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This site is tracking actions on energy
conservation, transmission line improvement, new generating capacity,
renewable energy, pricing and the development of new energy
supplies (see below or issue buttons to the left).
July 8
Recommendations
to improve and expand greenhouse gas reduction program submitted to
President Bush. The recommendations focus on the need to create
standardized, widely accepted, transparent accounting methods, support
independent verification of registry reports, and provide transferable
credits for a broad range of actions. President Bush's goal is to reduce the
greenhouse gas intensity of the American economy by 18 percent by
2012.
On a related note, EIA recently reported that U.S.
energy-related carbon dioxide emissions declined by 1.1 percent in 2001,
the first such decline since 1991. U.S. energy-related carbon dioxide
emissions have averaged 1.2 percent annual growth since 1990. Over the same
time period, total greenhouse gas intensity, or total greenhouse gas
emissions per unit of GDP, declined by 18.4 percent.
June 18
A new report has been prepared by the North American Energy Working Group, a
group of senior energy officials from Canada, Mexico and the United States.
"North
America - The Energy Picture" provides an energy overview of the
three countries including: economic data; energy data; supply and demand
trends; energy projections; and descriptions of infrastructure, laws, and
regulations. The NAEWG is also examining a broad range of issues, including
electricity regulation, energy efficiency, science and technology, natural
gas and critical infrastructure protection.
June 17
The Congressional General Accounting Office has issued a very critical
report of the way FERC has met the challenges presented by a deregulated
electricity market. "FERC is not adequately performing the oversight
that is needed to ensure that the prices produced by these markets are just
and reasonable, and therefore, it is not fulfilling its regulatory
mandate," said the GAO. The report, "Energy
Markets, Concerted Actions Needed by FERC to Confront Challenges That Impede
Effective Oversight," found FERC has not yet adequately revised its
regulatory and oversight approach to respond to the transition to
competitive energy markets.
June 16
A new report from the NAFTA Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC)
examines the environmental impacts of a growing, continental electricity
market. An expert advisory board drawn from Canada, Mexico, and the United
States guided the report "Environmental
Challenges and Opportunities of the Evolving North American Electricity
Market."
June 6
A report from the Lawrence Berkeley Lab analyzes California's response to
the electricity shortages last year. "California
Customer Load Reductions during the Electricity Crisis: Did They Help to
Keep the Lights On?" found that peak load reductions potentially
avoided between 50 and 160 hours of rolling blackouts and were due to
"extraordinary efforts by Californians to reduce electricity
consumption." The report looks at what measures were most
effective.
May 15
Comments are being requested on a new report "Assessing
the Potential for Renewable Energy on Federal Lands." This
draft report represents a partnering effort between the Department of
Interior, Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and Department of Energy, National
Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) to identify and evaluate renewable energy
resource potential for power production on federal lands. The objective of
this collaboration was to identify BLM planning units in the western states
with the highest potential for private-sector development of renewable
resources. This draft report is submitted for public comment through July
12, 2002. Comments should be directed to
Mike Kirby: Mike_Kirby@blm.gov or fax 303-236-6450
Doug Dahle: douglas_dahle@nrel.gov or fax 303-384-7411.
Please include the subject “Comments on Draft BLM Renewable Energy
Assessment Report” on e-mails or faxes.
April 18
New interactive wind maps
for the northwest region are now available on-line. There are maps for
Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, Wyoming and parts of northern
California, Nevada and Utah.
April 11
Western Governors request that President Bush appoint
someone from the West to FERC.
April 10
FERC has issued another paper in a series of initiatives on Standard Market
Design, entitled “Options
for Resolving Rate and Transition Issues in Standard Transmission Service
and Wholesale Electric Market Design.”
April 8
Nevada Governor Kenny Guinn formally
vetoed President Bush’s recommendation that Yucca Mountain be the
national nuclear waste disposal site and provided an eleven
page "Statement of Reasons" for the disapproval.
Close to 300 people attended Colorado's workshop
on Wind & Distributed Energy: Renewables for Rural Prosperity.
Presentations will be available at this web site.
The Arizona Corporation Commission has approved
the 1,080 MW La Paz Generating Facility in southwestern Arizona. The
plant will include a 100 kW solar array. It is expected to go online in
2005.
April 3
The Idaho Public Utilities Commission has ordered Idaho Power Co. to
immediately form an Energy Efficiency Group in order to outline and implement
long-term conservation programs by May 2. The Commission had ordered the
company to form a group last November.
March 26
The D.C. Circuit Court has upheld
EPA's 1997 ambient air standards for fine particles and ground-level ozone.
With this final decision, EPA will move forward with programs to implement
those standards and help states meet them.
March 22
The Western Governors' Association and CEQ will host the Second
Environmental Summit on the West in Salt Lake City, Utah on April 24 -
26.
March 14
Western governors praise
Senate adoption of electric reliability amendment to energy bill.
March 12
Western governors wrote to Senator Craig Thomas on his amendment to electric
reliability language in the energy bill now being debated in the Senate.
Montana Power Company is now NorthWestern
Energy.
March 11
President Bush has signed a two-year extension
of the wind and biomass energy Production Tax Credit, to the end of
2003. The credit is part of the economic stimulus bill, H.R. 3090.
March 8
BPA is proposing a 79
mile 500 kV transmission line along the Oregon- Washington border.
March 5
A new study finds more evidence that fine particulates, such as emitted by
diesel-powered vehicles and coal-fired power plants, are significant contributors
to lung cancer and other cardiopulmonary diseases.
Western governors wrote Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham regarding eminent
domain and state preemption language found in the Senate energy bill.
March 1
Nevada Power plans to purchase 85
megawatts of wind power. The 60 wind turbines, to be built on DOE's
Nevada Test site, will be able to deliver power in late 2003.
February 26
The California "Summer of 2001 Conservation Report" has been
released. The report discusses the programs that helped the state cut
overall energy use by 6.7 percent and summer peak use by 10 percent.
February 25
President Bush Promotes Energy
Efficiency Through Technology.
February 13
BPA plans to look at alternatives
to transmission lines such as conservation, distributed generation,
pricing incentives, energy use curtailment and demand-side management.
To be effective, measures must be targeted in areas experiencing
transmission problems.
The Arizona Corporation Commission has agreed to Duke Energy's request to
construct a 600-megawatt
expansion of the Arlington Valley Energy Facility, currently under
construction in western Maricopa County, but also added two environmental
restrictions. The ACC is requiring groundwater recharge and the installation
of the most effective emission control equipment available.
February 8
The Arizona Corporation Commission has approved
the Southwest Valley
Transmission Line proposed by Arizona Public Service and the Salt River
Project. The 500 kilovolt power line will stretch approximately 37 miles
from the Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station to a substation in the
southwest valley community of Avondale, Arizona.
BPA has proposed a route for the Schultz-Hanford
Area 500-kV Transmission Line Project planned for central Washington.
The proposed 63-mile line would link BPA’s Schultz Substation, near
Ellensburg, to a new substation near the U.S. Department of Energy’s
Hanford Reservation.
February 5
CEQ has sent a memorandum to the heads of all federal agencies which
emphasizes
the importance of including state, tribal and local governmental entities in
the preparation of federal Environmental Impact Statements.
January 24
BPA is holding meetings to discuss plans to upgrade
84 miles of transmission line in eastern Washington. The Grand
Coulee-Bell 500-kilovolt Transmission Line Project would increase
transmission capacity from 2,800 MW to 3,500 MW.
January 17
FERC has announced the creation
of a new Office of Market Oversight and Investigation that will take a
qualitative look at energy markets, make sense of what the data reveal about
the relative health of the markets, and follow up where necessary.
BPA announces that the Pacific Northwest saved
85 megawatts in 2001.
January 16
FERC is requesting comments on how it should handle information on critical
energy infrastructure facilities.
FERC has approved
the North Baja Pipeline project. The proposed project would provide up
to 500 MMcf per day of capacity from an interconnection point with El Paso
Natural Gas Company (El Paso) near Ehrenberg, Arizona, to a point on the
international border between Yuma, Arizona, and Mexicali, Baja California,
Mexico.
Calpine has announced it will complete
27 power projects (15,200 MW) currently under construction as scheduled
but construction of an additional 34 advanced-stage development projects
(15,100 MW) will be placed on hold pending further review. In the West, the
approximate number of projects under construction include: 3 in California,
1 in Arizona, 1 in Oregon, and 6 in Texas. The approximate number of western
projects under development that will be placed on hold include: 9 in
California, 2 in Colorado, 1 in Texas, and 1 in Alberta.
January 15
Omaha Public Power District has installed
a 660-kilowatt wind turbine and a landfill gas plant and is offering a
green pricing program. The wind turbine was installed on an innovative tower
that incorporates a lifting platform for installing the turbine.
The American Wind Energy Association reports that 1,694
MW of new wind generating capacity was installed in 16 states in 2001.
Of that, 900 MW were installed in Texas alone.
January 14
Duke Energy has three
natural gas fired power projects underway in western states: the
600-megawatt Luna project in New Mexico, the 620-megawatt Grays Harbor
project in Washington, and the 1,200-megawatt Moapa Energy project in
Nevada.
January 10
The proposed Desert
Crossing Gas Storage and Transportation system has announced an open
season. The storage facility will be located in northern Arizona and the
pipeline will run from the Kern River pipeline near Las Vegas to the El Paso
pipeline in southwest Arizona.
Energy Secretary Abraham has notified Nevada Governor Kenny Guinn that he
intends to recommend
to President Bush that the Yucca Mountain site is suitable for development
as the nation's long-term geological repository for nuclear waste.
The Congressional General Accounting Office issued a report
in December that found recommending the Yucca Mountain site "may be
premature." GAO noted: "On the basis of information we
reviewed, DOE will not be able to submit an acceptable application to NRC
within the express statutory time frames for several years because it will
take that long to resolve many technical issues."
January 9
Public Service Company of New Mexico will build a new
80-megawatt natural gas-fired generating station in Lordsburg.
January 7
FPL Energy announced that the 263-megawatt
Stateline wind energy project on the Washington-Oregon border went into
operation in mid-December.
January 4
PPL announces it will cancel
one power plant it planned to build in Washington State.
December 31
The California Energy Commission has released a new report on "Emergency
Conservation and Supply Response 2001." The report concludes
"The peak electrical demand for the summer was 48,597 megawatts, which
occurred on August 7, 2001. This peak was 12,528 megawatts less than the
peak predicted plus 7 percent reserve in a 1-in-10 summer. While the state
experienced about average temperatures this past summer, the success in
averting blackouts was largely due to the efforts to reduce demand and
increase supply. The efforts of individual Californians to conserve
electricity were particularly dramatic."
December 21
The Municipal Energy Agency of Nebraska is planning to build
a wind-energy farm of up to 20 turbines in Kimball County,
Nebraska.
December 20
In response to an RFP, Nevada Power Company and Sierra Pacific Power
received 49
proposals to provide over 4,000 megawatts of power from renewable resources.
December 18
Avista sells one-half of Coyote Springs project
in Oregon to Mirant. The 280-megawatt, combined-cycle power project is scheduled to come on line in
mid-2002.
The Clean
Coal Power Initiative will hold a meeting and web cast on the first
solicitation on January 17. The CCPI Round 1 Solicitation is seeking
projects that: (1) demonstrate advanced coal-based technologies; and (2)
accelerate their deployment to commercial use.
December 14
BPA will purchase 90 MW from Stateline wind farm.
December 11
Montana Governor Lights Holiday Christmas Tree with Energy Efficient Lights.
December 6
FERC has delayed the California power refund case
indefinitely. The
administrative legal proceeding is over California 's demand for nearly $9
billion in refunds for alleged wholesale electricity overcharges last
winter.
December 5
Nevada Power Company and Sierra Pacific Power have filed for a reduction in
prices on power to be delivered in 2002 and 2003. The companies filed a
formal complaint with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission claiming that
the prices for long-term wholesale power were "the product of markets found by the Commission to be dysfunctional and not competitive" and should come
under the same price caps the FERC imposed on spot power sales in the West last June.
December 4
Montana Power announces wind power purchase
December 3
Avista Corp has requested a ten percent rate hike from Washington State
regulators.
December 2
Enron files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and sues Dynegy.
November 30
Nevada Power has requested a rate increase averaging 21
percent. The company said the increase is needed to recover the actual costs for
wholesale power and fuel it purchased for customers during the height of the
energy crisis.
November 26
RDI estimates that only four percent of new generation will be
coal-fired.
The Arizona Corporation Commission has denied a certificate of environmental
compatibility for the 720-megawatt Big Sandy project proposed by the Caithness Corporation.
November 20
Construction will begin soon on the Nine Canyon Wind Farm in
Washington State. The 48 MW project will be owned by Energy Northwest and will
generate power for nine public power utilities.
FERC is proposing to revise all market-based rate tariffs to prohibit anticompetitive behavior or the exercise of market power.
Press release
FERC Order
FERC also announced a new generation market power screen to apply to
market-based rate applications on an interim basis pending a generic review of new analytical methods for analyzing market power.
The California Energy Commission is predicting adequate supplies to meet
next summer's electricity demand as long as planned power plants are built
and current levels of conservation continue.
November 16
Governor Guinn has announced the nine members of the Nevada
renewable energy and energy conservation task force that will administer the newly created
Trust Fund for Renewable Energy and Energy Conservation.
November 15
PNM breaks ground on 225 MW Afton Generating Station in southern New Mexico.
50 MW Rock River 1 wind farm goes on line in Wyoming.
November 14
BPA will purchase output of 50 MW Oregon wind
farm.
Reliant Energy breaks ground on 550 MW Bighorn project in southern Nevada.
The natural gas-fired plant will use "dry-cooling" technology.
October 18
DOE has announced a deal with six parties to build the upgrade of Path 15 in
California. The consortium includes: Pacific Gas & Electric, Trans-Elect
Inc., Kinder Morgan Power Co., PG&E National Energy Group, Williams Energy
Marketing and Trading Co., and the Western Area Power Administration.
October 16
Second windfarm provides another 30 MW of wind power for Colorado customers.
October 15
EPA has announced a new project to promote the use of combined heat and
power (CHP), also known as co-generation. In order to speed permitting, EPA
will publish draft guidance clarifying the Clean Air Act requirements for constructing CHP facilities.
October 10
Duke Energy plans to begin construction on three natural gas-fired power
plants this fall. The company has held a groundbreaking ceremony for the
first facility, a 600 MW plant in Satsop, Washington. Construction will begin soon on the 600-megawatt Luna Energy Facility in Deming, N.M., and the
1,200-megawatt Moapa Energy Facility, in Apex, Nev.
October 8
Northwest Natural Gas, headquartered in Portland, will acquire Portland
General Electric.
FERC orders four energy companies to refund rates charged in July 2001 in
California and other western states that were above the proxy market clearing price. FERC ruled that cost justifications submitted by
Dynegy, Mirant, Reliant, and Williams were either untimely filed and/or unsupported.
October 5
FERC has announced the agenda for the RTO workshops to be held in
Washington, DC on October 15 - 19. According to the announcement, the purpose of the workshops is to discuss core issues related to the
development of efficient electric markets in an era in which electric transmission systems will be operated by Regional Transmission
Organizations.
Sempra Energy and CMS Energy will develop a LNG terminal in northern Baja
California to bring natural gas supplies into northwestern Mexico and Southern
California.
October 4
Six southwest utilities have agreed to form WestConnect
RTO. The new
for-profit organization will replace Desert STAR. The six utilities are: Arizona Public Service, Salt River Project, El Paso Electric Company, Public
Service Company of New Mexico, Tucson Electric Power Company and Texas-New Mexico Power Company.
October 2
The California ISO is urging continued conservation as plants begin to go
off-line for fall maintenance cycle. There could be as much as 9,300 MW
off-line at the end of October.
September 26
At its meeting today
FERC: approved the Western Electricity Coordinating Council; announced a meeting in Seattle on November 2 to examine energy
infrastructure issues and their implications for regional economic development; and said there will be commissioner-led RTO workshops in
Washington, D.C. from October 15 though 19.
September 24
A FERC Administrative Law Judge has recommended that FERC commissioners deny
the $1.9 billion in refunds sought by Pacific Northwest (PNW) municipal utilities and wholesale power buyers for power purchases when market prices
soared to record highs. The judge found: "Prices in the PNW during the period 12/25/00 - 6/20/01 were the result of a number of factors, the
shortage of supply, excess demand, drought, increased price in natural gas along with the price signals from the California markets. The PNW is a
competitive market and has been for a long time. The transactions involved in this proceeding resulted from bilateral agreements between the parties.
Under these circumstances the prices were not unreasonable or unjust and refunds should not be ordered in this proceeding."
The California Energy Commission has approved the construction of the 600 MW
Metcalf Energy Center in San Jose. Calpine and Bechtel Enterprises are scheduled to begin construction on the project this October with commercial
operation expected to serve the summer load of 2003.
The Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission has approved a 25
percent temporary electricity surcharge for Avista Utilities. The surcharge
will begin October 1 and run for 15 months.
September 20
The California PUC has voted to end the right of consumers to choose their
electricity provider. Customers who have switched will be allowed to remain
with those companies through the end of their contracts.
A federal appeals court ruled that California Gov. Gray Davis acted
illegally when he seized power contracts held by cash-strapped utilities
Southern California Edison and Pacific Gas & Electric at the height of the
state's energy crisis in January.
September 18
Two more peaker plants go on line in
California. There has been 1,815 MW added in California this year.
September 17
The California Power Authority is negotiating approximately 1320 MW of
renewable energy projects, comprised mainly of wind and bio-fuel.
Seattle agrees to
purchase wind power from Stateline Wind Generating Plant starting in January.
September 14
FERC has stated that it will approve the recovery of prudently incurred
costs tied to security needs.
September 5
Puget Sound Energy wants to expand its time-of-day pricing trial for 12
months. Data shows a five percent shift to off-peak hours.
September 4
Homeowners can now purchase solar power electric systems at the Home Depot
stores in San Diego.
September 2
Data from the California Energy Commission shows that Californians continued
to reduce peak demand during August 2001.
August 30
In comments to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the Northwest Power
Planning Council is requesting several changes in FERC's price cap system in
order to make sure lower cost power will be available to the Northwest states this winter.
Reliant Energy has announced plans for an innovative air cooled natural gas
power plant southwest of Phoenix. Phase 1 is planned to go online in spring
2004 and will include a 580-megawatt, combined-cycle dry plant.
August 27
The Department of Energy has issued a Federal Register notice seeking applications from U.S. nuclear utilities/power generating companies to
conduct an Early Site Permit scoping study of potential sites for the
deployment of new nuclear power plants in the United States.
Great River Energy is focusing on three potential sites in North Dakota for
new Lignite Vision 21 coal plant.
August 23
Sempra Energy Solutions will offer commodity
supply, energy efficiency, on-site generation and co-generation,
infrastructure ownership and management, as well as facility operations and
maintenance to members of The Council of Energy Resources Tribes under
new agreement.
Ten additional western electric utilities have joined the original three in
protesting FERC actions setting wholesale price controls in the western
states. The Coalition for Western Markets has filed comments with FERC
requesting changes in the agency's price mitigation plan.
Calpine begins construction of 750 MW natural gas-fired plant near
Bakersfield, California.
August 21
FERC hearing begins on electricity crises in Pacific Northwest states.
Northwest states claim over $1 billion in overcharges and California claims
an additional $1.5 billion.
NERC drafts short "consensus" reliability bill to address Congressional
concerns. Enron and ELCON withhold support.
Puget Sound Energy asks for a rate
increase.
Aug. 17
Pinnacle West Energy plans to build 570 MW gas-fired plant 20 miles north of
Las Vegas.
August 16
Portland General Electric has brought a 24.5 MW natural gas unit online at
the Beaver Power Plant.
August 14
President Bush has announced that he will designate Pat Wood as chairman of
FERC.
August 2
The House of Representatives has approved a wide ranging energy bill, Securing
America's Future Energy Act H.R. 4. The bill would provide tax breaks
and incentives of $33.5 billion over 10 years, which is more than the
administration had requested, about $27 billion of the amount would go to
energy producers such as coal, oil, and nuclear industries. The bill also
includes incentives for buying hybrid gasoline-electric cars, solar panels,
some high-efficiency appliances and improvements in building energy
efficiency. The bill: eases restrictions on energy production on federal
lands; calls for a study on oil and gas leasing; increases funding to
help low-income families pay heating and cooling bills; expands research
into clean coal technology; reduces oil industry royalties on some kinds of
drilling and allow the industry to pay royalties in kind; requires a small
increase in the fuel economy of sport utility vehicles and light trucks; and
opens 2,000 acres of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to drilling. The
bill does not address electricity deregulation, siting of power plants and
power lines, or renewal of liability insurance for nuclear power plants.
August 1
A DOE study shows efficient appliances yield dramatic energy and water
savings. The study of actual home appliance use (energy efficient clothes
washers, clothes dryers, dishwashers, and other products) was conducted in
50 volunteer homes in Wilsonville and Lafayette, Oregon.
According to data from the California Energy Commission, the state's
electricity consumption was down 11 percent in July compared with a year
ago. See the California Energy Commission's analysis of consumption for
July.
July 31
President Bush has signed an executive order directing federal agencies to
only purchase products that use no more than one watt in their standby power
consuming mode.
Texaco will install a photovoltaic system to help power an oil field in
California. The first phase will be 400 kilowatts but could be increased to
one megawatt.
Edison Electric Institute has published a new study on "The California
Electricity Crisis: Lessons for Other States."
July 30
PG&E charges homeowners $600,000 for large solar system to tie into
grid.
July 27
California Governor Davis has endorsed a plan to increase California's
usage of renewable power from 12 percent to 17 percent by 2006.
July 26
DOE has published proposed regulations governing the efficiency of central
air conditioning systems and heat pumps in the Federal Register. The
proposed standards would increase the seasonal energy efficiency ratio, or
SEER, for new central air conditioners and heat pumps by 20 percent to a 12
SEER. Current law sets that standard at 10 SEER. The public has 75 days to
submit written comments.
July 25
FERC has ordered an expedited fact-finding hearing to calculate refunds for
spot market transactions in California. The Commission also ordered an
evidentiary proceeding to discuss refunds for the Pacific Northwest. This
proceeding will last no longer than 30 days. The FERC order directs refunds
for the period from October 2, 2000 through June 20, 2001 and applies the
refund liability to spot sales through California's organized markets
operated by the ISO and the PX.
July 23
Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham announced that thirteen proposals have been
received to build the Path 15 expansion. The Western Area Power
Administration is now in the process of reviewing the 13 proposals submitted
by the July 13th deadline and will make a recommendation to the Secretary of
Energy within 30 days. The agency is also
updating its environmental studies on Path 15 and will seek public comments
through public meetings to be held in late August.
The Burbank Landfill Gas Microturbine Power Plant, which uses the Capstone microturbine system, began producing nearly 300 kilowatts of electricity.
July 21
Mirant has said it may shut down 600 MW of its Pittsburgh plant next year if
it does not receive air emission waivers from California state officials.
At issue are four peaker units, natural gas-fired boilers and turbines built
in 1954. Air pollution standards that cover the plant are scheduled to get
tighter at the end of the year, but the cost of bringing the four units into
compliance with the new standards would be exorbitant, Mirant said.
July 20
Tucson Electric Power takes steps to add two coal-fired units to the
Springerville Generating Station. The company notes that improvements in
the emission control capabilities of units 1 and 2, combined with the use of
enhanced technologies on units 3 and 4, will result in the addition of 760 megawatts of capacity at the station, with an
overall reduction in SO2 and NOx emissions below current levels.
Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham said on Thursday that conservation alone would not have enough impact on long-term U.S. energy supplies to enable the rest of the nation to avoid a California-style crisis of power blackouts and high
prices. Speaking at a meeting of San Francisco-area business
leaders, Abraham said the United States also needed to upgrade its
transmission system to ensure there is not only adequate power but also a
reliable supply.
July 19
An industry group will study the impact of wind generation on electric
system operations. The project will analyze the impacts of significant amounts of intermittent generation - such as wind
plants - on the real-time operations and short-term planning of electric power systems.
July 18
Avista Corp. has requested an energy surcharge of 36.9 percent in Washington
and 14.7 percent in Idaho. The proposed surcharge would be applied as a uniform percentage increase to the rates for all customer classes in each
state. The temporary surcharge would be effect until the end of 2003.
An expert panel assembled by the Consumer Energy Council of America has determined that
distributed generation can significantly improve the
infrastructure of the nation's electric system.
TransAlta announced today that Pierce Power LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary
of the company, has received all the necessary regulatory approvals for a
new simple-cycle gas-fired power plant to be built in Frederickson,
Washington. The 154 MW plant will consist of seven portable GE gas-fired
turbines installed on a site leased in Pierce County for a 14-month period.
July 17
In a comprehensive review of DOE's R&D efforts to advance
energy-efficient and fossil-fuel technologies, a committee of the National Research Council
found these programs have yielded significant economic, environmental, and national security
benefits. Three energy-efficiency programs, costing approximately $11 million, produced nearly three-quarters of this benefit.
Nearly one in three Californians have slashed their power use by 20
percent or more from a year ago, qualifying for a state-backed 20 percent refund on
their electricity bills.
July 16
90 megawatt peaker plant goes on line in San Diego.
EPRI has released a study on the cost to the U.S. economy of power outages
and disturbances.
EPRI issues report on the costs of electric disturbances
July 12
Neutrogena Corporation and the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power
have
completed installation of a 200 kilowatt, $1.4 million solar power
system at the company’s headquarters, located near LAX.
The Bonneville Power Administration will fund approximately $10 million
worth of projects aimed at helping fish affected by this year's power
emergency operations.
July 11
On behalf of the Western Governors' Association, Chairman and Idaho Gov.
Kempthorne urges Congress to support
the rapid enactment of electricity reliability legislation.
California Governor Davis announces that the eleventh peaker plant has been
licensed. The eleven plants will provide 925 megawatts when they all come
on line.
July 10
Demand for solar photovoltaic and water-heating systems has outstripped supply at all
levels, from manufacturers to installers. In California, 653 solar systems were installed in the last three months, and another 1,300 are under construction, says the California Energy Commission.
American Indian tribal leaders joined a group of Middleton,
Idaho residents Monday in opposition to
the proposed power plant site southeast of Middleton favored by Ida-West Energy Co.
Fueled by increasing energy prices and a push for more fossil fuels, oil and
natural gas exploration is on the rise in the Rocky Mountain states. And
that means new jobs and new business after a long dry spell.
July 9
Southern California Gas Co. is offering rebates to customers who install
microturbines, small gas turbines, non-diesel internal combustion engines,
solar power (photovoltaics), wind turbines and fuel cells, all of which must
be interconnected with the utility grid to qualify for the program. Higher
incentives are tied to the use of renewable or super-clean generation
technologies.
None of the nearly 30 power plants planned for the Pacific Northwest will operate on hydropower but
will instead rely on natural gas, wind and coal to generate
energy.
The House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Energy and Air Quality will
vote on legislation encouraging conservation and promoting energy efficiency
this week. The Subcommittee will meet on Tuesday for opening statements on
the "The Energy Advancement and Conservation Act of 2001."
It may be a little warmer inside Mesa, Arizona city buildings, but officials
say higher air-conditioning settings and other energy-saving processes have already reduced energy usage by 9 percent overall from mid-May to mid-June.
Energy usage dropped even further at the Mesa City Plaza and police buildings (17 percent) and in the Mesa Community Center (22
percent). The City Council also has treated city workers to a relaxed dress code
throughout the week this summer.
Given the troubles in other states, especially neighboring California, some
Arizonans question whether this state's deregulation plans should proceed.
Others, such as Arizona Gov. Jane Hull, argue that Arizona should stay the
course with deregulation, saying Arizona's plan should avoid some of the
pitfalls of other states.
Third new power plant opens in California.
Talks to resolve the pricing dispute between California power users and
providers ended Monday with no resolution. Now the FERC
administrative law judge overseeing the talks will issue a recommendation on what should be
refunded to California.
The Western Area Power Administration has agreed to speed up
environmental studies to approve a proposed power line that would fix the long-standing "Tote 3" electric transmission bottleneck from Wyoming to Colorado's Front Range.
Carbon County, Wyoming's Planning Commission unanimously approved a special-use permit for Clipper Windpower LLC to build 14
turbines east of McFadden and north of Bosler Reservoir. The turbines would be
capable of generating a combined 21 megawatts, said S
July 6
Wyoming ranchers and farmers have formed a group to represent their interests when companies want to lay
pipelines or power lines through their property. Energy Corridors Inc. results from the increasing need for energy transmission out of the Powder River Basin, where coal bed
methane gas drilling is active.
Arizona now has a comprehensive plan to reduce energy use in state
government, Governor Jane Dee Hull said today. The plan is designed to decrease electricity consumption in all buildings
and offices owned or leased by state agencies and especially to decrease electricity consumption during peak-demand periods from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m.
The U.S. Department of Transportation has given El Paso Energy Corp.
permission to reopen a
damaged pipeline that carries natural gas from New Mexico to Southern
California.
July 5
Despite all the talk about new power projects in Campbell County, WY only half of the 1,880 coal-fired megawatts
now on the drawing board might ever come to fruition, according to air quality experts.
Many power projects tend to fall through the cracks because of scarce financing, but it is the increasingly stringent air quality
controls that seriously limit new coal-fired electric generation.
One Arizona utility rescued another when a rare set of generating station
outages threatened the area's power supplies.
European study shows bugs can
damage efficiency of wind turbines.
July 3
Rolling blackouts hit southern Nevada
yesterday. Consumers are urged to
conserve power today to avoid repeat.
California narrowly avoids
blackouts.
A plan by scientists and several of the state's utilities to reduce electricity
usage by turning down the voltage on the state's power grid has received the
endorsement of Gov. Gray
Davis.
Duke Energy releases operating logs for January.
July 2
Public Service Company of New Mexico has announced plans to build a new
gas-fired plant in southern New Mexico. The plant will provide power to
Texas-New Mexico Power in addition to PNM.
New 540 MW Sutter Energy Project is ready to start producing
power. The Calpine plant uses natural gas with very low emissions, and 90 percent less
ground water because of a huge air-cooled condenser which recycles all cooling water. The plant is also highly automated, requiring just 25 people
to keep it running fulltime.
California goes to Stage 2 alert, avoids blackouts.
Montana Governor Judy Martz announced today the members of the Montana Power
Authority. The MPA will be responsible for developing long-term energy policy recommendations for the Governor and issuing up to $500 million in revenue bonds to construct or purchase additional generation and transmission capacity in Montana.
Montana Power Company announced that 15 companies submitted 23 proposals to
generate 1,650 megawatts (MW) of wind power in response to a request for 150
MW of wind power.
July 1
California Governor Davis announces the state conserved 12 percent in June
compared to last year. While overall electricity use continued its downward trend, electricity used during peak times also declined by 14
percent. The California Energy Commission has published data which shows the reduced
demand.
June 29
Sumas Energy 2 submits second revised application to State of
Washington for 660 MW natural gas fired project. Project was denied in February.
BPA will raise rates 46 percent beginning on October
1. The agency had been predicting wholesale rate increase of 250 percent or more unless
utilities agreed to load reduction plans.
BPA will not provide summer spill for migrating
salmon.
June 28
President Bush submits his energy plan to
Congress. President Bush also announces an energy savings plan for the White
House.
EPRI says technology
can help resolve western power crisis.
Southern California Gas Co. broke ground on a new Central Energy Plant that
will provide electricity, heating, and cooling at its three-building Pico
Rivera site. A microturbine will generate 75 kilowatts of electricity for
the site, and the waste heat from the microturbine will be used to help
drive a super-efficient natural gas absorption chiller.
June 27
New 320 MW natural gas plant goes on line in California.
June 25
Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham announces that BPA will add 830 MW of wind
power. BPA intends to sign pre-development agreements for seven wind power
projects.
BPA, Golden Northwest Aluminum agree to delay power deliveries for six
months, pursue wind energy.
June 21
The city of Bonners Ferry and BPA sign agreement to reduce the amount of
power that this northern Idaho city plans to buy from BPA by 10 percent, or
0.59 megawatt, for one year starting in October 2001.
Utah Gov. Michael O. Leavitt today announced the creation of a proactive statewide energy conservation effort.
Called "PowerForward," the program is a collaborative, statewide effort among the state of Utah, the media, and public and private utility companies aimed at increasing awareness of energy issues and
encouraging conservation.
June 20
DOE has released a new report "The
Impact of Wholesale Electricity Price Controls on California Summer
Reliability"
June 19
Under a plan called "poop to power" by Mayor Dick Murphy, the city
added 1.35 megawatts to the power generation capability of its waste water treatment plant Monday. The power--enough for 1,000 homes--will be generated by a hydroelectric turbine at the city's Point Loma plant. The city already produces 16 megawatts of power, with half sold to the grid.
Southern California Edison reaches agreement with small generators to bring
power back online.
Calpine cleared one of the last hurdles to its power plant in South San Jose on Monday when key energy officials endorsed the project but insisted on some environmental mitigation measures.
Calpine will be forced to install technology to reduce air emissions and noise, and the latter adjustment could add $5 million to the estimated $300 million to $400 million price tag for the Metcalf Energy Center.
Madera Power, a biomass-fueled generation facility located near Fresno,
California, has begun operations and is supplying up to 25 megawatts of
electricity to the California market.
The California ISO is examining ways to increase wind generation in the
state. (Attachment 1
-- Attachment 2
-- Attachment 3)
The Montana state Land Board on Monday told the Department of Natural Resources and Conservation to
determine which state-owned
lands would be the most attractive for leasing by developers of wind-power projects. Money from leases would go to public
education.
June 18
FERC has agreed to expand price
mitigation plan to ten other western states in addition to California.
Williams will expand Northwest Pipeline in Washington
State. Construction on the new pipeline segments is scheduled to begin in the summer of 2002.
California announces agreement with San Diego Gas and
Electric.
Under the new requirements for early notification of blackouts, the California ISO has issued a "Power Watch."
Due to rising temperatures,
Stage 1 and 2 are likely to be called for Monday and Tuesday and Stage 3 and
rolling blackouts is a possibility, the ISO said.
The Salt River Project is preparing to pay consumers to relinquish control of their thermostats during times of peak energy
consumption. Under a pilot program being rolled out by SRP later this summer, 300 to 500
customers will be given special radio-controlled thermostats that can be remotely adjusted by the utility.
Calif. State officials will travel to Southern California this week to hear from local residents about a
proposed high voltage transmission line that would crisscross area subdivisions and
vineyards. The $271 million Valley- Rainbow Project would connect San Diego Gas & Electric Co.'s grid to that of Southern California Edison, helping link the southern portion of the state to power plants being built elsewhere in the Southwest and Mexico.
Gov. Gary Locke has asked the federal government to study whether extending daylight-saving time would save significant
amounts of energy without damaging the economy in some unforeseen way.
June 15
Nevada regulators intend to write guidelines for waiving pollution restraints at the Mohave Generating Station in Laughlin during periods of electric shortage in Nevada and California.
BPA and California officials have reached agreement on a plan that outlines
when and how BPA may be able to help California during this summer’s
anticipated energy shortages.
June 14
NorthWestern will build 240 MW natural gas plant near Great Falls,
Montana. First 80MW unit will come on line in fall 2001.
About 200 people attended a public comment session on Public Service Co. of New Mexico's
plan to build a
345,000-volt transmission line through Southern
Arizona. It would link a power switchyard near the Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station west of Phoenix and the Santa Ana Substation 60 miles into Mexico.
The Fresno (Calif.) Chamber of Commerce officially announced its new Rapid Response Program, which focuses on small and medium businesses and
offers them
free consultants' services to identify ways to hold down energy costs.
Alcoa to idle
Wenatchee, Washington, smelter for 15 months.
BPA and Benton PUD have signed
a load reduction agreement that will reduce the utility’s demand on BPA by
10 percent (21 average MW) for one year starting in October 2001.
Puget Sound Energy and BPA have also reached an agreement to reduce the
amount of power purchased from BPA. For five years starting in October
2001, PSE will exchange 368 average megawatts a year for monetary benefits for 820,000 PSE
customers. In addition, an agreement between BPA and Vera Water
& Power will
reduce
the utility’s demand on BPA by 10 percent (2.4 average MW) for one year
starting in October 2001.
June 13
In a major address at the Montana Energy Forum, an upbeat Montana Governor
Martz urged Montanans to join state efforts to reduce energy consumption by 10% saying, "There is no greater way for Montanans to be a part of the solution than to conserve energy."
Gov. Jim Geringer today announced the completion of the first installation of a wind turbine at Curt Gowdy State
Park, located 24 miles west of Cheyenne. The 20 kw vertical axis wind turbine, manufactured by Terra Moya Aqua, Inc., a Wyoming company, will produce electricity to power buildings such as park headquarters and the employee residences at
the park.
California Governor Davis today announced the licensing of the tenth summer-reliability (or
"peaker") power plant by the California Energy Commission
under the expedited emergency review process. The Chula Vista 2 Peaker Generating
Station Project will add 58 megawatts to the electrical grid this summer, and 62.4 megawatts in 2002.
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has scheduled an unusual Monday meeting to
discuss electricity pricing in California, a sign the panel will expand its efforts to rein in high wholesale
rates.
Western Area Power Administration is
requesting that
parties interested in "participating in financing and co-ownership of
system additions needed to relieve the constraint on Path 15" contact
WAPA by July 12. There is also a Federal
Register notice and Path
15 information sheet.
California officials have agreed to purchase power for years to come at prices higher than those now being paid in the daily spot
market, according to confidential government records.
A $160 million pipeline expansion has been approved to transport coal
bed methane from the Powder River Basin, nearly tripling the line's capacity.
Wyoming Interstate Co. recently received permission from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to build the 155-mile line parallel to its 2-year-old Medicine Bow Lateral Pipeline.
June 12
Gov. Gary Locke met today with utility executives on the continuing energy crisis and
agreed that the problems have not abated despite the recent drop in wholesale energy
costs. The discussions were part of an on-going series of meetings with utility and energy association
representatives to ensure that Washington continues to have affordable, reliable and renewable sources of energy.
Seattle City Light has signed
a load reduction agreement that will reduce
the utility’s demand on BPA by 49.3 average megawatts.
FERC ordered an expanded inquiry into into whether El Paso Corp. drove up
the price of natural gas destined for California last year by improperly
favoring gas marketing companies it owns in bidding for transportation capacity on one of its pipelines.
FERC orders rehearing into California PUC's complaint concerning
allegations of affiliate abuse and violation of the Affiliate Standards.
California Governor Davis signs order which will allow natural gas plants to
operate this summer even if in violation of air emission limits.
June 11
Prices for natural gas
drop in California as more suppliers start to serve state. However, prices could rise again this summer as demand for
electricity generation rises.
June 10
A 324 MW natural gas generation plant will be built at the Port of Tacoma.
California Governor Davis today signed Executive Order D-39-01, which authorizes the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) to implement voluntary, emergency load curtailment programs for commercial, industrial or
other large businesses. In exchange for agreeing to reduce electricity usage during power emergencies, the DWR will offer financial incentives to participating customers.
June 8
Calpine Corporation plans to build a 600-megawatt electric generating
facility to be located in southwestern Riverside County, California. The
proposed Inland Empire Energy Center will feed directly into Southern California Edison's power grid and is intended to serve the rapidly growing
counties of Riverside and San Bernardino. Construction is scheduled to begin
in mid-2002, with commercial operation targeted for late 2004.
Nevada Governor Guinn has signed legislation which will require Nevada
utilities to increase the amount of renewable energy they purchase.
The California ISO asks FERC to revoke market-based rate authority for Duke,
Dynegy, Mirant and Reliant.
June 7
Arizona Gov. Jane Hull unveiled an advertising campaign Wednesday to rekindle the flame of energy conservation in
Arizona, asking people to turn up thermostats and take other simple steps.
If it works, the voluntary program will reduce demand for electricity this summer by 250 megawatts, enough to supply about 200,000 homes, as well as lower costs for utilities and reduce the chance of rolling blackouts.
Arizona Governor Hull also announced the formation of the Arizona Energy
Efficiency Alliance. The Arizona Energy Efficiency Alliance is a coalition
of utility executives, state officials, energy use experts and major
employers working to ensure an adequate energy supply in the state.
Washington Gov. Gary Locke today addressed agriculture, business, education,
environmental and transportation leaders from across Washington to promote
renewable energy sources at sustainability
summit .
Calpine announced its new 540-megawatt South Point Energy Center in Arizona
is generating and selling electricity into the wholesale power market. The
plant is located at the Fort Mojave Indian Reservation in Mohave County, Arizona and will sell power in the Arizona, California, Nevada market.
Should electric utilities charge consumers more during times of heavy demand such as hot summer days? Does current regulation discourage the construction of coal-fired or even nuclear plants? How should
energy -efficient technologies be addressed? Those are some of the questions being asked by the
Colorado Public Utilities Commission, which launched an inquiry into electricity planning issues
Wednesday.
Two power companies that have proposed plants for northeast of Las Vegas at Apex have been
granted the right to lease rights to 1,400 acre feet of water a year over 25 years at an as-yet unspecified rate.
In return for having been granted the water rights, the companies agreed to supply the Las Vegas Water District
with 500 megawatts of power a year at below-market rates.
June 6
The Deseret Generation and Transmission Corp. is looking at building an 80-megawatt plant next to the company's Deserado Coal Mine outside Rangely or 35 miles southwest of Rangely next to the company's existing coal-fired power plant at Bonanza, Utah.
California will install over 3,400 real time electric meters in commercial
and industrial facilities located in the Los Angeles area to save as much as
240 megawatts in peak electricity demand this summer.
PacifiCorp will buy all the energy produced by the new SeaWest Wind
Power farm in southeast Wyoming over the next 20 years. The new wind farm
- Rock River I - will produce enough electricity to power 27,000 homes.
To better track the energy savings, Montana plans to develop a system
that monitors reduction of electricity use on a daily, monthly and annual
basis for each state-owned building.
Southern Nevada Water Authority will launch a $200,000 advertising campaign on Friday that emphasizes that pumping and treating water for residents and businesses consumes vast quantities of
electricity. The authority has run ads to encourage water conservation in the past, but this is the first time it has connected water and power conservation.
June 5
With utilities promising to curtail power purchases and aluminum smelters shut down for two years, the Bonneville Power Administration may be able to
keep its wholesale price increases below 100 percent when rates go up Oct.
1.
Puget Sound Energy says real-time electricity pricing will lead to lower
costs.
After a decade in which almost no coal-fired power plants were built in the United States, suddenly
34 coal plants are being planned across the
country to meet increasing power needs, analysts said on Tuesday.
The Wyoming Water Development Office will look into opportunities across the state for generating
hydropower as it reviews plans for Wyoming's river basins, office Director Mike Besson said last week.
June 4
Following the lead of their counterparts in Oregon, the
ID Public Utilities Commission approved a conservation program that rewards customers reducing their monthly demand by 10 percent from a year ago by reducing their bills by 10
percent.
Arizona Gov. Jane Hull is asking Arizona's local governments to help save energy by adopting the same conservation measures as the
state.
Californian
residents used 11 percent less electricity this May compared to last year. Overall peak demand for electricity use dropped by 10 percent in May compared to one year ago.
FERC has approved a plan to permit a temporary increase in hydroelectric
generation at the Priest Rapids Hydroelectric Project in Washington State.
June 1
Southern Idaho is sitting atop some of the largest reserves of geothermal
energy in the nation, and experts say tapping that resource could take a
significant bite out of escalating power bills.
BPA will continue limiting amount of water that is released for
fish.
Idaho Falls Power signs load reduction agreement with
BPA.
The new Wyoming Energy Commission has begun discussing how to provide more power lines
and power plants to help meet the nation's demand for more electricity. The 15-member commission, led by
non-voting Chairman Gov. Jim Geringer, held its first meeting Wednesday. The
commission plans to meet monthly and present a report for the Legislature by Dec. 15.
An environmental group on Thursday announced a door-to-door summer campaign to talk 250,000 Californians into energy
conservation. The California Public Interest Research Group wants to encourage citizens statewide to reduce electricity use and urge their elected officials to expand solar, wind and geothermal power.
To avoid having all price controls removed from its electricity markets, California officials said they will
ask the federal government today to let
the agency that monitors most of the state's power grid qualify as a so-called regional transmission
organization.
Calif. Governor Gray Davis announced today that California has signed a 10-year agreement with GWF Energy
to provide a total of 430 megawatts of electricity to the State beginning September 1,
2001. The power will be supplied by GWF's 90 megawatt Hanford Energy Park Peaker
Plant. Two additional plants by the company are expected to be built and in operation in California by 2002
May 31
Arizona Governor Jane Dee Hull and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Administrator Christine Todd Whitman toured
the Arizona Public Service Solar Test and Research Center (STAR) in Tempe, a
development and test site for solar electric generation technology.
Following their tour of STAR, Hull and Whitman toured Desert Vista High
School, an energy efficient school in Tempe.
More than two dozen large businesses and public institutions have
cut their energy use by 11 percent and collected $1.7 million as a reward under a special credit program offered by
Eugene, Oregon's municipal utility.
A spokesman for the Salt River Project confirmed that
"rotating
blackouts" of up to 20 minutes are possible in Arizona this
summer, given SRP's shrinking ability to generate more electricity in a pinch.
California ISO called a Stage 2 alert this morning. There are record high
temperatures in parts of the state. As this graph
illustrates, there is a potential for rolling blackouts by this afternoon.
California licenses 16th
plant. The 530 MW natural gas plant, Contra Costa Power Plant Unit 8, will be built by Mirant Delta LLC and is
scheduled to be online in early 2003.
May 30
A new hydroelectric facility is to begin generating power Wednesday, a full year earlier than initially
expected. The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California will run four turbines at the Diamond Valley Lake reservoir capable of producing 13 megawatts of electricity, which is enough to power about 9,750 homes.
Eastern Washington public utility Franklin PUD will reduce its share of BPA
power by 9.5 average megawatts for one year. Another Washington State PUD, Pend Oreille,
will reduce its share of BPA
power by 4 average megawatts through March 2003.
PG&E announced an open season for natural gas transmission
capacity,
inviting suppliers and large commercial and industrial users to submit
requests for firm capacity service on the company's pipelines within
California.
A new web site maintained by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory shows
real time electricity demand in California along with capacity that is available to meet the
load. In addition to serving as a real-time
management tool for energy users, the site will help consumers better
understand the sources of the state’s energy shortages -- for example, how
much capacity is offline at a given time, how much power needs to be
imported from outside the state to make up for the shortfall, and how supply
and demand change throughout the day.
Kennecott Utah Copper's decision to idle its north concentrator in Magna and lay off 235 workers may provide PacifiCorp customers in Utah with an unexpected gift: lower rates.
Utah's largest electric utility has struck a deal with the copper-mining giant to give Kennecott a credit on its monthly power bill for the estimated 20 to 25 megawatts of electricity the
concentrator no longer needs.
Seattle City Light's electrical rates yesterday went up for the third time this
year as the City Council approved a 9.3 percent increase effective July 1.
The increase comes on the heels of a 10 percent increase on New Year's Day and an 18 percent increase in
March. Council members cautioned that rates will go up a fourth time -- by about 22 percent -- in October.
May 29
PG&E comments on plan to have WAPA expand Path 15.
Under a plan to cut electricity use, Xcel will pay
Colorado homeowners $25 for the option to cycle their air conditioners off and on during the hottest days of the
season.
As part of the ongoing effort to implement a key recommendation of President
Bush’s National Energy Policy, Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham today called for a transmission infrastructure that ensures reliable electricity
supplies.
Letter from 10 economists expressing concern that FERC has failed to set
just and reasonable wholesale prices for electricity in California.
A proposed high-voltage Idaho Power Co. transmission line between Boise and
Caldwell will be the subject of open houses today in Boise and Wednesday in Caldwell.
A U.S. appeals court has turned down a lawsuit filed by California
legislators trying to force FERC to impose price caps.
May 28
Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham has directed the Western Area Power
Administration (WAPA) to take the first step toward building the necessary transmission capacity to relieve the bottleneck in California's Path
15.
May 25
The Senate has approved President Bush's FERC
nominees.
Clark Public Utility District agrees to reduce power purchase from
BPA.
California Governor Davis has announced legal steps the state is taking to
stop high rates charged by some energy companies.
The California Energy Commission has released a new report, "Natural Gas
Infrastructure Issues." According to the report, if planned
infrastructure improvements are completed, the state will have adequate natural gas
supplies next winter.
Western coalition urges Secretary Abraham to support federal electricity
reliability legislation that contains key provisions endorsed by western
governors.
With the coming Memorial Day weekend scheduled to kick off a summer of skyrocketing energy demands in the West,
Idaho Governor Dirk Kempthorne said today that Idaho
has become the first state in the nation to receive federal approval to bring additional power generation on line by modifying operating requirements at hydroelectric
facilities.
A new natural gas-fired electricity plant west of Phoenix - one of a new
generation of "combined cycle" generators - is the largest of its kind in
North America, its Dallas-based developers said Thursday.
Calif. Governor Gray Davis today announced 73 more megawatts from a Redding power plant will be available to meet California's demand for
electricity this summer. The California Energy Commission approved the City of Redding's request to eliminate limitations on their existing power plant, allowing it to run at maximum capacity to meet summer peak
demand and energy shortages.
Reliant Energy has reduced the price of power from three plants in the Los
Angeles area in anticipation that air quality officials will lift operating restrictions and allow the plants to operate additional hours this summer.
Utah's Legislature's Public Utilities and Technology Interim Committee
Wednesday heard
testimony on implementing a program that allows customers of a major utility to generate their own power that can be sold back for use on the utility's grid.
The Bonneville Power Administration said yesterday that Portland-based PacifiCorp has agreed to take less electricity than it had originally signed up
for, the latest in a series of agreements BPA hopes will hold in check a rate increase planned for October.
The House Energy and Commerce Committee will continue marking up the
"Electricity Emergency Relief Act" today. Arguments over price controls in
Western electricity markets delayed a vote on Thursday.
A federal advisory panel Thursday urged the Bush administration to identify
the five most promising areas to drill for natural gas in coastal waters off
California and other states.
May 24
Mirant Corp. has agreed
to provide California with 500 MW of power under a 19 month contract
beginning on June 1.
PacfiCorp will reduce the amount of power it buys from BPA for next five
years.
The Nevada Assembly approved Assembly Bill 661 which allows large customers -- those who purchase at least 1 megawatt of power -- to purchase electricity from companies other than Sierra Pacific Power and Nevada
Power.
A major electricity supplier said Thursday it will sharply cut prices for power from three Southern California plants in anticipation that air quality monitors will let the plants release more pollution this summer.
California Governor Davis announces
a blackout warning plan.
Xcel Energy in Colorado is forecasting it will have to buy electricity, probably at premium prices, on at least eight days this summer to cover heavy demand.
To reduce those expensive purchases, the state's largest utility is seeking permission from regulators to pay big electricity users
to curtail their power during peak times.
The nation's nuclear utilities are preparing to build at least 50 power plants in the next 20
years, the industry's top officials announced today.
May 23
AZ Gov. Jane Hull is urging Arizonans to cut down electricity use - or at least shift when they use it.
Pinnacle West Energy dedicated its new natural-gas-fired electricity generating plant
in Phoenix Tuesday, the first large power plant built in the Valley in a quarter-century.
The 120-megawatt plant is one of four new Arizona plants starting up this summer that together will generate 2,000 megawatts, about what is now under construction in all of Southern California.
Desperately seeking megawatts, San Diego Gas & Electric Co. wants to pay local industries to fire up their high-polluting emergency diesel
generators this summer to relieve the electricity grid and avoid rolling
blackouts.
With Silicon Valley electricity demands expected to surpass supply next year, Pacific Gas & Electric Co. has
received approval to build a 7.3-mile, 230-kilovolt transmission line from Fremont to San Jose and a new substation to serve northeast San Jose.
Some employees in Clovis City, Calif., will work 10-hour days Monday through Thursday between June 11 and Aug.
24. City Council members unanimously approved a proposal Monday night that will cut the city's energy bills while keeping the doors of city hall open for extended hours from Monday to Thursday.
May 22
Eleven
new power plants are in the planning or construction phase for Arizona.
Governor Gray Davis today signed
legislation to speed siting of power plants in California. The bill contains a series of provisions designed to encourage the expedited siting of clean new electric generation in California, including expedited permitting timelines, air emission offsets, and waivers of standby charges for small distributed generation facilities.
FERC is requesting comments on a request that price caps be reimposed
in the California natural gas market. Comments should be filed within 20
days.
The House Resources Committee Subcommittee on Energy & Mineral Resources
holds a hearing on "Short-term Solutions for Increasing Energy Supply
from the Public Lands."
California's legislative leaders have asked a federal appeals court to order
federal regulators to cap wholesale electricity prices.
Mexican Energy Secretary Ernesto Martens said yesterday that Mexico won't set any limit on the number of power plants in Baja California supplying electricity north of the
border.
Sierra Pacific Resources on Monday said it intends to make a $5 million contribution to help low-income customers pay their bills.
May 21
Pinnacle West Energy will bring a new 120 MW natural gas plant located near
Phoenix on-line on May 22.
BPA and Columbia Falls Aluminum Company, located near Kalispell, Mont., have
reached an agreement to close the plant for up to two
years.
The California ISO is developing an emergency
blackout notification system that would go into effect on June 1. The ISO expects to issue 24-hour forecasts
generally detailing when and where blackouts can be expected. The ISO has also developed a draft white paper on:
The Development of
Electric System Emergencies and the Emergency Response Communication Network.
California has licensed another "peaker" plant. Calpine Corporation's
135-megawatt Gilroy City Project is expected to come on-line by September 30,
2001.
May 19
Governor Davis, several elected officials, and members of the California Conservation Corps
(CCC) in 11 different cities statewide, walked through neighborhoods, distributing compact fluorescent
light bulbs and information on conservation measures for residential households. The
PowerWalk was created when the Governor signed AB 29X
which provided $20 million for the creation of the Mobile Efficiency Light Brigade
(PowerWalk).
A California Senate committee heard additional details on allegations of
electric companies taking advantage of the state's deregulation. The head of
the PUC testified that records show several plants in the state cut
production and then benefited when prices rose.
May 18
FERC is proposing to direct natural gas sellers and transporters serving the
California market to provide additional information as the agency continues
to investigate allegations of price gouging and market abuse. FERC noted
that it is "concerned that the price disparity between California and the
rest of the country continues."
Utilities in Phoenix say they are building power plants in the metropolitan area because
power-line constraints limit how much electricity they can get from other
states.
President Bush issued two Executive Orders today which were recommended in
the energy policy report issued yesterday. One orders federal agencies to
expedite energy-related projects like refineries and power plants and the other
orders federal agencies to prepare statements on regulations
that impact energy supplies.
May 17
President Bush releases the National Energy Policy Development Group's
report "Reliable,
Affordable, and Environmentally Sound Energy for America's Future".
Remarks by the President
yesterday after National Energy Policy is delivered to the
Cabinet.
While the Northwest looks warily toward a shortage of hydropower this year, a boom in natural gas-fired generating plants is
sweeping the region, promising more power and a new set of energy challenges.
The Utah Legislature's Energy Policy Task Force met yesterday to discuss
regional transmission bottlenecks. Members were told that if the Western power grid is like the interstate highway network, then
part of the existing energy crisis stems from electrical "traffic jams" at bottlenecks in the grid.
The Utah Public Service Commission (PSC) this week approved Utah Power's proposed energy conservation program to reward customers who cut their electricity use 20 percent with an extra 20 percent off their monthly
bills. At the same time, though, the PSC ordered the utility to expand the program. It wants Utah Power to offer financial incentives to consumers who cut their electricity usage 10 percent or more.
California should form a "buyers' cartel" with Oregon and Washington to rein in soaring energy
prices, nine Calif. Assembly Democrats said yesterday.
May 16
California issues a license for a 15th major power
plant. The 500 MW Three Mountain Power Plant will be a combined cycle, natural gas-fired facility.
FERC issues a
follow-up order to its March 14 order on electricity shortages. These actions included: incentives for projects that increase electric
energy transmission capacity in the short term and for projects that
increase supply; authorizing wholesale customers and retail customers (where
permitted under state rules) who reduce consumption to resell their load reduction at wholesale at market-based rates; and granting expeditious
consideration for proposals for greater operating flexibility at licensed hydroelectric projects to increase generation while protecting environmental
resources.
FERC issues an order on QFs in the Western
Interconnection.
International Fuel Cell announced the sale of a 200 kilowatt fuel cell to
Los Angeles Department of Water and Power.
A new program from Pacific Gas and Electric Company
will let large
industrial customers retrieve information on their previous
day's energy consumption and control their usage with the click of a button
- all from their desktop computer.
California Governor Davis signs bill creating the California Power
Authority. The Power Authority will have broad powers to construct, own
and operate electric generation and power facilities, including natural gas
transportation and storage facilities, and to finance energy conservation programs.
The Bonneville Power Administration today announced an agreement with Alcoa that will
curtail operations at the Alcoa Ferndale
(Intalco) plant for up to two years and compensate workers in the interim.
The agreement is key to shrinking an upcoming region-wide wholesale electric rate increase scheduled for Oct. 1.
May 15
In Congress, the Democratic Caucus Energy Task Force has released its energy
plan.
Arizona Governor Jane Dee Hull today released the state's
"Smart Energy Usage" plan to reduce energy consumption and reduce peak demand in state
facilities. Governor Hull signed an executive order asking state employees to take a
number of steps to lessen energy use, including turning off computers and lights when not in use.
The North American Electric Reliability Council (NERC) has released its 2001
Summer Assessment. NERC anticipates that California will experience about 260 hours of blackouts this summer, much higher than state estimates.
NERC Press Release
-- Report
During a hearing, a FERC administrative law judge said a memo
written by a El Paso Natural Gas subsidiary seems to imply market abuse in
California. The FERC hearing will continue for at least a week.
The California PUC has set a tiered rate structure for the way various types
of customers will be billed for electric usage. The Commission adopted a
3-cent/kilowatt-hour (kWh) rate increase on March 27, 2001. The structure charges higher rates for those who consume a higher amount over their
"baseline" rate.
Governor Davis sends letter to FERC urging the Commissioners not to release
Qualified Facilities from long-term contracts.
May 14
As energy costs head skyward, office building managers from California to New York are scrambling to
conserve. They're shutting off lights and elevators, turning down air conditioners, and asking tenants to use
energy- efficient laptop computers and turn off coffee makers and photocopiers at night.
May 12
Southern California air quality officials Friday approved sweeping reforms of their most ambitious anti-smog program to avoid constraining electricity production during an upcoming summer of predicted
blackouts.
President Bush speaks about energy conservation in his radio address to the
nation.
May 11
The Bonneville Power Administration is urging the White House to
increase its authority to borrow from the federal Treasury by $2 billion to build new electricity lines and improve power-generating
facilities.
Governor Judy Martz announced she has created an
interdepartmental task force to facilitate joint actions by state agencies relating to the development of energy projects in
Montana. The Interagency Energy Development Task Force was established by Executive Order
7-01.
There is a new report available from the Washington State Office of Trade
and Economic Development. "Convergence: Natural Gas and Electricity in Washington
A Survey of the Pacific Northwest Natural Gas Industry on the Eve of a New Era in Electric
Generation"
May 10
Governor Gray Davis today announced the licensing approval of 545 megawatts at two California power
plants: a 450-megawatt power plant retooling project in Huntington Beach and a 95-megawatt summer reliability project in Hanford.
H Power Corp. has announced plans to market a residential fuel cell system
in California.
May 9
Western Governors today recommended
several actions that should be initiated to relieve congestion in the region’s
electricity transmission system and to streamline decision-making to meet
future needs as more power comes online.
Nevada Governor Guinn announced a statewide energy conservation plan.
He said information on how to cut electric costs is now available on the state's Internet site or by calling the Public Utilities Commission.
May 8
Gov. Gary Locke today signed a trio of energy bills designed to ensure that Washington has
affordable, reliable and renewable sources of energy. Rep. Erik Poulsen, co-sponsor of HB 1859 and EHB 2247, and Sen.
Karen Fraser, sponsor of SB 6107, joined the governor for the bill signings.
The California ISO ordered rolling blackouts statewide for the second day in
a row as a heat wave continued. The blackouts were ordered at 3:00 p.m. and
utilities were requested to cut load by 400 MW.
Calif. landlords and janitors announced a plan Monday to
cut electricity use in major office buildings by 10%
statewide. Calling it the "largest commercial partnership ever for conservation," Gov. Gray Davis hailed the Lights Out plan as part of an overall statewide effort to reduce the threat of blackouts this summer.
The state of Washington formally urged the Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission (FERC) to act quickly to stabilize the West Coast's wholesale electricity
market, Gov. Gary Locke announced.
May 7
Governor Gray Davis today unveiled a new Web site designed to help consumers, businesses, manufacturers, farmers, cities and counties make
use of energy rebates and other programs that will help the state reduce electricity use by 5000 megawatts this summer.
The California ISO called
a Stage 2 alert today. There are 12,500 MW offline in the state and temperatures are expected to climb into the 90s. In addition a
heat wave in Southwest states will limit imports from that region.
A wind power generation facility is proposed for the Blackfeet Indian
Reservation in Montana. Power from the 36 to 66 MW wind farm would be sold
to BPA.
FERC approves El Paso Natural Gas' plan to convert oil pipeline to carry
natural gas. The 785 mile pipeline runs from Texas to the Arizona/
California border. It will provide an additional 230 million cubic feet of natural gas per day.
DOE scientists found many ways U.S. could save
energy.
FERC's April 25 order limiting electricity prices in California during an
emergency, also announced an investigation into prices charged by power generators in the other Western states.
Calpine Corporation and Kinder Morgan Energy Partners today announced an
open season on the proposed Sonoran Pipeline which would run from the San
Juan Basin in New Mexico to the California border. The companies are also exploring extending the pipeline from the California border to the San
Francisco Bay area.
The Northwest Generating Station nuclear plant will close for one month for
refueling.
BPA announces plans for a 150 MW wind farm in Washington state.
May 4
Governor Gray Davis today announced that the State has signed a
10-year, $7 billion agreement with Sempra Energy Resources, the
wholesale power-generation subsidiary of San Diego-based Sempra Energy, to supply up to 1,900 megawatts (MW) of electricity to
California.
San Diego Gas & Electric unveiled a novel plan Thursday to pay customers to fire up their backup generators when blackouts
threaten. The utility said the program could cut demand on the power grid by 50
megawatts -- enough to serve about 37,500 homes -- allowing it to avoid or minimize blackouts this summer in San Diego and southern Orange County.
ND Governor John Hoeven discussed new initiatives designed to help the agricultural and energy sectors of the North Dakota economy.
Great River Energy received $10 million in state funds to explore construction of its own electric
generating plant. Another $10 million was made available to Montana-Dakota Utilities
Co. for exploring the possibility of building a new power plant near Gascoyne, North Dakota. Both Great River and
Montana Dakota must match the state money with their own investment.
DOE prepares an action plan that calls on federal facilities in California
to take additional steps to reduce energy use particularly during peak hours.
May 3
President Bush's news conference announcing energy
conservation actions in California. President Bush issues directive to federal agencies to save
energy.
California Governor Davis invites power generators to meet with him on May
9.
The House Subcommittee on Energy and Air
Quality continued the hearing
on the Electricity Emergency Act.
California lieutenant governor files
lawsuit against five power companies accusing them of engaging in a
price-fixing conspiracy.
California PUC adopts 20/20 rebate program
which will provide a rebate
of 20 percent to customers who reduce their usage by at least 20% compared
to last summer.
May 2
Governor Gray Davis today announced the licensing of the fifth summer reliability power plant that has been permitted under the California Energy Commission's expedited emergency review process.
He also reported that electricity use in California was nine percent lower in April than a
year ago.
Idaho PUC approves
rate increase averaging 23%. The rate increase includes a sliding
scale that rewards residential customers who use less energy.
Duke Energy has released a proposed
three-year plan for the California energy crisis. The plan calls for an end to various state investigations, private lawsuits
and state complaints to federal authorities accusing Duke of overcharging.
In return, Duke will enter into long-term power contracts, build more power plants, and agree "to share the financial pain of the troubled market on a
fair basis with other market participants."
U.S. Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham said the Bush administration would be
reluctant to relax the federal Clean Air Act for generating facilities in California just to help boost electricity production for the power-starved state.
Wind generators will be offered along with solar systems in a grant
program offered to Montana Power Co. customers. The program is administered by the Butte-based National Center for Appropriate
Technology and pays for about one-third of the cost of the systems.
May 1
Energy Secretary forms Energy Emergency Task Force in order to coordinate
DOE responsibilities and to respond quickly to any energy emergencies that may occur this summer.
Williams Energy Marketing & Trading, an out-of-state electricity marketer, agrees to refund $8 million to
California.
The House Subcommittee on Energy and Air Quality held a hearing on the
Electricity Emergency Act, sponsored by Subcommittee Chairman Joe
Barton. Testifying were the three FERC Commissioners, Lindy Funkhouser,
Director of the Arizona Residential Utility Consumer Office, John Stout,
Senior Vice President Reliant Energy, and James Shetler, Assistant General
Manager Sacramento Municipal Utility District. View a press account of the
hearing.
Hundreds of young adults with the California Conservation Corps will take to the streets this summer, knocking on doors to
give away 1.5 million
compact fluorescent light bulbs in low-income neighborhoods across the state
along with energy-saving tips printed in at least four languages.
April 30
Wyoming Governor Geringer makes appointments to the new Wyoming
Energy Commission.
BPA agrees to promote a "green tag"
program.
In a speech to the Associated Press, Vice President Cheney outlined the
administration plan to increase energy production.
Governor Gray Davis today announced that local governments are
partnering with the State of California by committing to energy conservation in record
numbers.
April 27
California Governor Davis announces that energy use in state buildings has
been reduced by 20 percent this year.
Environmental restrictions touted as the strictest in the
nation were attached to Arizona Corporation Commissioners' unanimous
approval
Thursday of Salt River Project's power plant expansion
in the heart of Gilbert, AZ. The approval gives SRP its first and
most critical certificate of environmental compatibility to convert the
current 300-megawatt facility to a 1,125-megawatt one with three 150-foot
stacks. Construction will start in 2003, and the plant will be operating by
2005, utility officials said.
Since Jan. 1, companies have applied for 13 permits to investigate building new
hydroelectric plants on Idaho rivers. That includes
placing turbines at the existing Ririe, Blackfoot, and Mackay dams in
eastern Idaho.
The Oregon Public Utility Commission is opposing
a California proposal to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)
that would give California the ability to prohibit the export of power from
California to other Northwest states during potential shortages.
Gov. Gary Locke today extended for 60 days the energy supply alert he declared on Jan.
26. The alert: 1) Allows utilities to use diesel generators to provide more power while imposing strict environmental mitigation requirements;
2) Requires state and local governments to cut electricity and natural gas consumption by 10 percent;
and 3) Allows Tacoma Power to burn alternative fuels at its steam plant while protecting air quality.
Critism
of FERC order mounts.
April 26
BPA has received 25 proposals for wind projects that add up to about 2,600
megawatts of power in response to its request for proposals. Options
for future expansions would increase the total capacity to 4,000 megawatts.
BPA will select the most promising proposals by the end of May and then
begin contract negotiations with developers.
Senators Charles Schumer (D-NY) and Susan Collins have released a report on
America's energy crisis. The bipartisan report, titled "The Perfect
Storm: How Convergence Of Shortages In the Three Major Energy Markets –
Oil, Natural Gas and Electricity – Could Threaten the American
Economy,"
reveals
that the nation's recent energy woes may only signal the beginning of a major energy crisis if oil, natural gas and electricity demand continues to
surge.
California bill
to create a state power authority passes state Assembly.
Montana Rail Link plans to enter the power business by operating 24 parked, diesel locomotives and putting their electricity into the Montana Power Co.
system, the company said Wednesday.
The Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission yesterday approved the
Puget Sound Energy's proposal for time-of-day rates, as well as a conservation incentive program, to take effect May 1.
The time-of-day rates are voluntary for those eligible to participate.
The Montana Legislature has passed a resolution urging the federal
government to "take strong, short-term measures to reduce wholesale prices
throughout the Western region.
California Governor Davis has signed three executive orders to help increase
energy conservation and construction of new plants.
Governor
Davis comments on FERC's ruling.
April 25
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission today announced a plan
designed to bring price relief to the dysfunctional California electric
market, provide greater price certainty to buyers and sellers of electric
power, and promote conservation while encouraging investment in
generation and transmission.
FERC also accepted
as a "first step" key parts of the proposed RTO West.
Governor Gray Davis today announced that two additional summer reliability power plants have been licensed under the California Energy Commission's expedited review process.
Governor Kitzhaber releases Oregon's Recommendations for 2001 Operations of the Federal Columbia River Power System.
The Boulder City Council (Nevada) unanimously approved
two plans that
would bring extensive solar energy facilities -- to be used both
commercially and for research -- to a 3,000 acre city-owned parcel in
Eldorado Valley. The 3,000-acre energy zone is about 14 miles
southwest of city limits and within an 85,000-acre desert tortoise preserve.
Sen. Feinstein (D-CA) and Sen. Smith (R-OR) have introduced
a bill (S.764) which would require FERC to set wholesale electricity price
caps in the Western energy market until March 1, 2003. The proposal also
seeks to lower the cost of natural gas being sold in the West. The
legislation would affect California, Oregon, Washington state, Idaho,
Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, Utah, Montana, Nevada and Wyoming.
California Governor Davis announces he has
formed
The Governor's Generation Implementation Taskforce to speed construction of
new powerplants.
Governor Davis also released a released a list
of energy conservation contacts and resources for businesses.
Springfield, Oregon's municipal utility is buying five natural gas-fired generators so it won't have to buy so much high-priced electricity on the open
market. The generators, which will be running by July 1, will produce up to 9.5 megawatts of power, or about 9 percent of Springfield's average energy needs.
April 24
DOE Secretary Abraham encourages
FERC to support RTO West.
California ISO calls for conservation as temperatures
rise ... California calls Stage 2
emergency.
A handful of Phoenix-area hotels, including the Buttes in Tempe and two Holiday
Inns, are tacking on an energy surcharge of more than $2 per
night. Hotel energy surcharges surfaced late last year in California and recently spread to Las Vegas, where some casino hotels are collecting $3 per night to help keep the city's neon lights burning bright.
Mega-Energy Inc. is negotiating with the Calif. Department of Water
Resources to
build two 48-megawatt generating plants fired by natural
gas, said Greg Tropsa, the company's vice president. That's enough to
supply power to around 96,000 homes. If everything falls into place,
the two plants would be running by about Sept. 30, Tropsa said.
Five Wyoming counties are interested in forming a coalition to speed up the permitting process for building
transmission lines to carry power to Colorado. Campbell, Converse,
Niobrara, Laramie and Platte counties have said they want to join the
coalition, and Albany and Goshen counties are being asked to join, said
Campbell County Commissioner Alan Weakly. The coalition would speak with one
voice to lobby for quicker approval of lines, he said.
A proposal by Puget Sound Energy to charge its customers variable rates
depending on when they use power may have hit a legal hurdle.
An attorney for the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission (WUTC)
has concluded the program would be illegal under the terms of Puget's merger
agreement, signed in 1997.
California has spent $5.1 billion from the state budget purchasing electricity this
year, state legislators learned Monday, as the Assembly approved
legislation to boost energy supplies by speeding power plant construction.
April 23
FERC meeting on Wednesday will consider "price mitigation" during Stage 3
emergencies in California.
California Governor Davis urges the construction of more power plants in the
state.
April 20
PG&E Corp. won final approval Wednesday to build a $350 million
natural-gas fired power plant in San Diego County capable of supplying
electricity to 500,000 homes. Construction is expected to begin later this
year on the 510-megawatt Otay Mesa Generating Project, located 15 miles
southeast of San Diego near the U.S.-Mexico border. Company officials say
the plant will come online by summer 2003.
Solectron, which makes electronics for companies that outsource their
manufacturing, is among the first companies to take advantage of Calif.'s
new $25 million Cool Savings Plan. California legislators are
hoping cool roofs will soon be the craze here by offering businesses rebates
of 10 cents a square foot for roof replacement. If all commercial air
conditioned buildings in California switched to reflective roofs, it would
result in an estimated 300 megawatts to 500 megawatts of power savings at
peak usage times.
City officials are expected Tuesday to announce a program aimed at encouraging the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power 1.4 million ratepayers to conserve electricity this
summer. According to reports, the incentives will consist of customers receiving cash credits on their utility bills when they reduce their electricity use.
April 19
Gov. Kenny Guinn on Wednesday signed a bill into law repealing
deregulation, stopping the sale of Sierra Pacific's power plants and stabilizing electric
prices.
April 18
Under a plan submitted to regulators on Tuesday, residential customers within PacifiCorp's five-state territory would earn a 20 percent credit on their bills for each month they reduced electricity use by 20
percent. The program would apply to June, July, August and September, and cutbacks would be judged against energy use in the same month of 2000.
Governor Gray Davis today urged the California Energy Commission to approve construction of the Metcalf Energy Center, a proposed 600
megawatt power plant in southern San Jose. Since taking office,
Governor Davis has cut approval times for licensing new power plants in half
and licensed 13 major power plants. Seven are under construction in addition
to two peaker plants. Four are scheduled to be online this summer, three
more by next summer. Ten more are in the pipeline for the summer of 2003.
The Ninth
Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld FERC's decision to terminate the
California Power Exchange's (PX) tariff and rate schedules. The Court
also agreed that the Commission acted reasonably in giving higher priority
to prospective structural remedies over retroactive refund determinations
and supported FERC $150 per megawatt-hour breakpoint methodology.
Murray City, Utah, is rewarding customers who cut back on
their electricity this summer. The Kill-a-Watt
Dragon program program, if users cut down on power usage in at least four of their bills from May through September, compared with the same months last year, they can get credits to their October bills. If users cut down 5 percent, they get a 10 percent reward for each goal-achieved month's power-related charges. If energy use is down by 10 percent, customers get 20 percent off each goal-achieved month's charges.
April 17
Plans to increase the capacity of the state's natural gas pipelines are
stumbling over a six-year-old tax that industry leaders and experts say could worsen California's critical electricity
shortage.
Electricity traders and market analysts said the cost per megawatt hour for Northwest power bought in advance for August is more than $500 per megawatt hour.
That's about 45 percent higher than prices for May
delivery and about 15 times higher than comparable prices in August of
1999, before California's energy crisis began spreading into Oregon and other Western states.
Officials from Reliant Energy Inc. have been meeting with western state
officials to pitch a solution for this summer's energy shortages. The electricity and natural gas marketer
wants to allow large industries to sell their unused power to any other company in the
West. For example, a Utah company could close during peak energy consumption hours and sell power it already had contracted for to a company in
Arizona.
April 16
The State of Nevada
has released its Energy Conservation Plan (NECP) for State
government. The Plan establishes guidance for State agencies in
planning for energy conservation and future energy requirements.
A
proposed 760-megawatt power plant on the Moapa Paiute reservation, 45 miles
northeast of Las Vegas, has cleared its first major hurdle.
Governor Gray Davis today named S. David Freeman as his chief energy advisor to lead the drive to implement energy conservation programs he signed into law last
week. Freeman will work with businesses, local governments, and citizens to direct the "20/20" program that offers
consumers 20 percent off their summer electric bills if they cut their electricity use by 20 percent from June through September. He also will lead the Governor's efforts to coordinate the implementation of an historic $850 million
initiative to promote aggressive conservation this summer and beyond. The new laws include programs to promote energy-efficient household appliances; high efficiency lighting in commercial buildings; and agricultural energy efficiency programs.
Officials in San Jose, Calif., this month approved construction of the
world's largest Internet server farm, a 2.2-million-square-foot behemoth
that will consume enough electricity to light 250,000 Silicon Valley homes.
The trade-off: The facility's owner,
US DataPort, had to
agree to build a 250-megawatt generating plant to power the project.
April 13
Msla Trust, working with Enron Wind Corp., has offered to provide
Montana with 200 to 500 megawatts of wind power at a cost of less than $30 a megawatt hour
under certain conditions.
Independent task force urges new conservation
measures. Report presented to White House Energy Policy Development Group headed by Vice President Dick
Cheney.
The Department of Energy keeps new rules for energy efficient clothes
washers and water heaters.
A bill designed to promote construction of power generation on Montana Indian reservations won House endorsement Thursday and may be on its
way to the governor's desk. House Bill 643, endorsed by tribal
leaders, would exempt power plants on reservations from the Wholesale Energy Transmission tax if the facility makes a deal to employ local tribal members and to sell 33 percent of the power to Montana consumers at regulated rates.
April 12
Governor Gray Davis announced the licensing of a power plant in Kings County
and the receipt of an application for a summer reliability power plant to be
located at the same site. At its April 11 meeting, the California Energy
Commission
approved
the Hanford Energy Park Project, a 99-megawatt natural gas-fired, combined
cycle electricity generating facility proposed by the GWF Power Systems.
California energy expert warns prices could explode this
summer.
New solar generators recently installed in Glendale, Gilbert and
Prescott, along with units installed in recent years in Flagstaff, Yuma and
Scottsdale,
brings
Arizona Public Service's solar generating capacity to about 1 megawatt.
That's still only a fraction of the energy produced by conventional power
plants, but APS plans to double its solar production by year's end.
A pair of joint Senate-House conference committees in Montana will take up 10 or 12 bills that have passed both chambers in various forms and
turn them into an energy plan to protect Montanans from high electricity prices and to help secure affordable power for
industries.
Two Las Vegas resorts are betting customers will pay a room surcharge to help them meet spiraling energy costs.
Harrah's International Inc. added a $3-per-night charge for customers at the 2,600-room Harrah's Las Vegas hotel, as did the Rio hotel-casino, with 2,550
suites.
The Washington State Utilities and Transportation Commission refused yesterday to
allow Puget Sound Energy to immediately start charging different electrical rates at different times of the
day. Commissioners said the proposed "time-of-use" rate structure saddles customers with too much financial burden while reserving benefits for the company and its shareholders.
April 11
Transalta has begun construction of a 248-megawatt (MW), natural
gas-fired combined-cycle power plant in Washington. The new plant will
be located next to Transalta's coal-fired Centralia plant.
TransCanada has also announced plans to build the Bear Creek Cogeneration
Project, an 80 megawatt (MW) natural gas-fired cogeneration power plant near
Grande Prairie, Alberta.
California Governor Davis signs energy conservation
legislation. The bill provides over $500 million in conservation initiatives and incentives and
also includes $105 million for renewable and other clean distributed generation projects.
April 10
Governor Locke attended the groundbreaking ceremony for the
new
TransAlta
gas-fired power plant near Centralia, Washington. The 248-megawatt
combustion turbine facility will provide enough power to service most of the
homes in Lewis and Thurston counties combined. When Locke signed
legislation in 1997 to keep the Centralia power plant and mine in operation,
the centerpiece of that bill provided tax incentives for installing
equipment to reduce sulfur dioxide emissions by 90 percent.
FERC is meeting today with officials from 11 Western states to discuss ways
to
contain
electricity shortages this summer. Governor
Kempthorne offers opening remarks.
California
again asks FERC to impose price caps.
The skyrocketing price of natural
gas is sparking renewed national interest in coal.
Although California's small, coal-fired power plants account for less than 1 percent of its electricity production, about 20 percent of the state's total power comes from coal-burning plants, mostly elsewhere in the West.
Governor Gray Davis today announced an agreement between the
Department of Water Resources, Southern California Edison, and Edison
International. The utility has agreed to a $2.76 billion deal allowing the state to buy its transmission lines.
In exchange the state's second-largest utility also agreed to a 10-year deal to provide low-cost power to customers.
BPA
warns its rates could rise 250 percent. Conservation needed now.
Questar Pipeline has secured customers for proposed natural gas pipeline
from New Mexico to California border.
Pacificorp's
offer to pay Utah farmers not to irrigate their fields as part of an
energy-conservation effort this year came too little and too late, the Utah
Farm Bureau said. Representatives of Pacificorp, the parent
company of Utah Power, met with Farm Bureau members Friday to lay out the
utility's offer to pay 10 cents a kilowatt hour to farmers who skip
irrigating their fields because of the electricity shortage, a bureau
spokeswoman said.
North American Power Group announced it has filed an application with the Wyoming Department of
Environmental Quality for permission to build a new 500 megawatt coal-fired power plant
next to Kennecott Energy Co.'s Cordero Rojo Complex mine south of Gillette.
Denver-based NAPG expects its new 500 megawatt power plant to be in
production by early 2005.
April 9
California ISO declares a Stage 2 emergency.
In a recent filing with Colorado regulators, Xcel Energy the state's largest
utility proposes to let customers decide how their natural gas is
purchased. Under the plan, ratepayers could choose either to gamble on price swings in the gas market or lock into a specific price - a more predictable, conservative approach.
A Houston company plans to build two new power plants near Las Vegas,
Nevada. Reliant Energy Inc. executives said they will spend $500
million to build two new natural gas fired plants near Primm, Nev., 43 miles
south of Las Vegas near the California state line. One plant will be a
310-megawatt peaking facility to provide power during the summer months and
the second will be a 575-megawatt, combined-cycle facility for year-round
power generation.
Seattle City Light planners underestimated consumer interest in
free light bulbs that save energy.
The deal: a pair of spiral-designed compact
fluorescent bulbs at no cost to all residential customers. The reaction: Instead of the 30 percent that planners estimated, 41 percent are saying yes.
Secretary of Energy Abraham releases the FY 2002 budget request for the Department of Energy.
Press
release -- Secretary's Comments
-- Supporting documentation
April 6
California Governor Davis addressed the State on the energy crisis. He
called on consumers to
cut
electricity usage by at least ten percent for the summer, outlined a more
moderate plan for rate increases than what the PUC proposed, and noted that
12 major power plants have been approved for construction with ten more
still going through the process. He also said that the state would help
restore the two major utilities to financial stability, if they agree to
three conditions.
Nine Western Governors send a letter to FERC Chairman
Hebert opposing price caps on electricity
rates.
FERC approves request to increase capacity on Kern River pipeline
into
California.
Pacific Gas & Electric files for
bankruptcy.
The Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission has approved a
settlement between Puget Sound Energy and its largest industrial
customers. The twelve
customers will now have the choice of generating their own power or
obtaining supplies from sources other than PSE.
April 5
Portland General Electric is including coupons to purchase high-efficiency
compact fluorescent light bulbs.
Congressional Republicans are drafting an emergency bill to help the West cope with a summer of predicted electricity
turmoil, offering such possible measures as aid to ease a notorious bottleneck in the California
transmission system and directing federal disaster officials
to prepare for power outages.
California State Treasurer says more information is needed on what
California is paying for power before he can start to sell bonds to finance purchases
of electricity.
Gov. Kenny Guinn today will detail plans for new power plant construction in
Nevada, the result of a streamlined permitting process that is part of his Nevada Energy Protection Plan.
A St. George, Utah, company is on the last leg of a decade-long project that could put a hydroelectric power plant on Blue Diamond Hill on the western outskirts of Las
Vegas.
April 4
BPA and northwest utilities are mailing coupons to purchase energy efficient
compact fluorescent light bulbs.
Soon Energy Northwest (formerly WPPSS), the Bonneville Power Administration
and other regional leaders will begin to examine the feasibility of completing
Washington Nuclear Plant-1. Construction of this commercial
nuclear power plant was suspended by the Washington Public Power Supply
System 1982 after it became economically untenable to continue, but the
plant has been preserved since that time.
Governor Gray Davis today announced that the
first two peaker plants have been licensed under the California Energy
Commission's expedited review process. The two power plants, located in
Palm Springs and San Diego, will provide electricity at peak use times this
summer.
The Bush Administration is taking a look at appliance energy efficiency
standards enacted at the end of the Clinton Administration to determine if they should be rolled back.
California Governor Davis acknowledges state
will fall short of needed new generation this summer. May and June will
be critical months.
The Bonneville Power Administration chose power
generation over helping juvenile salmon yesterday, saying it will save water for a two-week period rather than
spilling it over Columbia River dams.
April 3
Arizona Public Service
is scheduled to dedicate three new solar facilities this week. The new solar plants will bring the amount of solar energy produced by the utility to nearly one megawatt.
Texas agency believes that state government would save $100,000 a day -- or $36.5 million a year -- if managers retrofit their buildings with the latest energy-saving
materials and technology.
Governor Mike Leavitt today announced the formation of a consolidated state Energy Office to be housed in the
Department of Natural Resources. The move will better link the programs administered by the Office of Energy
Services with the policy aspects of the Office of Energy and Resource Planning.
In addition, an advisory
council is being formed to develop a strategic plan to address the state's energy issues, including streamlining the regulatory permitting process.
The energy crisis that erupted in California last summer and sent electricity and natural gas prices skyward throughout the West is slowly squeezing Utah's economy
April 2
Despite soaring prices for electricity, the big hotel-casinos don't plan to reduce their dazzling wattage outside. But
they are cutting energy use
indoors.
Windstorm knocks down power lines adding to California power woes. ISO
calls Stage 2 power alert.
March 30
The California ISO has issued its Summer
Energy Assessment.
The California ISO called a Stage 2 emergency for today as supplies remain
low. The ISO notes that more than 3,000 MW from qualifying facilities
remains offline due to lack of payment, there is 11,500 MW of generation
offline due to maintenance or breakdowns, and there is 700 MW of windpower
that is not available.
Part of the problem is due to a fire at the Mohave 1 plant
on Wednesday. It is too early to tell when the 790 MW coal-fired plant in
southern Nevada may return to service.
A report from the California Energy Commission recommends an emergency,
five-year approval of the proposed Huntington Beach Generating Station Retool
Project, providing certain conditions are met. The plant was closed down
in 1995. A vote on the proposal by the CEC will be on April 18.
Gov. Judy Martz today ordered all state agencies to incorporate conservation strategies in the operations of their
buildings, and set a ten percent reduction in electricity as their goal.
The fourteen energy conservation strategies included in the Governor's executive order include reviewing all main heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning systems for efficient operations, setting guidelines for work area temperatures, and turning off all non-essential lighting.
Major across-the-board rate increases for California energy users will not have a huge impact on travel to Las
Vegas, according to a Thursday report from the
investment banking firm of Merrill Lynch.
Utah could benefit from Calif. power woes.
Some officials say higher costs on West Coast means ready power for surrounding states.
An end to the cheap electricity that made the Pacific Northwest the center of
the nation's aluminum making for more than a half-century may signal the
demise of one of the region's bellwether industries, some analysts say.
Alcoa Inc., Kaiser Aluminum Corp. and other companies are closing plants in the region because of rising costs.
Fines or no fines, NW must conserve. 'Hot tub police' aren't
needed yet, but electricity hogs need to clean up their act.
California
leads a forced march on conservation. High tech and low tech
solutions being examined to conserve electricity.
North America's creaky power grid needs a major overhaul
after failing to keep up with a dramatic increase in the amount of electricity clogging the
over- stressed system, industry analysts say.
California legislature
debates bills aimed at energy conservation. Lawmakers propose everything from loans for schools to free insulation in bid to reduce consumption this summer.
March 29
On March 29, the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission provided
FERC with comments on part of the Commission's March 14, 2001 order
governing the western electricity market. The UTC noted that FERC's
proposal to allow retail customers to sell electricity serving their load into the wholesale electricity market violates state and federal law.
FERC has ordered hearings into allegations by the California PUC that El
Paso Corp. conspired to use its market power to drive up natural gas prices
in California.
Faced with the largest electricity rate increase in state history and the certainty of ''rolling blackouts'' when air conditioners crank up this summer,
Silicon Valley firms are pulling out the stops to conserve
energy.
Colorado has enough electric power to keep
lights on and air conditioners running this summer, but the state is only a downed mainline or broken turbine away from California-style blackouts, energy officials warned Wednesday at a
summit called by Governor Owens.
Schools and other big employers across Ventura County,
California say they had begun considering ways to conserve energy--ranging from turning out the lights to
switching to an alternative energy source--but said that Tuesday's rate hike of as much as 46% by the Public Utilities Commission is prodding them to act quickly.
Washington State utility regulators will be taking a close look at a proposal by Puget Sound Energy to
charge customers more for power consumed during hours of peak
use. Customers would pay nearly four times the price for electricity between 5 and 9 p.m. The cheapest price would be on Sundays, holidays and between 9 p.m. and 6 a.m.
Bright lights, big bills dim Las Vegas casino profits.
The Northwest will make it through the summer and fall without electricity
shortages only if it uses Columbia and Snake river water to drive turbines instead of using it to save
salmon, according to the Northwest Power Planning
Council.
A Nevada Senate panel today likely will vote on a bill prohibiting Sierra Pacific Resources
from selling its nine plants to out-of-state companies for two
years. Also this morning, the state Public Utilities Commission,
partly at lawmakers’ urging, will consider suspending the approved sale of
Nevada Power Co.’s stake in the Mohave plant in southern Nevada.
March 28
Oregon Governor Kitzhaber has announced an energy conservation and
facility-siting package. The package would both direct energy conservation
investments in state and public buildings and change energy facility siting processes to allow for quicker construction of new temporary and permanent
power plants.
Los Angeles Department of Water and Power is offering incentives for two
programs to increase the efficiency of air conditioning systems. LADWP will
fund about half the cost for servicing a residential or commercial air conditioning system and will cover the cost difference
between a conventional air conditioner and a super energy efficient unit.
The Northwest Power Planning Council is calling for additional conservation
measures, temporary emergency generation, and demand exchange programs as
the region faces the driest year on record. Reducing spill over the dams, which is necessary to protect endangered fish, is also very likely this
summer. The Council will discuss these and other options at its April 4 meeting in Boise, Idaho.
Colorado Governor Owens calls an electricity summit and issues principles to
correct what he called "a decade of under-investment in our electric power capacity."
The governor wants to start building new generation and transmission facilities and develop natural gas and fuel resources, at the same time encouraging efficient use, protecting air quality and helping low-income people who have trouble paying their utility bills.
California is holding its second "energy fair"
to encourage development of peaker plants.
March 27
California ISO called a Stage 2 emergency as supplies of imported power
drop.
Governor
Owens releases energy policy.
The California PUC approved programs to provide incentives for installing
clean distributed generation and to conserve energy.
To create a pool of reasonably priced, reliable power for beleaguered Montana industries that use large amounts of electricity,
NorthWestern Corporation
today joined with Governor Judy Martz in proposing the construction of a 240-megawatt electric generation facility which would
devote a significant majority of its potential output to Montana industrials at cost.
President Bush has nominated two state PUC commissioners to the Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission: Nora Mead Brownell, who is presently a Commissioner on the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission; and Patrick
Henry Wood III, who is currently the Chairman of the Public Utility Commission of Texas.
In a 5-0 vote, the California Public Utilities Commission has approved
electricity rate increases of up to 46 percent in order to try to head off
blackouts this summer and keep the state's two biggest utilities from going bankrupt.
The California PUC also approved a plan to ensure that small generators in
the state are paid. Under the plan, the state's two biggest utilities will
have to make payments to the generators -- known as qualifying facilities or
QFs -- within 15 days of receiving an invoice, taking effect immediately.
Last week close to 3,000 MW of QF power was shut down due to non-payment which helped caused the rolling blackouts of Monday and Tuesday. There is
more than $1.5 billion owed to the owners of most of California's 680 small power plants.
An emergency western electric power plan has been drafted by western
congressmen and sent to the White House.
In a compliance filing with FERC, Duke Energy said it would offer to drop
$19.8 million in so-called "credit premiums," but only if it receives payment from
California. FERC has said that charges above $273 per megawatt hour for power supplied in January and $430 per megawatt hour in February
during the Stage 3 alerts are the highest rates that any supplier could charge without triggering
suspicion of gouging. A Duke spokesman said the utility has not been paid for the two months and called the additional
charges "credit premiums" -- typical fees within the industry. Suppliers often charge customers more if they have bad credit or suspect they will be
unable to pay, Duke Energy said.
On March 27, the Montana Public Service Commission formally
adopted its assertion of continuing jurisdiction over Montana Power Company,
including the generation assets MPC sold to PPL Montana, as a regulated
public utility under existing state laws.
March 26
PacifiCorp has filed for a power cost adjustment that would result in a 24
percent rate increase in Oregon. If approved by the Oregon Public Utility
Commission, the rate would go into effect in May.
The head of the California Public Utilities Commission has proposed a 40
percent increase in electricity rates. The proposal is on the March 27 agenda of the
Commission.
March 23
BPA has agreed to build a new a 230-kilovolt terminal in
Washington by January 2002 so electric power from Goldendale Energy Project's proposed
248-megawatt gas-fired combustion turbine will be connected to the Northwest
energy grid.
Pacific Gas and Electric will offer rebates for energy efficient
light bulbs, refrigerators, clothes washers and dishwashers. The company has also
launched a customer education campaign to make
customers aware of the urgent need for energy conservation and the likelihood of power outages
throughout California in the coming months.
A new
249 MW coal plant is proposed for north west Washington State. The plant
would be built by U.S. Electric Power of Point Lookout, N.Y. The size of the
plant puts it just under the requirement for review by the state Energy
Facility Site Evaluation Council, which recently turned down a larger
natural gas plant due to pollution concerns. The coal plant will use
ultralow sulfur coal from British Columbia, and use stack scrubbers and
other technology to make the coal plant at least as clean as a
natural-gas-fired plant, sponsors said. There will also be a partial offset
of carbon-dioxide emissions - the major cause of global warming - through
reforestation of land in northwestern Washington.
March 22
A California state judge has ruled
that CalEnergy, a small geothermal energy company, cannot be forced to
continue selling electricity to Southern California Edison.
California Governor Davis has announced the licensing of three new
powerplants. The three plants will provide 2076 MW of power when they start
to come on line in late 2002.
New Mexico has delayed electric restructuring for five
years.
Williams has announced an expansion of its Kern River natural gas
pipeline. The expansion will more than double the amount of natural gas transported on
the 926-mile pipeline system and will provide 900 million cubic feet per day
of additional transportation capacity from Wyoming to California by May of 2003.
According to a report prepared for the California ISO, electricity
wholesalers overcharged state consumers more than $6 billion since last May.
Lawrence Livermore Lab tests device that would shut down
appliances that
draw the most power, such as air conditioners, but leave lights on during
rolling blackouts.
The House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Energy and Air Quality
continued its hearing on the California electricity
market.
Senator Bingaman (D-NM) and 15 cosponsors have introduced S.597, a bill "to
provide for a comprehensive and balanced national energy policy."
Mr Bingaman also introduced S. 596, the "Energy Security and Tax Incentive
Policy Act of 2001."
March 21
The Oregon Public Utility Commission today approved new energy portfolio options that will be available to residential and small nonresidential customers of Portland General Electric
(PGE) and PacifiCorp this fall. The portfolio includes incentives to create new sources of energy, maintains traditional cost-of-service rates, and will offer consumers more choices and options than they have ever had before.
Calpine Corporation has acquired the development rights from Enron North
America for the 750-megawatt natural gas-fired Pastoria Energy Center planned for Kern County, Calif. The project was licensed by the California
Energy Commission in December 2000 and is expected to begin construction this summer. Energy deliveries are scheduled to begin by summer
2003.
The Senate Energy Committee held a hearing on current U.S. energy trends and
recent changes in energy markets.
March 20
Three FERC commissioners testified on the California electricity market
before the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Energy and Air Quality.
Governor Gray Davis today announced that the California Energy Commission has
signed 12 grants and contracts totaling almost $9.2 million to install "energy
smart" technology in commercial and industrial buildings throughout the state.
The Montana PSC announced it is holding a hearing on March 24 on its finding
that it retains
jurisdiction over power plants that Montana Power Company sold to PPL
Montana as part of the state’s electric industry restructuring initiative.
President
Bush discusses energy issues after holding a meeting with the National
Energy Policy Development Group.
California
ISO orders rolling blackouts for second day in a row.
Warm
temperatures, reduced imports from the Pacific Northwest, and a large number
of plants offline for repairs lead to another round of blackouts.
Montana Gov. Judy Martz said Friday she will tell state agencies to reduce their use of
power and will request conservation by all Montanans to help deal with the energy crisis in the
state. Martz said she hopes for a reduction of 7 percent to 10 percent in power use by state government.
March 19
Rolling blackouts affected all of California as a powerplant went offline
after a transformer fire. The California ISO called a Stage 3 alert at noon.
See also California Independent Systems Operator press release.
Energy Secretary Abraham delivered a speech on the energy crisis at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce "National Energy Summit." There is a
summary available
or the full text of the
speech.
Utah Power is offering to pay its irrigation customers to shut off their pumps
during the upcoming irrigation season as a way to save on electricity use.
Portland
Oregonian publishes Seattle City Light's list of top 10 residential and
commercial users of electricity in effort to spur conservation.
Nevada's major casinos are planning to cut power usage by 20 percent in light of the power crisis plaguing the western United States.
Remarks by U.S. Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham U.S. Chamber of Commerce, National Energy Summit March 19, 2001.
Calpine Corporation has signed an agreement with Excel Energy of Colorado to provide 336 MW of peaking power. Calpine's subsidiary will build a new
natural gas power plant east of Denver, Colorado. Construction will begin in the summer of 2002 and commercial operation will begin in 2003.
March 16
FERC will convene a conference on April
6 to consult with state
commissioners and other state representatives from western states regarding the ongoing western electricity crisis.
FERC has issued a notice of proxy prices for February wholesale electricity transactions in California of $430 per megawatthour (about 20 times higher
that prices in the Eastern Interconnection). The proxy prices would result
in refunds of $55 million.
The California Public Utilities Commission
has adopted a draft
decision on improvements to the interruptible tariffs and rotating outage
programs of Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E), Southern
California Edison Company (SCE), and San Diego Gas & Electric Company (SDG&E).
March 15
Bush Administration Offers Opinion On California Proposed Power Grid
Purchase
Mindful of the regional energy woes that brought rolling blackouts to California, the
Washington State Senate yesterday passed a bill that would
allow companies to more easily build power generators.
The California state Senate is launching an investigation into whether electric power companies illegally manipulated California's electricity
market. Senate leader John Burton announced the formation of the select special committee
Wednesday. Burton said the committee will ask executives of energy wholesalers to testify, and subpoena them if necessary. The
power wholesalers have denied any wrongdoing and noted that previous investigations have not
found illegal activity. The California ISO has said the suppliers imposed $555 million in unreasonable charges in December and
January.
The California Public Utilities Commission
has stopped
PG&E and Southern California Edison from cutting costs by laying off
employees involved with service and reliability.
March 14
FERC issued an order "Removing Removing Obstacles to Increased Electric
Generation and Natural Gas Supply in the Western United States and Requesting Comments on Further Actions to Increase Energy Supply and
Decrease Energy Consumption with Dissenting Statement by Commissioner Massey."
The order references the recommendations western governors presented to Vice President Cheney on February 27.
FERC has issued a order to AES and Williams "to explain why the power
marketing companies should not be found to have violated the Federal Power Act by
engaging in actions that inflated electric power prices in the California market and
potentially compromising the reliability of the transmission network." The investigation centers on the unavailability of certain so-called must run
generating units owned by AES Southland, Inc.
Washington Governor Locke announces statewide drought emergency
which will impact hydroelectric generation.
March 13
California Governor Davis has announced a program to provide a 20 percent
rebate to customers who cut their electricity consumption this summer. The
program could result in saving up to 2,200 megawatts during the summer peak period, the governor said. Ratepayers will receive a 20 percent percent
rebate on their summer electric bill if they cut back their electricity use by 20 percent
over last summer's levels. The voluntary program is designed to cover all households and businesses in California.
Washington Governor Locke takes another step in energy
conservation
campaign.
President Bush explains his view on global climate change in a letter to
Senators Hagel, Helms, Craig, and Roberts.
A California Energy Commission committee
has recommended
approval of the 510 MW Otay Mesa natural gas plant to be located near San
Diego. The project plans to use dry cooling technology to reduce the
consumption of potable water, and would use the best available control
technology to reduce air emissions to insignificant levels. The project will
also implement an innovative program of air emission offsets.
March 12
Governors Davis (CA), Lock (WA) and Kitzhaber (OR) have requested a
temporary price cap on the cost of power charged by generators in the western
states. In a letter to FERC, the three governors suggested a "cost-based" price cap for power purchased in the spot market. Under the
proposal, generators would be allowed to recover all of their costs and provide a small level of profit of approximately
$25/Mwh.
March 9
FERC ordered 13 California power producers to either make refunds for
certain power sales or provide further justification of their prices. Total potential refunds or offsets in the ISO and PX markets are approximately
$69 million for January 2001 transactions.
March 8
Governor
Geringer and Governor
Martz testify before the House Resources Committee on the role of public
lands in a secure energy future.
Governor Locke
promotes wind power.
March 7
Governor Davis releases implementation
plan for executive order requiring business to conserve energy by reducing their
after-hours outdoor lighting.
The Bonneville Power Administration has signed an agreement with McCook metals to
reduce output at the Longview aluminum smelter for the next 16
months and sell the power to BPA. The 420 MW of power will be sold to BPA at less than half the current market price. McCook will use the proceeds to
provide salary and benefits to the employees during the curtailment.
Washington Governor Locke has announced several new power plants that will
be built in the state and agreements that will help reduce air pollution.
The California Energy Commission approved
the United Golden Gate Power Project, a 51-megawatt simple cycle power plant
proposed for construction at the San Francisco International Airport in San
Mateo County.
March 6
Arizona Governor Hull has issued an executive order requiring that all new
schools in Arizona "incorporate energy saving devices into their major repair and construction projects." The School Facilities Board, which
oversees the Students FIRST school construction and repair program, immediately approved the new guideline endorsing efficient energy
management. The state expects to spend about $1.7 billion to bring Arizona's 1,220 schools up to standard. The executive order is the
Governor's first step in enacting the energy conservation agreement signed with other western governors.
March 5
California Governor Davis has announce the signing of 40 long-term power
contracts between the Department of Water Resources (DWR) and power generators. The contracts will supply an average of 8,886 MW per year over
the next 10 years. For the first five years, the average price is $79/MWh - approximately 75 percent below the recent spot market prices. For the
second five years, the average price drops to $61/MWh - about 80 percent below recent spot market prices.
California has reduced its energy demand by eight
percent. According to the California Energy Commission, state businesses and residents reduced
electricity demand by 2,578 megawatts in February.
March 2
The Arizona Corporation Commission adopted an Environmental Portfolio
Standard and Environmental Portfolio Surcharge in early February. The Environmental Portfolio Standard requires regulated utilities to
generate a minimum of 0.2 percent of their total retail energy sales from renewable sources in 2001. The percentage will increase each year to 1
percent in 2005 and top out at 1.1 percent in 2007. The Environmental Portfolio Surcharge will be $0.000875 per kilowatt-hour. For the full text
of the order, see the ACC's "Environmental Portfolio Standard Developments" Web page at:
http://www.cc.state.az.us/utility/electric/environmental.htm.
March 1
As part of the budget President Bush announced on Tuesday, there is some funding for initiatives in advance of development of a Comprehensive Energy
Policy. These include increased funding for the Weatherization Assistance Program, tax credits for domestic solar and extending tax credits for
electricity produced from other renewable resources, opening part of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas leasing and using the
proceeds to fund increased research on solar and renewable resources, and redirecting coal research to
focus on reducing the environmental impact of using coal.
The Colorado Public Utilities Commission has ordered Xcell Energy to add a
wind farm to its energy mix based on the economics of wind power. This is the first time the PUC
has determined that a wind-energy project makes sense based on economics alone. Smaller projects have been marketed by Xcell as part of a "green power"
program and consumers agree to pay a premium. The PUC approved the utility's plan to contract with five natural gas fired plants to add 1,270 MW but also
directed the company to contract with the 162 MW wind plant.
The House Commerce Committee Subcommittee on Energy and Air Quality held a
hearing on a National Energy Policy on February 28. The hearing focused on natural gas issues.
February 28
In Wyoming there are two bills dealing with the energy crisis that have recently been signed into law by Governor Geringer. The first bill
establishes a net metering program in the
state.
The second bill establishes a Wyoming Energy Commission to develop a
comprehensive state energy policy. Some of the other duties assigned to the Commission include: examining and making recommendations on streamlining
facility siting; reviewing, and where appropriate make recommendations on streamlining state rules and regulations relating to energy development
projects, while protecting Wyoming's environment; examining additional transmission line corridors; developing and promoting the maximum use of
cost effective conservation and renewable energy resources; supporting the development of a centralized grid-wide database; and supporting regional
assessments of gas supplies and transmission.
February 27
Constellation Energy Group of Baltimore will begin construction in April of
the 750-megawatt High Desert natural gas-fired power plant near Victorville in southern California. The $350 million High Desert project, is expected to
begin producing power in June 2003.
February 26
The Los Angeles Times reports that much of the West is as short of power as
California as population increased with neither new electric power plants nor conservation to meet the resulting demand. Now, western states want to
keep the power that was built to supply California's needs at home.
The Supreme Court has agreed to hear lawsuits challenging FERC's open
access transmission rule issued in 1996. The Court will hear arguments by nine
state power commissions (including Idaho, Washington and Wyoming) that say the rules go too far, as well as Enron Power Marketing Inc.'s argument that
they do not go far enough.
Data from the Department of Energy and the California Energy Commission show that
California ranks 47th in per-capita energy use and 49th in electricity
use. The state's per-capita electricity use is only 60 percent of the national
average. While the mild climate and less heavy industry than other states are part of the reason, California has also led the nation in
adopting energy efficiency measures.
Black Hills Energy Capital has announced plans to build a 500 MW coal-fired
power plant near Gillett, Wyoming. The plant would be an independent power facility and power would be sold on the wholesale market. The project,
which could be operational in 2005, is contingent upon three primary factors: an
expedited regulatory approval timetable, the availability of adequate electric transmission access to multiple markets, and the securing
of long-term power contracts for the energy produced by the project. Black Hills is also
constructing Wygen I, an independent 90 MW coal-fired plant, which is expected to be operational in mid-2003, and another 40 MW gas-fired
unit which is expected to be operational by mid-2001.
A national shortage of natural gas turbines may impact California's plans to
have new "peaking" power plants to be up and running by July 31.
Senator Frank Murkowski (R-AK) has introduced his National Energy
Security Act of 2001. A few of the many measures in the bill include: new tax and regulatory
incentives for oil and natural gas production, including opening the Arctic wildlife refuge in Alaska to drilling; funding for clean coal technology
research and development and a tax credit of $0.0034 cents per kWh for electricity produced from clean coal technology; funding for nuclear energy
research; increasing the authorization for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program; requiring reduction of federal buildings energy use;
establishing a 10 percent investment tax credit for purchase of distributed generation; establishing tax credits for alternative fuel vehicles;
establishing a tax credit for energy efficient homes; and extending the tax credit for electricity produced from renewable resources to 2011.
February 23
The Bonneville Power Administration has issued a request for proposals for
1000 megawatts of wind power. The RFP sets a minimum of 15 average megawatts (about 40 to 60 megawatts of
nameplate capacity) for a project, but BPA is especially interested in large projects. BPA noted: "Wind projects are particularly attractive because
they can come online in a relatively short time (24 to 30 months), offer power that is competitively priced with other sources such as combustion
turbines, are relatively easy to site and expand, have low environmental impacts (including no carbon emissions) and are highly desirable to buyers
of "green" power."
Yesterday, for the first day in nearly six weeks, California lifted all
power emergency alerts. California had been under a power alert of one
level or another since January 13. The state was at Stage 3 for a 32-day
stretch that ended over the weekend. Stage 3 is the highest level of alert,
when reserves are so low that blackouts are possible.
February 22
Idaho Governor Kempthorne, acting to address the energy and water shortfall, issued an order to conserve energy in state buildings and a directive to
streamline the permitting process for bringing new generating capacity online.
Governor Kempthorne's Executive Order to conserve energy in state buildings.
Governor Kempthorne's directive to streamline siting and
permitting.
Gov. Guinn released the Nevada Energy Protection
Plan. The plan includes a wide-ranging conservation strategy, a
re-examination of utility divestiture, a plan to accelerate the construction of new power plants and
transmission lines.
Energy conservation plans have previously been announced by the Governors
of California ,
New Mexico,
Oregon ,
and Washington.
February 21
California Gov. Davis release Energy Commission report listing 32 potential
locations for the siting of "peaking" power plants to help meet the demand for electricity this summer. The report lists an initial round of sites
that have a 95 percent or better probability of being licensed under the State's emergency siting process. All sites have sufficient land to
accommodate a temporary peaking plant of 50 megawatts or more.
In Washington State, low snowpack is causing fears that there will be a severe drought this summer. BPA is working on a
plan to have farmers sell
power rather than plant crops.
A federal judge has extended his order that Reliant Energy, Williams Cos.,
AES and Dynegy continue their power sales to the California Independent System Operator through February 23.
The ISO's credit ratings have been hurt by the near bankruptcy of Pacific
Gas and Electric Co., a unit of PG&E Corp. and Edison International's Southern California Edison -- two of its biggest customers. Reliant Energy
has revealed that it is owed $370 million by the two utilities.
February 20
Washington State has issued the "2001 Biennial Energy Report: Issues and
Analyses for the Washington State Legislature."
February 16
Gov. Davis announced his recovery plan for the state's investor owned
utilities and vowed to work with the state legislature on implementing it.
The plan includes purchase of the transmission grid owned by the state's
three utilities, the extension of cost-based rates from the utilities
generating facilities from five to 10 years and a ban on their sale, and
conservation easements on utility-owned land in prime watersheds.
President Bush has directed all federal agencies to expedite federal permit
reviews in California. These actions must be "consistent with statute and ensure continued protection of public health and the environment..." the
President said.
The Bonneville Power Administration has announced a new $200-million
energy conservation and renewable resource development program. Regional utilities
that buy power from BPA and choose to participate will get a discount on their wholesale power bill if they agree to invest in conservation measures
or renewable resources. There are also other BPA conservation programs adding up to $465 million funding, including conservation augmentation,
demand exchange, and funding for the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance and other utilities to implement a region-wide compact fluorescent lamp
rebate programs this spring.
The Washington Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council has recommended that
the application to build a natural gas-fired electric generation facility in Sumas, Wash. be
denied. The Council determined, that "after careful consideration of
the state’s need for energy at a reasonable cost and the need to minimize
environmental impacts, that the environmental costs outweigh the energy benefits
that would be provided by this facility as proposed at this location."
EFSEC stated in its ruling that "Sumas Energy 2 Inc. has not shown that the
plant would produce direct energy or economic benefits to consumers or lead to
lower energy costs in Washington or in the region."
The EFSEC recommended that the permit for the Chehalis Generation Facility,
a planned natural gas-fired electrical plant, be changed so the facility
would be allowed to increase its power from 460 megawatts to 520, use air to
cool turbines rather than water, and sell its electricity on the open
market. Locke is expected to make a decision by mid-April.
February 15
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has agreed to accept part of a request
by the California Independent Systems Operator to
waive credit
requirements for the state's two troubled utilities. The ISO, citing
the companies' sinking credit ratings, said the action was needed for the
utilities to continue scheduling power deliveries through the ISO and, in turn,
to keep electricity flowing to the 24 million Californians they serve.
FERC ruled that it accepted the amendments "to the extent they allow
PG&E and SoCal Edison to continue to schedule transactions from generation
and over transmission they own to serve their own load. We deny the amendments
to the extent they allow PG&E and SoCal Edison to continue to schedule
transactions from third-party suppliers without adequate assurance of payment.
We clarify that PG&E and SoCal Edison may continue to schedule third-party
transactions if they obtain financial backing from creditworthy counterparties."
In response in part to the Governors’ Energy Policy Roundtable
recommendations, the
Nevada PUC has begun a
review of the state’s utilities’ load shedding programs.
February 14
California Gov. Davis has announced a legislative package of financial
incentives to increase the use of renewable energy, distributed generation
and co-generation.
California will relax the air pollution limits this summer so power plants
can produce more electricity. The plants will have to purchase ``offset
credits'' in order to be eligible, and will have to install state-of-the-art
pollution equipment sooner, said Winston Hickox, secretary of the California
Environmental Protection Agency. Proceeds from the purchase of offset
credits will go toward pollution abatement programs, he said.
February 12
The California Public Utilities Commission reports
that only 62 percent of Southern California Edison's so-called "interruptible customers" cut their power when they were told to. About 90
percent of Pacific Gas & Electric's interruptible customers cut their power.
Under the program, businesses earn a discount of roughly 15 percent on their power bill in exchange for curtailing use during times of peak demand.
Recently some companies have been asked to kill power for six hour stretches, sometimes three times per day. The PUC is studying changes to
the program.
February 9
California Governor Gray Davis issued five executive orders governing
expedited permitting of generation facilities, environmental restrictions
affecting generation from existing power plants, authority of the California
ISO over plant outages and operation, and establishment of an emission
reduction credit bank.
A report from the Union of Concerned Scientists claims that "supplying 10
percent of Nebraska's electricity with wind power by 2012 would create 360
more jobs, $8 million more in income, and $35 million more in gross state
product than producing the same amount of electricity from coal and natural
gas generation."
February 8
California Gov. Davis announces plan to accelerate construction of power
plants and to speed up permitting process. The governor's plan will provide
for bonus for early construction of plants, set up a State Emissions Offset
Bank and provide incentives for distributed generation and renewables.
February 7
A federal judge in Sacramento ordered a major electricity supplier to keep
selling power to California, in spite of the scheduled February 7 expiration
of a federal order requiring suppliers to do so. The Independent System Operator
sought a temporary restraining order in federal district court to force Reliant
Energy Services Inc. to keep selling power into California.
Inevitably, the court suits continue to mount in California. On February 6,
Western Gas Resources filed suit against PG&E in federal district court to
compel the utility to pay Western Gas $2.2 million it is owed for natural gas.
The gas was delivered to PG&E under a federal government emergency order
that is expiring. This is believed to be the first such suit filed by gas
producers. PG&E stopped prepaying for gas deliveries on January 8.
With the expiration of the federal order, PG&E faces a ten percent
cut in
natural gas deliveries.
February 6
Eight Western Governors sent a joint
letter to Energy Secretary Abraham following the February 2 Western
Governors’ Association Energy Policy Roundtable in Portland, Oregon.
California Governor Gray Davis announces that the first long-term power
contracts had been signed.
February 5
California governor seizes low-cost power contracts from PG&E
and
SCE
before they can be sold to recover utilities debt.
February 2
Ten western governors attending the Western Governors’ Association’s Energy
Policy Roundtable announced several recommendations for short-term and
long-term actions to remedy the immediate electricity crisis and to ensure
reliable and secure energy supplies.
A California Energy Commission committee has recommended approval of a 51
megawatt peaker project in the San Francisco area. The project is the first
accepted under the expedited review procedures directed by legislation signed in
September.
February 1
California Governor Davis has signed a bill which authorizes the California
Department of Water Resources enter into long-term contracts to purchase and
sell power.
California Governor announced an $800-million energy conservation
program, including appliance rebates, incentives to reduce commercial
lighting and a public media campaign. The Governor also announced he has signed
an executive order, in consultation with state and local law enforcement
officials, directing reductions in outdoor retail lighting by March 15, 2001.
California Gov. Davis sends letter to Senate Energy Committee
California looks to energy conservation
January 31
Senate Energy Committee holds hearing on California electricity crises
(witness information)
Chairman of Senate Energy Committee says U.S. taxpayers may be liable for
California utilities' debt. Independent audit questions PG&E debt; utility also ignored warnings that
market was in trouble
January 30
Sierra Pacific files for emergency electric rate hike for Nevada utilities
California legislature prepare to raise rates for California utilities
California exhausts emergency fund; under Stage 3 alert for 15th day
Independent audit puts SCE losses at $4.5 billion
Another gas-fired power plant proposed for Arizona
Wind farm planned in Wyoming
California wind power producers struggle on
January 29
President Bush directs his Cabinet to develop plan to deal with energy
crises
President Bush announces that Vice-President Cheney will chair energy policy
task force
California under 14th straight day of Stage 3 power alert
Low power supplies also hurting Northwest states
January 23
Energy Secretary Abraham Extends Emergency Orders to Provide Natural Gas and
Electricity to California Utilities to February 7
FERC staff will make
recommendations by March 1 on monitoring California
market
January 22
Gasoline shortage possible in California as electricity cut to pipelines
California hopes bids for long-term power will ease crises
January 19
DOE orders natural gas companies to provide gas supplies to California
California PUC in emergency session orders PG&E and SCE to continue
providing service to customers
California lawmakers OK emergency bill; Stage 3 alert extends through Friday
Abraham hearing focuses on California Power Crises
January 18
CA PUC Commissioner says state at the mercy of out of state power companies
CA senator plans to introduce bill to set regional price cap
California Gov. declares state of emergency to keep lights on
California has rolling blackouts for second day
DOE extends emergency order requiring companies to sell power to California
January 17
260 megawatt wind farm in Nevada will start to provide power by the end of
the year
California orders rolling blackouts
California Assembly passes stop-gap bill on electricity crises; SCE declares
it is bankrupt.
FERC will meet next week on California power markets
California Declares Stage 3 for second day in a row due to more than 11,000
megawatts offline.
January 16
California under Stage 3 emergency, lack of natural gas a factor
Latest news from California ISO on Stage 3
January 15
California bill will make state the purchaser of electric power supplies
January 13
California Gov. Davis announces plan to cut energy use five percent in a
week.
Gov. Davis asks for emergency aid to require natural gas producers to
continue supplying gas to PG&E
January 12
California narrowly avoided blackouts yesterday; still under power emergency
today.
DOE extends order requiring power sales to California for one week. California is required to submit to DOE a "certification of inadequate fuel
or energy supplies, and implementation of conservation measures" every
twenty-four hours until the expiration of the order.
Five western governors urge California to take action
Text of letter Governors Hull (AZ), Martz (MT), Guinn (NV), Leavitt (UT), and Geringer (WY)
wrote Governor Davis (CA) expressing the view that California acting alone cannot resolve the current electricity crisis.
January 11
PG&E will lay off 325 workers
World's largest wind farm will be built on Oregon-Washington border. Power
from the 300 megawatt project will start flowing to 11 western states by the
end of the year.
Gov. Locke's 2001 proposal for energy tax incentives
January 10
FERC chief announces resignation; says Calif power crisis goes beyond state
California calls power alert for second straight day
Progress seen in California Power Talks
January 9
Governors
from nine Western states today announced they will work together on emergency,
short-term energy conservation
measures to free up electricity supplies to avert
shortages in many states and mitigate future higher energy prices, not only
during cold snaps this winter, but also this summer and over the next few years.
The agreement was one of the five points adopted at an emergency electricity
meeting held by governors on December 20. Click here for the press
release and here for the five-point plan.
In his state-of-the-state address, California Governor Gray Davis pronounced
California's experiment in electricity deregulation "a colossal and
dangerous failure" and proposed a wide-ranging plan to repair the system,
including a variety of state controls over power plant operators and
utilities, a $250 million investment in conservation efforts and a call for
new state authority to buy and build new plants to generate power. Click here for the press release
or click here for the full text of the speech.
Gov. Locke orders state agencies to reduce energy consumption by 10 percent
Energy issues excerpt from Gov. Kempthorne's State of the State
address.
January 8
California's Electricity Crisis: Special Reports from the LA Times
Another aluminum smelter will reduce output
Court says Calfornia utilities can recover costs; trial needed
January 7
Californians Don't See Power Problem
January 6
California Gov. Davis announces ninth plant licensed and increased renewable
generation.
Southern California Edison plans to lay off 1,450 workers
January 5
Oregon Gov. Kitzhaber and
Washington Gov. Locke renew call for energy
conservation
Energy Secretary extends emergency power order for California power to
January 11; requires energy conservation
In Colorado, rates for natural gas will double
California utilities granted rate increase, but only a portion of request
California Treasurer proposes bonding to ease power crisis
Home Depot begins energy cutbacks at 80 Northwest
stores
January 4
FERC Chairman Hoecker’s
statement on the December 15 Commission Order and how to fix the California and
western power market.
January 3
California Governor calls special legislative session on energy
Aluminum smelter will sell power, revenue to benefit plant employees and
Northwest ratepayers.
California adopts new energy efficient building standards
January 2
Cutback in energy conservation programs contributed to current energy crunch
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