Minnesota Supreme Court Upholds Strict Interpretation of State’s “Buy the Farm” Law
Posted on Mar 9, 2015
Great River Energy will be required to purchase 218.85 acres of land on which it will construct transmission lines, rather than the 8.86 acre strip it wished to purchase, a recent Minnesota Supreme Court decision held. The decision was based on the state’s “Buy the Farm” statue, which requires utility companies to buy out property owners upon request when building power lines. Click here to read more (subscription required).
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Electric Cooperative Seeks to Reduce Credits Paid to Customers with Rooftop Solar Systems
Posted on Mar 6, 2015
“Net metering” is the process by which electric suppliers pay credits to customers with home photovoltaic systems that generate more power than the customer uses. An Arizona EMC, Trico Electric Cooperative, has asked the Arizona Corporation Commission to approve its proposal to lower the amount of these credits from 4.2 cents per kilowatt hour to 3.7 cents. Trico believes that the change is necessary to help it recover its fixed costs. Click here to read more.
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Arizona Electric Power Cooperative Regional Haze Plan Approved by EPA
Posted on Mar 4, 2015
Arizona Electric Power Cooperative (AEPCO) has become the first Arizona utility to settle out of court with the US Environmental Protection agency (EPA) regarding EPA’s regional haze rules. AEPCO presented an alternative plan than the one initially required by EPA’s original rule, and the approved plan will come at less cost to AEPCO’s members. To read more please click here.
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Department of Energy and NRECA Name 2014 Wind Coops of the Year
Posted on Feb 27, 2015
The Energy Department and the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA) named the Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association and San Isabel Electric Association of Colorado as the 2014 Wind Cooperatives of the Year. For more information on the significant contributions these coops made to the wind energy industry, see the Energy Department’s press release.
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Cooperative Bank Makes Large Donation to the NRECA International Foundation
Posted on Feb 24, 2015
CoBank, a national cooperative bank, recently donated $250,000 to the National Rural Electric Cooperative (NRECA) International Foundation. The donation made by CoBank will support the Foundation’s mission of providing electrification to some of the world’s poorest regions. Click here to read more.
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NRECA Urges FERC to Limit EPA’s Clean Power Plan
Posted on Feb 20, 2015
The National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA), a group representing over 900 private, not-for-profit electric cooperatives in the U.S., has urged the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to limit the impact of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) proposed Clean Power Plan. The proposal calls for cuts in carbon dioxide emissions from existing facilities, using 2005 levels as a baseline in reaching the 30 percent goal. Environmentalists say the plan is necessary to help stop global warming while industry organizations say the plan is an economic burden,...
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TCEQ Reassumes Texas Permitting Duties from EPA.
Posted on Feb 20, 2015
For the past two years, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has handled permitting duties in Texas while the state has worked on implementing its own program. On Thursday the EPA issued its last federal greenhouse gas permit in Texas and transferred the remaining applications to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) to handle the permitting going forward. The TCEQ now has sole authority to issue Prevention of Significant Deterioration permits for conventional regulated air pollutants and greenhouse gases. Read more here (subscription required).
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Decreased Coal Prices Do Not Equal Increased Consumption
Posted on Feb 18, 2015
The Energy Information Administration (EIA) has released an analysis related to the use of coal for the electric utility industry in 2014. The annual average price of coal declined in 2014 and the EIA expects the price to remain relatively static over the next two years. However, the EIA is also expecting a 1.5 percent drop in power sector coal consumption in 2015. To read more about this story, please click here.
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Coops Pleased as EPA Reaffirms NDDH Plan to Reduce Regional Air Pollution
Posted on Feb 13, 2015
Minnkota Power Cooperative and Basin Electric Power Cooperative received good news last week as the EPA reaffirmed the plan of North Dakota Department of Health (NDDH) to reduce regional haze and ruled that the equipment of both plants meets all environmental requirements. NDDH’s plan must be updated again in 2018 and then again every several years until 2064. Please click here to read more.
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Basin Electric Focuses on Long-Term Needs as Oil and Gas Prices Remain Low
Posted on Feb 12, 2015
Basin Electric Power Cooperative (Basin Electric) continues to focus on the long-term needs of its members, particularly those active in the Bakken oil and gas fields, as oil and gas prices remain low. Energy price declines remain ongoing, but Basin Electric is looking at new projects to ensure reliable service to the region for the foreseeable future. Click here to read more.
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Electric Coops See Rise in Sales and Customer Base
Posted on Feb 12, 2015
According to a recent report, electric coops led the electric utility industry in terms of sales and customer growth in 2013 with almost a 3.1 percent increase in retail sales and 1.2 percent increase in residential customers. Weather and economic conditions were among the reasons for the jump. Click here for more information.
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Solar Farm Generates More Power Than Initially Projected
Posted on Feb 10, 2015
The Colleton Solar Farm, located on a 15-acre site near Walterboro, South Carolina, completed its first year of commercial operations on December 20. The solar farm generated about 5 percent more power than initially projected, which is believed to be due to placing more than 40 percent of the solar panels on pivotal mounts that track the sun as it moves across the sky. Central Electric Power Cooperative, the Columbia-based G&T, and Santee Cooper, South Carolina’s state-owned power provider, purchase power from the solar farm, which is owned by a private developer. Click here to read...
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Arkansas Electric Plans to Build State’s Largest Solar Farm
Posted on Feb 9, 2015
Arkansas Electric Cooperative Corporation (Arkansas Electric) has signed an agreement to build what will be the largest solar farm in the State of Arkansas. Silicon Ranch Corporation will build and manage the facility, which will be located on a 100-acre parcel in East Camden. The facility’s 12-megawatt output will power a manufacturing facility as well as 2,400 single-family homes. Click here for more.
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Obama Administration Seeks $6 Billion Budget for RUS Program with Similar Previously-Rejected Restrictions on Lending
Posted on Feb 6, 2015
The Obama administration is pursuing a $6 billion budget for the Rural Utilities Service (RUS) Electric Loan program’s 2016 fiscal year, a $500 million increase over the program’s 2015 fiscal year. Reflecting the administration’s goal of phasing out fossil fuel subsidies, this budget has allocated $3 billion for environmental updates to existing fossil-fuel plants and another $3 billion for renewable energy generation, transmission and distribution. Please click here to read more.
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