We’re using less electricity. Some power plants have even shut down. So why do state officials keep approving new ones?
FERC Complaint & Southeast Oversupply
Despite excess power generation capacity on hand and large plants sitting idle most of the year, southeast utilities including Duke Energy keep building more plants instead of buying power from each other as recommended by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). In December 2014, NC WARN told FERC that customers are being gouged by rate increases to pay for new, unneeded plants. We called on FERC to enforce its own recommendations and order an independent investigation. We requested that regulators in seven states cooperate with FERC to get clear on how much could be saved annually if utilities began sharing power supply through regional cooperation. Read more here and in the news items below.
A similar situation is occurring in California, as described in this article and infographic in the Los Angeles Times.
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NC WARN Again Urges Feds to Investigate Southeastern Oversupply of Electricity — News Release from NC WARN
NC WARN has called on federal regulators to reconsider their decision not to investigate the costs and benefits of a regional strategy to share electricity supply. In denying our call for investigation on April 30, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission ignored Duke Energy’s misrepresentation of NC WARN’s factual and legal position.
NC WARN’s motion for reconsideration
NC WARN’s original federal complaint filed with FERC
Glut in Southeastern Electric Supply as Monopolies Keep Building Plants, Raising Rates — News Release from NC WARN
Regulatory Contortion allows Duke, others to gouge customers — News Release from NC WARN
Duke Energy, NC WARN Trade Legal Blows in Federal Complaint Over Southeast Power Glut — News Release from NC WARN
Duke Energy’s response to NC WARN’s December complaint about a regional over-supply of electricity capacity has inadvertently enhanced our call for an investigation to determine how many billions of dollars are being wasted across the Southeast. Duke grossly distorted NC WARN’s position in several ways but, in doing so, emphasized the lack of publicly available data needed to understand how much money could be saved through regional sharing of electricity.
Activists push for new RTO as Southeast utility reserve margins called into question — Utility Dive
NC WARN wants the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to calculate “how many billions are being wasted across the Southeast” due to the overbuilding of generation facilities, and to push seven southeastern states for data that would show “how much could be saved annually if utilities begin sharing power supply through regional cooperation.”
Activists push for new RTO as Southeast utility reserve margins called into question — Utility Dive
NC WARN says Duke, Southern and others are gouging ratepayers for billions, blocking renewables By Herman K. Trabish The state-by-state fight between utilities and renewables advocates just went national. A North Carolina group has asked federal regulators to investigate Duke Energy, the Southern Company, and other big Southeastern utilities for …
Watchdog group files federal complaint against Duke Energy and Southeastern utilities — Charlotte Business Journal
N.C. WARN wants federal regulators to determine whether Duke Energy’sresistance to purchasing reserve power from other Southeastern utilities is costing customers billions of dollars for unnecessary plant construction.
Duke Energy building unneeded power plants, group claims — News & Observer
Duke Energy and other utilities in the Southeast are building power plants that aren’t needed, gouging consumers, a Durham advocacy group said Tuesday in a federal complaint.
NC WARN asked the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to order an investigation of the billions of dollars the group says are being wasted.
Glut in Southeastern Electric Supply as Monopolies Keep Building Plants, Raising Rates
Duke Energy, others manipulate electricity markets, waste billions of customer dollars as power plants sit idle while more are being built, says watchdog group
Federal complaint filed by NC WARN
Duke Energy building unneeded power plants, group claims – The News & Observer
Watchdog group files federal complaint against Duke Energy and Southeastern utilities – The Charlotte Observer
U.S. Energy Chair Dismisses New Coal, Nukes – Reuters
http://uk.reuters.com/article/environmentNews/idUKTRE5447HI20090505 UK U.S. utilities, regulator disagree on generation Wed May 6, 2009 12:59am BST By Eileen O’Grady HOUSTON (Reuters) – The nation’s top power industry regulator on Tuesday suggested that U.S. utilities don’t need to build big nuclear or coal-fired power plants to fill the nation’s future power supply needs. …
FERC Head: No Need to Build new U.S. Coal or Nuclear Plants – Greenwire
By NOELLE STRAUB AND PETER BEHR, Greenwire http://www.greenwire.com No new nuclear or coal plants may ever be needed in the United States, the chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission said today. “We may not need any, ever,” Jon Wellinghoff told reporters at a U.S. Energy Association forum. The FERC …