11/30 – Philly Inquirer asks ‘Does Choice in Electrical Providers Bring Savings?’

Posted on November 30, 2015 by Leslie Rylke

Monday, November 30th 2015

Like Pennsylvania and New Jersey, Connecticut allows competitive electricity suppliers to sell directly to residential customers, and they have barraged consumers with offers they tout will help to cut their monthly bills.

But data released recently by Connecticut’s consumer advocate show actual savings are elusive for most residential customers. The disclosure raises questions about the value of competitive electricity markets for homeowners in other states, including Pennsylvania and New Jersey, where similar price information is private.

Consumer Counsel Elin Swanson Katz said more than three-quarters of Connecticut’s residential customers who signed up with competitive suppliers paid more for power in September than if they had kept the standard regulated price offered by the state’s two utilities.

The 473,000 Connecticut customers who chose competitive suppliers paid $42 million more for power during the first 10 months of this year than they would if they had remained with their utility, Katz said. Some customers paid rates twice as high.

“The prices are not related to the market,” Katz said. “They’re mostly related to what they can get away with.”

Consumer advocates in Pennsylvania and New Jersey say the Connecticut report matches data they have glimpsed previously.

Tanya J. McCloskey, the acting director of the Pennsylvania Office of Consumer Advocate, said that data disclosed during a legal review of a PPL Utilities social program showed that up to 73 percent of the low-income customers served by competitive suppliers paid more than the utility’s basic supply rate, known as the “price to compare” in Pennsylvania.

“We did find trends that significant numbers of customers were paying significantly more than the price to compare,” she said.

11/23 – University of Delaware Researchers Working on PV Efficiency

Posted on November 24, 2015 by Leslie Rylke

Monday November 23rd 2015

From Philly.com:

Solar panels accounted for one-third of all new electricity generation installed in the United States in 2014, up from just 10 percent two years earlier.

With interest expected to keep rising, many research groups are on the hunt for ways to boost efficiency.

Among them is a team at the University of Delaware, which is developing materials to harness portions of the sun’s spectrum that in today’s conventional solar panels are largely wasted.

The key is a property of a panel’s semiconductor material called the band gap, an electronic hurdle of sorts. Light particles – photons – with enough energy to clear the bar are converted into electricity, while those with lower energy are lost mostly as heat.

The Delaware researchers believe their materials would combine the energy from two low-energy particles to make one photon with enough energy to clear the hurdle.

The research, funded by a $1 million grant from the Los Angeles-based W.M. Keck Foundation, involves using extremely thin layers of semiconductors to coax electrons to higher energy states.

“We call it the ratchet,” said Delaware’s Matt Doty, an associate professor of materials science and engineering.

It is a perennial industry guessing game to predict which of the next-generation technologies can be made cheaply enough to be worth putting on rooftops.

Solar installations benefit from an investment tax credit that is set to expire next year, though Congress is considering an extension. In an analysis this month, Deloitte Center for Energy Solutions said that true “grid parity,” defined as cost-competitiveness without subsidies, is still years away in most of the country.

But in Pennsylvania, utility-scale solar plants could be competitive with other new power-plant installations as soon as next year, because wholesale power prices here are relatively high, the analysis found.

Doty, along with Delaware colleague Joshua Zide and others, wants to push the technology even further by taking a new stab at an old idea.

Previous efforts to combine the energy from low-energy photons – a concept called photon upconversion – have resulted in poor efficiency.

The Delaware team is tackling the problem by fabricating high-purity, ultrathin films of gallium and indium compounds, deposited in precise amounts with a process called molecular beam epitaxy.

The process is carried out in a vacuum, inside a silvery machine where the pressure is less than one-trillionth that of the air on the Earth’s surface, said Zide, an associate professor of materials science and engineering at Delaware.

Numerical models suggest that solar panels made with this method and configuration of compounds could, in theory, achieve efficiencies in the high-30 percent range, Doty said. Conventional silicon-based solar panels, by comparison, are generally no more than 22 percent efficient.

But the molecular-beam method is expensive, so at the same time Delaware is experimenting with another way of combining the energy from low-energy photons that is cheaper, though not as efficient.

This parallel approach involves creating a solution of tailored nanoparticles that could be applied to the back of solar panels like paint.

The paint might boost conventional panel efficiency by 3 percentage points, to 25 percent, or more, Doty hopes.

Read more at Philly.com…

11/17 – PA. DEP Prepares to Draft Clean Power Plan Rules

Posted on November 17, 2015 by Leslie Rylke

Tuesday, November 17th 2015

From Pittsburg Tribute:

“Pennsylvania is one of just six states that has not joined either side of the legal battle over the Obama administration’s marquee regulation aimed at limiting carbon pollution from the power sector.

Don’t confuse that with inaction. After months of conducting hearings and a public comment period that ended Thursday, Pennsylvania is close to writing a first draft of its proposal to meet the requirements of the Clean Power Plan, the state’s top environmental regulator said.

“We have a lot of data that we have to look at and then in some kind of orderly way start considering these big questions,” Department of Environmental Protection Secretary John Quigley told the Tribune-Review. “I think we can be at that work pretty expeditiously, at least to the point we can start to do some scenario building in terms of our modeling capability.”

Despite concerns from opponents, conflicting economic forecasts and a tight time line, Quigley’s agency is moving ahead on writing a plan by September that he hopes will balance a need to reduce climate-changing emissions with maintaining the state’s status as a top energy producer.

“There’s really an opportunity for Pennsylvania to demonstrate sustainability to the nation,” he said.

The regulations that require states to cut carbon emissions from power plants by about a third over the next 15 years have become a national flash point. Twenty-six states are suing to block the plan, and 18 states filed to intervene in support.”

11/15 – Berwyn Firm Breaks Ground on Large Solar Farm in Delaware

Posted on November 16, 2015 by Leslie Rylke

Monday, November 16th 2015

From Vista.Today:

In an attempt to improve its carbon footprint, Allen Harim Foods has decided to go green. The poultry producer broke ground on Monday near its Harbeson processing plant, on what is likely to become one of the largest solar farms in Delaware.

To achieve this, the company has signed a 20-year deal with project developer SolarSense, an affiliate of Berwyn based Alternative Energy Development Group. As per the lease agreement, Allen Harim Foods will purchase the 2.3 million kilowatts hours of power that are expected to be produced by the solar farm each year. This should reduce the company’s carbon dioxide emissions by around 1,616 metric tons.

The plant is expected to receive around 11% of its energy from a 1.57-megawatt photovoltaic solar panel array and Chris Fraga, the CEO of Alternative Energy Development Group, said that “this project is projected to save Allen Harim around 16 percent in energy costs during the first year of operation.”

The solar array is expected to stretch the length of four and a half football fields on a 6-acre parcel near Allen Harim’s Harbeson plant off Harbeson Road, with construction planned to last 3 months, barring unexpected weather issues.

“This project is in line with our strategic goals of environmental sustainability moving forward in Delaware,” said Allen Harim CEO, Steve Evans. He added “we’re trying to be competitive and one of the ways to be competitive is what’s your cost and anything you can do to try to get cost reductions and change your mix, all those things help us sustain ourselves long term.”

11/12 – Green Building Boom Is Pumping Billions into US Economy

Posted on November 12, 2015 by Leslie Rylke

Thursday, November 12th 2015

As construction continues to rebound from the Great Recession, developers are increasingly turning to green building practices, especially LEED, to gain a competitive advantage.

From Energy Manager Today:

url Over the next three years, new LEED-certified construction will contribute more than $303 billion to the United States’ economy, a recent study concluded. This year alone, the industry will generate 2.3 million jobs.

By 2018, this new construction is expected to save more than $1 billion in energy usage and more than $100 million in water use.

11/10 – Massive Wind Energy Project Moves Forward with Fed Approval

Posted on November 11, 2015 by Leslie Rylke

Tuesday, November 10th 2015

In contrast to the Keystone XL, an enormous wind energy transmission project just cleared a key federal procedural hurdle:

From TriplePundit:

At four times the wattage of the Hoover Dam, Clean Line is billing Plains & Eastern as the “largest clean energy infrastructure project in the U.S.,” and in that regard it is expected to create thousands of temporary construction jobs, just like Keystone XL would have. However, the comparison ends there. Clean Line anticipates that construction of the new transmission line will also support hundreds of manufacturing jobs in the vicinity of its route through Oklahoma, Arkansas and Texas. That’s a clear contrast with Keystone XL, for which TransCanada procured steel pipe manufactured overseas after promising that the bulk of it would be made in the U.S.

When Clean Line announced the Energy Department’s seal of approval, its president, Michael Skelly, noted that the benefits of a private-sector investment of $1 billion in the transmission line would be amplified by enabling the wind-rich Oklahoma Panhandle region to take full advantage of its renewable energy resources. According to Clean Line, “several billions of dollars” will be invested in new facilities in the Panhandle.

Clean Line also emphasizes that the wind energy transmission project will directly benefit consumers in the mid-South and Southeastern U.S. — including millions of customers served by the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) — with access to an ample supply of clean, competitively priced electricity. These states have less than optimal wind energy resources, and the new line will provide them with 3,500 megawatts of electricity sourced from wind.

Arkansas will also get 500 megawatts of wind energy from Oklahoma through the construction of a $100 million converter station, about enough to power 160,000 homes each year.

11/3 – Economics of Marcellus Shale Production Weaken

Posted on November 3, 2015 by Leslie Rylke

Tuesday, November 3rd 2015

Good

From Barron’s:

It’s not just crude.

Persistently low — and falling– natural gas prices are weakening business prospects for natural gas in the Marcellus Shale region, which includes parts of Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Ohio and New York. Big producers there are EQT, Southwestern Energy, Cabot Oil & Gas, Range Resources, Antero Resources.

A new report from Fitch Ratings finds that pricing remain weak, which is instigating companies to slow production growth forecasts for 2016. That should ultimately benefit the producers. Fitch analysts write:

At current economics, continued growth could heighten financial risk and limit future value creation, and supports producers move to slow production growth in 2016.

However, declining production means less volume for their infrastructure partners, often structured as master limited partnerships (MLPs).

Given strong liquidity, most producers aren’t going to suffer credit downgrades even as they reduce production. Plus, some like Antero, EQT, and Range Resources have hedged positions, which will help profitability. Fitch notes Antaro’s hedges are particularly strong.

Fitch concludes:

In the medium term, the combination of falling rig counts, improving takeaway capacity, and diminishing efficiency gains should provide pricing support for Marcellus producers. This will likely support credit profiles by improving reserve development prospects, encouraging volume growth, and ultimately, increasing cash flow.

10/29 – $274 Million in PECO Grid Upgrades Approved

Posted on October 29, 2015 by Leslie Rylke

Thursday, October 29th 2015

In addition to new rules that will facilitate the expansion and improvements to PECO’s natural gas distribution network,last week the Public Utility Commission also approved $274 million in proposed upgrades to PECO’s electricity distribution grid.

From Utility Dive:

Philadelphia-based PECO, like several other eastern seaboard utilities, is investing to strengthen its distribution infrastructure in the
wake of Superstorm Sandy in 2012.

In most cases, the utilities are seeking regulatory approval to recover those investments through rate increases.

In PECO’s case, the Pennsylvania PUC unanimously approved the utility’s $274 million System 2020 (Docket No. R-2015-2471423), which also includes underground cable replacement, building substation retirements and facility relocations. PECO expects to begin work on the five-year plan in 2016.

PECO, a subsidiary of Exelon Corp., serves more than 2.1 million electric and natural gas customers in an area of southeast Pennsylvania that includes Philadelphia and five surrounding counties.

A total of 845,709 PECO customers were affected by Sandy.

10/26 – SEI Hosts “Economic Opportunities of the Clean Power Plan”

Posted on October 29, 2015 by Leslie Rylke

Monday, October 26th 2015

On Friday the Smart Energy Initiative hosted a crowd over 60 at the Chester County Economic Development Council to discuss the upcoming implementation of the Clean Power Plan across the commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

Presenting at the event was Secretary John Quigley from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection and Kathy Robertson, Senior Environmental and Fuels Policy Manager at Exelon Corporation. Due to the current restrictions on government employee travel, Sec. Quigley presented via Skype.

Many thanks to our three sponsors: Practical Energy Solutions, Community Energy, and DES Global.

10/23 – PUC Approves PECO Proposal For Expanded Natural Gas Service

Posted on October 22, 2015 by Leslie Rylke

Friday, October 23rd 2015

PECO recently gained approval to facilitate new access to gas mains by allowing customers to payback installation costs over longer periods of time.

From Pennsylvania Business Daily:

The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) recently approved a three-year, $10 million pilot program proposed by PECO Energy Co. to increase consumer access to service and lower costs for homes and businesses.

The Neighborhood Gas Pilot Program, one of two proposals accepted by the PUC last week, would allow new gas customers to pay a fixed, monthly surcharge rather than a large up-front payment for the cost of installation.

The commission also approved changes in PECO’s calculation process for any required customer contribution. The PUC noted that calculating the financial return for a gas main extension over a 40-year period, rather than PECO’s previously used 15-year period, will more accurately represent natural gas service economics and reduce the amount consumers will have to pay for connections to gas mains.

Read more at Pennsylvania Business Daily…