The Biden administration on April 25 finalized a rule meant to speed up federal permits for major transmission lines, part of a broader push to expand America’s electric grids. Administration officials are increasingly...more
Our Currents’ focus article this month is on developments in the growth of solar electric power generation and obstacles to future growth that are occurring around the U.S. from environmental groups and other energy producers...more
The California Independent System Operator (CAISO) is proposing $6.1 billion in transmission projects, primarily to help deliver offshore wind to customers, according to a draft transmission plan released on April 1....more
Kilpatrick’s John Livingston recently spoke at “The 2023 Appalachian Clean Energy CLE Workshop” where he led a panel discussing recent legislative updates to the decommissioning requirements in North Carolina for utility...more
Electricity generated from renewables surpassed coal in the United States for the first time in 2022, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) announced Monday. Renewables also surpassed nuclear generation for the...more
Last Thursday, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) approved a plan that will set the state on a course to adding 86,000 MW of new resources to the grid by 2035. That amounts to “more than a doubling of the...more
The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (the Act) runs 725 pages and includes numerous energy tax provisions aimed at enhancing US energy security. The Act, if enacted, would extend and expand the renewable and alternative...more
A recent Texas case, Lyle v. Midway Solar, S.W. 3d, 2020 WL 7769632 (Tex. App. Ct., El Paso 83rd Dist. 2020), addressed a challenge that many solar developers wrestle with: how to handle minerals owners. The El Paso Court of...more
Focus - BLM says it will approve largest U.S. solar farm - Los Angeles Times – January 1 - Federal officials plan to approve a massive solar farm with energy storage in the desert outside Las Vegas, paving the way...more
GEORGIA SOLAR FARM COMES ONLINE TO POWER FACEBOOK DATA CENTER - On December 12, 2019, Tennessee developer, Silicon Ranch, announced that the 102.5 megawatt (MW) Bancroft Station Solar Farm (the “Facility”) is now...more
Focus - Los Angeles has lined up record-cheap solar power. But there’s a problem - Los Angeles Times – August 27 - Los Angeles has been sitting on a contract for record-cheap solar power for more than a month, but the...more
Focus - California bill proposes a backstop authority to secure state’s power grid needs - Greentech Media - April 17 - California lawmakers are grappling with a complicated yet critical issue — how to secure the...more
The Court of Special Appeals (“Court”) of Maryland addressed in a November 15th opinion local governmental authority regarding the placement of a Solar Energy Generating System ([“SEGS”] i.e., a solar panel farm). See Board...more
It's no secret that Oregon's natural beauty is one of its greatest treasures. In 2016, Thrillist named Oregon the seventh most beautiful state in the country – a ranking that should come as no surprise to most Oregonians. Our...more
Focus - GOP senators want to exempt giant solar farm panels from tariffs - BLOOMBERG - May 11 Republican senators from five states with big solar farms are asking the Trump administration to exempt the workhorse of...more
As announced by Columbus Business First, IGS Energy of Dublin, Ohio, will build a large solar farm on former landfill property near Cleveland. The solar farm will spread across 17 acres and will consist of over 35,000 panels...more
Responding to increasing interest in developing grid-scale solar farms in Maine’s unorganized territory, the Land Use Planning Commission (LUPC) yesterday proposed a rulemaking to allow development of grid-scale solar energy...more
The first solar farm has successfully launched in the UK without government subsidisation. Clayhill Solar Farm, a 10 megawatt (MW) site near Flitwick in Bedfordshire, is capable of generating enough power for 2500 homes. ...more
The Rhode Island General Assembly is considering several bills designed to streamline the local permitting process statewide and make it easier and cheaper for developers of renewable energy projects to do business in the...more
Renewable Energy Focus - California Senate leader unveils new proposal to phase out use of fossil fuels to generate electricity - Los Angeles Times - May 2 - California would completely phase out the use of...more
This month, U.S.-based energy giant Invenergy expects to break ground on New York’s second largest solar farm project at the former Tallgrass golf course in Shoreham. A leader in wind and solar development, energy storage...more
Renewable Energy Focus - California demand for wind power energizes transmission firms - Reuters - Feb 15 - A firm controlled by Philip Anschutz, the billionaire entertainment and pro sports magnate, will...more
Renewable Energy Focus - Senator Stern proposes clean-energy storage push - Santa Clarita Valley Signal - Jan 30 - State Senator Henry Stern on Monday announced a proposal to “double down” on clean-energy...more
Renewable Energy Focus - Renewables accounted for majority of new U.S. capacity in 2016 - Solar Industry Magazine - Jan 11 - Although the concrete statistics for the final months of last year aren't in...more
Renewable Energy Focus - San Bernardino County rejects a controversial solar power plant proposed for the Mojave Desert - Los Angeles Times - Aug 24 - The San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors has...more