Wisconsin commission rejects proposed coal power plant
The PSC decided that the $1.26 billion project was too costly when weighing it against other alternatives such as natural gas generation and the possibility of buying power from existing sources. Concerns over construction costs and uncertainty over the costs of complying with future possible carbon dioxide regulations were all contributing factors to the denial.
The PSC said Wisconsin Power and Light's effort to burn up to 20 percent renewable biomass at the Nelson Dewey site was laudable, but it found the cumulative costs and risk associated with the project were unacceptable to the utility's ratepayers.
Commissioners said the proposed plant is not in the public interest, adding that there are alternatives that could prove more financially and environmentally sound.
Wisconsin Power and Light filed an application with the PSC for permission to build the 300 MW coal-fired electric generation facility in early 2007. The utility identified two possible locations for the power plant – their Nelson Dewey Generating Station property in Cassville and the Columbia Energy Center.
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COVID-19 pandemic zaps electricity usage in Ontario as people stay home
TORONTO - Demand for electricity in Ontario last year fell to levels rarely seen in decades amid shifts in usage patterns caused by pandemic measures, new data show.
The decline came despite a hot summer that had people rushing to crank up the air conditioning at home, the province’s power management agency said.
“We do have this very interesting shift in who’s using the energy,” said Chuck Farmer, senior director of power system planning with the Independent Electricity System Operator.
“Residential users are using more electricity than we thought they would and the commercial consumers are using less.”
The onset of the pandemic last…
