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Rising Opposition to Exelon-Pepco Merger in D.C.
The Washington Examiner stays with the Exelon-Pepco story with a piece this morning by Zack Colman on rising opposition to the proposed merger, which would affect residents of the District of Columbia. It includes this textbook explanatory passage: “One of the most common concerns is that Exelon would arbitrage its losses from struggling nuclear generators […]
An ‘Uh-Oh’ Day in Ohio for FirstEnergy Corp.
A regulatory decision this week that keeps Columbus, Ohio-based American Electric Power from raising customers’ rates to subsidize aging coal-fired plants has implications for First Energy Corp., Dan Shingler writes today in Crain’s Cleveland Business. FirstEnergy has made a similar request of the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio, which is the body that turned AEP […]
Signs of Coal Divestiture at Rio Tinto
Reuters has posted an article saying certain personnel changes and corporate structural changes at the global mining giant Rio Tinto suggest it is getting out of the coal business. “In its latest effort to slash costs as commodity prices fall, Rio Tinto is letting go its energy chief and rolling its coal and uranium businesses […]
Another Study That Dispels a Common Solar Net-Metering Canard
Midwest Energy News this morning reports on a new study by the Missouri Energy Initiative reaches conclusions in line with a larger body of research that finds solar net-metering beneficial to all utility customers. The article, by Karen Uhlenhuth, notes that similar studies in Vermont, New York, Texas and Nevada have had similar findings. Net […]
Exelon Seeks $2-Per-Customer Subsidy to Maintain Money-Losing Nuclear Plants
The Chicago Tribune this morning describes a scheme by Exelon Corp. to extract an additional $2 per month from its customers “to prop up what the company says are three money-losing nuclear plants.” The article, by Ray Long, includes this important passage: “Opponents question whether Exelon would get an unnecessary bailout when a trio of […]
Ohio Regulators Deny a Proposed Ratepayer Bailout for American Electric Power
The Public Utilities Commission of Ohio has declined to let American Electric Power impose a rate plan that would subsidize its operation of aging coal-fired plants. Dan Gearino has the story today in the Columbus Dispatch. Excerpts: “Most of the outside attention was on the income-guarantee provision, which utilities and coal companies saw as a […]
Newsweek: Canada’s Tar Sands at Risk of Becoming a Stranded Asset
Newsweek is out this morning with an article critical of Canada’s devotion to development of its tar sands. The article, by Mark Dowie, says investors are “beginning to wonder whether they have backed a good play by investing over $160 billion to turn tar into oil.” Dowie suggests that the tar sands are fast becoming […]
Cloud Peak CEO Sees Powder River Basin Delays Through 2020
The CEO of Powder River Basin coal producer Cloud Peak Energy said this week that the company’s hopes for new export port facilities in the Pacific Northwest could remain in limbo until 2020. In an article by Darren Epps, CEO Colin Marshall says, “As we all know, if you’re against anything in America, you can […]
Peabody Slashes Its Coal Production Outlook
Peabody Energy, the biggest U.S. coal producer, has lowered its coal production expectations for this year, citing competition from natural gas. The change signals a switch from an outlook the company published in January. Excerpts from the article, by Dan Lowrey: “Peabody believes its strip mines are somewhat insulated from the cheap gas prices. The […]
A Corporate Call for More U.S. Investment in Renewables
The U.S. is a laggard in innovate energy investment, according to a new study by the American Energy Innovation Council, a group of marquis corporate leaders who have agitated for putting more resources into imaginative energy projects. The Council, whose leaders, including Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates and GE Chairman and CEO, Jeffrey Immelt, find the […]