Energy News Roundup: January 21-January 27

This week in regional energy news …

• New Hampshire’s Senate passed a bill that would prohibit a utility’s use of eminent domain for an electrical transmission line across a person’s property if the line is not critical to the region’s power needs.
• The Passamaquoddy Tribe plans to launch a $120 million wind farm in Washington County with co-venturer Exergy Development Group, of Boise.  
• Estimating that its energy may not be available before 2015, ISO New England opted not to include Cape Wind in a capacity auction for 2015-2016.
• Two Department of Energy reports have highlighted Maine’s potential to generate more than 15 terawatt-hours per year of electricity from tidal sources.
• Augusta, Maine, is looking to create energy from waste at its Hatch Hill landfill.  The project would involve constructing a $20 million plant to convert the trash to diesel fuel.
• University of Maine professor Habib Dagher played up Maine’s offshore wind potential and discussed the $20 billion project to bring offshore wind to Maine.

Two New Maine Wind Power Projects Commence Commercial Operations

The 22-turbine Record Hill Wind project in Roxbury, Maine and the 10-turbine Spruce Mountain Wind project in Woodstock, Maine have just commenced commercial operations.  Record Hill Wind, developed by Brunswick-based Independence Wind, has a nameplate capacity of 50.6 megawatts.  Spruce Mountain Wind, built and operated by Patriot Renewables, has a nameplate capacity of 20 megawatts.  Both projects are now generating and selling electricity into the New England power grid.  Together, the projects will generate enough electricity annually to power some 30,000 Maine homes.  In other Patriot Renewables news, the Massachusetts-based developer was recently recognized for its charitable donations to community organizations in the River Valley area of Oxford County, Maine.  

Energy News Roundup: December 3-December 9

This week in regional energy news …

• Statoil, a Norwegian energy company, is seeking federal approval for an offshore floating wind farm off of the Maine coast.  The four-turbine pilot project, which would be located south of Boothbay Harbor, could be operating by 2016 and generating 12 MW of electricity, if the application (PDF) is approved.
• The Concord Monitor has created a section of its Web site devoted to full coverage of the Northern Pass Project, which would bring 1200 MW of hydroelectricity from Canada to New England.  Recently, the State Senate Judiciary committee voted for new protections for property owners facing eminent domain taking but rejected legislation that would have attempted to prohibit projects like the Northern Pass from using eminent domain powers.
• Cate Street Capital, the new owner of the Millinocket and East Millinocket, Maine, mills, recently also purchased the exclusive North American rights to biocoal technology.  Biocoal is a wood-derived fuel that would replace coal-burning at electric plants.
• A proposed new propane import terminal in Searsport, Maine, has incited local opposition.
• According to ISO New England’s winter electricity demand outlook, the region should have ample electric production to meet demand, even in the event of any extreme winter weather.
• An ethanol plant in Prince Edward Island that would produce the technology to create ethanol from sugar beets retains the support of the provincial government even though the Alantec plant will be selling the technology rather than the ethanol product itself.
• An exploratory panel has recommended that Maine’s Land Use Regulatory Commission give Maine’s 16 counties more power over land use decisions.  Among the 12 committee members present (out of 13), the vote was unanimous.  Other recommendations include letting the governor nominate only three LURC commissioners, rather than seven, and letting counties take on minor permitting issues that are now handled by LURC.

Energy News Roundup: November 27-December 2

This week in regional energy news …

• Madison Electric Works announces that it is looking into installing a natural gas generator to serve its customers.
• The North American Electric Reliability Corporation has issued a report demonstrating that New England and other areas in the country have a significant need for more generation resources in order to meet demand.
• Canada’s CBC reports on the effect of falling natural gas prices on hydraulic fracturing developments.
• The Vermont Electric Power Company, or VELCO, has no plans at this time to pursue construction of transmission lines through Vermont to transmit hydro-power from Quebec to New England.
• Maine Gov. Paul LePage looks to make a deal with Canadian energy providers to help lower electricity rates in Maine.
• Beginning on the first of the year, ISO New England’s multiple region cost allocation method will be modified.  Read the details on the Newswire.

Energy News Roundup: November 12-November 18

This week in regional energy news …

• Between 2004 and 2009 Maine residents cut their heating oil use by 45 percent.  Maine remains, however, the country’s most oil-dependent state for home heating.
• Anbaric Transmission, a Massachusetts company, has filed a request with ISO New England for interconnection of a proposed transmission line that would carry up to 2,000 MW of offshore wind energy to land.  The offshore generation projects that would interconnect with the line are each over 25 miles from the coastline.
• In an effort out of its Brunswick, Maine, office, the Manomet Center for Conservation Sciences reminds us of the naturally carbon-reducing power of trees.  The center’s new program, the Clean Water Carbon Fund, gives the public the chance to purchase trees for $6 to be planted along the shores of waterways that are overexposed to carbon.
• On Thursday, December 15, E2Tech will host a breakfast forum with Efficiency Maine representatives to discuss residential and commercial energy efficiency programs.  Event details are available at E2Tech’s Web site.

Energy News Roundup: November 5-November 11

This week in regional energy news …

• Waterville’s police chief, Joseph Massey, has proposed new legislation that would combat thefts of copper.  Maine utilities have expressed support for the effort.  A similar bill was introduced in Nova Scotia’s legislature Thursday.
• New Brunswick’s Department of Natural Resources has alleged that Windsor Energy violated Canada’s Oil and Natural Gas Act.  The complaint, accusing Windsor of directing geophysical exploration within a town without the town’s permission, was filed with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
• Montreal-based Boralex Inc. has entered into an agreement to sell five biomass plants, including four in Maine, to New York-based ReEnergy Holdings.  The four Maine plants are located in Ashland, Fort Fairfield, Livemore Falls, and Stratton.  Together, the five plants have a capacity of 186 megawatts and are being sold for $93 million.
• Moose River Lumber Co. of Madison, Maine, is using a steam-producing biomass boiler to replace hundreds of thousands of gallons of oil per year.  According to the sawmill, the steam turbine helps the company save $400,000 per year in energy costs.
• Changes to the New England and New York power grids, administered by New York ISO and ISO New England, are intended to cut costs.  Those changes include permitting more power to transfer between the boundaries of the regional grids.

ISO New England Publishes 2011-2012 Regional Electricity Outlook and 2010 Financial Report

ISO New England has published its fourth annual Regional Electricity Outlook, Bringing Possibilities Into Focus.  Through the Regional Electricity Outlook, ISO-NE hopes to help New England’s energy stakeholders understand the causes and impacts of the challenges facing New England’s evolving electricity landscape.  The report identifies challenges in the areas of “Resource Performance and Flexibility,” “Increased Reliance on Natural-Gas-Fired Capacity,” “Generation Retirements,” “Integration of Variable Resources” and “Aligning System Planning and Wholesale Electricity Markets.”  It discusses “Advancing Grid Planning and Market Design” and describes the gains made by ISO-NE, market participants, states, and other stakeholders toward securing a more reliable and sustainable electricity future for the New England.  Finally, the report provides key facts such as the fact that there has been approximately $4 billion in transmission investment in the region since 2002, with another $5 billion planned.

ISO New England has also published its 2010 Financial Report. That annual report includes a Management Discussion and Analysis that describes last year’s operations and impacts on ISO-NE’s financial position as well as ISO-NE’s audited financial statements. The Regional Energy Outlook and the Financial Report are posted together on ISO-NE’s website.