Utility lawyers question coal-gas plant timetable
Several attorneys have questioned a timetable for the approval of a coal-gasification plant in southwestern Indiana, saying it leaves too little time for public input.
Coal
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U.S. says new rules would cut thousands of coal jobs
The Obama administration's own experts estimate their proposal for protecting streams from coal mining would eliminate thousands of jobs and slash production across much of the country
State reaches deal on coal-gasification plant
The state's finance authority said Thursday that it reached a 30-year deal to buy synthetic natural gas from a coal-gasification plant planned for southern Indiana, marking the first time the state has entered into such a venture.
IURC clears ex-judge in Duke Energy ethics scandal
The Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission’s internal probe found no irregularities regarding former administrative law judge Scott Storms’ handling of Duke Energy cases, but it did reopen a case Storms handled in July involving storm damages.
Indiana resists call for renewable energy mandates
The state is one of only 14 nationwide without a renewable energy standard, according to the Pew Center of Global Climate Change.
Labor costs being watched at Duke Energy plant
Cost pressures could eat away at $2.9 billion Edwardsport project’s contingency fund, leaving no room for unexpected costs during startup and testing, Duke told the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission.
Need for Duke coal-gas plant on regulators’ agenda
Duke Energy Corp. says it needs a new coal-gasification power plant it’s building in southwest Indiana, but consumer advocates don’t believe it.
Scandal fallout plagues Duke Energy’s Edwardsport project
Regulatory proceedings involving the coal gasification plant are being delayed while investigations continue over conflicts of interest at the IURC.
IURC to re-examine Duke project amid ethics flap
The commission is summoning the CEO of North Carolina-based Duke Energy to justify the $2.9 billion Edwardsport plant on the same day the state ethics board filed formal charges against a former IURC attorney hired by Duke.
Consumer groups call for Duke to cancel Edwardsport project
A proposed settlement between the utility and industrial customers would temporarily cap the cost of the plant, which is $1 billion more than initial estimates.
Hoosier Energy reaches settlement with EPA
Rural electric cooperative to pay civil penalty of nearly $1 million for not using most modern pollution controls. Hoosier Energy also to spend up to $300 million on pollution controls at coal-fired plants.
Indiana mine operation to close
Peabody will close mine south of Terre Haute by mid-September, but a majority of the workers will move to jobs in other mining operations.
Electric rates likely to rise with cost of Duke coal plant
Pressure is building on Duke Energy to contain costs of its controversial Edwardsport generating plant in southwestern Indiana,
following the company’s recent disclosure that the price tag will soar by $530 million—likely boosting average
customer
rates in Indiana by 3 percent.
Water, sewer sale clears another hurdle
The $1.9 billion deal still needs the OK of the City-County Council and state regulators.
Carbon storage presents prickly trade-offs
Not only are utilities grappling with how to pull carbon from their coal-fired emissions, but they also crave certainty about
where to put the carbon. With minimal information available about Indiana’s deep subsurface , much remains to be done to determine
where and at what scale the practice could be deployed here.
Utilities face conundrum with carbon dioxide emissions
So-called carbon capture and sequestration, or CCS, is seen by some in the utility business as a potential salvation for coal.
But utilities may face a damned-if-you-do, damned-if-you don’t scenario.
Bill would give CO2 pipeline firms right to take private land
A consumer group opposing Senate Bill 115 argues the measure is yet another concession to the developer of a coal-to-methane
plant proposed in Rockport.
Renewable power focus of utility reform in 2010 Legislature
The Hoosier Environmental Council and Citizens Action Coalition see an expansion of the state’s
“net metering” policy as achievable during the short legislative session that starts Jan.
5.
Duke Energy wants ratepayers to fund carbon dioxide storage site study
The state’s utility consumer agency is opposing Duke Energy’s request to have customers pay $121 million to
study where to inject underground the carbon dioxide to be produced by its Edwardsport plant.
EPA: IPL electric plant upgrades were deficient
Indianapolis Power & Light faces potential fines and capital expenditures after allegedly updating three generating
plants over 23 years without adding the most modern pollution controls.