Citizens gets state OK for steep wastewater rate hike
State regulators on Wednesday approved a rate hike that will increase monthly wastewater bills by about 26 percent, or close to $14 on average, for Citizens Energy Group customers.
State regulators on Wednesday approved a rate hike that will increase monthly wastewater bills by about 26 percent, or close to $14 on average, for Citizens Energy Group customers.
A $500,000 study paid for by the federal government and released Sunday in the peer-reviewed journal Nature Climate Change concludes that biofuels made with corn residue release 7 percent more greenhouse gases compared with conventional gasoline.
A state agency for utility consumers had requested additional scrutiny for periods late last year when Duke Energy Indiana’s Edwardsport plant consumed more energy than it produced.
After two months of meager output that sparked scrutiny from the state and consumer groups, the controversial power plant sprung back to life in March, Duke Energy Indiana says.
The crux of the argument is whether David Lott Hardy, who was fired by then-Gov. Mitch Daniels as part of an ethical scandal that eventually also cost three Duke Energy officials their jobs, should be charged with felony misconduct when he did not commit an actual crime.
The appeals court heard arguments Monday in the case against former Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission chairman David Lott Hardy.
Indiana Gov. Mike Pence will let a bill that eliminates an energy-conservation program become law without his signature, prompting harsh words from environmental leaders who opposed the bill.
Duke Energy won approval from an Indiana court Wednesday to raise electricity rates to pay for its $3.5 billion Edwardsport coal-gasification power plant.
Citizens Energy Group has won state approval to raise water rates for Indianapolis customers, but not before being taken to task for excessive executive compensation.
Environmental and citizens' groups are asking Indiana regulators to launch a formal investigation into problems and delays that have sharply limited the power output of Duke Energy's $3.5 billion coal-gasification plant.
The Republican-controlled U.S. House moved Thursday to block President Barack Obama's plan to limit carbon emissions from new power plants, an election-year strike at the White House aimed at portraying Obama as a job killer.
Mechanical problems caused Duke Energy Indiana’s $3.5 billion power plant in Edwardsport to generate a mere 4 percent of its maximum capacity in January.
The bill's author, Sen. Jim Merritt, R-Indianapolis, said he's going to take the next few days to review the House's changes before determining whether to ask the Senate to approve it or send the bill to a conference committee to restore its original wording.
A state senator has killed legislation that would bar Indiana environmental regulators from creating standards harsher than federal rules.
The Obama administration is squaring off at the Supreme Court with industry groups and Republican-led states, including Indiana, over a small but important program aimed at limiting power-plant and factory emissions of gases blamed for global warming.
The Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission openings generated heavy interest. Gov. Mike Pence added a second round of interviews in order to hear from 21 candidates.
The Merrillville-based utility estimates rates for its 457,000 electricity customers will rise 0.5 percent in 2015 and then about 1 percent per year through 2020 under the plan approved by the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission.
Sen. Jim Merritt said the existing energy-efficiency program is unfair to industries because many of them are already paying for sophisticated in-house programs focused on cutting energy use and pursuing other efficiencies.
The Indiana Supreme Court has publicly reprimanded a former regulatory attorney for negotiating a job for himself with Duke Energy Corp. while presiding over a case involving a Duke project.
Duke Energy Indiana is taking proposals for solar power projects called for under a settlement the utility reached last year with consumer groups.