Public Power Current

After several years of intense effort and collaboration under the Provider of Choice initiative, the Bonneville Power Administration executed new long-term wholesale electric power contracts with more than 130 Northwest public utility customers this fall, it reported on Dec. 23.

U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright on Dec. 23 issued emergency orders to keep units at two Indiana coal plants operational.

The Department of the Interior in December announced that it is pausing -- effective immediately -- the leases for all large-scale offshore wind projects under construction in the United States "due to national security risks identified by the Department of War in recently completed classified reports."

The Long Island Power Authority in December announced a new partnership with New York State Homes and Community Renewal (HCR) to support energy efficiency, weatherization, and heat pump installations in low-income multifamily housing across Long Island and the Rockaways.

The Energy Systems Integration Group (ESIG) has released a new report, Forecasting for Large Loads: Current Practices and Recommendations, reviewing utilities’ and system operators’ approaches to forecasting large loads -- including from data centers, oil and gas, emerging industries, and manufacturing -- and providing recommendations for improving forecast accuracy.

The Kansas City BPU recently launched the “Not All Utilities Are Built the Same” campaign, developed to proactively communicate how public utilities operate and how their model differs from investor-owned utilities and national advocacy narratives.

The Gallatin Department of Electricity, a Tennessee public power utility, recently opened a new facility that expands crew quarters and creates additional space for utility trucks.

Texas public power utility Austin Energy in late November issued an all resource request for proposals.