PURCHASES OF LARGE-SCALE hydroelectric and offshore wind resources as required by the recently passed energy law would reduce the state’s overall greenhouse gas emissions by 9 percent at a cost […]
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Posted inEnvironment, Opinion
Time to turn page on natural gas
AS REPORTED LAST WEEK, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruled that a utility-proposed cost-recovery scheme – the “pipeline tax” that would have helped finance Spectra’s Access Northeast project – violated […]
Posted inEnvironment
Baker still wants new natural gas pipeline
GOV. CHARLIE BAKER is continuing to push for a new natural gas pipeline into the region, but at a conference on Monday with fellow New England governors and Canadian premiers […]
Posted inEnvironment, Opinion
Prohibit the ‘pipeline tax’
What is the proposed “pipeline tax” on our electric bills, and why is there a bipartisan effort to ban it? The so-called “pipeline tax” is a scheme under which consumers […]
Posted inThe Back Story
Plan B for a pipeline
ONE OF THE BIG MYSTERIES on Beacon Hill is how Gov. Charlie Baker is going to accomplish one of his top remaining energy priorities – building a new natural gas […]
Posted inEnvironment
Natural gas falls out of favor on Beacon Hill
AS THE LEGISLATURE RUSHES to embrace offshore wind and Canadian hydroelectricity, the Senate on Thursday voted 39-0 to cut off the chief means of financing new natural gas pipelines coming […]
Posted inEnvironment, Opinion
State on verge of clean energy transformation
SOMETIMES INCREMENTAL CHANGES result in a patchwork of policies whose larger significance may be missed – and along with it major opportunities. That is the case with Massachusetts energy policy […]
Posted inEnvironment, State House News Service
Senate approves energy legislation
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE AN ENERGY BILL PASSED 30-0 by the Senate Thursday evening would require the solicitation of long-term contracts for at least 2,000 megawatts of offshore wind by […]
Posted inEconomy, Opinion
Time for action on high cost of electricity
THE HIGH COST of electricity is a major issue impacting Massachusetts businesses and residents alike. Cheap electricity is available throughout much of the United States. That is not the case […]
Posted inEnvironment, State House News Service
Report: Baker hydro bill won’t lower power rates
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE WARNING ENERGY COSTS WILL RISE as the state aims to meet the 2020 greenhouse gas emissions reduction goals of its Global Warming Solutions Act, a new […]
Posted inOpinion
Solar isn’t the cause of high electricity costs
LIKE MANY UTILITIES ACROSS THE COUNTRY, National Grid blames high electricity costs on net metering while claiming to protect ratepayers. But that’s not the real reason utilities object to this […]
Posted inEnvironment, Opinion
Long-term energy contracts make sense
The headline of a recent CommonWealth magazine story states, “Clean power will cost more.” Although presented as simple fact, the headline actually begs a more complicated question: “More than what?” […]
Posted inEnvironment, Opinion
The inconvenient truth of energy policy
THE MASSACHUSETTS LEGISLATURE just enacted some of the most ambitious clean energy procurement legislation in the nation. It is a significant step to meet the Commonwealth’s emissions reduction goals and […]
Posted inUncategorized
Solar net metering bill moving fast
COMPROMISE SOLAR NET METERING LEGISLATION that allows the industry to resume expansion while reining in some costs borne by ratepayers appears likely to hit the governor’s desk by the end […]
Posted inOpinion
Mass. should boost renewable targets
MASSACHUSETTS HOUSE LEADERS are currently drafting an omnibus energy bill to secure new supplies of electricity as much of the region’s fleet of aging nuclear, coal, and oil power plants […]
Posted inState House News Service, Uncategorized
Hydro-wind combo would save customers $171m
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE A NEW STUDY ON THE IMPACT large-scale hydro and wind power imports could have on the Massachusetts energy market predicts significant savings for consumers, challenging the […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, The Download
The Codcast: The everyday terrorism of urban gun violence
Just over a week ago, 17-year-old Raekwon Brown was fatally gunned down just steps from Jeremiah Burke High School in Dorchester, where he was a student. Three others, including a […]
Posted inEnvironment
Healey pushes for delay on pipeline contracts
ATTORNEY GENERAL MAURA HEALEY on Thursday sought to delay action on a bid by Eversource Energy to tap its electric ratepayers for money to finance a natural gas pipeline expansion […]
Posted inEnvironment, Opinion
Assessing risk in the state’s energy debate
THE MOST CONTROVERSIAL ENERGY POLICY issue pending before the Commonwealth – rivaled perhaps only by the solar debates – has been the proposal to expand natural gas pipelines into New […]
Posted inEnvironment
Energy bill includes offshore wind, hydro
A HOUSE COMMITTEE released a long-awaited energy bill on Monday that calls for the state’s utilities to negotiate long-term contracts for large amounts of offshore wind and Canadian hydroelectricity, although […]
Posted inEconomy, Opinion
Baker’s hydroelectricity plan a bad bet
GAMBLING RATEPAYER DOLLARS on Canadian government-owned hydropower is a bad bet for Massachusetts. Gov. Charlie Baker’s proposal to carve out a third of the Commonwealth’s electricity market for Canadian provincially-owned […]
Posted inEnvironment
Moody’s raises concerns in wake of power auction
MOODY’S INVESTORS SERVICE on Tuesday issued a negative outlook for the region’s power generators in the wake of a very successful auction held last week to secure electricity supplies for […]
Posted inEnvironment, Opinion
Are municipal light firms doing enough?
THE MASSACHUSETTS LEGISLATURE appears primed to enact legislation that will require large purchases of clean energy resources to address the daunting challenge of meeting our greenhouse gas emission reduction targets. […]
Posted inEnvironment, Politics, State House News Service
House OKs hydro, offshore wind bill
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE House lawmakers voted near unanimously on Wednesday to diversify the state’s state energy mix by requiring utilities to solicit and enter into long-term contracts for large-scale […]