NERC Reliability Assessment Amongst Extreme Winter Conditions
Posted on Nov 15, 2024
Jim Matheson, CEO of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, commented on the North American Electric Reliability Corporation’s (NERC) winter 2024-25 reliability assessment, highlighting a significant mismatch between skyrocketing electricity demand and inadequate supply. The NERC report indicates that over half the U.S. faces potential energy shortfalls during extreme winter conditions, exacerbated by the retirement of coal and natural gas-fired generators.
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Congress’s Final Session Before Christmas Crucial for Electric Cooperatives
Posted on Nov 15, 2024
In its final “lame duck” session, Congress is addressing critical issues for electric cooperatives, including the Farm Bill, disaster relief reimbursement for the cost of rebuilding systems after recent hurricanes Helene and Milton, government funding before the December 21 deadline, eligibility for electric co-ops to receive funding from the National Defense Authorization Act, and permitting reform to streamline federal approval processes and lower costs to modernize systems. NRECA is focusing on educating newly elected lawmakers about not-for-profit electric co-ops and their...
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Oglethorpe Power Corporation Selects Annalisa Bloodworth as new CEO
Posted on Nov 11, 2024
Oglethorpe Power Corporation has selected Annalisa Bloodworth as its new CEO effective February 1, 2025. Bloodworth will transition from the role of Senior Vice President and General Counsel, which she has held since 2017. Prior to her role at Oglethorpe, Bloodworth was an associate at Eversheds Sutherland (US) LLP.
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Arkansas Electric Cooperative Corp. Invests $1 Billion in New Gas and Solar Generation to Meet Regional Power Demand
Posted on Nov 7, 2024
Arkansas Electric Cooperative Corp. (AECC) is investing nearly $1B for over 1 gigawatt of new natural gas generation, including a $850 million plant in Texas and an expanded Arkansas facility, to address capacity needs in the Southwest Power Pool market. The projects, set for completion by 2028, aim to replace retiring coal capacity and support steady demand growth, alongside new solar initiatives.
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Dairyland Power Cooperative Sees a Nuclear Future
Posted on Nov 5, 2024
To reduce carbon emissions and greenhouse gases, Dairyland Power Cooperative, a Wisconsin electric cooperative, discussed a desire to reenter the nuclear power business for the first time since closing its Genoa, Wisconsin reactor in 1987. Concerns about carbon emissions, demands that outpace development of renewables, and advances in nuclear technology have caught the attention of executives at Dairyland. Dairyland’s CEO Brent Ridge expressed interest in nuclear and suggested that the issue of spent fuel should not hinder the construction of new projects.
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DOE Awards Minnkota $49 Million for Carbon Storage
Posted on Oct 22, 2024
Minnkota DCC East Project LLC, a subsidiary of Minnkota Power Cooperative was awarded $49 million by the Department of Energy to build geological carbon storage facility with an 80 million metric ton capacity. The funding was awarded on Monday through the DOE’s CarbonSAFE program.
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$97 Million Awarded to Rural Electric Co-ops for Grid Resilience
Posted on Oct 17, 2024
The National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA), Georgia Transmission Corporation, and eleven rural electric utilities have been selected to negotiate contracts for over $97 million in federal funding from the Department of Energy’s Grid Resilience and Innovative Partnerships (GRIP) program to enhance grid resilience. The consortium will focus on completing high-priority transmission projects at 12 rural electric utilities to meet increasing energy demand and support renewable energy interconnection. These efforts are part of a broader initiative to replace 200,000 miles of...
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Electric Cooperatives Begin Hurricane Helene Recovery Efforts
Posted on Sep 27, 2024
Recovery efforts have begun in Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas after Hurricane Helene, a Category 4 hurricane, made landfall late Thursday, resulting in power loss for over 1.15 million electric cooperative members. More than 6,400 personnel from electric cooperatives across the United States, including lineworkers, support staff, right-of-way contractors, warehouse staff, safety employees and command center staff, have already joined the mutual aid effort.
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Taylor River Hydropower Project Brings Clean Energy to Gunnison Valley
Posted on Sep 19, 2024
The Gunnison County Electric Association (GCEA) and Uncompahgre Valley Water Users Association (UVWUA) have completed the Taylor River Hydropower project, a 500-kilowatt hydroelectric facility at Taylor Park Dam. This $3.6 million project will generate enough clean energy to power approximately 500 local homes and businesses. GCEA aims to produce 5% of its energy locally through solar and wind projects, complementing its partnership with Tri-State Generation & Transmission Association, which is targeting 70% renewable energy by 2030.
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ARIZONA POWER COOP PLANS TO ELIMINATE COAL USE
Posted on Sep 18, 2024
Arizona Electric Power Cooperative (AEPCO) plans to eliminate coal use by 2028, transitioning to natural gas and renewable energy projects funded by $845 million from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. This shift is expected to reduce AEPCO’s greenhouse gas emissions by 70% from 2022 levels and significantly boost renewable power production for rural cooperatives in Arizona.
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NRECA Requests Clarification of NEPA in Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v. Eagle County, Colorado
Posted on Sep 10, 2024
NRECA filed an amicus brief in Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v. Eagle County, Colorado, asking the Supreme Court to clarify that an agency’s ability to analyze environmental impacts under NEPA is restricted to the agency’s actual jurisdiction; NRECA argues that this clarification will help relieve the costly permitting and litigation related delays on cooperative system improvements imposed by NEPA.
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Biden Administration Announces $7.3 Billion Clean Energy Investment for Rural Communities
Posted on Sep 5, 2024
President Joe Biden and U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced over $7.3 billion in financing for rural electric cooperatives to support clean energy projects through the Empowering Rural America (New ERA) program, a component of the Inflation Reduction Act. The first round of selected projects (sixteen (16) projects in total) will reduce greenhouse gases by 43.7 million tons annually and will create thousands of jobs while delivering cleaner, more affordable energy to rural communities. Dairyland Power Cooperative, the first finalized award recipient, will leverage...
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Texas Cooperative’s “Virtual Power Plant” Qualifies for ERCOT Wholesale Power Market Participation
Posted on Aug 26, 2024
Bandera Electric Cooperative, in collaboration with the Lower Colorado River Authority, recently announced the qualification of its Aggregated Distributed Energy Resource (ADER) program, known as a Virtual Power Plant, in the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) wholesale power market. The ADER uses an advanced platform capable of managing multiple aggregations of third-party devices, including thermostats, solar systems, energy storage batteries, generators, and other devices that consume or produce electricity behind the meter, offering a significant demand-side solution at scale...
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FERC Rejects Basin Electric’s Proposal for Special Crypto Mining Rate Schedules
Posted on Aug 26, 2024
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) rejected Basin Electric Power Cooperative’s proposal to create separate rate schedules for cryptocurrency operations, stating Basin failed to show that these operations posed more risk than other large energy loads. Basin argued that crypto mining could lead to stranded assets due to its transient nature, but FERC found insufficient evidence to support this claim. While acknowledging Basin’s concerns about load growth, FERC rejected the proposal without prejudice, allowing Basin to address these concerns in future filings.
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