Salem-News.com Energy articles Page 14

Senate Votes to Protect Oregon Coast by Extending Offshore Drilling Ban

House Bill 3613 extends prohibition until the year 2020.

(SALEM, Ore.) - Oregon’s coast will be safe from oil exploration for another decade with legislation passed this morning in the Oregon Senate.

Nuclear Waste Problem: Study to Show if Fast Reactor Is Solution to Long-Term Waste Storage Headaches

Fast Breeder Reactor/ - Major Implications Seen for Obama Blue-Ribbon Waste Panel, New Interest in “Generation IV” Reactors; U.S., Russia, UK, France, India and Japan Programs are Evaluated in the Study.

(PRINCETON, N.J.) - Do concerns about inadequate options for long-term nuclear reactor waste disposal now mean that it is time to make a new commitment to the development of fast reactors?

How about cost, reliability, safety and proliferation issues?

Oregon Challenges Coos Bay Liquid Natural Gas Terminal Approval

State officials say federal regulators failed to conduct adequate environmental studies before approving Jordan Cove LNG facility.

(COOS BAY) - Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski and Attorney General John Kroger today announced an administrative challenge to the federal government’s approval of a liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal on the Oregon Coast.

Diverse Coalition Files Challenge of Risky Foreign Energy Project

Group says new LNG Terminal and Pipeline Threatens Private Property and Natural Resources.

(COOS BAY, Ore.) - A coalition of environmentalists, local landowners, and fishermen filed a petition for rehearing with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) regarding its December 2009 decision to approve the Jordan Cove liquefied natural gas terminal and Pacific Connector pipeline.

Merkley, Wyden Announce Nearly $150 Million in Recovery Act Funding for Oregon Wind Farms

The funding will provide additional upfront capital, which will enable companies to jump-start construction on clean energy projects and create jobs in the process.

(WASHINGTON D.C.) - Oregon Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden announced today that nearly $150 million in Recovery Act funds will be heading to three Eastern Oregon wind farms.

Wind Power Reaches Milestone on BPA System

BPA is instituting new operational procedures and developing new technologies to deal with the variability of wind on the system.

(PORTLAND, Ore.) - Wind has arrived. In early August, for the first time, the Bonneville Power Administration’s transmission grid reached a milestone, carrying more than 2,000 megawatts of wind power for more than an hour.

On Aug. 6, after flirting with the 2,000-megawatt threshold for weeks, total wind generation on BPA’s system blew right past that level at 5:15 p.m., reaching a new all-time peak of 2,089 megawatts at 6:19 p.m.

Nuclear Power Reversals/Fast-Rising Costs

Expert says 3 big setbacks in June validate worries about escalating cost projections‏ - Ratings Warning From Moody’s Followed by Mothballing of New Reactor Plans in Texas and Ontario; Developments in Line with Cooper Report from June Projecting Trillions in Excess Costs for Nuclear, Compared to Combination of Renewables and More Efficiency.

(WASHINGTON D.C.) - Three major developments in the nuclear power industry in late June underscore the key findings of the “The Economics of Nuclear Reactors,” a report released by economist Dr. Mark Cooper at Vermont Law School.

The report finds that it would cost $1.9 trillion to $4.1 trillion more over the life of 100 new nuclear reactors than it would to generate the same electricity from a combination of more energy efficiency and renewables.

Obama Administration Awards nearly $17 Million for Oregon’s State Energy Program

Funding Will Speed Adoption of Efficiency and Renewable Energy Technologies for Oregon

(WASHINGTON, DC) - U.S. Department of Energy Secretary Steven Chu today announced $16.8 million in Recovery Act funding to support energy efficiency and renewable energy projects in Oregon.

Under DOE’s State Energy Program, Oregon proposed a statewide plan that prioritizes energy savings, creates or retains jobs, increases the use of renewable energy, and reduces greenhouse gas emissions.

This initiative is part of the Obama Administration’s national strategy to support job growth, while making a historic down payment on clean energy and conservation.

U.K. Expert Says U.S. Is Not LOSING International Nuclear Power `Race`

No “Nuclear Renaissance” on the Continent: French, Finnish, and U.K. Experiences Hold Little Relevance for U.S. – Other Than As Cautionary Tales; Copying France “Would Require Nationalization of U.S. Electric Utilities.”

(WASHINGTON D.C.) - Lobbyists and utility company officials who claim that the United States is missing out on a so-called “Nuclear Renaissance” have their facts wrong about what is going on in Europe with nuclear reactors, according to University of Greenwich Professor of Energy Studies Stephen Thomas.

The U.K. energy expert said that, not only is nuclear power in France, Finland, and Great Britain now plagued with problems, but almost nothing that is positive about the experiences in those nations would translate to the United States.

Vice President Biden Outlines Funding for Smart Grid Initiatives

Announces plans for nearly $4 billion in technology deployment, monitoring and viability.

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) - Vice President Joe Biden detailed plans by the DOE to develop a smart, strong and secure electrical grid, which will create new jobs and help deliver reliable power more effectively with less impact on the environment to customers across the nation.