Yesterday, I testified on H.F. 1311 before the Energy Finance and Policy Committee. H.F. 1311 would allow utilities to only profit from the reliable portion of an energy asset. This…
A new peer-reviewed research study developed a measurement of material usage that suggests from 1970 to 2020, the U.S. is using less of most materials overall — with the important…
The Energy News Network reported last week on the state-funded Minnesota Climate Innovation Finance Authority. The Energy News Network reports: The Minnesota Climate Innovation Finance Authority, established by state legislators…
This week saw confirmation hearings for several Cabinet positions that will be crucial to defining energy and environmental policy under the Trump administration. Luckily, all take energy seriously and prioritize…
I don’t know how anyone could’ve adequately followed all the energy and environmental news that happened this year without spending 40 hours a week on the subject (and even that…
Last month, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) released its final environmental analysis of changes to greater sage grouse management. The final environmental impact statement (EIS) prohibits wind, solar, and transmission projects…
The United Kingdom is experiencing record curtailment costs for wind power in 2024. Curtailment costs are the costs associated with reducing electricity supply when demand is lower. Because wind and…
The U.S. District Court of Appeals for North Dakota has heard Iowa v. Council on Environmental Quality, which challenges a new rule that transforms permitting “into a substantive set of…
Data center construction mean running natural gas plants longer for Xcel Energy, according to remarks by Ryan Long, president of Xcel Energy’s Minnesota and Dakotas division, at an MPUC conference…
The Star Tribune wrote an in-depth piece on the widespread fears of utilities that President-elect Donald Trump will repeal the subsidy-soaked Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. What the article tacitly…
According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), average construction costs for utility-scale solar increased by 1.7% in 2022 compared with 2021 data, and increased by 1.6% for wind turbines, respectively. Meanwhile, in the…
Today marks the beginning of the United Nations’ 29th Conference of the Parties, or COP29. Look forward to two weeks of international handwringing about the U.S. election results. COP29 is…
In August, the state of Utah filed a lawsuit in the U.S. Supreme Court challenging federal control over more than a third of the land within its borders. The lawsuit…
GE Vernova, the maker of the defective offshore wind turbine blades that broke off of the coast of Nantucket and scattered the beach with fiberglass shards, has found more defects…
Xcel may have tried to do the right thing by planning to construct a few new natural gas plants while it adds grid-destabilizing wind and solar. Unfortunately, its final Upper…
The Wall Street Journal published an article last week titled “Renewables, and Good Luck, Prop Up Power Grid Through Extreme Heat.” The authors are right that ‘good luck’ is propping…
Since last week, Minnesota’s state policy has been under enhanced scrutiny. It’s worth reviewing now what Minnesota’s disastrous energy policy. Isaac Orr and Mitch Rolling, formerly of Center of the…
On Tuesday, Vineyard Wind was ordered to shut down until further notice to clean up the shards of a turbine blade that failed Saturday. Six Nantucket beaches were closed for…
The Wall Street Journal reported Monday that Century Aluminum is planning to build the country’s first new smelter in 45 years. That could be good news, if the company can…
Last week, Pew Research Center released new polling that shows that “relatively few Americans” believe the U.S. should phase out fossil fuels entirely. Instead, about 7 out of 10 favor…
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) released its 2024 Summer Energy Market and Electric Reliability Assessment last week. U.S. electricity demand is “expected to increase 2.7% this summer” compared to…
A report released on April 30 claims that Minnesota generated 54% of its electricity from “carbon-free” sources in 2023. But is it true? That 54% headline figure for “carbon-free,” or…
This piece was originally published at Independent Women’s Forum on May 13, 2024. Read more here: https://www.iwf.org/2024/05/13/jpmorgan-report-carbon-free-energy-transition-needs-reality-check/ A recent report from JPMorgan Chase warns that moving away from fossil fuels…
Wind and solar energy fail to meet the challenges of U.S. electricity generation, according to a recent report by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. The report evaluates energy sources…