THE RUMBLINGS from Quebec sound ominous, but officials at Hydro-Quebec say the provincial utility’s power supply contract with Massachusetts is rock solid. The contract was signed more than four years ago. No electricity has started flowing yet because of repeated delays associated with the Maine transmission line slated to deliver the electricity to the New […]
Energy
Posted inEnergy
Healey seeking $250m for grid upgrades
THE HEALEY ADMINISTRATION announced on Monday that it has filed an application for $250 million in federal matching funds to help build connections to the power grid in Massachusetts for offshore wind and solar power developers. State officials portrayed the grant proposal as an attempt to “jumpstart state and regional collaboration on necessary transmission infrastructure,” […]
Posted inOpinion
Ocean grid key to explosive offshore wind growth
OFFSHORE WIND could be as beneficial to Massachusetts economy as life sciences, but not without transmission infrastructure to scale the industry. The life science sector grew by over 60,000 jobs in the 15 years leading up to 2022, a growth rate of 131 percent vs. 6.9 percent over the same period for the broader Massachusetts […]
Posted inEnergy, State Government
Energy storage facilities hit regulatory black hole
THE STATE’S Energy Facilities Siting Board concluded on Wednesday that it lacks authority to approve large energy storage facilities, which means two projects in Carver and Medway may be in jeopardy. Energy storage facilities are becoming an integral part of the regional power grid. The facilities help the grid deal with fluctuations in demand by […]
Posted inOpinion
Weymouth compressor fight has implications for Pilgrim
IN THE 1940s, the Fore River Basin of Weymouth, Quincy, and Braintree was home to major factories, supplied hundreds of good paying jobs, and set the stage to create the industrialized area we see today. What we didn’t know at the time was the long-term impact the cancer producing byproducts of these companies would have […]
Posted inEnergy, State Government
Healey playing catch-up with latest offshore wind procurement
THE HEALEY ADMINISTRATION made the best of a bad situation on Tuesday, issuing a draft of the state’s fourth request for offshore wind proposals that reworks the failed third procurement, pushes forward with a modest wind farm expansion, and provides some increased flexibility to future bidders. The cloud hanging over this procurement is its predecessor, […]
Posted inEnergy, Government
Connecticut taking different approach to utility regulation
CONNECTICUT IS CHANGING the way it regulates utilities, and the new approach has the companies and investors scared. The new approach, called performance-based regulation, is intended to compensate utilities based on how well they perform tasks rather than on how much money they spend. Many states, including Massachusetts, incorporate some element of performance into their […]
Posted inOpinion
End the DPU’s stall on municipal electricity aggregation
AS FOLKS ACROSS Massachusetts confront the consequences of a changing climate and emerge from a winter of extraordinarily high energy costs, it’s clear that we need cleaner, more affordable power. Expanding municipal aggregation programs would increase demand for clean energy, reduce fossil fuel emissions, and lower energy costs for ratepayers – yet the Department of […]
Posted inEnergy
Avangrid CEO mentions default on wind farm deal
THE CEO of Avangrid told financial analysts on Wednesday that his company has defaulted on a provision in its offshore wind power purchase agreement with three Massachusetts utilities. It’s not clear what provision was defaulted (company officials declined comment), but the existence of some sort of default is not all that surprising given Avangrid’s decision […]
Posted inOpinion
We see promise in geothermal heating and cooling
CLIMATE CHANGE is real. Also real is that each of us can act. We are at a critical moment to make lasting change, particularly in reducing greenhouse gas emissions that come from how we heat our homes and businesses. After all, building heat represents more than a quarter of total carbon emissions. EARTHDAY.ORG , the […]