Russian Meddling | Report Flawed | Miracle Breakthrough
Happy Friday afternoon everyone. We hope you’re staying warm, dry, and safe during today’s storm.
Well, if you’ve had enough news about Russian interference in US elections then you can switch your attention to their interference in US energy markets. The Wall Street Journal (paywall) reviewed a new congressional staff report that states that the Internet Research Agency’s efforts were also focused on “encouraging protests against pipeline construction in the U.S., calling for the abandonment of fossil fuels and stoking American controversy around climate change…Between 2015 and 2017, the IRA posted more than 9,000 times about U.S. energy policy or an energy event, according to the report.”
Also out this week was a FERC announcement “that a report released by the Environmental Defense Fund accusing Eversource Energy and Avangrid Inc. of artificially driving up electricity prices in New England “was flawed and led to incorrect conclusions.” According to the article in CommonWealth Magazine, “FERC said its staff conducted a review of the allegations contained in the report using both public and non-public data and found no evidence of anticompetitive withholding of natural gas pipeline capacity.”
In new energy technology news this week we have an article from oilprice.com titled, MIT’s Miracle Energy Breakthrough. They write, “A black box has been sitting on the roof of a Massachusetts Institute of Technology building for the last few months. Beside it sits a weather monitoring system and a bigger black box to monitor the performance of the first one. That first black box is the first device that can generate power from differences in the temperature of the air—the ultimate clean energy…The team of researchers from MIT’s Chemical Engineering department is calling this device a thermal resonator: a device that draws heat from the air around it and turns this heat into electricity. It does not need to be in the sun, it could actually be put in the perpetual shade below a solar panel, and it would still generate power thanks to the always present temperature fluctuations…it has the hypothetical potential to make batteries obsolete.” Pretty cool!
As always, be sure to check out Northeast Energy News for events. Have a great weekend.
Natural Gas/Oil/Pipeline/Drilling
FERC calls report on Eversource, Avangrid flawed, CommonWealth Magazine
Rhode Island protesters decry federal offshore drilling plan, Penn Energy
Russian Meddling on Social Media Targeted U.S. Energy Industry, Report Says, Wall Street Journal (paywall)
With Tennessee Gas Pipeline Co. build done, Otis State Forest reopens, Berkshire Eagle
Federal agency rebuts environmentalists’ claims about gas pipeline usage, Worcester Telegram
US FERC ends probe of New England gas shippers, calls EDF study ‘flawed’, Platts
Pipelines collide with emissions goal, Albany Times Union
Rhode Island environmentalists and elected officials say ‘No’ to Trump’s offshore drilling proposal, Uprise RI
Renewables/Climate Change/RGGI
We’ve radically underestimated how vulnerable Americans are to flooding, Vox.com
Optimism and Uncertainty for Rhode Island’s Climate Future, ecoRI news
Over 100 cities around the globe run mostly on renewable energy, Inhabitat
New Report Touts Success Of Regional Carbon Emissions Reduction Program, Rhode Island Public Radio
New Jersey Governor Requests to Rejoin Environmental Pact, U.S. News & World Report
NY Task Force Takes on Carbon Pricing Mechanics, RTO Insider
Mark Jacobson Drops Lawsuit Against Critics of His 100% Renewables Plan, Greentech Media
Solar, Wind Cutting New England Power Demands, But Trouble Expected In Future, Hartford Courant
Report Claims Wood-Based Energy Doesn’t Add Up, EcoRI
Wind
Anti-wind project POWER coalition emerges, Niagara Gazette
Vineyard Wind sweetens pot, Cape Cod Times
Wind industry sues LePage over halting of new permits, Journal Tribune
GE announces Haliade-X, the world’s most powerful offshore wind turbine, Penn Energy
Maine House stalls LePage’s effort to block wind energy development, Bangor Daily News
World’s First Floating Offshore Wind Farm Achieves 65% Capacity Factor After 3 Months, Greentech Media
Falmouth wind turbine spinning again, Cape Cod Times
Plans for world’s ‘largest and most powerful’ offshore wind turbine unveiled, CNBC
One Small Step for BPU, One Small Step for Offshore Wind in NJ, NJ Spotlight
Energy forecast: Wind power will rival gas, Berkshire Eagle
Article on area warrants aims to gather support for studying offshore wind development, The Keene Sentinel
Solar
Clouds form over state’s solar future, Cape Cod Times
Connecticut solar industry wants a clawback, Post-Chronicle
M&T finances major solar project in Maine, Buffalo Business First
Massachusetts solar groups say policy changes needed to stem job loss, Energy News Network
Energy Efficiency/Storage
Vermont utility, city to give away fossil-fuel free home, Caledonian Record
FERC’s Historic Energy Storage Ruling: A Doomsday Countdown for Natural Gas Peakers?, Greentech Media
Brattle: US storage market could reach 50 GW if costs keep declining, Utility Dive
Battery Storage Could Boost Coal Consumption, Greentech Media
New interactive map shows the economic impact that solar, wind, and energy efficiency have on US communities, Environmental Defense Fund
Ridgefield joins state clean-energy program, Danbury News Times
NY attorney general wins energy efficiency lawsuit, Long Island Business News
Nuclear
Connecticut nuclear plant guard falsified record, failed to test weapons Shoreline Times
After Months Of Negotiation, Settlement Days Away On Vermont Yankee Sale, New England Public Radio
Power restored to Indian Point reactor after shutdown caused by electrical failure, The Journal News | LoHud.com
Northern Pass/RFP
Eversource Asks NH To Reconsider Northern Pass Denial, New Hampshire Public Radio
Eversource appeals NH ruling on N. Pass, CommonWealth Magazine
Is Mass. shortchanged on clean energy procurement?, CommonWealth Magazine
Electric Vehicles
Team of rivals: Utilities, enviros unite to push electric vehicles, Utility Dive
How To Prevent Electric Vehicles From Stressing The Grid, Forbes.com
Global tech giants bet on a Massachusetts battery startup, Axios
Markets/Grid/Policy/Prices/Etc.
New England grid operators, regulators combat vulnerabilities, theday.com
Energy costs to drop for Eversource customers, Manchester Ink Link
Van Welie: ISO-NE in ‘Race’ to Replace Retirements, RTO Insider
Maine may face brownouts, higher electric prices, Lewiston Sun Journal
Non-Payments to Eversource Nearly Double Over 2-Year Period, U.S. News & World Report
Eversouce pulls back on gas gate project in Hopkinton, MetroWest Daily News
National Grid rate hike hearings underway, Ricentral.com
After rising for 100 years, electricity demand is flat. Utilities are freaking out., Vox.com
Editorial/Opinion
Mass. dragging its feet on grid modernization, CommonWealth Magazine
Time to part ways with traditional utility business model, CommonWealth Magazine
Utility rate design needs reform, CommonWealth Magazine
Just for the Record: Why New York’s Offshore Wind Plan Works, Renewable Energy World
Gas pipelines built now will be with us for decades, The Boston Globe
Letter: An acceptable level, Brattleboro Reformer
Letter: Wrong assumptions on Northern Pass, Concord Monitor
Viewpoint: Why is New England importing LNG from Russia?, Boston Business Journal