In 2011 the $1 billion project was to be the biggest solar plant of its kind, and it looked like the future of renewable power. Citigroup Inc. and other financiers invested $140 million with its developer, SolarReserve Inc. Steven Chu, the U.S. Department of Energy secretary at the time, offered the company government loan guarantees, and Harry Reid, then the Senate majority leader and senior senator from Nevada, cleared the way for the company to build on public land. ...SolarReserve may have done its part, but today the company doesn’t rank among the winners. Instead, it’s mired in litigation and accusations of mismanagement at Crescent Dunes, where taxpayers remain on the hook for $737 million in loan guarantees.

Taxes & Subsidies Energy Policy USA Nevada

Offshore wind is the renewable-energy industry’s shiny new toy. Led by New York, seven Atlantic-coast states have now imposed mandates to expand offshore wind use over the next decade, with the Empire State last week soliciting bids for an additional 2,500 megawatts of offshore power, on top of the 1,700 megawatts procured previously.

Offshore Wind Energy Policy Massachusetts New York

A company owned by a member of the Chinese Communist Party — Guanghui Energy Company — may gain access to our power grid through a large wind farm in the Devil’s River Areas of West Texas, and the federal government is not moving fast enough to prevent it, and the state government lacks the power to stop it.

Energy Policy USA

The US has repeatedly seen renewable energy infrastructure “sited and constructed in places that have led to a significant loss of biodiversity”, said Rebecca Hernandez, co-author of a recent University of California, Davis study that found the development of the Mojave imperils cacti and other desert plants. “We need land for energy, food and conservation – how will we make sure we allocate enough for each on an increasingly hot and full Earth? We make prudent decisions about where we put our renewable energy.”

Energy Policy USA

The very agencies that will be consulting with the CEO of the new Office of Renewable Energy Siting on a plan for greenhouse gas emissions reduction have already pledged their “common commitment” to a single “solution”: large-scale wind and solar projects. Local governments and residents will be presenting to a judge and jury with a predetermined verdict.

Energy Policy New York

Bernhardt met with both industry and regulatory stakeholders to discuss the projects, and reassured fishermen that the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has taken an interest in ensuring that wind projects accommodate the commercial fishing industry. “Ultimately, I need to have a development program that’s done in a way that’s sustainable for everybody,” Bernhardt said in a press conference after the meeting. 

Offshore Wind Energy Policy USA

The wind-energy industry has seen growth in South Dakota in recent years. But for more projects to move forward, a new report says local governments and developers need to be diligent in sorting out zoning issues.

Energy Policy South Dakota

On July 2, the Public Utility Commission of Texas denied a request by AEP affiliate Southwestern Electric Power Co. to use its Texas customers' rates to finance the acquisition of a giant wind farm complex in Oklahoma ...The three-member Texas commission said the project didn't lay out clear enough benefits to consumers to justify their up-front investment. While some big companies have championed renewable energy, the farm had been opposed by major Texas consumer groups.

Energy Policy Arkansas Louisiana Oklahoma Texas

Corporate Surrogates for Massachusetts have spent close to $17 million so far battling a referendum question in Maine that seeks to block the importation of hydroelectricity from Quebec using a power line running through wilderness areas in the western part of the state.

Energy Policy Transmission Maine Massachusetts

It is notable that many of the conservationists defending wildlife from industrial wind turbines and transmission lines view the Democrats’ refurbished Green New Deal and its call for the “rapid deployment” of wind and transmission lines not as a climate dream but rather as an ecological nightmare. This isn’t the first time Democrats have shown a willingness to sacrifice wildlife for the wind industry.

Impact on Wildlife Impact on Birds Energy Policy USA

In 2006, Arizona had a mere 9 megawatts of solar capacity and no wind farms, so it was bold when the Arizona Corporation Commission required utilities to generate 15% of their energy from renewable sources by 2025. Arizona was an early adopter of a renewable standard, which at the time was competitive with neighboring states and gave rise to Arizona’s strong solar sector.

Energy Policy Arizona

That’s one of the few big challenges that wind development is still facing in New Mexico. More wind generation is contingent on increased transmission capacity. More outreach to communities is needed, said Fernando Martinez, executive director of the state Renewable Energy Transmission Authority. ...“It’s essential to develop a reliable, connected grid for renewable energy.”

Energy Policy Arizona New Mexico

Every tree that is cut down, every property that is devalued, every bird that is killed as a result of these projects is for the benefit of his hometown. Every rural community torn apart by this controversy will suffer. The industrialization of rural areas changes the character of communities, taking away the very reason people have chosen to live, work, vacation and recreate in some of these regions — all for the benefit of New York City.

Energy Policy New York

The business groups argue that halting the surcharges would provide some rate relief to both commercial and residential customers at a time when many are having financial difficulties as a result of the COVID-19 shutdown. “We’re not looking to decimate these programs, but we are saying, ‘We’ve got to take a breather,’” said Doug Gablinske, executive director of the Energy Council of Rhode Island, which represents large energy users.

Energy Policy Connecticut Maine Massachusetts New Hampshire Rhode Island Vermont

The government has refused planning permission to a 340MW extension to Vattenfall's Thanet wind farm off the southeast coast of England, dealing a blow to the company's plans to expand the site's renewable power capacity. Business Secretary Alok Sharma refused consent to the project yesterday, citing concerns about the proposed extension's impact on marine navigation, shipping, and ports in the area.

Offshore Wind Energy Policy UK

The demise of White Pines is a vivid symbol of Ontario’s emerging energy policy, which turned hostile to renewable sources of power after Premier Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservatives were elected in 2018. Mr. Ford has blamed “these terrible, terrible wind turbines” for soaring electricity prices, and said he’d rid the province of every single one if he could. ...The government’s abandonment of renewables stems partly from the high costs Ontario paid to become an early adopter under the Liberals, who passed the Green Energy Act in 2009. 

Energy Policy Ontario

The rural opposition has been so strong that earlier this year, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo added a provision, known as Article 23, to the state budget that effectively strips local communities of their ability to stop big renewable-energy projects from being built in their jurisdictions. ...New Englanders like the idea of wind energy they just don’t want any wind turbines in New England. So they are putting them in New York.

Energy Policy Connecticut Massachusetts New York Rhode Island

As Mexico is poised to plunge into its worst recession in recent-memory the leftist president is making cuts and pulling the plug on subsidy dependent intermittent power from wind and solar that has been driving up the cost of electricity for its financially challenged population.

Energy Policy Mexico

Germany’s grand coalition of Christian Democrats (CDU/CSU) and Social Democrats (SPD) on Monday (18 May) agreed on the abolition of the solar cap and an “opt-out solution” for a standard distance for wind turbines. This is a decisive milestone for the expansion of renewable energy in Germany, EURACTIV Germany reports.

General Energy Policy Germany

Today, we have 98 percent of our own fossil-free electricity generation in Sweden. As the electricity demand increases in the future, the focus should be on stable base power and not unpredictable wind power.

Offshore Wind Energy Policy Europe