Like other Independent System Operators have done before it, the Southwest Power Pool (SPP) is back at the drawing board in an effort to further refine its generator interconnection procedures and improve on queue reforms initially put in place in 2009. And also like other ISOs that have continued to tinker with queue reform, SPP
Stoel Rives Analyzes 2013 CFIUS Annual Report
By Alex Mertens on
Posted in Regulation, Wind
We last reported to you about Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) activities in connection with the Ralls Corporation case. CFIUS is a multi-agency U.S. government committee charged with reviewing foreign acquisitions of U.S. businesses for national security implications
The committee recently released its unclassified Annual Report to Congress for 2013…
FERC Performs an About-Face in Idaho
By Jason Johns on
In agreeing to dismiss an historic effort to enforce PURPA, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission left a lump of coal for Qualifying Facility wind developers in Idaho. The agreement represents an apparent policy change at FERC, as well as a complete win for the Idaho PUC.
Continue Reading FERC Performs an About-Face in Idaho
New Eagle “Take” Permit Rule: Law360 Expert Analysis and Webinar
By Sarah Stauffer Curtiss on
Posted in Wind
SDG&E Issues Renewables RFO
By Brian Nese on
On December 16, 2013, San Diego Gas & Electric Company (SDG&E) issued its 2013 Request for Offers ("RFO") seeking Eligible Renewable Resources. This solicitation will facilitate SDG&E’s compliance with California’s Renewables Portfolio Standard (“RPS”).
The solicitation seeks Eligible Renewable Resources from all types of renewable technologies providing both Renewable Energy Credits (“RECs”) and Energy (“Bundled…
USFWS Extends Eagle Permits to 30 Years
By Sarah Stauffer Curtiss on
Posted in Wind
Today the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service issued for public inspection its final rule to extend the maximum term for programmatic “take” permits under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act to 30 years, subject to a recurring five-year review process throughout the permit life. The final rule will be published in the Federal Register…
Army Announces MATOC Awards for Wind Developers
By Chad Marriott on
Posted in Wind
On September 9, 2013, the U.S. Army Engineering & Support Center in Huntsville, Alabama, acting in conjunction with the Army Energy Initiatives Task Force (“EITF”), issued the third round of awards under the multi-award task order contract for renewable and alternative energy (Solicitation Number W912DY-11-R-0036, the “MATOC”) issued last summer. The Army received 45 proposals…
Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act Compliance: A “New Normal”?
By Sarah Stauffer Curtiss on
Posted in Regulation, Wind
As we discussed in this alert, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) released its final Eagle Conservation Plan Guidance (ECP Guidance) on April 26, 2013. Intended to promote compliance with the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act (BGEPA) for wind development projects that have the potential to affect bald and golden eagles, the…
Xcel Plans 600 Megawatts of New Wind Power
By Thomas Braun on
Posted in Wind
Xcel Energy, the nation’s leading wind power utility, announced yesterday that it will add three large wind farms to its wind energy portfolio. The 600 megawatt increase is the utility’s single largest increase in its Upper Midwest service area.
The 33 percent increase will augment Xcel’s existing 1,800 megawatts of wind capacity and allow it…
7th Circuit Affirms FERC’s Decision on Multi-Value Projects, Relying Heavily on Policy of Promoting Wind Development
By Sarah Johnson Phillips on
From my colleague, Andrew Moratzka:
On June 7th, 2013, the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit issued an opinion in Illinois Commerce Commission, et al., v. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, affirming the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s approval of the Midcontinent Independent System Operator, Inc. (MISO) Multi-Value Project (MVP) tariff for…