In recent months, several utilities have announced major infrastructure investments to encourage development of electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure. The investments are designed to promote the adoption of EVs by reducing range anxiety or the concern that battery power will run out before reaching a destination.
On January 29, 2015, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) released the Energy Infrastructure Report with data through December 2014. The report shows natural gas, wind, and solar represented more than 95% of the new utility-scale capacity installed in the United States in 2014. Natural gas was the primary source of new generation with wind and solar ranking second and third, respectively.
In February 2014, a diverse group of Minnesota leaders began a collaborative process to define Minnesota’s 21st century energy system. The goal is to identify a new regulatory environment that will resolve the fundamental misalignment between the traditional utility model, technology advancements, and public policy goals. e21 participants recently completed Phase I of the effort by developing several recommendations that, if adopted, would offer customers more choices on how and where their energy is produced and reward utilities for the achievement of agreed-upon performance goals.
In December 2014, the EPA finalized a rule that nationally establishes minimum criteria for the safe disposal of coal combustion residuals (CCRs) in landfills and surface impoundments. The rule establishes requirements for both existing and new CCR landfills and surface impoundments, including lateral expansions of any existing unit (expansions of existing landfills).
ScottMadden and the Solar Electric Power Association visited Germany in September 2014 on a fact-finding mission. In this section, we detail what they learned about the “Energiewende” and lessons for the U.S. We also look at latest developments in EPA’s proposed Clean Power Plan.
We are pleased to announce our Winter 2015 issue of THE SCOTTMADDEN ENERGY INDUSTRY UPDATE. This semi-annual publication features our view of recent significant events and emerging trends in the energy industry.
In this section, we look at themes of this issue as well as mergers, acquisitions, and corporate restructurings, particularly reverse MLPs.
Changes are afoot, as electric vehicles begin to get traction, and energy storage and decentralized generation gain ground. We also look at trends in the natural gas markets and what, if any, impact low oil prices are having upon them.
Differing regulatory constructs are driving utilities to adjust their business models. In this section we look at examples of these options. We also examine trends in levelized cost of energy from various resources and what those drivers are.
In this section, we examine growing interest in renewable tariffs by some customer segments and EPA’s long-awaited coal combustion residuals rule.
Establishing integrated end-to-end processes is a top priority for many companies. However, most have disconnected sourcing, purchasing, and accounts payable processes. This creates challenges such as decreased efficiency and reduced stakeholder satisfaction.
On December 29, 2014, Entergy permanently shut down the reactor at its 604.3 MW Vermont Yankee nuclear generating plant located in Vernon, Vermont. Though the facility was licensed to operate until 2032, it was closed for economic reasons, specifically “… sustained low natural gas prices and wholesale energy prices caused by a transformational shift in supply due to the impacts of shale gas.”
Sussex Economic Advisors is now part of ScottMadden. We invite you to learn more about our expanded firm. Please use the Contact Us form to request additional information.
