The Ukraine crisis is adding fuel to the natural gas export debate that’s been brewing in Congress. Sen. John Barrasso, R-WY, is proposing that an amendment to lift restrictions on U.S. natural-gas exports be added to the Senate aid package for Ukraine. On March 5, Sen. Mark Udall, D-CO, a senior member of the U.S….
Category: Energy
The U.S. Energy-Climate World Upheaval: 2008-2014
If the recent U.S. energy-climate world seems like it’s in upheaval, that’s because it is. Amy Harder of the National Journal, just posted a good synopsis of the monumental changes in the U.S. energy-climate world with her article – The Five Biggest Energy Changes in the Past Six Years. Harder notes: In 2008, Washington was…
Natural Gas and Climate Change
The rise in natural gas production, particularly in the U.S., has unquestionably impacted the global energy equation. Fueled by the unconventional-natural-gas revolution, natural gas is now a significant factor in the U.S. and global energy mix. As Sonal Patel summarized from the International Energy Agency’s (IEA) 2013 World Energy Outlook (WEO-2013): By 2035, natural gas…
Top Five 2014 Energy/Environmental Priorities of the EU
I thought that it’s instructive for anyone interested in US energy/environmental policy to look at what the EU has on its 2014 agenda. Environmental journalist Sonja van Renssen outlines the top 5 EU energy/environmental issues. The issue priorities are: The biggest issue on the agenda will be the climate and energy package to be unveiled by the European…
Whose Land Is It Anyways?
The development of energy resources is typically dependent upon the availability of infrastructure such as hydrocarbon pipelines and transmission lines. Many of the issues concerning energy development and consequently infrastructure construction focus on the impact of climate change generated by a particular energy resource. The continuing controversy over the permitting of TransCanada’s Keystone XL pipeline…
US Microgrid Technology and the U.S. East Coast
Microgrid systems, an alternative approach for integrating small scale distributed energy resources, are becoming a reality on the U.S. east coast. The microgrids are viewed as a way to improve energy resiliency in the face of future impacts related to climate change, as reported by the Hurricane Sandy Rebuilding Task Force. Bill Howley, in today’s “The Power Line” blog, points…
The Continuing Saga of the Utilities’ Death Spiral
For those of you who are fighting numerous proposed high-voltage (HV) transmission projects, take some solace in the idea that “time is on our side”. There are lots of reasons for that, but one of them has always been that technology and the market would unfold and develop in ways that would, and should, make HV transmission largely…
Power Companies Losing Out To Rooftop Solar??
—by John Vincent, former Montana Public Service Commissioner America’s utility industry, “Big Power,” is, by their own admission, scared. Made up of large corporations with huge and profitable investments in centralized generation and long distance, high voltage transmission (profits mostly guaranteed by monopoly status and government regulation), they are facing what their own industry calls…
Energy Conservation And Efficiency….. Good For People, Business, And The Environment
– By John Vincent, Former Montana Public Service Commissioner It’s recently become all too clear that “big power” is “waging war” on energy efficiency and conservation because it reduces the amount of power they sell and cuts into their profits. But for others (residential consumers, private businesses – both large and small, and corporations), energy…
Energy Efficiency and Small-Scale Solar Power Threaten Utilities’ Bottom Lines
Power company revenue is under siege by energy efficiency and small-scale solar power, says a Fitch ratings analyst. Rooftop solar power and energy-efficiency programs will eat into utility revenue and profit margins and discourage investment in new transmission projects within five years, a Fitch Ratings analyst said. Utilities in stagnant or low-growth markets in the…
The Uber Grid Push Is Back
The push for the uber grid raised its head again in the New York Time’s 7.12.13 edition. Matt Wald plugs the new EIPC (Eastern Interconnection Planning Collaborative) “hypothetical” nationalized grid as a “step forward”. As Mr. Wald reports, When President Obama presented his plans last month for executive action that would cut emissions of greenhouse…
Energy Efficiency Can Save Big Money And Greenhouse-Gas Emissions In Urban Transport Systems
The International Energy Agency just released a new report that shows how energy efficiency of urban transport systems could facilitate savings of up to USD 70 trillion that would be spent on vehicles, fuel and transportation infrastructure from now until 2050. The report, A Tale of Renewed Cities, draws on examples from more than 30…
North American Oil Supply Jolts Global Markets
The International Energy Agency (IEA) released its annual Medium-Term Oil Market Report (MTOMR) today. I doubt if it will surprise anyone who has been paying attention to the energy markets, but the report’s main assertion is that: The supply shock created by a surge in North American oil production will be as transformative to the market…
Eminent Domain in Montana – The Montana House Fails Landowners
Now that the Montana legislative session is over, here is my tally is on what landowners got out of the session regarding private property rights and specifically those rights related to merchant transmission lines: – HB 417: this bill requires that a condemnor provide landowners a final written offer prior to initiating a condemnation complaint….
Montana’s Legislative Response to Secretary Chu’s Use of Power Marketing Administrations to Upgrade the Electric Grid
Last Saturday, the Montana Senate unanimously adopted Senate Resolution (SR) 2 in response to the Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Steven Chu’s March 16, 2012, memorandum that outlined his plan to upgrade the electric grid using power marketing administrations. The plan would utilize the nation’s four power marketing administrations (PMAs) – the Bonneville Power Administration,…