North Dakota Approves Minnkota Line Route
Posted on Apr 26, 2012 in Grid & Infrastructure, Project Development, Reliability | Comments Off on North Dakota Approves Minnkota Line Route
The North Dakota Public Service Commission approved a final route for the state’s largest transmission line project in decades. Minnkota Power Cooperative will construct the 250-mile line from Center, North Dakota, to Grand Forks. The project is estimated to cost approximately $312 million. Construction is expected to be completed by the end of 2013. Click here for the full...
Five New Copper Theft Bills Signed Into Law
Posted on Apr 23, 2012 in Grid & Infrastructure, Legislative & Politics | Comments Off on Five New Copper Theft Bills Signed Into Law
Governors in Georgia, West Virginia, Iowa, Washington and Kentucky have signed copper theft bills into law. The Washington bill was partially vetoed by Gov. Christine Gregoire who objected to the creation of a 24-member task force to study the issue of metal theft and make recommendations to the legislature. Gov. Gregoire did, however, approve the parts of the bill that make it...
Colorado Coop Sues EPA Over New Emissions Standards
Posted on Apr 23, 2012 in Climate Change, Environmental, Grid & Infrastructure, Litigation, Regulation & Policy | Comments Off on Colorado Coop Sues EPA Over New Emissions Standards
Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association, Inc. has filed suit in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, challenging the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s new mercury and air-toxics emissions standards for coal-fired power plants. The coop, Colorado’s second-largest power utility, serves some 1.5 million customers in Colorado, New Mexico,...
Colorado Transmission Line Re-Energized
Posted on Apr 19, 2012 in Grid & Infrastructure, Reliability | Comments Off on Colorado Transmission Line Re-Energized
Mountain View Electric Association’s Big Sandy-Lincoln-Midway transmission line is back online after upgrades were made to improve resilience against storm damage. The improvements were completed in time to serve the irrigation loads expected along the eastern and southern Colorado power path. Read more here.
Oregon Coop Copes with Disasters; FEMA Helps
Posted on Apr 17, 2012 in Environmental, Grid & Infrastructure, Reliability | Comments Off on Oregon Coop Copes with Disasters; FEMA Helps
West Oregon Electric Cooperative, Inc., with help from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), has found a way to keep the lights on through storms. FEMA’s hazard mitigation funds have helped the coop repair storm-related transmission line damage and install new underground lines. As nonprofit agencies providing essential services, coops are eligible for federal disaster...
Minnesota Coop Hit with Stray Voltage Verdict
Posted on Apr 12, 2012 in Grid & Infrastructure, Litigation | Comments Off on Minnesota Coop Hit with Stray Voltage Verdict
A jury awarded $750,000 to a Minnesota dairy farmer for damages caused by stray voltage from the Wright-Hennepin Cooperative Electric Association electric system. The court also determined that electricity may be considered a trespass on property under certain circumstances. Whether the coop will appeal the verdict is not yet known. Click here for more information.
Western Coops Face Unpredictable Outages Due to Wild Weather
Posted on Apr 9, 2012 in Environmental, Grid & Infrastructure, Reliability | Comments Off on Western Coops Face Unpredictable Outages Due to Wild Weather
Several Western states have faced unpredictable weather this spring, which has caused ongoing challenges for electric coops attempting to keep power flowing to customers. In New Mexico, Springer Electric Cooperative, Inc., has been working to replace at least 150 poles and restore service to about one-third of the coop’s more than 3,000 consumer-members after snow and high winds...
Nuclear Regulatory Commission Issues New Licenses for Nuclear Reactors
Posted on Apr 9, 2012 in Grid & Infrastructure, Project Development, Technology | Comments Off on Nuclear Regulatory Commission Issues New Licenses for Nuclear Reactors
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has approved a license for two new nuclear reactors in South Carolina. The new licenses come less than two months after the NRC issued its first new permit in more than 30 years for two units at the Alvin W. Vogtle Nuclear Plant in eastern Georgia. Marvin Fertel, president and CEO of the Nuclear Energy Institute, predicts that there will be an...
National Rural Utilities Cooperative Finance Corporation Makes First Loan Sale to Bank
Posted on Apr 9, 2012 in Financing, Grid & Infrastructure, Project Development | Comments Off on National Rural Utilities Cooperative Finance Corporation Makes First Loan Sale to Bank
The National Rural Utilities Cooperative Finance Corporation (CFC) has finalized a $25 million loan sale to KeyBank National Association on behalf of KAMO Power, an Oklahoma-based cooperative. Although CFC has made more than $1 billion in loan sales to Farmer Mac over the past five years, this three-year, unsecured loan is the first loan sale made to a bank. KAMO plans to use the...
Potential Risks in Solar Interconnection Changes
Posted on Apr 3, 2012 in Climate Change, Environmental, Financing, Grid & Infrastructure, Innovation/Efficiency, Project Development, Regulation & Policy, Reliability, Renewable Energy | Comments Off on Potential Risks in Solar Interconnection Changes
In a filing before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association recently identified significant reliability and safety risks that could be caused by the proposed revised procedures for interconnecting small solar generation with the grid. NRECA requested that FERC reject the Solar Energy Industries Association’s request for...
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