From our colleague Ryan Steen:

On July 10, 2009, the Animal Welfare Institute and others (”Plaintiffs”) filed a motion for a preliminary injunction to halt construction of the Beech Ridge wind project in Greenbrier County, West Virginia (the “Project”). The Plaintiffs seek the injunction to prevent unavoidable harms that they allege the Project will cause to the Indiana bat, a species listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act (“ESA”). The Plaintiffs’ injunction request follows closely on the heels of the complaint the Plaintiffs filed in the Federal District Court for the District of Maryland (Civ. No. 09-1519), which alleges that the Project will unlawfully “take” Indiana bats in violation of Section 9 of the ESA. In their complaint and request for an injunction, the Plaintiffs assert that the Project cannot lawfully move forward without an incidental take permit (“ITP”) issued under Section 10 of the ESA. Judge Titus recently ordered that the hearing on the Plaintiffs’ motion for a preliminary injunction will be addressed in conjunction with the trial on the merits of the case, currently scheduled for October 2009.Continue Reading Animal Rights Group Seeks Injunction to Halt Wind Project on ESA Grounds

The University of Minnesota’s annual conference on Energy, Economics and the Environment – E3 – will be held in St. Paul on November 17. Hosted annually by the University of Minnesota’s Initiative for Renewable Energy and the Environment (IREE), this year’s conference will explore current technologies, environmental benefits and market opportunities in renewable energy.

Stoel…

The U.S. Department of Energy is hosting a free webinar on "How to Build a Strong Application" for the DOE Loan Guarantee Program on Tuesday, September 8, 2009 from 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM EST.  The webinar is intended to explain the loan guarantee program and help lenders and applicants navigate the application process.  DOE will…

On September 2, 2009, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issued a letter of deficiency to the Midwest Independent Transmission System Operator in MISO’s RECB Phase I generator interconnect cost allocation tariff amendment proceedings (Docket No. ER09-1431).  See my previous blog entry on AWEA’s protest to the MISO filing for additional background.

The letter instructs MISO…

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act provides $3.2 billion for energy efficiency and conservation block grants. Most of this money has been allocated directly to various local governments. Washington has an additional $6.4 million available through a competitive grant program.

Washington’s competitive grant program is administered through its Department of Commerce. Today, the Department of Commerce has announced…

Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner and Energy Secretary Steven Chu announced the first awards of cash grants in lieu of the investment tax credit (ITC) today.  The total award value was over $502 million.  Recipients include projects in Colorado, Connecticut, Maine, Minnesota, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania and Texas.  Click here for a detailed list of the awards…

From my colleague Adam Walters:

On August 20 the Australian government announced the passage of a bill quadrupling its Renewable Energy Target (RET) to ensure that 20% (approximately 45,000 GWh) of Australia’s electricity is generated from renewable energy sources by 2020.

 

How does Australia’s RET Scheme Work?

 

The RET scheme is an expansion of Australia’s Mandatory RET scheme introduced in 2001, the first of its kind in the world. It works through the creation and sale of Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) by renewable power generators to “liable parties” (mainly large-scale electricity utilities and consumers), who must provide a designated quantity of REC’s to Australia’s renewable energy regulator to demonstrate compliance and avoid having to pay charges for any shortfall. One of the changes brought about the new legislation is to increase from $40/MWh to $65/MWh.

Renewable energy sources eligible for accreditation under the RET scheme include: solar, wind, hydro, tidal, wave, biomass and geothermal, as well as solar water heaters and other smaller generation units. Hydro has historically dominated Australia’s renewable energy landscape, but recent project announcements and funding opportunities for wind and solar projects signal greater diversification of the industry, particularly for proven technologies.        Continue Reading Australia passes 20% renewable energy target by 2020

In recent days, there have been rumors circulating that Treasury would issue "pre-approvals" for ITC grants in cases where construction begins in 2009 or 2010 but the project is not placed in service before 2011.  You will recall that projects may still qualify for the ITC grant in those cases if they meet the placed…