Source: IREC The Virginia Department of Mines, Minerals & Energy is currently seeking public input regarding the development of the 2014 Virginia Energy Plan, which must be submitted to the General Assembly by 10/1/2014. DMME is currently collecting public input during “listening sessions” conducted around the state. In addition, Gov. Terry McAuliffe issued an executive...

Source: ERCOT Energy produced in Texas using renewable resources grew by 12 percent in 2013, while capacity increased by about 2 percent. The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) provided these updates on statewide renewable energy reporting to the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUC) this week in the 2013 Annual Report on the Renewable Energy...

Source: Greentech Media The biggest policy boost for clean energy during President Obama’s second term isn’t coming from the Department of Energy or from Congress — it’s coming from the Environmental Protection Agency. This morning, the EPA finally announced plans to slash carbon emissions from 1,000 fossil-fueled power plants by 30 percent compared to 2005 levels over...

Source: Greentech Media When Hawaiian Electric Company submitted its integrated resource plan on April 29, it was the last straw for regulators. Shortly after HECO’s inadequate plan was released, the Public Utilities Commission issued four regulatory orders and a white paper outlining how HECO should evolve. “Throughout the country, there’s a keen awareness that energy...

Source: Lexology New York State’s electric industry may undergo a drastic transformation.  Recently, the New York State Public Service Commission (“Commission”) issued its Reforming the Energy Vision, NYS Department of Public Service Staff Report and Proposal (“Vision Proposal”) to remodel New York’s electric industry “for both regulated and non-regulated participants, with the objective of creating market based,...

True or false: Transmission and transmission planning are only relevant to large, conventional electricity generators, and distributed renewables are only concerned with the distribution system, and never the twain shall meet. For many decades, this statement was profoundly true. But nowadays, with evolving technologies, improved planning processes and an expanded emphasis on integrated systems, the two previously disparate elements of our energy system are beginning to intersect.

Source: Greentech Media After a year of negotiations, Public Service Electric and Gas Company reached a $1.2 billion settlement with the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities for its Energy Strong proposal. The approval of $1.2 billion over five years is far lower than the nearly $4 billion, ten-year plan that PSE&G first proposed in February 2013.  The New...