Michael Giberson The Minneapolis Star Tribune reports that low natural gas prices are putting the squeeze on biomass-based energy projects in Minnesota, in some cases including biomass projects supported by direct taxpayer or ratepayer subsidies. One example, an ethanol plant once gained about 20 percent of its heat from a $20 million biomass gasification system. …
Michael Giberson Worthy of note, but still mostly puzzling: continuing, low-level, organized opposition to smart electric meters. I can understand concerns over data privacy, but that is about it. Sure, in some states the roll-out came with a sense that the regulated utility was gaining more control over consumer electrical consumption and making customers pay …
Michael Giberson Peter Behr, at ClimateWire, describes the U.S. Department of Energy’s efforts to rework its electric transmission study processes, created in the 2005 Energy Policy Act but stalled by adverse court decisions and political missteps. I’m not so sure that the new approaches will be any better received than the old, but I noticed …
Regional Transmission Efforts Good for Re-routing Information Flows to Regulators Read More »
Michael Giberson I’ve been meaning to remark on natural gas prices for several days, especially since a regular reader pointed out that natural gas prices have reached their lowest levels in a decade. But now, in what may be a first, I’ll just outsource the discussion by favorably linking to a post on the Climate …
Bad News for the Natural Gas Suppliers, but Good News for Natural Gas Consumers Read More »
Michael Giberson Marc Gunther asks, “Should we worry about Chinese government subsidies to its solar industry? Or send the Chinese a thank-you note?” The issue is a “dumping” complaint filed by several U.S. based manufacturers with the U.S. International Trade Commission alleging China so subsidizes its solar PV production that the PV panels are being sold …
Michael Giberson It looks like a “man bites dog” headline in the New York Times: “A Coal-Fired Plant That Is Eager for U.S. Rules.” As operators of coal-fired power plants around the country welcome a court-ordered delay on tighter pollution rules, the owner of a retrofitted plant here says that the rules cannot come too soon. …
Michael Giberson Consider the claim in the headline, “How One Man’s Roof Paid for His Car.” Here’s the introduction: It’s the first feel-good sustainability story of 2012. A man in Orlando, Florida installed solar panels on the roof of his home, sold the excess power back to the grid, and then used that money to …
The “First Feel-good Sustainability Story of 2012,” So Long As You Ignore the Costs Read More »
Michael Giberson NPR reports from Pennsylvania how low natural gas prices have helped put the damper on some solar power dreams: Barbara Scott had 21 solar panels installed last March on her house in Media, Pa. Scott’s family was the first in the community, and she was prepared to evangelize, “We can have open houses …
Lynne Kiesling As is the vernacular these days, your response to the title of this post is probably “I know, right?” Or, if you prefer sarcasm, you may say “no, really?” This is the conclusion of an all-too-rare piece of investigative journalism from Dan Garino at the Columbus Dispatch: Ohio’s unique system for setting electricity …
Breaking News: State Regulatory Procedures Do Not Favor Consumers Read More »
Lynne Kiesling This video of a talk from British marketing expert Rory Sutherland is well worth 27 minutes of your time, especially if you are in any way associated with the electricity industry or its regulation. He uses insights from Ludwig von Mises to explain how human subjective and contextual valuation of alternatives can help …
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