ILSR Asks Regulators to Protect Customers From Unjust Utility Spending

Date: 28 Feb 2022 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

In February 2022, ILSR filed comments to FERC on utility rate recovery and industry association dues. These comments argue that monopoly utilities must prove they are not spending ratepayer dollars on advocacy for anti-competitive, anti-consumer policies.… Read More

For Public Utilities, Customers Spark Pioneering Policy with a Vote — Episode 133 of Local Energy Rules

Date: 30 Jun 2021 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

For this episode of the Local Energy Rules podcast, host John Farrell and guest Eric Williams discuss the growing momentum for clean energy and how people drive change within public utilities.… Read More

Should Big Utilities Pay for Their Bad Choices? — Episode 124 of Local Energy Rules

Date: 24 Feb 2021 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

For this episode of the Local Energy Rules podcast, republished from ILSR’s Building Local Power podcast, host John Farrell and guest Leslie Glustrom discuss utility accountability and how to equitably transition to clean energy.… Read More

Utility Regulators Oversee Planning for a Robust, Inclusive Grid in Minnesota

Date: 27 Apr 2020 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

In these comments, John Farrell outlines how Xcel Energy should improve its 2019 Integrated Distribution Plan to best serve the needs of Minnesota customers: increased access to distributed energy generation and a fair analysis of the benefits these systems provide to the grid.… Read More

Spreading Like Wildfire: An Interest in Making Electric Power Public

Date: 5 Mar 2020 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

Despite the time and money required for a public takeover, many cities are taking steps toward municipalizing their electric utility. This post compiles some stories behind these battles in San Francisco, Santa Fe, Boulder, and more.… Read More

New Fossil Fuel Power Plants: Assets or Liabilities?

Date: 28 Jan 2016 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

In any conversation about the transition to a renewable energy economy, solar and wind advocates will eventually come up against the term “stranded assets.” It’s a misleading term, usually deployed in defense of legacy fossil fuel power plants (and their owners). But as times change, “stranded assets” can be redefined and in the next few years … Read More

Solar Net Metering a Subsidy to Utilities?

Date: 25 Jun 2015 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

When Robert Nohavec of Park City, Utah; Jabbar Graham from Cherry Hill, New Jersey; and Don Born, of Waldoboro, Maine installed solar on their homes, they had something unexpected in common. They were all giving back to their electric company and their community. That’s because solar energy systems tend to provide more value to the electric … Read More

Count On It: Adding Numbers will Add Heft to First City-Utility Clean Energy Work Plan

Date: 2 Jun 2015 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

In late May, the nation’s first clean energy partnership between a city and its utilities released its first two-year work plan. It holds true to the notion that the city and utilities can work across a broad swath of energy initiatives in pursuit of increasing energy efficiency and renewable energy. And with some solid metrics, it … Read More

Beyond Utility 2.0: Part 1 “A Prelude to the Future”

Date: 22 Apr 2015 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

The U.S. electricity system is undergoing the biggest change in its 130-­year history. The scale of electricity generation is rapidly shrinking, from coal and nuclear power plants that can power a million homes to solar and wind power plants that power a few to a few hundred nearby homes. Electricity demand has leveled off, so that … Read More

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