News
A NOTE FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
The last few weeks have seen significant personnel changes in the CHP industry. Susan Wickwire and John Cuttica have both moved on to new challenges. Both were honored by their peers with the highest award the CHP industry has: the CHP Champions Award. But both made contributions to the CHP world that went far beyond any awards they received.
Here is a salute to John from Dick Munson: “Cheers to John Cuttica! He may dislike the term “professor,” but he has taught us all the value of clear presentations and reasoned arguments. He’s been able to convey his passionate advocacy for efficiency with a joyful liveliness. A true CHP champion, we thank him for his leadership and wish him well.” We here at The Slice could not have said it better. John’s encyclopedic knowledge of combined heat and power specifically and energy issues in particular placed him in a unique category of true experts.
Kathryn Clay provided this note about Susan: “Once again proving that Washington is a small town, Susan years ago worked with my husband Dan in the Office of Global Change at the U.S. Department of State. When Dan left for a new assignment, he gave symbolic gifts to some of his colleagues. To Susan, he gave a framed insignia that was that of a field marshal. That is the image I have always had stay in my mind regarding Susan’s unending energy and commitment to making things happen. I can just see her running along the battlefield, yelling, “Return fire, step it up!” or, ‘Move that cannon faster!’ She has that ability to see the goal and arrange the pieces as needed to get there. All of my, and Dan’s, best wishes to Susan in all of her future battles and adventures.” From my perspective, a particular area of appreciation has been her blazing fast response times. Whenever we had a question, she responded the very same day. And the CHP Association and industry could have
no better friend in the public sector.
We will be undertaking a full re-vamping and user experience improvement to the CHP Association website over the next few weeks. This week we begin by focusing on our weekly newsletter, The Slice. We will change the main slider to include references to all past editions.
Next week we will be sending out our new Membership Certificates to all current members of the CHP Association. Please see the example picture below:
All the Best,
Dale Louda
NEWS EXCERPTS
FERC Presents Summer 2015 Reliability Assessment
Market conditions going into the summer will reflect the continued low natural gas prices that have resulted from robust production, as well as the recovery of fuel stockpiles at coal-fired power plants. Regional electric system reserve margins are adequate, despite modest growth in load, which is primarily attributable to increased industrial activity. The historic drought in California and the West has entered its fourth year and is an area of particular concern. This may lead to elevated energy prices; however, both the NERC and the California ISO have concluded that the current situation is not a threat to reliability.
Click here to read the full report
Republicans seek to ease EPA permitting
The Hill
A new Republican bill aims to ease the burden of obtaining air pollution permits from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for manufacturing facilities. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) and Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.) said their legislation introduced Thursday would help the country’s energy and manufacturing sectors move forward in a way that is difficult now. It would require the EPA to write guidance for manufacturers every time it updates air quality rules in order to help them figure out how to comply. The EPA would have to publicize how many new construction permits it issues under the Clean Air Act and how long the approvals take, and report to Congress on what steps the agency is taking to expedite the process.
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FERC Sends Letter to EPA on Clean Power Plan
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission recommends that EPA add a reliability safety valve to the Clean Power Plan. Chairman Lisa Murkowski of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee supported this letter. “It is a good first step that FERC is formally engaged on this issue,” said Murkowski, chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. “I am glad that FERC is responding to the concerns it heard during the recent round of technical conferences, which I, along with my colleagues in the House, called for in November. I fully expect the EPA to engage seriously with FERC, which, through its oversight of the Electric Reliability Organization – NERC – is the federal agency accountable for the reliability of the grid.”
Click here to read the letter
Duke Announces Plan to Retire Asheville Coal Plant, Replace with CCPP
POWER Magazine
Duke Energy announced on May 19 that it will construct a new 650-MW natural gas–fired combined cycle power plant (CCPP) and retire its 375-MW Asheville coal power plant by early 2020. The plan also includes the addition of solar generation at the site as well as construction of a new substation and 40-mile transmission line at a total cost of $1.1 billion for the project. The company expects the new facility to cost about 35% less to operate than the existing coal plant, with the added benefit of lower emissions. Duke said emissions of mercury would be completely eliminated once the new plant is in service; SO2 could be reduced by up to 95%, NOx by about 35%, and CO2 by 60% on a per-MWh basis.
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Coal retirements to more than double under Clean Power Plan — EIA
EnergyWire
A new analysis from the federal government’s energy statisticians finds the Obama administration’s plan to reduce the power sector’s heat-trapping carbon emissions would raise electricity prices 4.9 percent above their current trajectory by 2020. The Energy Information Administration will release projections today that the draft rule would spur a quick wave of coal plant retirements — 90 gigawatts, rather than 40 GW, between 2014 and 2040. Most of the power plant retirements would happen by 2020, when the first requirements for emissions reductions begin.
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Identified Microgrid Capacity Has Tripled in the Last Year
Navigant Research
A host of new government programs supporting microgrid deployments has been launched in the last 12 months, especially on the East Coast of the United States. The majority of these projects are proposed or are under early development, and are not actually delivering energy services today, but they are expected to come online within the next few years. According to a new report from Navigant Research, total identified microgrid capacity has grown from 4,393 megawatts (MW) in the second quarter of 2014 to more than 12,000 MW today.
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Utilities Can Rate-Base EV Charging Stations Under New Washington State Law
UtilityDive
Washington Governor Jay Inslee (D) has signed HB 1853 into law, making it possible for utilities to rate-base spending on electric vehicle charging station installations. The new law will allow the state’s utilities to invest in the purchase and installation of charging stations and obtain the same guaranteed rate of return via customer bills that they would get from investing in power plants, transmission-distribution infrastructure and other assets that lead to electricity sales. Among the ways to get electric vehicle chargers to big market scale, the consensus emerging among EV enthusiasts, ratepayer advocates, and business leaders is that utility leadership may be the best choice. Moreover, EVs represent a uniquely appealing value proposition in Washington state because so much its electricity is generated from hydropower, further diminishing the carbon intensity of electric vehicles.
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China Smog War Seen Dooming Coal on ‘Cheap But Dirty’ Purge
Bloomberg Business
China’s battle against pollution is threatening the recovery of coal prices from the lowest level in almost nine years. Installations of new coal-fired power capacity in the world’s biggest polluter are set to halve as “cheap but dirty” plants get eliminated, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance. Prices of China’s benchmark power-station coal have tumbled 59 percent from a peak in July 2008, and none of five analysts surveyed by Bloomberg predict a recovery. China is turning to alternative energy sources as it races to meet emissions targets and eradicate the smog that’s enveloped cities and become a major cause of social unrest. President Xi Jinping has vowed to punish “with an iron hand” those who destroy the environment and his government is abolishing outdated capacity in the most polluting industries while promoting the use of electric cars and solar rooftops.
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Texas governor signs law banning local fracking restrictions
The Hill
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has signed a bill to block local ordinances against hydraulic fracturing. The new law comes in response to a resolution banning fracking in the Texas town of Denton, which voters passed last November. The law “preempts regulation of oil and gas activity at the city level and resides that duty with the state,” according to Abbott’s office, and it “ensures that any local regulation of surface activity is commercially reasonable and does not effectively prohibit an oil and gas operation.”
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With MATS in effect, coal unit retirements to hit peak in 2015
SNL Financial
Approximately 4,600 MW of U.S. coal-fired generation has already retired this year through April and another 7,700 MW will close in the rest of 2015 as utilities work to comply with the U.S. EPA’s new Mercury and Air Toxics Standards, or MATS, which took effect last month. This year’s closures represent about 4% of installed U.S. coal capacity and will make up a third of nationwide coal plant retirements between 2010 and 2015, an SNL Energy analysis shows. The pace of retirements eases in 2016, when units with one-year MATS compliance extensions finally close. Next year, nearly 7,300 MW of coal-based power will shut down. Retirements continue to taper off after that, with less than 7,000 MW slated between 2017 and 2022.
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EVENTS
National Town Meeting on Demand Response and Smart Grid
May 26-28
Ronald Reagan Building, Washington, DC.
The National Town Meeting on Demand Response and Smart Grid is an event in the US focused on the business and policy aspects of demand response and its enabling technologies and applications. It is unique in that it devotes an entire day to roundtable discussions featuring experts in demand response and smart grid, who discuss with each other and with the audience the latest trends, issues, and business developments. The National Town Meeting also features panel discussions, case studies, and presentations of best practices. Another hallmark is attendee engagement, whether through Q&A sessions with top business leaders and policymakers, through formal electronic voting, or through the National Town Meeting’s reception and other networking sessions.
Click here for more information
DOE Better Buildings Summit
May 27-28
Marriott Wardman Park Hotel, Washington, DC
The Better Buildings Summit is a national meeting where leading organizations across key sectors showcase solutions to cut energy intensity in their buildings portfolio-wide by 20% over the next ten years. This Summit is designed for partners and stakeholders to exchange best practices and highlight demonstrated market solutions with an equal emphasis on discussing future opportunities for greater energy efficiency in America’s homes and buildings.
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CHPA Webinar on the NY REV Program
May 28, 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM EST
Updates on speakers will be sent out later today or early next week
CHPA Webinar On the State of Energy Markets
June 25, 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM EST
WEBINAR: What is CHP? Technologies and Applications
June 17, 3:00 PM – 4:30 PM EST
Intended for energy users, state policy makers, and state policy advocates, this webinar will provide an overview of CHP technologies and applications, and demonstrate the value of CHP for facilities.
Click here for more information
CHPA 2015 Conference
September 14th & 15th
National Press Club, Washington, DC
The focus of this year’s conference will be the a discussion around the resilience and security benefits of CHP with case studies highlighting this theme. Noted speakers from private industry and the public sector will discuss reliability and how to keep your facilities running no matter the weather emergency.
