A Target Rock Advisors analysis of the Duke-Progress merger and its effect on the sustainability of the new company (Duke Energy) contends that Duke Energy has the potential to create substantial long-term economic, environmental and social value for shareholders and the community as a whole. However, recent and much publicized events that have already tarnished Duke's image raise important questions, could increase regulatory risk, and make for a difficult post-merger integration, reducing or delaying the near- and medium-term benefits creating near-term risks.

Duke Energy Pre- and Post-Merger Size Statistics (Credit: Target Rock Advisors). View the full-size chart

According to TRA, long-term benefits will include increased size and financial strength; promising operating synergies and savings; improved regulatory diversity; more balanced fuels mix with a material reduction in coal-fired generation and greater use of clean fuels as a percentage of total capacity and net generation; greater potential to reduce harmful emissions; strong employee safety and development track record; and a civic-minded and generous philanthropic culture.

"Unfortunately the post-merger social, governance and nuclear issues are likely to overshadow these benefits for a while," said Kyle Rudden, TRA co-founder.

Read the entire article online at FierceEnergy.

Credit: iStock

In the California housing market, green home labels add an average of 9 percent to a home's value, according to research from the University of California, Berkeley and the Institute of the Environment, Department of Public Policy and Department of Economics at the University of California - Los Angeles. Three in-depth case studies of California homes, funded by Energy Upgrade California and the Green Label Rebate Program, add credence to these findings.

The homes were evaluated before and after they received green and energy upgrades, as well as a green-home label. Following the green upgrade and labeling, the appraised value increased by 5.5 to 9 percent.

Saving money is a top priority for most families, and those who are upside-down in this real-estate market can't afford to take a hit on the sale of their home.

Utilities can appeal to customers' concerns about the current real-estate economy to promote and upsell green and energy-efficiency upgrades, creating an additional revenue stream that capitalizes on the fact that green homes are more valuable in today's real-estate market.

Revenue producing services might include energy audits; energy-efficiency consulting; energy-efficient lighting and appliances; insulation and air sealing of attics, crawl spaces and walls; shower valve and pool pump upgrades; heating and air conditioning systems with duct enhancements; roof repair; and solar panels.

For more:
- see the report
- see the green label program website

Related Articles:
PG&E seeks to continue investment in energy efficiency
Energy efficiency deserves attention of utilities
Market for utility energy efficiency is plentiful

Future fuels will be cleaner and cheaper with more "Made in America" status if the U.S. adopts a national Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS). That's the belief of scientists from six of the nation's leading research institutions, including Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the University of California, the University of Illinois, the University of Maine, Carnegie Mellon University, and the International Food Policy Research Institute.

An LCFS would require all energy companies to meet a common goal for carbon intensity; the companies themselves would decide how to reach that goal, encouraging innovation and diversity by harnessing market forces.

"A national Low Carbon Fuel Standard is a promising framework to help solve the transportation energy challenges that have eluded us for several decades," said Dr. Daniel Sperling, Director of the Institute of Transportation Studies, University of California – Davis, who was joined by electric utility, biofuel and automotive industry representatives in a briefing on Capitol Hill. "Technologically, an LCFS is very doable. And it can help us address the complex choices with conventional oil, shale gas, oil sands, biofuels and electric vehicles."

According to researchers, a national LCFS creates a strong market signal that attracts investment and spurs innovation in clean fuel technologies, increases consumption of clean fuels and lowers average consumer fuel prices, for a total savings of $411 billion on fuel expenditures by 2035. This could be achieved, in part, by deep reductions in emissions from transportation both medium- and long-term through wider adoption of plug-in electric vehicles and fuel cell vehicles that run on hydrogen, researchers say. Further, the researchers say that fuels from waste materials – agricultural and forestry leftovers to municipal waste – are another important source of low-carbon fuel.

"Our current energy posture has left America's economy exposed to global oil price shocks and high oil import costs," said Paul Leiby of Oak Ridge National Laboratory. "An LCFS would substitute domestic resources like ethanol, natural gas, and electricity for imported oil, providing energy security savings up to $22 a barrel."

For more:
- see the report
- read the policy recommendations

Related Articles:
Predicting the impact of EVs on the grid
Q&A with Robert Hefner of GHK

Maryland regulators on Friday rejected more than $50 million in Pepco rate increases. While not directly related, the order comes as the utility continues to face scrutiny following its sub-par response to the June 29 storm that ravaged the Capitol region.

The proposed 4 percent rate increase would have cost $68 million, and although Pepco filed for the increase back in December, the Maryland Public Service Commission (PSC) noted in a relase that it considered Pepco's "longer history of substandard performance" in its decision. The PSC did approve $18.1 million in rate increases (about $2 a month per customer), which is required to maintain legal mandates for power reliability.

For Pepco, the rate decision came at an an unfortunate time.

In the aftermath of the rare Derecho – a straight-line windstorm associated with a severe, fast moving band of thunderstorms – the utility was challenged with cleaning up downed trees and restoring power across the D.C. metro area.  A report released by Maryland State Representative Chris Van Hollen found that Pepco, a subsidiary of PHI Holdings, had restored only 20 percent of outages by July 1. The company announced full restoration of all affected customers on July 8, more than a week after the storm.

Pepco released a statement acknowledging the substantial resources that were required to perform the storm restoration work. It estimated that 300,000 work hours were expended to restore customers, including call center support. 

But following the storm, lawmakers, including D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray, have since called for heavy fines and advocated for burying power lines to improve reliability.

The Baltimore Sun reported last week that Maryland lawmakers are urging the PSC to fine Pepco $250 for each customer who was without power for three days or longer. The PSC has the authority to fine utilities up to $25,000 per day for violation of orders and regulations, including safety violations. The Maryland PSC fined Pepco $1 million in 2011 for failure to maintain grid reliability in the similarly devastating snowstorm that hit the region in February 2010.

It's unlcear when any fines would be applied.

For more:
-see this release

Related Articles:
Customer satisfaction with utilities continues to decline
Utilities receive EEI award for power restoration efforts
 

According to Wind Energy Update, approximately 90 percent of global offshore wind capacity comes from Europe, with the U.K., Denmark, the Netherlands and Germany leading the pack.

The projects leading the charge include the Walney I, Walney II, Ormonde and Sheringham Shoal Wind Farms (all located in U.K. waters), the German projects Bard 1 and Baltic 1, and the Danish Avedore site and the Portuguese Windfloat floating turbine, according to Wind Energy Update. The U.K. and Germany have plans for nine other offshore wind farms.

Wind Energy Update contends that the North Sea and Baltics provide excellent conditions for offshore wind projects, and Europe is far advanced in providing government incentives to the industry.

For more:
- see this article
- see this article

Related Articles: 
Stevens Institute of Technology receives grant for offshore wind research
Sandia's Scaled Wind Farm Technology facility is pretty SWIFT
Avoidance is key in offshore wind projects
Risk experience critical to funding offshore wind