Is this an admission that the "free market" does not work in the traditional
electric power utility model?
"Charles Jones, CEO of FirstEnergy, the parent company of MonPower and
Potomac Edison, announced in an earnings call on July 29 that the coal-heavy
utility would seek to remove itself completely from the competitive energy
business and, in the meantime, would try to offload plants to regulated
markets, where the company is guaranteed a profit."
http://mynewsonthego.com/charleston/EPaper/…
[View More]?pageid=d33b9dcb-f8ef-4800-ab20-9
e327ee0ba1b
FirstEnergy loses $1.1B
06 Aug 2016 - Charleston Gazette Mail
By Andrew Brown
Staff writer
Firm eyes selling Pleasants plant to MonPower in 'de-risk' move
After announcing a
quarterlyhttps://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1031296/000103129616000101/
ex991fe-06302016.htm
<http://mynewsonthego.com/charleston/EPaper/%3Ca%20href=> ">loss of $1.1
billion because of the future closures of two uncompetitive coal-fired power
plants in Ohio, FirstEnergy says it will seek to "de-risk" by pushing plants
onto electricity customers in states like West Virginia.
Charles Jones, CEO of FirstEnergy, the parent company of MonPower and
Potomac
Edison,https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/3005292-First-Energy-Earnings
-Call-Q2-2016.html <http://mynewsonthego.com/charleston/EPaper/%3Ca%20href=>
">announced in an earnings call on July 29 that the coal-heavy utility would
seek to remove itself completely from the competitive energy business and,
in the meantime, would try to offload plants to regulated markets, where the
company is guaranteed a profit.
"Longer-term, we do not believe competitive generation is a good fit for
FirstEnergy and we are focused on regulated operations," Jones said. "We
cannot put investors and our company at risk."
West Virginia likely will play a big part in that corporate strategy. Jones
made it clear
inhttps://www.documentcloud.org/documents/2841966-First-Energy-First-Quarter
-2016-Earnings-Call.html
<http://mynewsonthego.com/charleston/EPaper/%3Ca%20href=> ">another earnings
call earlier this year that the Akron-based business
wantshttp://www.wvgazettemail.com/article/20160312/GZ01/160319819
<http://mynewsonthego.com/charleston/EPaper/%3Ca%20href=> "> to sell the
Pleasants power plant, north of Parkersburg, to its subsidiary companies in
West Virginia.
The proposed transfer of that coal-fired plant, which would shift the risk
of the 36-year-old generating station off of investors and onto electricity
customers in the northern half of the state, has already prompted opposition
from groups like the Sierra Club, West Virginia Citizen Action Group and the
state government's Consumer Advocate Division.
Those groups took issue with the company's
http://www.psc.state.wv.us/scripts/WebDocket/ViewDocument.cfm?CaseActivityID
=441858 <http://mynewsonthego.com/charleston/EPaper/%3Ca%20href=>
&NotType=%27WebDocket%27">integrated resource plan - a 15-year energy and
demand forecast - that was presented to the West Virginia Public Service
Commission earlier this year.
The plan had reported that an existing coal-fired power plant (now known to
be Pleasants) would be the cheapest generating option for customers and that
electricity demand for MonPower and Potomac Edison was expected to increase
by 2.2 percent, largely because of the natural gas industry in the state.
Late this week, the Consumer Advocate Division and the
https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/3006112-PSC-Staff-and-CAD-Ask-for-Fi
rstEnergy-RFP.html <http://mynewsonthego.com/charleston/EPaper/%3Ca%20href=>
">PSC's staff called on FirstEnergy to file a formal request for proposal
that would require the company to compare other energy sources, including
new or existing wind, solar and natural-gas plants.
"The staff and CAD believes that these companies, especially in light of the
inexorable collapse of the coal industry driven primarily by the
availability of cheaper and more plentiful natural gas, continue to rely on
acquisition practices that are not in the best interests of the consuming
public and the economy of the state," their lawyers said.
Results from the PJM Interconnection, a regional transmission organization
that manages the energy market for 13 states, including West Virginia, seem
to contradict the company's findings in its resource plan, too.
https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/2842771-PJM-Market-Report-2015.html
<http://mynewsonthego.com/charleston/EPaper/%3Ca%20href=> ">Market results
show that, between 2014 and 2015, regional electricity sales from coal-fired
power plants dropped by 17.8 percent in the PJM. Gas-fired power plants sold
28.4 percent more in 2015 than they did the year before, and
evenhttps://www.documentcloud.org/documents/2842688-PJM-Capacity-Auction-Res
ults-2019-2020.html
<http://mynewsonthego.com/charleston/EPaper/%3Ca%20href=> ">more efficient
gas-fired plants are set to come online in the coming years.
The groups opposed to the transfer of Pleasants have argued that the sale of
the plant would be a corporate bailout for the company's investors, at the
expense of West Virginia electricity customers.
The
https://www.firstenergycorp.com/newsroom/news_releases/firstenergy-to-deacti
vate-units-at-two-ohio-power-plants-.html
<http://mynewsonthego.com/charleston/EPaper/%3Ca%20href=> ">closure of the
company's two plants in Ohio resulted
inhttps://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1031296/000103129616000095/ex991le
ttertoinvestmentcom.htm
<http://mynewsonthego.com/charleston/EPaper/%3Ca%20href=> ">$1.5 billion in
charges and contract termination fees, or $2.99 per investment share. As a
result, three of FirstEnergy's subsidiaries have been put on a credit watch
by the ratings agency Standard and Poor's. Those subsidiaries
soonhttps://www.moodys.com/research/Moodys-Downgrades-FirstEnergy-Solutions-
Corp-and-Allegheny-Energy-Supply-Co--PR_352838
<http://mynewsonthego.com/charleston/EPaper/%3Ca%20href=> ">could be
downgraded to a "non-investment grade" rating.
Comments by FirstEnergy's executives also call into question whether
MonPower and Potomac Edison's demand for electricity is actually going to
increase by 2.2 percent in the coming years. The company has cited that
forecast demand as the reason it needs to purchase a plant the size of
Pleasants.
In the conference call, FirstEnergy officials said electricity demand among
all of its affiliates had actually dropped by 2.7 percent in the past four
months.
The company had a similar decline in the first four months of 2016, and
Jones described the company's future outlook for electricity demand as
"anemic."
James Pearson, FirstEnergy's executive vice president and chief financial
officer, said any increase in electricity demand from the natural-gas
industry had been offset by industrial declines in the steel and coal
industries. He said energy efficiency measures - which have lagged behind in
West Virginia - also were reducing residential demand in FirstEnergy's
service territories.
During the conference call, one investment analyst led off a testy question
by saying it was obvious from Jones' tone that "frustration has gone to peak
level" at FirstEnergy.
Jones responded by downplaying the difficulties the market-based portion of
the company is facing, and went on to lament the dipping regional energy
prices that are
https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/2842790-Capacity-Changes-in-PJM.html
<http://mynewsonthego.com/charleston/EPaper/%3Ca%20href=> ">largely being
driven by new natural-gas turbines.
"Is it frustrating that we're shutting down tens of thousands of megawatts
of generation in our country that's got life left in it because of the way
this market is working?" Jones said. "That is very frustrating to me."
Reach Andrew Brown at andrew.brown(a)wvgazettemail.com, 304-348-4814 or follow
@Andy_Ed_Brown on Twitter.
[View Less]
Something like half to two-thirds of the electricity generated in WV is
exported. It is a major source of revenue for the state. Growing the
renewables industry is a good way to retain that income stream, but the
report suggests that renewables growth would be relatively slow.
JBK
On Thu, Jul 28, 2016 at 11:20 AM, Nachy Kanfer <nachy.kanfer(a)sierraclub.org>
wrote:
> Why does WV need to continue to be an electricity exporter?
>
> On Thu, Jul 28, 2016 at 10:17 AM, James …
[View More]Kotcon <jkotcon(a)gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> This is the long-awaited update of their earlier report on how WV can
>> comply with the Clean Power Plan. They used the Synapse Energy Clean Power
>> Plan Planning Tool, an ExCel-based spreadsheet tool. Based on the newer
>> targets in EPA's Final CPP Rule, it is difficult for WV to comply without
>> new gas. Their scenarios include 5-15 % EE by 2030, 2.8 - 4.4 % non-hydor
>> renewables by 2030, natural gas co-firing at two coal plants and 1235 MW of
>> new natural gas by 2020 (a 750 MW gas plant in Brooke County and a 550 MW
>> gas plant in Clarksburg are currently "under consideration" by Energy
>> Solutions Consortium of New York). These are in addition to the 595 MW
>> coming on line from the Moundsville plant in 2018. Under their scenarios,
>> electricity exports would continue at 2012 levels through 2030.
>>
>> The full report (68 pages) is available at:
>>
>>
>> http://www.downstreamstrategies.com/documents/reports_publication/expanding…
>>
>> I think we need a detailed review of this report, as I would prefer we
>> not make the mistake of major investments in fossil fuels.
>>
>>
>> Whaddya Tink?
>>
>> JBK
>>
>
>
>
> --
> Nachy Kanfer
> Deputy Director, East
> Sierra Club Beyond Coal Campaign
> (614) 625-3894
>
[View Less]
Case # 16-1026
ApCo & Wheeling Power request approval of a Power Purchase Agreement for
120 MW of wind from Indiana, filed Tuesday, July 26.
This appears to be a follow up from their RFP as indicated in the IRP
JBK
[image: PlattsLogo]
7/26/2016
*Appalachian and Wheeling Power diversify energy portfolio with new wind
contract; seek PSC approval in West Virginia*
CHARLESTON, W. Va., July 26, 2016 – Appalachian Power and Wheeling Power
today filed with the Public Service Commission …
[View More]of West Virginia (PSC) for
approval of the long-term purchase of 120 megawatts (MW) of new wind
generation. The 20-year purchased power agreement will increase the
companies’ total wind generation to 495 MW and is consistent with its
forward-looking Integrated Resource Plans (IRP) for service areas in West
Virginia and Virginia.
The renewable energy will be purchased from a subsidiary of NextEra Energy
Resources LLC. The energy will come from its planned Bluff Point Wind
Energy Center to be constructed in Jay and Randolph Counties, Indiana.
NextEra will own and operate the wind farm.
The extension by Congress in November 2015 of the Wind Production Tax
Credit provides cost advantages to wind energy resources constructed over
the next five years and makes this agreement cost-effective for Appalachian
Power customers. The new generation is expected to be available to
Appalachian Power by 2018.
In the filing with the PSC, the companies seek approval of the purchased
power agreement and future cost recovery. A similar request was made to
the Virginia State Corporation Commission last month.
Appalachian selected the Indiana wind project as part of a Request for
Proposals (RFP) issued earlier this year. The company received proposals
from more than a dozen qualified wind farms.
Appalachian Power has 1 million customers in Virginia, West Virginia and
Tennessee (as AEP Appalachian Power). It is a unit of American Electric
Power, one of the largest electric utilities in the United States,
delivering electricity and custom energy solutions to nearly 5.4 million
customers in 11 states. AEP owns the nation’s largest electricity
transmission system, a more than 40,000-mile network that includes more
765-kilovolt extra-high voltage transmission lines than all other U.S.
transmission systems combined. AEP also operates 223,000 miles of
distribution lines. AEP ranks among the nation’s largest generators of
electricity, owning approximately 31,000 megawatts of generating capacity
in the U.S.
[View Less]
This is the long-awaited update of their earlier report on how WV can
comply with the Clean Power Plan. They used the Synapse Energy Clean Power
Plan Planning Tool, an ExCel-based spreadsheet tool. Based on the newer
targets in EPA's Final CPP Rule, it is difficult for WV to comply without
new gas. Their scenarios include 5-15 % EE by 2030, 2.8 - 4.4 % non-hydor
renewables by 2030, natural gas co-firing at two coal plants and 1235 MW of
new natural gas by 2020 (a 750 MW gas plant in Brooke …
[View More]County and a 550 MW
gas plant in Clarksburg are currently "under consideration" by Energy
Solutions Consortium of New York). These are in addition to the 595 MW
coming on line from the Moundsville plant in 2018. Under their scenarios,
electricity exports would continue at 2012 levels through 2030.
The full report (68 pages) is available at:
http://www.downstreamstrategies.com/documents/reports_publication/expanding…
I think we need a detailed review of this report, as I would prefer we not
make the mistake of major investments in fossil fuels.
Whaddya Tink?
JBK
[View Less]
This new report ranks the 30 largest utility holding companies, responsible for about 60 % of America's electricity, based on their renewables and energy efficiency.
Interestingly, FirstEnergy ranks 12th for renewables, and 19th for energy efficiency, both well ahead of AEP. FE covers utilities in MD, NJ, NY, OH, PA and WV. Guess which state is dragging down FE's rankings!
http://www.ceres.org/industry-initiatives/electric-power/clean-energy-utili…
Jim Kotcon
Are we following this issue? Is anyone preparing comments?
https://www.epa.gov/tmdl/supporting-documents-proposed-additions-west-virgi…
Jim Kotcon
P.S. As you may recall, WV-DEP submitted an abbreviated list of streams to EPA, arguing that the Legislature had directed them to "study" the issues of conductivity, TDS and various related narrative standards. EPA on May 11 partially disapproved the list:
"...to the extent that it omits waters due to WVDEP's decision not to evaluate …
[View More]existing and readily available data regarding whether certain waters are achieving West Virginia's narrative water quality criteria (W. Va. CSR§ 47-2-3.2(e) & (i)) as applied to aquatic life. "
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"Central to the story is the contention that prominent eco-advocacy groups,
including Sierra, EDF and the Natural Resources Defense Council, are among
those working with Exelon and state lawmakers on a legislative deal that
would reverse a decision the company made in early June to close two
money-losing nuclear reactors, Quad Cities and Clinton, and "ensure that the
reactors remain in operation by providing financial recognition for the
zero-carbon electricity they produce."
http://fair.…
[View More]org/home/wsj-fakes-a-green-shift-toward-nuclear-power/
"But major assertions in the Journal article turn out to be either factually
inaccurate, or to omit or spin important details. First, though Harder
refers multiple times to nuclear power being "carbon-free" (echoing the
websites of nuclear plant owners such as
<http://www.exeloncorp.com/companies/exelon-generation/nuclear/Pages/default
.aspx> Exelon and
<http://www.pge.com/en/safety/systemworks/dcpp/index.page?WT.mc_id=Vanity_di
ablocanyon> Pacific Gas & Electric), that is not the case."
Frank Young
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