Published June 1, 2021
Dive Brief:
LUMA Energy began operating Puerto Rico s electric grid on Tuesday, managing the system through a public-private partnership that aims to save customers money, improve the island s resilience and add renewable power.
LUMA, owned by ATCO and Quanta Services, takes over for the bankrupt Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA), which will continue to own the island s grid assets.
Observers question whether LUMA is prepared to operate the grid, however, and if the company has been able to hire sufficient linemen from PREPA s ranks. The transition has not been managed well, particularly from a workforce standpoint, Cathy Kunkel, an analyst at the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA), said.
Dive Brief:
California, Texas, New England and parts of the Midwest face an elevated risk of energy emergencies this summer, exacerbated by the growth of intermittent resources and the likelihood of extreme weather, the North American Electric Reliability Corp. (NERC) said on Wednesday.
NERC President and CEO Jim Robb told reporters the 2021 Summer Reliability Assessment underscores my increased concerns about the changes we re seeing on the grid and the potential consequences for reliability.
California is at risk of energy emergencies even during periods of normal peak summer demand, NERC concluded, and is at high risk when above-normal demand is widespread in the West. The summer assessment indicates 10,185 MWh of energy in the state is expected to go unserved this summer.
Dive Brief:
Federal Energy Regulatory Commissioners on Thursday resparked the debate about whether federal regulators should take climate change into account when considering the environmental impacts of a gas pipeline project.
Commissioners voted 3-2 to approve two pipeline projects proposed by the Northern Natural Gas Company in Minnesota and the Tuscarora Gas Transmission Company in Nevada, after reviewing their respective climate impacts. The projects were poised to be rejected by FERC before Commissioner James Danly, who briefly chaired the commission under President Donald Trump, proposed a last minute amendment to avoid setting a precedent on examining climate impacts and to secure his own vote.