its Renewable Portfolio
Posted on Sep 4, 2015
Hoosier Energy (Hoosier), a Bloomington, Indiana G&T, will be partnering with a local landfill operator to develop a renewable energy facility. The facility will use landfill methane to fuel engines that will produce 4 megawatts of electricity. The project, which will be Hoosier’s fourth landfill methane facility, will provide an additional source of renewable power to Hoosier’s members, which consist of 18 distribution cooperatives.
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