Save the nukes | Fundamental Change
Happy Friday. Just a couple of quick hits for today.
Both the region’s biggest newspaper and the President want to save nuclear power plants. As the Wall St. Journal reports, “The Energy Department is proposing a new plan to bail out failing nuclear and coal-fired power plants by forcing grid operators to take the electricity they produce, a move that could upend competitive power markets and raise prices for consumers.” And in an editorial, the Boston Globe suggests, “To keep the region’s climate goals achievable, policy makers should ensure that Pilgrim is the last nuclear power plant that New England loses.”
An article in Vox this week is about a new technology from a company called 3DFS that “could effectively double the energy efficiency of the electricity system, getting twice the energy services out of the same amount of generation. That would radically hasten both electrification and decarbonization, proving a weapon against climate change at least as potent as renewable energy itself.”
As always you can find more news and events at Northeast Energy News. Have a great weekend.
Natural Gas/Oil/Pipeline/Drilling
Chester County commissioners slam Sunoco for ‘appalling’ lack of pipeline information, State Impact
Quebec to ban shale fracking, limit oil-and-gas exploration, Global News
Analysis: Rover Pipeline coming online results in higher flows into East Canada, Platts
Oil industry ‘deeply discouraged’ by Trump’s new tariffs, Washington Examiner
Renewables/Climate Change/RGGI
Walsh Announcing New Energy Plan as Mayors Meet, NECN
Power brokers: Boston to join other cities to collectively buy energy from renewable sources, Boston Globe
Pope summons oil execs to Vatican to talk climate change, Penn Energy
Will FERC uphold state support for clean energy?, Utility Dive
Green groups push for 12-13 Mt RGGI cap for New Jersey upon re-entry, Carbon-Pulse
Connecticut Port of Stonington Participates in Fishing for Energy Partnership, Waste360
Controversial RI Biomass Bill Not Moving Forward In General Assembly This Year, Rhode Island Public Radio
Wind
Regional Cooperation Stressed at Meeting on New York Bight Offshore Wind Areas, Renewable Energy World
GE Renewable Energy To Provide Cyber Security For Invenergy Wind Turbine Fleet, CleanTechnica
New England Bets Big on Offshore Wind Power, Engineering News-Record
Report finds offshore wind could add 2,100 jobs, as regulators mull fate of UMaine project, MSN
Region’s leaders pitch New London to offshore wind suppliers, The Day
Massachusetts hoping to be nation’s offshore wind power hub, Washington Post
Solar
This new doc shows how renewable energy recharges communities, Fast Company
Hancock County will consider zoning change to accommodate solar farm, MaineBiz
New solar plants equipped with electricity-storage capacity are proliferating across the U.S., IEEFA
Energy Efficiency/Storage
This technology could fundamentally change our relationship to electricity, Vox.com
PSEG plans $3 billion in energy efficiency projects and 50,000 vehicle charging stations, NorthJersey.com
Tesla has installed a truly huge amount of energy storage, Fast Company
N.J. sets ‘aggressive’ 2 GW storage target by 2030, Utility Dive
Northampton’s door-to-door effort yields progress on home energy conservation, Daily Hampshire Gazette
Nuclear
Energy Department Prepares New Plan to Prop Up Nuclear, Coal-Fired Power Plants, Wall St. Journal
NRC Chair: Nuclear safety regulatory process not to blame for plant retirements, Utility Dive
Dominion Energy : makes push to prove Millstone ‘at risk’ of closure, 4-Traders
Trump memo on struggling power plants raises concerns, Cape Cod Times
Vermont Yankee Buyer Says Success Here Could Mean Big Business Elsewhere, Rhode Island Public Radio
Welch backs controversial nuclear waste bill, VTDigger
Oyster Creek nuclear plant submits 60-year, $1.4 billion closing plan, Press of Atlantic City
EVs
The Correlation Between Smart Meters and Electric Vehicle Adoption Rates, Energy Manager Today
Markets/Grid/Policy/Prices/Etc.
CMP Strikes $22M Deal On Transmission Project That Could Cross Kennebec River Gorge, Maine Public
Why Do Americans Stay When Their Town Has No Future?, Bloomberg
Patagonia joins fight against CMP transmission line through Maine, Portland Press Herald
New England fully integrates demand response into wholesale markets, Utility Dive
Cape Codders to Save on Electric Bills as Supply Rates Fall, Cape Cod
National Grid breaks ground in Somerset, South Coast Today
Trump memo on struggling power plants raises concerns, Cape Cod Times
National Grid would boost revenues by $19.6M in settlement with R.I. regulators, Providence Journal
Eversource rejects CT Water’s bidding-war invitation, Hartford Business Journal
Eversource Receives Industry Award for Winter Power Restoration Efforts, Cape Cod
Exelon CEO: ‘We Need Federal Intervention’ on Grid Resilience, Greentech Media
In Millbury, National Grid linemen test skills, eye Kansas rodeo, Telegram
Editorial/Opinion
Retiring more nuclear plants could hurt Mass. climate goals, Boston Globe
Region’s power grid is changing dramatically, Commonwealth Magazine
Letter: William F. Horan: R.I. cannot count on renewable energy alone, Providence Journal
NJ Keep It Rollin’: Adopt a Strong RGGI Cap, Gov. Murphy, NRDC
Jerry Elmer: An historic energy day, VTDigger
Music and climate change, CommonWealth Magazine
No true way to evacuate from nuke plant emergency, Seacoastonline.com
Northeast Energy News 