ISO NEW ENGLAND, the operator of the region’s power system, recently announced that electricity supplies should be sufficient to meet the region’s demand for electricity this winter barring “unexpected resource […]
Plugging In
Energy and the Environment
Posted inEnvironment
DONG, Eversource form Bay State Wind
DONG ENERGY, one of three companies vying for offshore wind contracts from Massachusetts, on Tuesday announced a 50-50 partnership with Eversource Energy, a well-connected regional utility that has crafted similar […]
Posted inEnvironment, Opinion
The Trump threat on energy
WHILE DONALD TRUMP’S VICTORY has sent many shock waves, perhaps there’s none more immediate than those now coursing through New England’s progressive energy policy. That policy has led the nation […]
Posted inEnvironment
Power grid operator sounds alarms
OFFICIALS CHARGED WITH KEEPING the lights on in New England raised alarm bells on Thursday about what might happen if the region’s natural gas pipeline infrastructure is not expanded. Gordon […]
Posted inEnvironment, The Back Story
Eversource pushing big solar project
EVERSOURCE ENERGY, a fierce opponent of solar subsidies on Beacon Hill, is seeking state approval to build solar farms across Massachusetts. A spokesman for the utility said the net cost […]
Posted inEnvironment, Opinion
With renewables, intermittency is a problem
Progress continues in the New England clean energy revolution: Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island recently announced their intention to negotiate seven power contracts with wind and solar developers selected through […]
Posted inEnvironment, Opinion
Pipelines are obsolete technology
I STRENUOUSLY DISAGREE with the recent opinion piece by Ian Bowles in which he argues that, “with rapid departure of all of the remaining coal and nuclear power plants in Massachusetts, […]
Posted inEnvironment, Opinion
MA must continue to lead on energy
A NEW PRESIDENT always means change in key public policy matters. Before sharing my thoughts about what this transition means for our energy priorities in Massachusetts, I want to share […]
Posted inEnvironment
Eversource winter price to drop 8%
EVERSOURCE ENERGY said its customers will pay about 8 percent less this winter for electricity, suggesting that constraints on natural gas supplies coming into the region won’t have a major […]
Posted inEnvironment, Opinion
Robbing MIT to pay international reactor
THE DECADES-LONG QUEST to produce inexpensive carbon-free energy from nuclear fusion is making tangible progress. There is much work ahead but recent research is bringing the elusive goal into clearer […]
Posted inEnvironment
Eversource confident on gas pipeline project
EVERSOURCE ENERGY officials confidently predicted this week they would begin construction of the $3 billion Access Northeast natural gas pipeline in 2019 and floated several possible ways to finance it. […]
Posted inEnvironment
Gas pipeline dealt possibly fatal blow
THE PUSH FOR A NEW PIPELINE into New England may have been dealt a fatal blow when Connecticut officials called off a process to procure more natural gas largely because […]
Posted inEnvironment, Opinion
Measuring the impact of offshore wind, hydro
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 […]
Posted inEnvironment
3 Boston institutions finance NC solar farm
THREE BOSTON-AREA INSTITUTIONS are financing the construction of one of the largest renewable energy projects in the United States, a 60-megawatt solar farm in North Carolina. MIT, Boston Medical Center, […]
Posted inEnvironment, Politics
Warren redistributes solar income
NEWTON MAYOR SETTI WARREN announced a small solar project on Wednesday that will slightly trim the city’s electric bill and funnel the bulk of the savings to about 1,250 low-income […]
Posted inEnvironment, Opinion
Charting the path to zero carbon emissions
CLIMATE POLICY is in a holding pattern. The D.C. Circuit court is deliberating on the future of EPA’s “Clean Power Plan” regulation of carbon pollution from existing power plants. Stakeholders […]
Posted inEnvironment, Opinion
States are where clean energy action is
ON THE ISSUE OF CLIMATE CHANGE and energy policy, the candidates for president couldn’t be farther apart, as evidenced by their brief exchange at last week’s first debate. For Hillary […]
Posted inEnvironment, Opinion
Pilgrim is safe, shouldn’t close early
DESPITE ASSERTIONS TO THE CONTRARY, the facts demonstrate that the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station has run very reliably in recent years. For calendar year 2014, our capacity factor was 97 […]
Posted inEnvironment, Opinion
Baker’s energy policy only part right
GOV. CHARLIE BAKER’S FLURRY of announcements on climate change and clean energy has elicited cautiously optimistic praise from some sustainable energy advocates. While many details of the administration’s new initiatives are yet […]
Posted inEnvironment, Opinion
From too cheap to meter to too risky to run
NUCLEAR OPERATORS in California, Connecticut, Illinois, and New York are asking state lawmakers for additional monies—above and beyond the market prices of electricity and electric capacity—to keep their plants open […]
Posted inEnvironment
Baker rolling out new solar incentives
THE BAKER ADMINISTRATION is preparing to roll out the draft of a new solar incentive program on Friday that sets a ceiling on subsidies and is expected to reduce their […]
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
Baker signs climate change order
GOV. CHARLIE BAKER, who six years ago expressed skepticism about the science of climate change, signed an executive order on Friday setting the state on a course to develop a […]
Posted inEnvironment
Offshore wind firms eye New Bedford
STATE OFFICIALS ON TUESDAY signed a non-binding letter of intent with three companies who all agreed to use the New Bedford Marine Commerce Terminal as a staging area if they […]