It amazes me how many people want to put flywheels in autos. Flywheel technology certainly makes sense on paper. However, as every new technology gets fully examined the cons will emerge. In the latest Flywheel experiment, this article notes that two flywheels essentially disintegrated. The flywheel can be a weapon of mass destruction, as it [...]
Cross State Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR) – AKA Casper, the not-so friendly regulations to coal plants, can be interpreted as a limit to interstate trading. By modeling each state by itself, you pretty much create a scenario that is easier to model. This case will also produce the highest cost overall for the country. Before [...]
A typical approach to modeling a solar facility is to essentially derate the unit for the entire year. The map below comes from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and shows the average capacity factor for solar in the US . I have seen many analysts model solar with a fixed capacity for the whole [...]
Ken Silverstein writes in his recent article about the government role in green jobs. He focuses on the uncompetitive landscape of manufacturing in the US and unfortunately, only points out one solution – subsidies. I don’t think green jobs are a solution, nor a direct problem, but it certainly highlights the fact that production costs [...]
Over the last few days, Luminant has put out articles warning of job loss and increased risk of rolling blackouts due to new EPA rule that would force new retirements/idling of coal units. In the latest article I found Energy Future Holding (parent of Luminant) is trying to bargain – Dallas’ EFH offers to keep [...]
Ever since a good friend of mine noted a few years back ago that improving air quality is a subsidy for the wealthy I have pondered long and hard on it. I truly believe it be the case. My speech in DC at the 15th Annual Washington Energy Policy Conference hosted by the Center for [...]
Ken Green writes an article on his evolution of the carbon tax. As he puts it: “Hence, my views on the carbon tax have evolved: I no longer believe that such a tax (or, for that matter, other eco-taxes) can be implemented in the sort of ideal, economically-beneficent way that people favoring either individual liberty, [...]
The economy has not likely “recovered” from the great recession as noted by many economist and politicians. Our economy is teetering on recession if we are not already in one. As Ken Rogoff and Carmen Reinhart has noted in their book “This time it’s different: 8 centuries of financial folly” a fiscal driven recession takes [...]
I have been asked many times about the potential use of AURORAxmp in smaller systems such as co-ops. While designed to model the markets, AURORAxmp® can easily be changed to model only your world, whether you have generation or only contracts. If you have a system of contracts (hedges), which essentially nullify the need for [...]
One of the areas of concern when I lead AEP load forecasting team was the expectations of energy efficiency particularly as it related to the compact fluorescent lamp (CFL). As with many utilities, AEP is subsidizing the purchase of CFL bulbs, in expectation of energy savings. This article I read in Energy Central highlights the [...]
