Community-power projects gain momentum
Most analysts dismiss the concept that neighborhoods or small towns could eventually exist off the grid, but those who believe in small-scale power projects see a future where communities produce all the power they need from solar panels and windmills, and Rock Port is already there, with wind turbines already providing 100 percent of the power the Missouri town needs.
Washington Post; Oct. 13
Calgary-based company plans 100-turbine wind farm in Alberta
The Alberta Utilities Commission will take public comment on a 100-turbine, 150-megawatt wind farm near Stettler proposed by Greengate Power Corp., a privately held company based in Calgary, until Oct. 30.
Edmonton Journal; Oct. 2
Arizona's first wind farm dedicated Monday
The Dry Lake Wind Power Project, a 30-turbine wind farm between Holbrook and Snowflake, is the first of its kind to go online in Arizona.
Arizona Republic; Oct. 13
PacifiCorp: Two new wind farms in Wyoming now online
PacifiCorp has completed nine wind farms in the past two years, seven of which are in Wyoming, the latest in in Albany and Carbon counties going online last month.
Billings Gazette (AP); Oct. 8
Wind companies on the hunt for gusty ground in Idaho
Northwest Renewable Resources of Oregon and French-owned Ridgeline Energy have both contacted the Idaho County Commission, expressing interest in wind-energy projects in the northcentral Idaho county.
Idaho Statesman (AP); Oct. 12
Idaho PUC approves Idaho Power's wind-energy deal
The Idaho Public Utilities Commission approved Idaho Power's agreement with Exergy Development Group of Idaho to buy power produced at Exergy's Camp Reed, Payne's Ferry and Yahoo Creek wind projects scheduled to go online next September.
Idaho Statesman; Oct. 16
BLM seeks more public input on Idaho wind-power project
On Thursday, the Bureau of Land Management opened up a 30-day comment period on the proposed China Mountain project, a 185-turbine wind farm planned in the Idaho desert southwest of Rogerson.
Twin Falls Times-News; Oct. 19
Montana's largest wind farm goes online
The $500 million Glacier Wind Farm in Montana's Toole and Glacier counties is now fully online, pumping 210 megawatts into the state's power grid.
Great Falls Tribune; Oct. 22
Report pegs benefit of wind-energy project in Utah at $31M
Utah State University and the U.S. Department of Energy analyzed the economic benefit of a proposed 50-megawatt wind power project in Summit County and found that it would provide 51 construction jobs, generate $150,000 in land lease payments to the Utah county and $800,000 in local property taxes, most of which would go to support the South Summit School District.
Deseret News; Oct. 15
Wyoming ranks 5th in nation in increase in wind-generated power
The American Wind Energy Association said Texas led the nation in the increase in wind-generated power during the third quarter of this year, with 436 new megawatts installed between July and September; Oregon was second with 251 new megawatts; Illinois third; Colorado came in fourth with 174 new megawatts; and Wyoming fifth with 170 added megawatts, putting the total megawatts of wind-generated energy in the Cowboy State at 986, far below No. 1 ranked Texas, which has 8,797 megawatts.
Casper Star-Tribune; Oct. 26
Wyoming group plans to buy up wind leases
The Northern Laramie Range Alliance said it would form a tax-exempt company to buy Wyoming leases to keep wind-energy projects from being developed.
Casper Star-Tribune; Oct. 30
Solar installation at Arizona air base one of nation's largest
Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Arizona will host one of the nation's largest solar-power installations, with work under way on a project that will eventually produce enough electricity to power 900 homes on the military base.
Arizona Daily Star; Oct. 29
Arizona utility gets $3.3M DOE grant for solar project
Arizona Public Service will use a $3.3 million grant from the federal Department of Energy to fund part of its $14.7-million project in Doney Park that will use solar power generated by neighborhoods in the Arizona community; APS will buy, install and maintain solar panels on homes and businesses in the community to generate up to 1.5 megawatts of renewable electricity.
Arizona Daily Sun; Oct. 9
Solar company picks Denver for new plant
German solar manufacturing firm SMA Solar Technology AG had narrowed its choices for a new solar-inverter manufacturing facility down to Denver and Nampa, but in the end Denver's proximity to needed suppliers won the day; the plant will employ 300 workers in Colorado when it's fully operational.
Denver Post; Oct. 27
DOE buys Nevada firm's geothermal power plant in Wyoming
Nevada-based Ormat Technologies sold its geothermal power plant located in an old oil field 35 miles north of Casper in Wyoming to the U.S. Department of Energy for an undisclosed amount of money.
Billings Gazette (Casper Star-Tribune); Oct. 19
Nevada collects $90 million in stimulus funds for geothermal work
Nevada will spend its $90 million share of the $338 million in federal stimulus funds marked for geothermal energy research and development on 25 projects in the northern half of the state.
Las Vegas Review-Journal; Oct. 30
- Colorado geothermal projects gets federal funding
The U.S. Department of Energy announced $338 million in federal stimulus funds for geothermal energy projects on Thursday, with $18 million of that money flowing into Colorado.
Denver Post; Oct. 30
Wood power a hot market
Power plants across the nation are turning to wood to generate electricity, and in 2008, those plants churned out 6,700 megawatts of power, enough to power 8 million homes.
USA Today; Oct. 14
Montana mill, shavings business focus on wood as energy source
Eagle Stud is one of eight Montana mills working with NorthWestern Energy on a feasibility study of turning waste wood into power, and the mill's neighbor in Hall, Big Sky Shavings, has just received a $50,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Rural Development Program to help buy a biomass-boiler that will use waste wood to heat the business.
Missoulian; Oct. 20
U of Utah gets $2.7M for carbon-sequestration research
The University of Utah was awarded one of 12 research grants from the U.S. Department of Energy funded by $1.4 billion in federal stimulus funds for carbon capture and storage projects.
Salt Lake Tribune (AP); Oct. 6
Canada, Alberta give Shell Energy Canada $865M for CO2 capture
Shell Energy Canada will get $865 million for a carbon capture project at its Quest project near Fort Saskatchewan, with Alberta providing $745 million of the funds from its $2-billion carbon capture and storage program and the federal government providing $120 million.
Edmonton Journal; Oct. 9
Navajo Nation files for carbon-capture grant
After New Mexico and environmental groups expressed concern about greenhouse gas emissions from a proposed coal-fired power plant on the Navajo Nation near Farmington, Navajo President Joe Shirley Jr. applied for a carbon-capture grant from the U.S. Department of Energy to allay those concerns.
Santa Fe New Mexican (AP); Oct. 1
Report: Forest's role in carbon capture not as effective as claimed
Ten years ago, three U.S. utilities, two conservation groups and the Bolivian government launched the Noel Kempff Mercado Climate Action Project which kept 6,000 square miles of forests in the South American country free of logging as a way to absorb carbon dioxide and make carbon credits more affordable for the world's largest emitters of greenhouse gases, but Greenpeace will release a report today that questions the use of overseas forests to compensate for pollution in the United States.
Washington Post; Oct. 15
BLM sets more meetings on Arizona-N.M. transmission line
The Bureau of Land Management has already had nine meetings on the proposed SunZia Southwest transmission project, a a 460-mile, high capacity 500-kilovolt transmission line across Arizona and New Mexico, and now the federal agency has scheduled three more in Las Cruces, Alamogordo and Chaparral; the public comment period on the project ends Nov. 27.
Santa Fe New Mexican (AP); Oct. 9
BLM takes public comment on Colorado-N.M., transmission line route
Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association wants to build an 80-mile long power line between utility stations near Shiprock, N.M. and Ignacio, Colo., and because a major portion of the line would cross federal Bureau of Land Management land, the BLM is taking public comment on the proposal through Nov. 8.
Farmington Daily Times; Oct. 8
Utility to roll out alternative routes for Montana-Idaho transmission line
At a meeting scheduled for Thursday evening, NorthWestern Energy will unveil new alternative routes for its proposed 500-kilovolt Mountain States Transmission Intertie, which will stretch from Townsend in Montana to Twin Falls, Idaho.
Montana Standard; Oct. 14
N.M. governor unveils plan for electrical transmission hub
At a news conference Tuesday, New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson released plans for the proposed Tres Amigas SuperStation in Clovis, that would link the nation's three power grids and help route wind- and solar-generated power from remote sources to urban centers.
Seattle Times (AP); Oct. 14
Canadian court decision moves Alberta-Montana power line ahead
The proposed Montana-Alberta Tie Line project, a $213-million transmission line stretching from Great Falls north to Lethbridge moved one step closer to construction after the Supreme Court of Canada declined to hear an appeal of the project's permit.
Great Falls Tribune; Oct. 23
West's wind farms push transmission grid to near capacity
Wind-energy projects in Oregon and across the American West have pushed transmission lines to near capacity, and power officials said hundreds of miles of new transmission lines are needed to meet renewable-energy mandates, but conservation groups say those projects will carry a hefty environmental price tag.
Portland Oregonian; Oct. 30
- Proposed power line in Colorado valley draws criticism
The Colorado Public Utilities Commission took testimony Thursday on a proposed transmission line that will pass through Colorado's San Luis Valley, with Xcel Energy and Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association stating the need for the project, and Colorado Open Lands and the Colorado Division of Wildlife outlining concerns about the impact the line will have on wildlife and scenic resources.
Denver Post; Oct. 30
Obama rolls out $3.4-billion plan for nation's energy grid
At a speech in Florida, President Barack Obama announced the nation will spend $3.4 billion in federal stimulus funds to upgrade the nation's electrical transmission grid.
Washington Post; Oct. 28
- Wyoming utilities get share of $3.4-billion 'smart' grid funds
Two Wyoming utilities were among the 100 that will share in the $3.4-billion in federal stimulus funds to improve the nation's electrical transmission grid announced by President Obama on Tuesday, with Cheyenne Light, Fuel and Power awarded $5 million and Sundance-based Powder River Energy Corp. receiving a $2.5-million grant.
Casper Star-Tribune; Oct. 28
- Navajo Nation will get $4.9M in smart-grid funds
New Mexico Sen. Jeff Bingaman said the $4.9-million in federal stimulus funds awarded to the Navajo Nation will not only facilitate renewable energy projects, but will also provide jobs.
Farmington Daily-Times; Oct. 28
- Colorado cities get smart-grid federal cash
Two Colorado cities will share $24.2 million in federal stimulus funds to install smart-grid meters, with Fort Collins receiving $18.1 million and Pueblo getting $6.1 million.
Denver Post; Oct. 28
- Nevada utility gets $138M in stimulus funds for 'smart meters'
NV Energy received $138 million of the $3.4 billion federal stimulus program targeted to improve the nation's power grid, and will use the cash to help underwrite its efforts to replace every electric meter in Nevada with a smart meter that will give consumers the ability to direct energy use.
Las Vegas Review-Journal; Oct. 28
- Idaho Power gets $47M in stimulus funds for 'smart meters'
Idaho Power Co. will use the $47 million in federal stimulus funds it received to complete its plan to replace each and every electricity meters in Idaho's Canyon and Ada counties, as well as in eastern Oregon, with smart meters.
Idaho Statesman; Oct. 29
Arizona utility signs MOU with Utah nuclear power project
A small Arizona utility that currently relies primarily on hydropower from Glen Canyon Dam signed a memorandum of understanding expressing an interest in buying power generated from Blue Castle Holdings Inc.'s 3,000-megawatt nuclear power plant proposed near Green River, Utah.
Salt Lake Tribune; Oct. 13
Navajo, Hopi tribes tell environmentalists to stay off reservations
Leaders of the Navajo and Hopi tribes said that they need the jobs and revenues coal-fired power plants will bring to their northern Arizona reservations, and Navajo Nation President Joe Shirley Jr. and leaders for the Hopi Tribe said this week that conservation groups opposed to the plants are not welcome on tribal lands.
USA Today; Oct. 1
PPL Montana officially launches hydroelectric dam upgrade
The 100-year-old Rainbow Dam in Montana is getting a facelift, and on Thursday, PPL officials, along with federal, state and local officials gathered on the shores of the Missouri River to kick off the planned, $230-million project to upgrade the hydroelectric plant.
Great Falls Tribune; Oct. 16
Montana approves air permit for natural-gas power plant
The Montana Department of Environmental Quality issued a needed air-quality permit on Friday for Southern Montana Electric Generation & Transmission Cooperative's proposed natural gas plant eight miles east of Great Falls.
Great Falls Tribune; Oct. 18
Arch Coal completes buy of Rio Tinto Jacobs Ranch mine in Wyoming
Arch Coal spent $764 million to buy Rio Tinto's Jacobs Ranch mine adjacent to Arch's Black Thunder mine in Wyoming's southern Powder River Basin.
Casper Star-Tribune; Oct. 2
EnCana rolls out plans for new oilsands operation in Alberta
EnCana Corp. announced its plans for a new in situ oilsands operation in northeast Alberta, using steam-assisted technology to extract the oil, and said that it will file an application for regulatory approval of the project by mid-2010.
Calgary Herald; Oct. 2
New shale gas finds may expand B.C.-Illinois pipeline
Officials of Alberta-based Enbridge, Inc. said the discovery of new unconventional natural gas fields in northeastern British Columbia and northwest Alberta may make expansion of the Alliance pipeline, which carries natural gas from Fort St. John in B.C. to Chicago, Ill., feasible.
Calgary Herald; Oct. 7
Natural gas makes gains against coal
The low prices of natural gas over the past 10 months did have a silver lining, as electric utilities made the switch from coal to natural gas.
Denver Post; Oct. 23
Obama orders EPA to begin work on emissions regulations
President Obama authorized the Environmental Protection Agency to proceed with rules limiting greenhouse gas emissions, with the nation's 400 power plants the focus of the proposed regulations.
New York Times; Oct. 1
White House ramps up effort on climate-change legislation
As five senior administration officials testified before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee in favor of climate change legislation sponsored by Senate Democrats, President Barack Obama visited a solar energy installation in Florida and Vice President Joe R. Biden, Jr. toured an auto plant in Delaware that will produce electric cars.
New York Times; Oct. 28
UW study: Cap-and-trade legislation could aid Wyoming
A graduate student at the University of Wyoming used data from the U.S. Department of Energy to calculate the effect of cap-and-trade legislation currently before Congress and found that the bill be beneficial to Wyoming, with its natural gas and wind-power resources, as well as supporting technologies to make coal, another one of the state's resources, cleaner.
Casper Star-Tribune; Oct. 6
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