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Is Progress Energy out of the woods on rates in Florida?

March 22, 2012 by Dan Yurman
with 602 views
0

The utility Progress Energy is still in hot water over repairs for Crystal River in Florida. This is my updated coverage from Fuel Cycle Week V11:N464 March 15, 2012, published by International Nuclear Associates, Washington, DC.Progress Energy (NYSE:PGN) is a consumer advocate's headache in Florida and a lightning rod for rate protests... [read more]

Free Market Perspective Dominates The Climate Policy Debate

November 15, 2011 by John Wilson
with 521 views
2

As Grist’s David Roberts might remind us, Bob Inglis’ recent climate change commentaries are a throwback to an era when policy and appeals to self interest had a role in national politics. A year after reasoned debate abruptly surrendered to unhinged anti-environmental sentiment, Bob Inglis’ perspective is barely heard by the most vocal members of his Republican party, for whom “policy [is] merely an instrument to reinforce the status quo and punish out-groups.” [read more]

It's Carbon Tax Time!

November 10, 2011 by Marc Gunther
with 485 views
9

“I was a huge supporter of cap and trade,” said Wayne Leonard, the CEO of Entergy, a $11 billion utility company. “We developed enormously elegant solutions, but they couldn’t get done.” Taxing carbon emissions is the next best way to deal with the threat of global climate disruptions, he said, in part because it would give the energy... [read more]

A Marshall Plan to Build a Smart Grid -- in China

September 18, 2011 by James Greenberger
with 1,082 views
0

There is a deal to be cut here. It is time to put substance into the Framework for Ten Year Cooperation on Energy and Environment signed by President Obama and President Hu in November 2009. The government of China should contract with the U.S. power industry, coordinated through the U.S. Department of Energy, to build a complete smart grid in China. This would be no less than a Marshall Plan to build a 21st Century smart power grid in China. [read more]

Duke Energy and the Outlook for Energy Storage

September 11, 2011 by James Greenberger
with 1,285 views
6

That statement really caught my attention. I have talked for some time about my view that utilities will invest in storage as much as a defensive strategy as for immediate return. The long term value of most electric utility companies lies less in the value of their assets than in their close relationship with electricity customers. That relationship is the legacy of a historic monopoly market structure. Energy storage is potentially transformational to the utility industry because of storage’s potential to change, or, at a minimum, significantly to affect, that relationship. Distributed energy storage is a technology that is coming to the grid; the only question is when. Electric utilities that fail to be first movers in deploying this technology and instead let it be deployed and developed on the customer side of the meter or under the control of third parties will forfeit a significant market advantage and seriously impair their long-term equity value. [read more]

Electric Vehicles, the New Frontier?

July 28, 2011 by Sheila Oliva
with 561 views
0

Last Thursday the U.S. space shuttle touched down for the last time, and a part of history came to an end. N.C. Senator Fletcher Hartsell, Jr., reflected that morning that “It’s sad to think we might have lost our vision a bit [in the space program]. But, when you look at the area [of electric vehicles], it says we might be finding it... [read more]

It’s All Connected – How the EV Will Integrate into Your Life

July 25, 2011 by Sheila Oliva
with 355 views
2

In the words of Mike Rowand, Duke Energy, “The electric vehicle (EV) is not just a question of connecting a car to a power grid. It is about connecting it to the customer; connecting it to the continuous development of the technology surrounding EVs; and, finally, connecting it to our society’s governmental and regulatory policies.”And... [read more]

Energy Efficiency Saves Carolinas' Utilities $

July 11, 2011 by John Wilson
with 336 views
0

People in the Southeast do want energy efficiency! We had no doubts, but it is great to see strong participation in the first full year of new efficiency programs offered by Progress Energy Carolinas (PEC) and Duke Energy Carolinas (DEC). Our analysis shows that both utilities achieved greater savings and spent less per kWh than they had... [read more]

Why The Southeast Needs To Catch Up On Energy Efficiency

June 23, 2011 by John Wilson
with 375 views
5

Recently, we shared the great news that most utility customers across the Southeastern states that we focus on have or will very soon have access to meaningful energy efficiency programs. By 2015, these efficiency programs are projected to achieve energy savings ten times what they were just a few years ago. Energy efficiency savings... [read more]

Misinformation by ABC Action News Blames a Transformer Fire at a Coal Plant on Nuclear Energy

January 17, 2011 by Rod Adams
with 2,006 views
1

Crystal River is located on the west coast of Florida, very close to where the Panhandle bends out. One of the largest local employers is a five-unit power station called the Crystal River Energy Complex owned by Progress Energy (soon to be a part of Duke Energy). Four of the units burn coal that comes via the Gulf of Mexico after being... [read more]

How Cheap and Abundant Natural Gas Affects Renewables

January 3, 2011 by Christopher Head
with 1,253 views
2

Cost of producing energy before subsidies, per megawatt hour. Bloomberg New Energy Finance, 3rd quarter 2009. Low natural gas prices coupled with discoveries of abundant shale gas reserves have made the last 18 months an exciting time for energy in the United States. Until mid-2009, investors were scrambling to find a low cost... [read more]

Rod Adams: Good Progress Report From South Carolina’s New Nuclear Power Plant

November 1, 2010 by Joseph Koblich
with 1,758 views
1

By Rod Adams A friend wrote me a nice note the other day that has brightened my outlook on the future of nuclear energy in the United States. Like many people who write about both the industry and the technology, I have been focusing on the complex story of nuclear loan guarantees. As an Annapolis, Maryland resident and DC area worker,... [read more]

Some good news in the U.S. for a change

October 28, 2010 by Dan Yurman
with 2,068 views
4

The setback at Calvert Cliffs not the end of the nuclear renaissance. There’s a lot of good news about it. Despite a very bad two weeks of sour news out of Maryland about Constellation’s Calvert Cliff’s project, there is still a lot of good news about the nuclear renaissance in the U.S.  The move to build new reactors continues to... [read more]

Smooth Talking Coal King, Establishment Environmental Leaders, Politicians and Cap And Trade Fix

June 5, 2010 by Rod Adams
with 466 views
2

Businessweek has published a fascinating article by Eric Pooley titled The Smooth Talking King of Coal - And Climate Change that should be required reading for anyone who is interested in understanding how business leaders, establishment Environmental group leaders, and ambitious politicians can come together to concoct a scheme to skew... [read more]

Duke Energy Wins $204m DOE Funding For Grid Modernization

May 14, 2010 by Michael Davidson
with 338 views
0

Duke Energy has finalized an agreement with the US Department of Energy (DOE) for $204m in stimulus funds to support smart grid projects in the company's five-state service territory. The DOE funds will support two projects: $200m – the maximum allowed per project under the DOE Smart Grid Investment Grant Program – will assist in... [read more]