Who’s Your Energy Daddy?

Date: 7 Oct 2013 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 1 Facebooktwitterredditmail

This panel asks ‘who’s your energy daddy?’ and for now it remains large, investor-owned utilities, and ostensibly locally-focused rural cooperatives and municipal utilities. But the energy landscape of today gives me uncomfortable reminders of the Athenian tragedy by Sophocles – the Oedipus tale. John Farrell, ILSR’s Director of Democratic Energy, gave this panel presentation at the 23rd annual … Read More

Setting the Value of Solar – Part 1 of Minnesota’s Process

Date: 27 Sep 2013 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 1 Facebooktwitterredditmail

What is solar worth to a utility? It’s an issue of national debate, but one unexpected state – Minnesota – is engaging a formal process for determining the methodology for setting the value of solar. As the first multi-utility process, it’s likely to set a precedent nationwide for what the “value of solar” will mean and … Read More

Essential Elements in the Value of Solar

Date: 27 Sep 2013 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

Comments to the Minnesota Division of Energy Resources Re: Value of Solar Stakeholder Process From: Institute for Local Self-Reliance    John Farrell, Director of Democratic Energy Date: September 20, 2013 Background The value of solar component of the state’s new solar energy standard must be considered in the context of the state’s energy goals, expressed in … Read More

Utility Agrees: (Their) Solar Should Supplant Natural Gas

Date: 16 Sep 2013 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

Five months ago, one of the country’s ten largest electric utilities told regulators in Minnesota that it needed three new natural gas power plants to handle peak energy demand.  This week, the same company’s Colorado division announced plans to use more solar power because it is cost competitive with gas. Maybe they need a memo to … Read More

Utility Shocked to Find It’s Already Dead

Date: 13 Sep 2013 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 1 Facebooktwitterredditmail

There’s an increasingly shrill discussion among utilities (and from their own Edison Electric Institute) about the threat to their business from distributed energy, as their customers shift to getting their own power from local renewable resources.  Reports and news stories – e.g. “Adapt or Die” – suggest changes to the business model are imminent as power … Read More

A “shot across the bow” for Real. Local. Power.

Date: 5 Sep 2013 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 1 Facebooktwitterredditmail

Two years ago, Boulder citizens voted to take over the electric utility but the incumbent monopoly is fighting back with a ballot initiative to cut off the localization effort at the knees. Local activists started a crowdfunding campaign to push back against the incumbent’s financial advantage. … Read More

How Organizing is Giving the City of Minneapolis a Better Energy Future

Date: 3 Sep 2013 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

For decades the energy future of Minneapolis was in the hands of others: meaningful change around cleaner energy was left to the state, affordability and reliability overseen by a virtually impenetrable public utility commission, and local energy generation largely a dream. Until a local, grassroots campaign suggested that the city turn a mundane contract renewal into … Read More

Minneapolis could excel beyond Xcel

Date: 12 Aug 2013 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 1 Facebooktwitterredditmail

A lot of folks came to a hearing at Minneapolis City Hall eight days ago to oppose a ballot measure authorizing the city to form a municipal utility. Mostly they argued that the status quo is sufficient. I’d like to ask if they understand the question. This commentary was originally published by the Star Tribune on … Read More

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