A JAPANESE COMPANY is buying the oil and gas-fired power plants located in Sandwich on the Cape Cod Canal and seeking to repurpose them primarily as a conduit for delivering energy from offshore wind farms to the New England power grid. At first glance, the power plants wouldn’t seem to hold much value. One is […]
Plugging In
Posted inUncategorized
NE power grid demand falls to its lowest level ever
DEMAND FOR ELECTRICITY from the New England power grid fell to an all-time low on Sunday, a reflection of the weather and the region’s embrace of solar power. Sunday was a very pleasant day, with mild temperatures, sunshine, and Sunday’s relatively low demand for electricity. The combination meant homeowners didn’t need heat or air conditioning, […]
Posted inUncategorized
CommonWealth wins six awards from New England newspaper association
COMMONWEALTH WON SIX AWARDS, including four first-place designations, from the New England Newspaper & Press Association in its Better Newspaper Competition. The awards were for articles written between August 1, 2020 and July 31, 2021. The awards were announced over the weekend at the association’s annual convention in Boston. CommonWealth competed in the category of […]
Posted inState House News Service, Uncategorized
US Senate committee deadlocks on Robinson
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE A US SENATE COMMITTEE split evenly along party lines on whether to advance Massachusetts Rep. Maria Robinson’s nomination for a federal energy job, teeing up another situation in which Democrats may need to turn to the vice president to break a tie and muscle through a Bay State elected official. Nearly […]
Posted inEnvironment
Challenging the status quo on electricity, heating
TWO TOP OFFICIALS with the Conservation Law Foundation say the region’s power grid operator and the state’s utilities are in some ways part of the problem instead of the solution to dealing with climate change. Greg Cunningham, the vice president and director of CLF’s clean energy and climate change program, and Caitlin Peale Sloan, the […]
Posted inPolitics
Healey climate plan calls for cabinet czar
DEMOCRATIC GUBERNATORIAL candidate Maura Healey began to flesh out her policy positions on Tuesday by unveiling a climate change plan that calls for the appointment of cabinet-level official to oversee and coordinate the effort and sets ambitious goals for eliminating the use of fossil fuels in generating electricity and powering the MBTA. As the state’s […]
Posted inEnvironment, Opinion
National Grid has new vision for heating
THERE IS OVERWHELMING evidence the world is experiencing the impacts of climate change, and that we must move away from fossil fuels. As an energy company serving millions of people in the Northeast (National Grid), and as an organization representing over 3,400 businesses in Massachusetts (AIM), we’re both deeply invested in not only assisting in […]
Posted inEnvironment, State House News Service
Senate passes climate bill, adds offshore wind boost
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE SENATORS TOOK a major step Thursday toward achieving the net-zero emissions target they already set for Massachusetts by approving a policy-heavy bill aimed at expanding the clean energy industry and reining in emissions from the transportation and building sectors. Nearly 12 hours after they kicked off debate, senators voted 37-3 on […]
Posted inPolitics
Somerset political infighting continues
VOTERS IN SOMERSET on Monday ousted from the Select Board a leader of the successful effort to shut down a controversial scrap metal export business at Brayton Point, a move suggesting the bitter political divisions within the community have not gone away. The scrap metal operation has dominated politics in the South Coast community for […]
Posted inUncategorized
The air traffic controller of electricity
GORDON VAN WELIE, the president and CEO of ISO-New England, says there are four pillars that support the regional power grid his organization oversees, and all four are showing signs of stress. Pillar number one is renewable energy. With clean electricity the key to decarbonizing the transportation and heating sectors, van Welie says New England […]