Author: Author AEE Staff      Published: 7/21/2022      AEE

New Texas Electric Grid Pilot Project Will Demonstrate Benefits of Virtual Power Plants

Texas Advanced Energy Business Alliance (TAEBA) issued a statement praising the Public Utilities Commission of Texas (PUCTX) for giving initial approval to a pilot project of an aggregated distributed energy resource called a Virtual Power Plant. “Texas is in a power crunch, and state regulators are wisely looking into ways to make better use of the extra energy being produced by Texas homes and businesses that is currently sitting on the sidelines,” said TAEBA’s Ignacio Guajardo. “There’s enough extra energy being produced that, when combined, is equivalent to a power plant. It makes sense for ERCOT to tap into that extra energy for the electric grid in times of need.” Continue reading the press release. >

Illinoisans Want More Electric Trucks, Less Smog and Air Pollution, New Poll Finds

Roughly 7 in 10 Illinoisans say smog and air pollution are negatively impacting their quality of life, and want state officials to do more to decrease the gas and diesel vehicle emissions causing much of the problem, according to a new statewide survey conducted by YouGov in partnership AEE. “Transportation emissions are the largest source of pollution, particularly from trucks and buses, and parts of Illinois are suffering from unsafe levels of ozone, particularly during the summer,” said AEE’s Ryan Gallentine. “Illinoisans say they want their state leaders to take action by electrifying the state’s trucks, buses and delivery vans more quickly.” Continue reading the press release. >

AEE Calls on Congress To Work Through Differences, Use Clean Energy to Reduce Inflation

AEE issued a statement about Senate budget reconciliation negotiations. “Americans are facing historic levels of inflation, driven in large part by global fossil fuel prices,” said AEE President Heather O’Neill. “The tax credits in this package would deliver much needed relief, helping to cut energy prices and reduce U.S. dependence on price-volatile fossil fuels, by spurring the domestic manufacturing and deployment of clean, affordable, and reliable advanced energy technologies.” Continue reading the press statement. >

Arizona Win Shows How Red and Blue States Can Greenlight Electric School Buses

This summer, both sides of the aisle came together to pass smart legislation that gives schools and students access to cleaner transportation. The Arizona bill also shows one way to open up opportunities for electric school buses in states of every political stripe. Continue reading on the blog. >

Pattern Energy Takes on 3,000 MW Capacity Transmission Project in New Mexico, Arizona

Pattern Energy has acquired the SunZia Transmission project, a 550-mile bi-directional 525 kV high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission line between central New Mexico and south-central Arizona. The transmission line will deliver up to 3,000 MW of clean, renewable energy from wind farms Pattern is developing. “SunZia Transmission will create a clean power superhighway for millions of Americans by opening access to huge, largely untapped wind energy resources in New Mexico,” said Mike Garland, CEO of Pattern Energy. Continue reading in UtilityDive. >

Webinars

Getting Charged Up for EVs: State Plans for NEVI Implementation

The bipartisan Infrastructure Investment & Jobs Act establishes a $5 billion grant program, the National Electric Vehicle Formula Program (NEVI), which provides funding to states for deploying EV charging infrastructure over the next five years. In this webinar, hear from state transportation planners and charging network providers on what NEVI could mean for building out an EV charging network across America. Register for the webinar. >

Credit Where Credit is Due: Accrediting Reliability Value in Wholesale Markets

While there has been considerable attention devoted to determining the reliability value of wind, solar, and energy storage, the methods used to evaluate the resource adequacy, or capacity value, of conventional thermal generating resources have not been formally reexamined or updated in decades. This webinar will examine how existing capacity accreditation methodologies fail to capture some reliability risks faced by traditional resources and explore new methodologies to establish a level playing field for diverse supply resources in centralized capacity markets. Register for the webinar. >