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WEI Member News Alternative Routes Explored for Gateway West In response to requests from local government officials and the public, Rocky Mountain Power and Idaho Power are continuing discussions with counties, landowners, and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to identify potential alternative routes for the Gateway West transmission project in Wyoming and Idaho. More ATCO Realigns Business Groups to Enhance Growth Potential ATCO Ltd. announced it has reorganized its operating subsidiaries into three closely aligned business groups: Utilities, Energy and Industrials. More Avista’s “Efficiency Avenue” Makes Saving Energy Easy for Commercial Customers Avista’s commercial customers have a new tool to help them better manage their energy use with the launch of “Efficiency Avenue” at www.everylittlebit.com, where all types of commercial customers--including businesses, schools, churches and public facilities--can learn about Avista’s energy efficiency rebate and incentive programs applicable to their industry. More BC Hydro to Begin $50-Million Upgrade of Mica Station Switchgear BC Hydro has awarded a $50-million contract to replace the switchgear equipment at the 32-year-old Mica Generating Station to ensure the plant continues to provide clean, reliable energy for BC Hydro customers. More Clark Public Utilities Receives Coveted J.D. Power and Associates Distinction for Second Consecutive Year Commissioners Authorize New Chelan PUD Bonds for Work in the Next Three Years Chelan County PUD commissioners have been informed that the time is right to issue $71 million in new debt for work at Rocky Reach, Rock Island and Lake Chelan hydro projects over the next three years. El Paso Electric Request to Decrease Texas Customer Bills Approved by PUCT The Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT) has approved a request submitted by El Paso Electric in June to decrease its fuel factor charge, the amount customers pay for fuel used to generate electricity and to purchase power. More EWEB Offering Four Scholarships for Utility-Related Careers The Eugene Water & Electric Board will offer four scholarships for the 2009-10 academic year to support students planning a career in the utility industry. More Global Infrastructure Partners to Join El Paso’s Ruby Pipeline Project El Paso Corporation announced that it has executed a binding agreement with Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP) whereby GIP will acquire a 50 percent interest in the Ruby Pipeline project. More LADWP Customers Successfully Reduce Water Use under Mandatory Conservation Pacific Power Issues Request for Proposals for Oregon Renewable Options Pacific Power is soliciting proposals to help keep the company’s perennially successful Blue Sky program gaining new subscribers and supplying them with cost-effective access to renewable energy. More Seattle City Light Seeks New Renewable Energy Resources Seattle City Light is actively pursuing opportunities to purchase up to 50 megawatts of new renewable energy. More SMUD Establishes Feed-In Tariff for Customer-Sited Distributed Generation The Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD), a leader in utilizing renewable energy to meet its customers’ power needs, has established a feed-in tariff (FIT) effective next January that streamlines buying electricity fed into its distribution system from eligible generation units at customer sites. More Spectra Energy to Hold Open Season to Provide New T-South Enhanced Firm Transportation Service Spectra Energy Corp has announced a binding open season for a proposed new transportation service on the company’s Transportation South (T-South) Zone 4 natural gas transmission facilities in southern British Columbia. More SRP Highest-Ranked in West with Residential Customers In a report issued by J.D. Power and Associates, Phoenix-based SRP scored highest in customer satisfaction for residential electric service among large utilities in the western United States. More TransCanada and Nature Conservancy of Canada Celebrate Significant Partnership for Conservation The Honourable Jim Prentice, Minister of the Environment, joined Hal Kvisle, President & CEO of TransCanada and John Lounds, President & CEO of the Nature Conservancy of Canada to celebrate a significant conservation partnership worth up to $11.4 million in Alberta and Saskatchewan. More Wetlands Restoration Project Adds Visitor Service As the San Dieguito Wetlands Restoration Project enters its final stages, project team members Southern California Edison (SCE) and San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) have agreed to fund a new ranger service to be managed by the San Dieguito River Park Joint Powers Authority. More
Rest of the West
PG&E Contracts with Sempra Generation for More Solar Power Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) announced it has entered into a contract with El Dorado Energy, LLC, a subsidiary of Sempra Generation, to purchase 48 megawatts (MW) of photovoltaic solar power produced at the Copper Mountain Solar facility. More Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicles Excel on Gas Mileage, Reduce Emissions, SDG&E Study Confirms Two years after unveiling San Diego’s first state-of the art plug-in hybrid vehicle, SDG&E said the third phase of its multi-year study reveals that plug-in hybrids offer significant improvements in gas mileage and reductions in emissions when compared with standard hybrid and gasoline vehicles. More Southern California Gas Co. Accelerates Newest Solar Technologies Using Sunlight to Defeat Sun's Heat To help accelerate the commercialization of new technology that uses the sun’s energy, rather than the electric grid or natural gas, to power air-conditioning systems, Southern California Gas Co. (The Gas Company) has launched a multi-year showcase of advanced concentrated solar power systems to benefit businesses and the region. More
On the Move
Dan Doyle Appointed New Chair of BC Hydro Board More TransCanada Appoints Russ Girling Chief Operating Officer More PGE Makes Changes to Leadership Team More SMUD’s Paul Lau Named to Executive Post More Avista VP Roger Woodworth Appointed to Clean Energy Leadership Council More Snohomish PUD’s Craig Smith and Jessica Matlock Elected to National Energy Advisory Groups More News BPA Plan Seeks to Balance Wind and Water The Bonneville Power Administration, which markets the energy produced by 31 hydroelectric dams and a nuclear plant, daily faces the challenges of accommodating over 2000 megawatts of new wind capacity on its aging grid. More Exxon and Craig Venter Join Forces to Develop Algae-Based Fuels Oil giant Exxon Mobil announced it was joining in a partnership with Dr. Craig Venter’s biotechnology firm Synthetic Genomics and investing $600 million to produce transportation fuels from algae. More CFTC Considers Position Limits for Energy Commodities The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission is holding hearings to help it evaluate whether it should impose position limits for oil, natural gas and other commodities. More Alaska Gas Pipeline Prospects Difficult to Assess With 2018 the earliest year that an Alaska pipeline could start delivering gas to market, predicting whether the project makes economic sense requires taking the long view. More California Renewables Push Could Result in Supply Shortfalls With renewable-power generating projects getting all the attention in California, officials have started to wonder whether enough conventional resources are being built to support load growth. More Senate Support for Climate Plan Remains Uncertain Although the House passed a climate bill in June to limit U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, Senate advocates of climate change legislation still have their work cut out for them. More Carbon Capture Will be Costly, Harvard Study Says Energy researchers at Harvard recently released a report predicting that carbon capture projects at coal-fired power plants could cause electricity costs to double. More $1.2 Trillion Possible Savings from Efficiency Improvements Consulting firm McKinsey has released a report indicating that by investing $520 billion in building improvements and energy-saving appliances, the U.S. could save $1.2 trillion through 2020. More U.S. Wind Power Sector Fastest-Growing in World A report from the U.S. Department of Energy shows that for the fourth year running, the U.S. wind power market is showing the fastest growth in the world, with capacity additions increasing by 60 percent in 2008. More DOE Wants Utilities to Ensure Smart Grid is Secure The Energy Department will require utilities seeking federal grant money for smart grid implementation to prove that they are keeping the power grid secure as they begin linking it up to the internet. More Congress May Request Study of Hydraulic Fracturing This summer, the House Appropriation Committee approved a measure that would have the EPA investigate hydraulic fracturing’s potential impact on groundwater supplies. More Electric Cars to Hit City Streets The world’s densely populated and pollution-conscious cities will likely be the testing ground for electric cars as the first small commercial runs hit the market. More Managing Forests to Store Carbon Poses Challenges Living forests currently absorb an estimated 16 percent of U.S. carbon emissions. However, thinning those forests to prevent fires releases large amounts of carbon. More High-Carbon Canadian Goods Could be Taxed The Clean Energy and Security Act, which passed in the House last month, could impose a “border adjustment” on Canadian goods entering the U.S. that have a larger carbon footprint than their U.S. equivalents. More Incandescent Bulb Technology Strives for Efficiency Though Congress’s two-year-old energy law was expected to spell the end of the incandescent bulb, new research is producing gains in efficiency that could keep the old technology on the market. More Western Natural Gas Market Review More Western LNG Update S.F. Supervisors Pass Resolution against Oregon LNG Project More Indonesian LNG, Destined for the Southwestern US, to Arrive Soon More FERC Issues Order on North Baja Pipeline Capacity More Future of Alaska LNG Plant Uncertain More Judge Orders FERC to Disclose Landowner Impact More Domestic Natural Gas Reserves 35 percent Larger More Proposed Kitimat LNG Export Facility Gaining Ground More LNG Developer Sues Port of Astoria More |
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