THIS PAST YEAR has not been kind to Massachusetts electric ratepayers—at least some of them. For customers who do not shop and choose their own energy provider, the average residential rate […]
Energy
Posted inEnergy
Utilities need to stop building natural gas infrastructure
THIS SUMMER, the Commonwealth and our neighbors across New England have experienced the hottest month on record, historic flooding, and dangerous levels of air pollution. These unprecedented, unnatural disasters have put our […]
Posted inOpinion
Unjamming the heating oil industry’s road to carbon neutrality
AT A RENEWABLE fuels conference in January, Kevin Beckett, CEO and president of oil burner manufacturer R.W. Beckett Corp., announced that after years of research and development, the company’s much-anticipated […]
Posted inEnergy, Environment
SouthCoast Wind agrees to pay $60m to terminate power purchase agreements
THE DEVELOPER of SouthCoast Wind on Tuesday agreed to pay more than $60 million to the state’s three leading utilities to terminate power purchase agreements the company negotiated last year […]
Posted inEnergy
DPU approves termination of offshore wind contract
THE MASSACHUSETTS Department of Public Utilities on Wednesday approved without comment the termination of an offshore wind power purchase agreement negotiated between Eversource and Commonwealth Wind and approved by the […]
Posted inOpinion
Three steps for turning the power grid around
THE UTTER DEVASTATION of summer flooding in New England and New York and the Canadian wildfire smoke that shrouded the Northeast in an orange haze in June shouts an inescapable […]
Posted inThe Download
Beacon Hill inaction leaves Avangrid in awkward spot
On July 27, the CEO of Avangrid told financial analysts that his company was preparing to resume work on the Massachusetts-financed transmission line carrying hydroelectricity from Quebec into New England. […]
Posted inPolitics
Beacon Hill inaction leaves Avangrid in awkward spot
ON JULY 27, the CEO of Avangrid told financial analysts that his company was preparing to resume work on the Massachusetts-financed transmission line carrying hydroelectricity from Quebec into New England. […]
Posted inOpinion
All-electric homes are cheaper to build than fossil fuel residences
OUTSIDE THE STATE LEGISLATURE’S doors, our air was filled with wildfire smoke from Canada and extreme heat, while record flooding wiped out farms and livelihoods in western Massachusetts. Inside, lobbyists […]
Posted inEnergy
Avangrid provides on-the-water glimpse of offshore wind future
WIND FARM DEVELOPER Avangrid provided a preview of coming attractions on Wednesday, taking a group of lawmakers, environmental advocates, and reporters out to the construction site of the nation’s first […]
Posted inEnergy
Avangrid resuming construction of Mass.-financed hydro line
THE TOP OFFICIAL at Avangrid said construction of the Massachusetts-financed transmission line carrying hydroelectricity from Quebec into Maine is slated to resume next week, and his presentation suggested the project […]
Posted inEnergy, Environment, State House News Service
Healey administration nixes plan for Plymouth nuclear wastewater
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE STATE REGULATORS denied a bid by the company in charge of decommissioning the nuclear power plant in Plymouth to discharge 1.1 million gallons of industrial wastewater […]
Posted inEnergy, Opinion
A game plan for bridging the coming energy divide
WHENEVER THERE IS a major transition, there is often a divide between the haves and the have-nots. Consider the digital divide. To this day, some communities still don’t have broadband […]
Posted inEnergy, Government
Ominous offshore wind news from Rhode Island
IN WHAT COULD BE a foreshadowing of future offshore wind pricing, Rhode Island’s leading utility this week opted not to move forward with a project called Revolution Wind 2 because […]
Posted inEnergy
Avangrid agrees to pay $48m to terminate offshore wind deal
AVANGRID AND THE STATE’S three major utilities on Monday agreed to terminate a power purchase agreement they signed just last year, with the offshore wind developer agreeing to pay a total […]
Posted inOpinion
Choice is simple, time to do away with fluorescent bulbs
MASSACHUSETTS HAS the chance to join the ranks of states taking action to phase out inefficient and toxic lighting. Fluorescent light bulbs illuminate our offices, garages, and basements—but they contain […]
Posted inEnergy
Grid shifts to operating reserves to deal with transmission outage
THE NEW ENGLAND power grid experienced a transmission outage at 6 p.m. Wednesday night and dealt with the electricity shortage by tapping resources it keeps on standby to deal with […]
Posted inEnergy
Mass. solar potential called enormous
THE HEALEY ADMINISTRATION unveiled a new mapping tool on Thursday that suggests the state has the potential to generate an enormous amount of solar power. In a press release, the […]
Posted inOpinion
What you need to know about heat pumps
TECHNOLOGY IMPROVEMENTS likely to reach the market within two years will improve conventional air-to-air heat pump efficiency by perhaps 10 percent or more while reducing the climate risks of refrigerant […]
Posted inEnergy
Campbell at odds with Healey on offshore wind
ATTORNEY GENERAL Andrea Campbell and Gov. Maura Healey are the closest of political allies, but they are staking out very different positions on the state’s next offshore wind procurement. The […]
Posted inOpinion
Oil is not a good bridge fuel to the future
THE FEDERAL ENERGY Regulatory Commission (FERC) came to Portland, Maine, this week to discuss with policymakers from across the region the challenge of keeping the lights on while reducing the […]
Posted inEnergy
Grid operator dials back electricity concerns
AFTER YEARS of cautionary warnings about the risk of winter-time electricity shortages and possible brownouts, the operator of the New England power grid is putting that message on hold for […]
Posted inEnergy, Environment
Big decisions looming on offshore wind
EVERY COUPLE OF DAYS a picture surfaces out of New Bedford showing ships bringing in the giant parts needed to assemble Vineyard Wind, the nation’s first commercial-scale wind farm. The […]
Posted inEnergy
Clean energy transition requires careful planning
AS MASSACHUSETTS moves forward with its ambitious and important goal of 100 percent clean energy by 2030, the skilled plumbing and gas fitting industry has a crucial role to play. […]
