There have been a number of useful developments recently in which electric power utilities are showing that big-ticket programs are now and are going in the near future to make a difference.
TVA – The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) has announced that they are going to phase out 18 coal-fired power plants, replacing them with gas and biomass-fired capacity. TVA is also going to ramp up its energy efficiency programs. The Christian Science Monitor notes here that this is being done, in large part, in response to pressure from the EPA, with others, among them several local states and the Sierra Club, in full support. A TVA release noted “… that replacing older and less-economical generation with cleaner sources also is in alignment with recommendations in the utility’s Integrated Resource Plan as well as the utility’s vision for cleaner air.”
The Sierra Club, which has been waging a vigorous and effective “Beyond Coal Campaign” for several years, said in its release that the settlement between EPA and TVA requires the utility, beyond the shutdown of the 18 plants, to significantly upgrade the pollution controls on three dozen additional units. The release quotes Mary Anne Hitt, Director of the Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal Campaign: “By phasing out the most dangerous coal plants and charting a course focused on less pollution and more clean energy, TVA is demonstrating that we don’t have to choose between clean air and affordable energy – we can and must have both.”
Big Merger Deal – Exelon-Constellation Deal Could Create ‘Clean Energy’ Giant was the headline from ClimateWire and the NY Times. The deal should accelerate the shift for these utilities toward more natural gas and more renewables. (Nuclear power is also touted in the deal but we’re seeing, thankfully, a decreasing interest in new nuclear.) One important environmental watchdog, NRDC, seems happy at the deal. “‘The importance of electric utilities as clean energy investors cannot be overstated,’ said Ralph Cavanagh, co-director of the Natural Resources Defense Council’s energy program.”
Total Buying into Solar – The French energy giant, Total, is buying a majority stake in SunPower Corp. according to this from Reuters via SolveClimate. The story reports that the deal will provide the California-based company “…with up to $1 billion of credit support over the next five years — cash that will enable SunPower to speed development of solar power plants and expand manufacturing capacity.” The SunPower CEO thinks this should give a big boost to his company. “Our capacity to build projects has increased immediately.”
Renewables to the Fore – An item in The Scotsman really caught my eye. The story is about a survey of top leaders from oil and gas companies from around the world in which “…more than 90 per cent of respondents believed that by 2025, renewables will be the most substantial energy source.” These are oil and gas boys, mind you, not known for their green credentials.
The survey was done by Maxwell Drummond, an international consultancy. The executives surveyed think that over the next fifteen years that conventionally extracted oil and gas, as well as coal will diminish in their share, while renewables will surge, along with unconventionally sourced oil and gas and nuclear. The CEO of the Scottish renewable energy industry trade association, Scottish Renewables, said “In Scotland we have a wealth of experience in the oil and gas industry and already we are seeing companies diversify into renewables.”
