Grid Mod in MA | Duck Curve Arrives | All Turbines Mapped
Happy Friday afternoon.
This week we begin with grid mod as the topic and a State House News Service story in the Sentinel and Enterprise that Massachusetts “State officials on Thursday issued an order authorizing utilities to spend $220 million statewide on upgrades to the electrical grid over the next three years, and set up a process that could result in some smart meter investments ushering in more dynamic ways of pricing power. The grid upgrades would be targeted at preventing future outages, allowing areas to more quickly bounce back from a power outage, and better accommodating renewable energy generation…Installing smart meters for every residential ratepayer would cost $1.5 billion, according to the Baker administration, which has opted instead to set up a process that could result in using smart meters in situations where they would render the highest benefits for the least cost, according to an official.”
All of those solar installations out there have brought something bird-like to New England that, from a US perspective, is mostly seen in California. From PV Magazine, “As solar comes to more regions of the United States, it is beginning to alter the dynamics of electricity supply and demand. These are most noticeable on weekend days in the spring, when solar output is high but electricity demand is lower than during the week and not inflated by air conditioning use, as it is in the summer.
The result of this is the “duck curve”, as documented in California. There the output of solar is suppressing mid-day demand, with a steep ramp-up in demand that must be met by other resources as the sun goes down. When coupled with a lack of sufficient flexibility in the rest of the electricity fleet and operation of the grid, this can result in negative prices and curtailment of resources…New England’s grid operator has reported that on April 21 behind-the-meter solar met sufficient demand that for the first time net daytime demand fell to a lower level than overnight demand…the increase in solar led to a fall in the region’s wholesale electricity price to -$2.65 per megawatt-hour around 3 PM.”
We end this week with an article from the Washington Post titled, “Every one of America’s 57,636 wind turbines, mapped.” From the article, “To create the database, the USGS partnered with the Department of Energy, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and the American Wind Energy Association. The organizations merged their individual data sets to create a new database that was more accurate and comprehensive than previous efforts. Once they compiled the new database, researchers attempted to visually verify the precise location of each turbine using satellite imagery. They intend to update it periodically in the coming years as the wind industry grows.” The piece not only gets into geographical reasons for why wind is more popular in some parts of the country than others, but also speaks to political climates that create certain disparities.
As always you can find events at Northeast Energy News. Have a great weekend.
Natural Gas/Oil/Pipeline/Drilling
Energy giant sues Weymouth over pipeline station, saying federal law overrides zoning, Boston Globe
Burner Tips: Collaboration between utilities and environmental groups might not be the norm, but in Massachusetts, the two sides have come together to find mutual solutions, American Gas Magazine
Reducing Methane Emissions Amidst a ‘National Leadership Void,’ BrinkNews.com
CT regulators ignore health and climate destroying methane leaks, Stratford Star
Connecticut Senate votes to gut net metering, extend renewable energy mandate, pv magazine USA
Rick Perry suggests using ‘national security’ to override opposition to pipelines, ThinkProgress
Weymouth compressor station opponents seek stories of illness, Wicked Local
Renewables/Climate Change/RGGI
State Clean Energy Laws Make New England Grid More Resilient, Natural Resources Defense Council
Commission reduces fees for popular renewable energy program, vtdigger.org
Under the Sea: A Roadmap for Renewable Energy, MarineLink
Scientists Say Ocean Circulation Is Slowing. Here’s Why You Should Care., InsideClimate News
NYSERDA Announces $10 Million Available for Commercial and Industrial Carbon Challenge Initiative, North America Clean Energy
Earth’s atmosphere just crossed another troubling climate change threshold, Boston Globe
Wind
What’s the best bet on wind?, CommonWealth Magazine
Every one of America’s 57,636 wind turbines, mapped, Washington Post
Offshore wind developer, unions partner on workforce training initiative, Boston Business Journal (subscriber content)
Wind-energy meetings scheduled amid concerns about East End, Newsday
US Offshore Wind Can Realize 25 GW through Synergies with Oil & Gas Sector, Renewable Energy World
Council passes bill to encourage wind energy, Queens Ledger
Offshore-wind developers want more details on state straw proposal, NJ Spotlight
Lawyers for wind developer want Hopkinton to increase turbine height to 600 feet, National Wind Watch
Offshore Wind’s Value Exceeds Its Construction Costs In New York And New England, Energy Collective
Bay State Wind signs agreements to build training center in New Bedford, SouthCoastToday.com
AWEA 2018: Offshore hubs to spring up on Atlantic coast, Windpower Monthly
Offshore Wind’s Value Exceeds Its Construction Costs In New York And New England, Energy Collective
East Hampton Town Trustees Move Forward With Plans For Joint Hearing On Deepwater Project, 27east.com
Solar
Sun And Solar Power Cut Electricity Demand From New England Grid To Lowest Ever, Hartford Courant
It’s Official. All New California Homes Must Incorporate Solar, Greentech Media
The duck curve comes to New England, pv magazine USA
Solar power helps New England hit historic milestone, Concord Monitor
US Navy leases photovoltaic solar panels near Rhode Island station, Electric Light & Power
Five New England Colleges To Buy Solar From Maine Project, Solar Industry
Vermont reduces incentives for renewable energy program, Penn Energy
Solar-Panel Makers Ramp Up U.S. Manufacturing Plans, Wall Street Journal (Pay wall)
Energy Efficiency/Storage
State Strategic Plan Looks to Boost Energy Efficiency, Cut Customer Costs, NJ Spotlight
Rutland family receives $5K to make their home energy efficient, Mountaintimes
Why The Energy Storage Problem Won’t Be A Problem For Long, CleanTechnica
As energy storage costs decline, market changes needed to increase deployment, Platts
New York City moves to streamline energy storage permitting, Utility Dive
Energy storage, wind, and solar companies are recruiting coal miners for their work ethics and high-tech skills, Environmental Defense Fund
Nuclear
Bill seeks to prioritize nuclear waste removal at Pilgrim, Patriot Ledger
Vermont Yankee resumes fuel move, Brattleboro Reformer
Seabrook officials analyze financial issues, The Daily News of Newburyport
Indian Point task force study urges Entergy to turn over property, The Journal News | LoHud.com
Nuclear Energy Institute Recommends Rejection of PJM Capacity Proposals, Daily Energy Insider
One Thing Trump, Some Environmentalists Both Love: Nuclear Power, Bloomberg
Markets/Grid/Policy/Prices/Etc.
New Hampshire rethinks distributed generation-only pilots for non-wires alternatives, Utility Dive
How CMP plans to pipe clean energy to Massachusetts through Maine, Bangor Daily News
Baker, Healey split on electricity sellers, CommonWealth Magazine
Do Healey, Baker have a truce?, CommonWealth Magazine
Connecticut lawmakers pass sweeping energy bill, Utility Dive
Solar, efficiency drive declining peak load in ISO New England, Utility Dive
DPU issues electric grid modernization order, Sentinel & Enterprise
Under Pressure: Steam Pipe System Draws Scrutiny, NBC Boston
Eversource customers can get $3000 rebate on Nissan Leaf electric car, Concord Monitor
Eversource Looks to Offshore Wind, New Rates for Growth, RTO Insider
Eversource pushes ahead with pursuit of Connecticut Water, Journal Inquirer
PUC refuses to intensify inquiry into CMP billing problems, Press Herald
Utilities commission won’t ramp up CMP billing investigation, Bangor Daily News
Maine Lawmakers Signal Opposition to NECEC, RTO Insider
Worried About Grid Resilience? Don’t—You Can Sleep Well, Natural Resources Defense Council
Eversource generation rate to fall July 1, Hartford Business
New Hampshire’s Coming Energy Crunch Is A Job Killer, InsideSources
Colleges To Train Next-Gen Utility Workers, New Haven Independent
Editorial/Opinion
What’s up with the Globe and natural gas?, CommonWealth magazine
SUZANNE TORRES, Weymouth: An issue of credibility in Spectra debate, The Patriot Ledger
Climate Change Shouldn’t Need a Salesman, Wall Street Journal
Maurice Kreis: Rolling blackouts in New Hampshire? Not a chance, Concord Monitor
LETTER: Expanding natural gas pipelines is not the right energy solution, SouthCoastToday.com
Viewpoint: Climate change is here. Boston has no time to waste., Boston Business Journal
Time to hit the off switch on electricity sellers, CommonWealth Magazine
NextEra’s Robo Is Wrong About Offshore Wind, Energy Collective
Connecticut Energy Legislation a Mixed Bag for Clean Energy, North American Clean Energy
Northeast Energy News 