Energy
Kentucky Power lowers proposed rate hike after pushback. Some ratepayers say it’s still too much.
Letcher County Judge-Executive Terry Adams walked up to a microphone inside a hearing room in Frankfort Tuesday morning, one of numerous people who had given public comments over the past few weeks to the Kentucky Public Service Commission (PSC). The utility regulator over the upcoming days will be questioning Kentucky Power executives and other witnesses […]
New life for old coal: Minelands and power plants are hot renewable development spots
PETERSBURG, Ind. — AES Indiana’s Petersburg Generating Station, which towers over the White River here in southwest Indiana, has been burning coal to generate electricity since the late 1960s. That era, though, will come to an end soon. Two of the power plant’s four coal-burning units have already retired and the last is planning to […]
Kentucky could win ‘massive’ solar investment in federal competition. Here’s what’s possible.
An unlikely collaboration between a Kentucky coalfield county and Kentucky’s largest city began when a former high school English teacher, Megan Downey, walked into the Lawrence County courthouse in Louisa in August. Inspired by a personal desire to find ways to tackle the impacts of climate change, Downey had launched a nonprofit called The Solar […]
Reliability v. sustainability: Inside the debate over the EPA’s proposed carbon rules
Electric reliability has been a hot topic lately — from congressional hearings to regulatory agencies and at the regional transmission organizations that run the electric grid in much of the country. The American electric grid is undergoing a major change, prodded by state and federal decarbonization policies, market forces pushing cheaper and cleaner forms of […]
Kentucky’s largest utility will retire some coal-fired power, boost renewable energy
Kentucky’s utility regulator has given a green light to plans by the state’s largest utility to retire some of its coal-fired generation, build a natural gas-fired plant in Jefferson County and add renewable energy to its power generation portfolio. Louisville Gas and Electric and Kentucky Utilities (LG&E and KU) had asked the Kentucky Public Service […]
How to weigh in on Kentucky Power’s proposed 18% rate increase
The Kentucky Public Service Commission (PSC) is hosting multiple public meetings the next few weeks to receive input on electric utility Kentucky Power’s request to raise utility bills for the utility’s average residential customer by about 18%. Kentucky Power, an investor-owned utility serving about 163,000 customers in 20 Eastern Kentucky counties, already has the highest […]
Two words rarely heard on Kentucky’s campaign trail: Climate change
PROVIDENCE — Walking through a bathhouse at what until a few years ago was Webster County’s last operating coal mine is not just a moment for Tony Felker to revisit memories. It is also a window into a way of life that he recognizes is disappearing. Felker is quick to rattle through the nearly four […]
Energy tech testbed to develop projects on 65K acres in Virginia’s Wise County
A public-private initiative that aims to test out emerging energy technologies on Southwest Virginia lands formerly mined for coal has signed an agreement to develop its projects on 65,000 acres primarily located in Wise County that are owned by a major natural gas and pipeline company. The deal, announced by Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s office […]
‘Stackable’ tax credits for smaller renewable energy projects could benefit Eastern Kentucky
A new federal tax credit program to help nonprofits and local governments afford to build small-scale renewable energy projects could benefit communities in Eastern Kentucky and Appalachia in particular, according to an advocate familiar with the program. Applications for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Low-Income Communities Bonus Credit Program opened earlier this month. The program […]
Federal funding is helping set up electric vehicle chargers across Kentucky
More electric vehicle (EV) chargers are being planned along major transportation corridors in Kentucky with the help of federal grant funding. A release from Gov. Andy Beshear’s Office Monday states eight more EV chargers are being built near cities across the state from Calvert City to London through funding from the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure […]
Lawmakers want answers on damage and costs linked to idled ‘zombie’ coal mines
This article originally appeared on Inside Climate News, a nonprofit, independent news organization that covers climate, energy and the environment. It is republished with permission. Sign up for their newsletter here. Lawmakers, including Kentucky’s lone Democrat in Congress, are asking for a federal investigation into the full extent of environmental damage caused by what are […]
‘So many ways hydrogen can go wrong’: Hub announcements viewed with caution
The Friday announcement that seven projects had been selected to receive $7 billion in seed money to kickstart the production of clean hydrogen across the country was billed by President Joe Biden’s administration as a major step toward slashing carbon emissions, creating thousands of domestic jobs and positioning the U.S. as a clean energy leader. […]