The Washington UTC has given the state's investor-owned utilities until 2021 to file their next integrated resource plans, which had been due Nov. 15 of this year. The extension will allow the commission time to develop the regulatory protocols required under the state's newly enacted Clean …
Idaho Power is in talks with a developer to buy Jackpot Solar, a 120 MW facility proposed for a site near Rogerson, Idaho, between Twin Falls and the Nevada border. Read More
Extraordinary returns of naturally spawning Snake River steelhead five years ago followed by steady declines and a dismal run this year triggered an "early warning indicator" that is prompting federal agencies to take formal steps to determine if "rapid response actions" should be taken to a… Read More
With no rain in the forecast, continuing to provide flows for chum below Bonneville Dam is a tough decision, fish managers and dam operators who work together to manage Columbia River flows for fish agreed Nov. 6. Read More
The Environmental Protection Agency expects to fund about $1 million in grants for projects to reduce toxins in the Columbia Basin. Read More
A cleanup site on a Columbia River island that is part of the Bonneville Dam complex is more contaminated than previously known and should be designated as a Superfund site, a joint letter by the states of Oregon and Washington and the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation says. Read More
The TransAlta Centralia Coal Transition program has awarded $165,000 to Granger, Wash., in Yakima County to help build a 50-kW photovoltaic array. Read More
Pattern Energy and affiliate Pattern Development will be acquired by the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board in a transaction valued at $6.1 billion, the company announced Nov. 4. Pattern's portfolio of 28 renewable projects includes the 80 MW Stillwater wind project in Montana. CPPI, toget… Read More
Powerful winds buffeted California in late October, as did widespread power outages, and other utilities joined Pacific Gas & Electric in being blamed for possibly causing destructive fires. Read More
With "near-record injection activity" in the April 1 to Oct. 31 natural gas refill season, the U.S. natural gas inventory recovered from low levels at the end of the 2018-2019 heating season, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The EIA estimates working natural gas in st… Read More
The Washington UTC has given the state's investor-owned utilities until 2021 to file their next integrated resource plans, which had been due Nov. 15 of this year. The extension will allow the commission time to develop the regulatory protocols required under the state's newly enacted Clean … Read More
The California PUC on Nov. 7 recommended that five once-through-cooling natural gas power plants remain on line for up to three years beyond their planned retirement date of Dec. 31, 2020. The commission also approved delaying by up to 2.5 years the start dates of three solar and two battery… Read More
Facebook will buy the renewable energy credits from PacifiCorp's first wind farm in Montana, but the utility may be on the hook for the $406-million price tag because it was acquired outside of Oregon's competitive bidding rules. Read More
Benton County PUD is among a growing number of Northwest utilities offering prepay programs, allowing customers to trade big monthly bills for smaller, weekly payments. After a soft launch in September, Benton's Pay As You Go program already has nearly 100 customers signed up. Read More
A longstanding debate over the benefits of spill ordered by two federal judges at eight dams on the Snake and Columbia rivers is likely to resurface with a new NOAA Fisheries study. Read More
There are enough pockets of cold water on the Columbia River to provide migrating adult salmon and steelhead a temporary reprieve when the lower Columbia River gets uncomfortably warm, an Environmental Protection Agency study found. But these areas of cooler water likely will not be enough t… Read More
NW Natural Holdings on Nov. 5 reported a $3.1 million gain in year-to-date results through the third quarter compared to 2018, adjusted for a regulatory disallowance in the first quarter. Read More
The region's leading energy savings organization, the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance, announced the winners of its annual awards Oct. 31. Read More
President Donald Trump on Nov. 7 nominated Dan Brouillette, the Department of Energy's No. 2 executive, to succeed outgoing DOE Secretary Rick Perry. Meanwhile, states and environmental organizations sued DOE to challenge its rule dropping exemptions of specialty incandescent lamps from effi… Read More
