Nebraska Senators Introduce Bills to Advance Renewable Energy
Senators Introduce Bills to Advance Renewable Energy in Nebraska LINCOLN, Neb. 2 KNOP, 17 Jan 15 — State senators announced Friday that they will introduce five bills intended to advance Nebraska’s renewable energy industry, increase economic development and provide property tax benefits.
“These bills will help to incentivize growth and investment in Nebraska over surrounding states and also remove barriers to renewable energy development in our state,” said Sen. Jeremy Nordquist, who is sponsoring one of the bills.
Nordquist’s bill would create a Nebraska production tax credit for renewable electric generation facilities and would allow the credit to be transferable. Surrounding states, including Iowa and Oklahoma, already offer a credit against state income tax for each kilowatt hour of electricity that a renewable energy generation facility produces.
“Without a state production tax credit in place, surrounding states have a competitive advantage over Nebraska,” Nordquist said “This would put Nebraska on a level playing field by helping our state compete for projects designed to export electricity out of the state as well as benefiting Nebraska ratepayers by providing cheaper available electricity for in-state utilities.”
“A state production tax credit is essential to leveling the playing field and enabling our state to become a net exporter of energy instead of importer,” said Jon Crane, President of Bluestem Energy. Sen. Al Davis will introduce a bill to broaden the existing Nameplate Capacity Tax to include projects using solar, biomass or landfill gas as the fuel source. In 2010, the Legislature created the Nameplate Capacity Tax, which is a flat excise tax that replaces the heavily front-loaded personal property tax that early wind energy projects paid……….
Sen. Ken Haar will introduce a bill to simplify the existing process for the Nebraska Power Review Board to consider a renewable energy export facility. …………
Sen. Heath Mello will introduce a bill to simplify the Community-Based Energy Development, (CBED) process. …….
Sen. Ken Schilz will introduce a bill that would require the Nebraska Energy Office to prepare a comprehensive, forward-looking energy plan for Nebraska by the end of 2015 that would be
updated every two years………http://www.knopnews2.com/home/headlines/Senators-Introduce-Bills-to-Advance-Renewable-Energy-in-Nebraska-288829681.html
Idaho’s New Nuclear Waste Deal done in secret – “DONE IN THE DARK OF NIGHT.
Former Idaho Governors: Strong Words for Otter’s New Nuclear Waste Deal, Boise Weekly BY JESSICA MURRI ON THU, JAN 15, 2015 FORMER IDAHO GOVERNOR CECIL ANDRUS SAID GOV. C.L. “BUTCH” OTTER’S RECENT DECISION TO REOPEN IMPORTATION OF SPENT NUCLEAR FUEL TO THE IDAHO NATIONAL LABORATORY WAS “DONE IN THE DARK OF NIGHT.”
Democrat Andrus sat aside former Republican Governor Phil Batt, at the Andrus Center for Public Policy on Thursday morning, and both were clearly upset and appalled that Otter would break Batt’s 1995 landmark agreement, forbidding any more nuclear waste to come into Idaho.
“Neither one of us have any intention of letting this decision by two of the elected officials in the state of Idaho (Otter and Idaho Attorney General Lawrence Wasden) come to pass,” Andrus said.
Both the governors spent large amounts of their terms stopping the importation of spent nuclear fuel into Idaho. Batt produced the 1995 Agreement, which was then ratified by more than 60 percent of Idaho voters.
“It’s not my agreement, it’s Idaho’s agreement,” Batt said.
But in spite of that 1995 pact, Otter and Wasden have agreed to receive 50 spent nuclear rods, each weighting 1,500 pounds, for a total of 37.5 tons of nuclear waste, according to Andrus. The letter between Wasden and the Department of Energy states that the nuclear waste will be used for “research purposes.”
Batt doesn’t buy that. He wrote a letter to Otter on Jan. 12, criticizing Otter’s decision and reprimanding him for going ahead with it without consulting Batt or Andrus.
The danger of the waste accumulating at the Idaho National Laboratory, Batt said, is the risk it poses for the Snake River Aquifer, directly under the repository site.
“If there was contamination in that water,” Batt said, “it would cause our potato industry to fold up. It would cause fish farms to fold up in Magic Valley. It would create all kind of problems with municipal water.” “It could gain $10 million in revenue, but that isn’t one tenth of one percent of what you’re gambling against if any of that waste gets lose in the aquifer,” Andrus added……….
“If this was so important to the state of Idaho and how we were going to gain from it, why didn’t he mention it in his State of the State address?” Andrus said. “I’ll tell you why, it’s because he didn’t want the people to know what they’d done in the dark of night in secrecy, in breaking this agreement and letting new waste come into the state of Idaho. It’s a travesty,”………..http://www.boiseweekly.com/CityDesk/archives/2015/01/15/former-idaho-governors-strong-words-for-otters-new-nuclear-waste-deal
Renewable energy in USA cost competitive – can triple by 2030
US can more than triple its renewable energy says IRENA report, Renewable Energy Magazine Robin Whitlock, 15 January 2015 27 percent renewable energy is both technically possible and cost-effective by 2030 according to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). The US can increase its renewable energy capacity from 7.5 percent of the energy mix in 2010 to 27 percent by 2030 according to a new report by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) entitled Renewable Energy Prospects: United States of America released this week on Monday 12th January. The report, which is part of IRENA’s ongoing REmap 2030 study, also says the US can increase its use of renewable energy in power generation from 14 percent to almost 50 percent by 2030, thereby making the country the world’s second largest renewable energy user after China.
“As the second largest energy consumer in the world, the US must continue to play a leading role in the global transition to a sustainable energy future” said Adnan Z. Amin, Director-General of IRENA. “The recent agreement between the US and China to reduce greenhouse gas emissions is a ground-breaking step, but this report aims even higher, showing that more can be done at limited cost.”
Current policies in place in the US would only enable the share of renewable energy to reach 10 percent by 2030. REmap 2030 estimates that an annual investment of $86 billion would be required between now and 2030 to enable this figure to rise to 27 percent, an increase of $38 billion annually beyond business-as-usual. The higher renewable share will result in annual savings of $30 billion to $140 billion by 2030 when accounting for factors such as human health and reduced emissions.
“REmap 2030 shows that the US could install significantly higher amounts of renewables – and that it can do so affordably” added Mr. Amin. “Even in a country with cheap shale gas like the US, renewable energy is still cost competitive and reduces air pollution, enhances energy security, benefits the economy, and plays a leading role in fighting climate change.”……….http://www.renewableenergymagazine.com/article/us-can-more-than-triple-its-renewable-20150115
Large-scale wave energy systems reliable – could spur economic growth in the Pacific Northwest
Wave energy integration costs should compare favorably to other energy sources, Energy Central Jan 14 – Energy Weekly News A new analysis suggests that large-scale wave energy systems developed in the Pacific Northwest should be comparatively steady, dependable and able to be integrated into the overall energy grid at lower costs than some other forms of alternative energy, including wind power.
The findings, published in the journal Renewable Energy, confirm what scientists have expected – that wave energy will have fewer problems with variability than some energy sources and that by balancing wave energy production over a larger geographic area, the variability can be even further reduced……….
Another strength of wave energy, the study suggested, is that its short-term generation capacity can be predicted with a high degree of accuracy over a time scale ranging from minutes to hours, and with some accuracy even seasonally or annually.
The Pacific Northwest has some of the nation’s best wave energy resources, and as a result is home to the Northwest National Marine Renewable Energy Center, supported by the U.S. Department of Energy .
Wave energy in the region is expected to spur economic growth, help diversify the energy portfolio, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and reduce transmission losses, the study noted,,,,,,,,,,,, http://www.energycentral.com/generationstorage/futureandalternativegeneration/news/en/34894133/Wave-energy-integration-costs-should-compare-favorably-to-other-energy-sources
Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty- USA has reduced no. of nuclear missiles, but Russia has increased theirs
U.S. Nuclear Arsenal Drops, Russia’s Missile Stocks Up – U.S. State Department Report IB Times, By Esther Tanquintic-Misa | January 13, 2015 A newly released report of the U.S. military’s nuclear arsenal by the State Department has disclosed that the country’s number of nuclear missiles had continued to reduce in compliance to the New START (Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty) treaty with Russia. The latter, however, continued the opposite.
Data collected as of Sept 1, 2014 showed that the number of deployed Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles, submarine-launched ICBMs and deployed heavy bombers by the U.S. went down from 809 the year before to 794. Russia‘s inventory was the opposite at 528, from 473 a year ago.
The U.S.’ warheads on deployed ICBMs, SLBMs and nuclear warheads for deployed bombers, from 1,688, went down to 1,642. Russia recorded the same number at 1,642, but the report said the previous was 1,400.
President Barack Obama’s bailiwick, as of Sept 2014, has 912 deployed and non-deployed missile launchers, from 1,015 a year ago. Vladimir Putin’s Russia has 911, up from 894.
The U.S. and Russia signed the New START Treaty on April 2010 primarily toreduce the number of nuclear weapons and launchers that the two countries own and deploy. The agreement entered into force on February 2011, and is expected to last at least until 2021.
With majority of the U.S. nuclear arsenal assigned to the Air Force, the latter has worked to demolish deactivated launch facilities throughout 2014 to comply with the New START Treaty, according to the State Department report. Crews with the 341st Missile Wing at Malmstrom Air Force Base, Montana reported in August they have completed the demolition of 50 Minuteman III launch facilities. This was inspected and verified by Russian inspectors.
A report by Air Force Times further revealed the following details:……….. http://au.ibtimes.com/articles/578890/20150113/u-s-nuclear-arsenal-russia.htm#.VLWF5NKUcnk
USA Senate to vote on whether or not Climate Change is real!
Senate to vote on whether climate change is happening The Hill, By Laura Barron-Lopez – 01/13/15 Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said Tuesday he will allow the Senate to vote on an amendment asking if they agree that climate change is impacting the planet…….Sanders’s amendment is one of many Democrats are looking to tack on to the controversial bill, which Republicans are eager to send to President Obama’s desk. The White House has threatened to veto the Keystone legislation.
Pentagon secrecy on Israel’s Nuclear Program and Super Computers
Pentagon Refuses to Release Unclassified 1987 Report about Israel’s Nuclear Program and Super Computers http://www.allgov.com/news/top-stories/pentagon-refuses-to-release-unclassified-1987-report-about-israels-nuclear-program-and-super-computers-150113?news=855360 Noel Brinkerhoff, Danny Biederman A think tank researcher has been fighting with the Pentagon to get a 1987 report on Israel’s nuclear program and supercomputers released despite the fact that the document in question is not classified.
Grant Smith, founder of the Institute for Research: Middle Eastern Policy, Inc., first asked theDepartment of Defense (DoD) to release the report (“Critical Technology Issues in Israel and NATO Countries”) three years ago through a Freedom of Information Act request.
Last fall, after numerous delays by the DoD, Smith went to court to force the report’s disclosure.
Defense lawyers contend it was necessary for officials to ask Israel to review the report before complying with Smith’s request—an unusual move on the part of a U.S. agency involving an American FOIA issue.
Meanwhile, the judge hearing the FOIA case, U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, has wondered why it has taken three years without a decision by the Pentagon.
“I’d like to know what is taking so long for a 386-page document. The document was located some time ago,” Chutkan said in November, according to Courthouse News Service. “I’ve reviewed my share of documents in my career. It should not take that long to review that document and decide what needs to be redacted.”
The report may contain details about an internal debate nearly 30 years ago among U.S. officials about whether Washington should authorize the sale of a Cray supercomputer to a coalition of Israeli universities. “The United States approved the sale of powerful computers that could boost Israel’s well-known but officially secret A-bomb and missile programs,” wrote the author of a 1995 Risk Report article about the Cray controversy that cited the Pentagon document. “A 1987 Pentagon-sponsored study found that Technion University, one of the schools in the network, was helping design Israel’s nuclear re-entry vehicle. U.S. officials say Technion’s physicists also worked in Israel’s secret weapon complex at Dimona.”
Smith’s effort “to get hold of the Pentagon report is set against the backdrop of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty,” wrote Janet McMahon at Courthouse News Service. “Israel has not signed the treaty. Iran, on the other hand, has signed the treaty.”
The current negotiations with Iran over its nuclear program is part of that backdrop. “The reason this would be seen as controversial is you have this real concerted push for Iran to come clean on its nuclear program and to relinquish its infrastructure,” Foundation for Defense of Democracies VP Jonathan Schanzer told the Washington Examiner. He said he saw “no reason” why the U.S. government would authorize the report’s release, but adding that if it was released, it would probably not affect the Pentagon’s publicly ambiguous stance regarding Israeli nuclear capabilities.
Smith has grown frustrated over the government’s stalling on the issue, saying: “So what we’ve seen most recently is that the government is now coming up with novel ways to try and delay this by talking about mandatory disclosure reviews. We don’t think it’s meaningful that their captive think tank may have signed NDAs. Perhaps they even have a sock puppet in the Pentagon that signs NDAs on their behalf. It would be the same from our perspective.”
They always find the money for new nuclear weapons
U.S. Navy’s Next Generation Nuclear Reactor Program Fully Funded By: Sam LaGrone USNI News January 9, 2015 WASHINGTON NAVY YARD — Development work for the reactor that will power the Navy’s next generation nuclear ballistic missile submarine (SSBN) was fully funded in the so-called Fiscal Year 2015 “cromnibus” that was signed into law last month, the head of the service’s Naval Reactors told USNI News on Friday.
In addition to the $156 million Ohio-class Replacement Program (ORP) reactor development included the Department of Energy’s FY 2015 budget, Congress also included $126.4 to refuel the service’s S8G prototype reactor in West Milton, N.Y. and $70 million to dispose of reactor waste as part of an existing facility in Idaho………..http://news.usni.org/2015/01/09/u-s-navys-next-generation-nuclear-reactor-program-fully-funded
Money mess in escalating costs of dismantling Michigan nuclear facility
Exelon: Company dismantling Zion nuclear plant is running out of money By Julie Wernau Chicago Tribune, 9 Jan 12 contact the reporter The company dismantling the closed Zion nuclear plant on Lake Michigan is running out of money to finish the job, according to the site’s owner, Chicago-based Exelon.
The project, paid for with $800 million collected from state electric ratepayers over decades, is being closely watched by nuclear plant owners around the country who hope to replicate the arrangement. It was the first time regulators allowed a nuclear power plant owner to transfer a plant’s operating license and liabilities to a third-party decommissioner.
Utah-based EnergySolutions, the company dismantling Zion, wants to become the go-to decommissioner around the world. In the U.S., about 6 percent of nuclear plants face possible closing, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
In Illinois, the Zion dismantling has taken on added significance as Exelon, the parent company of Commonwealth Edison, has said three of its six nuclear plants in the state could be closed. ………. Continue reading
USA Congress and Senate to be dominated by Anti-Science Climate Denialists
The Anti-Science Climate Denier Caucus: 114th Congress Edition, Climate Progress BY TIFFANY GERMAIN – GUEST CONTRIBUTOR, KRISTEN ELLINGBOE – GUEST CONTRIBUTOR, KILEY KROH JANUARY 8, 2015 THIS WEEK CONGRESS RETURNS TO THE NATION’S CAPITAL WITH 71 NEW MEMBERS IN ITS RANKS. THOSE ADDITIONS WILL BRING LITTLE IMPROVEMENT IN THE VIEWS OF CONGRESSIONAL REPUBLICANS REGARDING THE SCIENTIFIC REALITY OF CLIMATE CHANGE, HOWEVER. OVER 56 PERCENT OF REPUBLICANS IN THE 114TH CONGRESS DENY OR QUESTION THE SCIENCE BEHIND HUMAN-CAUSED CLIMATE CHANGE, ACCORDING TO AN ANALYSIS BY CAP ACTION.
On the heels of what looks to be the warmest year in recorded history, with the global carbon dioxide levels that drive climate change reaching unprecedented levels, 53 percent — 131 members — of the Republican caucus in the House of Representatives deny the occurrence of human-caused global warming and 72 percent — 39 members — on the Senate side sing the same tune.
While 97 percent of climate scientists are in agreement that climate change is occurring and is driven by human activity, several new members of the 114th Congress assert the opposite. Just this week, Sen. Mark Kirk (R-IL) rejected the premise that greenhouse gas emissions are driving climate change, remarking instead that “political correctness took over climate science,” E&E Daily reported Thursday……..
One of the loudest congressional climate deniers is Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK) — the likely new chair of the Environment and Public Works Committee — who was swiftly repudiated in a hearing last year for claiming the earth had experienced “no warming for the last 15 years.” In addition to Inhofe, 10 out of 11, or 91 percent, of Republicans on EPW have said climate change is not happening or that humans do not cause it.
The members of the 114th Congress who have publicly misrepresented the science behind global warming have accepted their fair share of contributions from the fossil fuel industry. The 39 climate deniers in the Senate have taken $28,152,466 in donations from the coal, oil and gas industries, while the 61 Senators who haven’t denied the science have taken $11,033,447 in career contributions, according to the CAP Action analysis. On average, Senate deniers took $721,858 from fossil fuel interests while other Senators took $180,876.
On the House side, the 131 climate science deniers have taken $35,702,245 in fossil fuel industry contributions while the remaining voting members who haven’t denied the science have only taken $24,268,787 in career contributions. On average, House deniers took $272,536 from coal, oil and gas interests while other members took $80,095.
Looking ahead, the new Republican-controlled Congress has been clear that it has no intention of prioritizing action to help combat climate change. In fact, incoming Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has vowed to stop the Environmental Protection Agency’s attempt to curb carbon pollution from power plants andapprove the controversial Keystone XL pipeline.
Tiffany Germain is Research Manager and Kristen Ellingboe is Research Associate for CAP Action. http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2015/01/08/3608427/climate-denier-caucus-114th-congress/
Ultra religious climate change denialist to run US Senate Environment and Public Works Committee
Jim Inhofe is a small-plane-flying, global-warming-denying senator. And now he’s got a gavel. WP By Ben Terris January 8“…….The senator cemented his status as public enemy No. 1 for environmentalists long ago, topping it off with his 2012 book on climate change, “The Greatest Hoax.” This year he takes over the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee — the panel most associated with climate policy oversight — and says he plans to continue his role as a “one-man truth squad” on the issue……..
Climate change is certain to be a major issue for Congress in the next couple of years. Tom Steyer, the billionaire Democratic environmentalist, topped the list of campaign donors in the past election cycle; there’s still the Keystone XL pipeline to figure out; and a number of new rules from the Environmental Protection Agency are set to take effect this year. On all this, Inhofe aims to take center stage.
“Expect huge and enormous fireworks in the committee,” said Sen. Barbara Boxer (Calif.), the senior Democrat on the committee. “[Inhofe’s] going to go after everything, and I’m going to stop him dead on the floor of the Senate. . . . The biggest denier of all is the chairman of the environment committee — that’s a cruel joke.”
In 2003, Inhofe became the chairman of the Environment and Public Works Committee for the first time, after nine years in the Senate. He put his mark on the post with a floor speech in which he said catastrophic global warming is a hoax.
In his speech and his subsequent writing, Inhofe argued that the debate over global warming was “predicated on fear rather than science.”……..as he writes in his book, “God is still up there, and He promised to maintain the seasons and that cold and heat would never cease as long as the earth remains.”…….
he’ll move on to rolling back new EPA regulations. He plans hearings on new limits on greenhouse-gas emissions by power plants and refiners, and new ozone standards. He also wants a crack at changing the Endangered Species Act.
It’s an ambitious agenda, but it’s not just the goal of a lone crusading climate-change denier. What is really worrisome to environmentalists is that while Inhofe’s rhetoric may be more extreme than that of his Republican colleagues, their objectives appear to be the same……… http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/the-senates-top-climate-change-denier-is-flying-high-with-a-committee-chairmanship/2015/01/07/bf625fe0-9365-11e4-ba53-a477d66580ed_story.html
USA’s new rules for Nuclear power plants, gas pipelines, endangered species
New regs for Monday: Nuclear power plants, gas pipelines, endangered species The Hill, By Tim Devaney – 01/09/15 Monday’s edition of the Federal Register contains new energy conservation standards, protections for endangered and threatened species, safeguards for nuclear power plants and rules for interstate natural gas pipelines.
Here’s what is happening:
Efficiency: The Department of Energy is delaying a review of the energy conservation standards for commercial and industrial fans and blowers.
The Energy Department’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy last month released a provisional analysis estimating the energy savings and economic impact that would result from new energy conservation standards for industrial fans and blowers. While the agency did not propose efficiency rules at the time, it noted this review could lead to future rulemaking.
But the Energy Department said Friday it is extending the comment period through Feb. 25 to give stakeholders more time to consider the potential changes.
Gas: The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is delaying new rules for interstate natural gas pipelines and public utilities……..
Endangered: The Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) is delaying new protections for dozens of endangered species……….
Nuclear: The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is considering new safeguards at nuclear power plants.
The NRC announced Friday it will review a petition that requests the agency check to the structure of nuclear power plants for concrete degradation. The petitioner suggests better identification techniques.
The public has 75 days to comment. http://thehill.com/regulation/229010-new-regs-for-monday-nuclear-power-plants-gas-pipelines-endangered-species
Utah gets big solar power investment – Google and Prudential Capital Finance 104MW Solar Plant
Google and Prudential Capital Finance 104MW Solar Plant in Utah http://www.solarnovus.com/google-and-prudential-capital-finance-104mw-solar-plant-in-utah_N8442.html 9 January 2015 Scatec Solar ASA, an integrated independent solar power producer, has entered into financing agreements totalling USD 157 million for construction of a 104 MW(dc) Red Hills solar power plant in Utah. When complete, the Red Hills solar project will be Scatec Solar’s largest developed and constructed project in North America.
Total investment for the plant is estimated at USD 188 million—with Google providing tax equity, Prudential Capital Group providing debt financing, and Scatec Solar providing sponsor equity. The power plant will be wholly-owned by a partnership jointly owned by Google and Scatec Solar, which structured and executed the financing for the project. Scatec Solar will manage and operate the plant when it goes into operation.
Google has signed agreements to fund over $1.5 billion in renewable energy investments across three continents with a total planned capacity of more than 2.5 GW (gigawatts).This agreement represents the 18th renewable energy investment project for Google and supports its continued push towards a clean, low carbon energy future.
Prudential Capital Group, a Prudential Financial asset management business, provided term financing for the project.
The Utah Red Hills Renewable Energy Park, set to be built on a site with excellent solar irradiation, will generate around 210 million kilowatt hours (kWh) of electricity per year, which will be fed into the grid under a twenty-year Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with PacifiCorp’s Rocky Mountain Power, according to the utility’s obligation under the federal Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act. When operational by the end of 2015, the plant will be Utah’s largest solar energy generation facility, generating enough energy to power approximately 18,500 homes annually. Based on US Environmental Protection Agency estimates, it will produce enough renewable power to prevent nearly 145 thousand tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually—the equivalent to not burning 156 million pounds of coal each year.
The ground-mounted photovoltaic solar facility is being developed on approximately 650 acres of privately-owned land in Parowan, Utah, will deploy approximately 325,000 PV modules on a single-axis tracking system and will interconnect to an existing transmission line.
Scatec Solar is an integrated independent power producer, aiming to make solar a sustainable and affordable source of energy worldwide. Scatec Solar develops, builds, owns and operates solar power plants, and will in 2014 deliver power from 220 MW in the Czech Republic, South Africa and Rwanda. The company is in strong growth and has a solid pipeline of projects under development in Africa, US, Asia, Middle East and Europe. Scatec Solar is headquartered in Oslo, Norway and listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol ‘SSO’. – See more at: http://www.solarnovus.com/google-and-prudential-capital-finance-104mw-solar-plant-in-utah_N8442.html#sthash.YOfvBs2F.dpuf
Alaska’s Renewable Energy project recognised as awinner
Project review: 2014 CESA installations, Part I, Renewable Energy Focus 09 January 2015 Reg Tucker
Biennial program recognizes outstanding state and municipal programs that have accelerated the adoption of clean energy technologies. Part I of this series provides a sampling of a few case studies behind the award-winning projects and initiatives.
The Clean Energy States Alliance (CESA), a national, nonprofit coalition of public agencies working together to advance clean energy, recently announced the recipients of the 2014 State Leadership in Clean Energy Awards. According to CESA, the winning programs exemplify the ground-breaking work being done by states and municipalities in the arena of clean energy development and deployment.The programs nominated for these awards were submitted by state and municipal clean energy agencies from across the country. The entries were reviewed by a team of distinguished, independent judges and were scored based on public benefits and results, cost effectiveness, leadership and innovation and the ability to replicate.
- The Alaska Energy Authority and the Kodiak Energy Association for Kodiak, Alaska: A 99% Renewable Energy Community………
-
Project #1: Alaska Energy Authority/KEAAlaska’s Renewable Energy Fund, managed by the Alaska Energy Authority, has catalyzed a movement towards renewable energy across Alaska by funding 277 renewable energy grants totaling $250 million over the past seven years. With support from the Fund, strong local leadership, and hard work, the Kodiak Electric Association (KEA) has achieved more than 99 per cent renewable energy electric generation. KEA has developed a renewable energy grid that includes hydro power, wind, and battery storage technologies.Alaska’s Renewable Energy Fund has made it possible for communities and villages across the state to study their renewable energy resources, conduct proper engineering designs for those projects that are economically and technically feasible, and construct their projects for the greatest public benefit possible. In the case of Kodiak Electric, which serves about 6,300 people on Kodiak Island, prior to the Renewable Energy Fund’s start in 2008, KEA generated approximately 60 per cent of its electricity from hydro power and 40 per cent from diesel.
Through multiple successful applications to the Renewable Energy Fund, KEA was able to conduct feasibility studies, design, permit, and construct two phases of wind development, adding six 1.5MW turbines on Pillar Mountain, just above the City of Kodiak. During phase two of the project, KEA added two 1.5MW (1MWhr) battery storage systems that provide 30 to90 seconds of bridging power to allow ramping up of output of a nearby hydroelectric system at times when the wind output decreases rapidly.
The addition of the battery systems has allowed the wind to be used without curtailment, and it allows more water to be stored at the hydro facility during times when the wind blows. Additionally, and with the financial support of the Renewable Energy Fund, a third hydroelectric turbine was added to the existing Terror Lake powerhouse to increase output by an additional 13.8 MW. Since the end of 2013, KEA has been able to shut off the diesel generators and allow the battery/hydro mix to fulfill their spinning reserve requirement. They also have enough hydro redundancy to allow for maintenance of hydro turbines without burning diesel fuel to generate power. For the first nine months of 2014, KEA generated 99.7 per cent of its power from renewable energy, resulting in significantly lower energy costs for the community by reducing its diesel fuel purchases to nearly zero.
KEA estimates that it saved its small community about $13 million in reduced fuel costs through the end of 2013. Over $4 million per year is now saved by the community, to the benefit of residents, seafood processors, the Coast Guard Base, and all other electrical customers. It has also cut diesel emissions to zero except for a few hours per year, resulting in cleaner local air and dramatically reduced greenhouse gas emissions…………http://www.renewableenergyfocus.com/view/41059/project-review-2014-cesa-installations-part-i/
USA’s nuclear industry’s future in doubt – as shown in the costs of Exelon’s New York reactor
Troubled New York reactor’s costs test the future of nuclear power Tulsa World 6 Jan 15 NEW YORK — Exelon Corp., the biggest U.S. owner of nuclear reactors, needs to almost double power prices to keep a New York plant running in a move that promises to show just how far regulators will go to keep uneconomic plants operating.
After recording losses that exceeded $100 million from 2011 to 2013, Exelon will need to charge about 83 percent more than wholesale prices to earn a profit at its Ginna plant, based on company cost estimates. State regulators have set a Jan. 15 deadline for a new power contract that’s rich enough to keep the Rochester-area plant running.
Last month, Entergy Corp. shut Vermont’s only operating reactor citing low power prices. Ginna is one of 10 other nuclear plants that can’t compete in current markets, Moody’s Investors Service said in November. Retiring the reactors, which account for 10 percent of the nation’s nuclear output, would undercut a push to produce power without greenhouse gases as renewables such as wind and solar are just emerging……..
Exelon isn’t alone in its struggle with at-risk plants. Four U.S. nuclear reactors were shut in 2013 because they weren’t profitable or needed repairs that owners decided were too costly. Entergy’s Vermont Yankee was closed after it failed to find a buyer. ……
A single-unit reactor like Ginna needs as much as $71 a megawatt-hour to earn an 11 percent return and $56 to $64 to break even, based on 2016 forecasts, Exelon said. http://www.tulsaworld.com/washingtonpost/business/troubled-new-york-reactor-s-costs-test-the-future-of/article_dc3a470f-42d8-5bfb-9a27-14706b30cadb.html
1 This Month
23-25 October – on Zoom – World BEYOND War’s annual global conferenc
To see nuclear-related stories in greater depth and intensity – go to https://nuclearinformation.wordpress.com
Say No to NASA’s Reckless Nuclear Reactor on the Moon
Say No to NASA’s Reckless Nuclear Reactor on the Moon
-
Archives
- October 2026 (160)
- September 2026 (339)
- August 2026 (330)
- July 2026 (355)
- June 2026 (287)
- May 2026 (306)
- April 2026 (356)
- March 2026 (251)
- February 2026 (267)
- January 2026 (308)
- December 2025 (358)
- November 2025 (359)
-
Categories
- 1
- 1 NUCLEAR ISSUES
- business and costs
- climate change
- culture and arts
- ENERGY
- environment
- health
- history
- indigenous issues
- Legal
- marketing of nuclear
- media
- opposition to nuclear
- PERSONAL STORIES
- politics
- politics international
- Religion and ethics
- safety
- secrets,lies and civil liberties
- spinbuster
- technology
- Uranium
- wastes
- weapons and war
- Women
- 2 WORLD
- ACTION
- AFRICA
- Atrocities
- AUSTRALIA
- Christina's notes
- Christina's themes
- culture and arts
- Events
- Fuk 2022
- Fuk 2023
- Fukushima 2017
- Fukushima 2018
- fukushima 2019
- Fukushima 2020
- Fukushima 2021
- general
- global warming
- Humour (God we need it)
- Nuclear
- RARE EARTHS
- Reference
- resources – print
- Resources -audiovicual
- Weekly Newsletter
- World
- World Nuclear
- YouTube
-
RSS
Entries RSS
Comments RSS
