Reliance on Solar Projects Threatening Colorado’s Outlook on Grid Reliability
As Colorado moves to retire legacy fossil-fuel power plants in order to meet Governor Polis’s goal of 100% renewable energy by 2040, the state is increasingly reliant on wind and solar to meet our electricity needs. And now, thanks to supply chain snarls hitting the solar industry, our ability to keep the lights on next […]
The Cost & Impact of a 100 Percent Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard for the State of Colorado
As the 2018 Colorado governor’s race intensifies, two Democrat candidates have proposed extending Colorado’s existing Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard (RPS) from 30 percent by 2020 to 100 percent by 2040. The purpose of this study is to highlight some of the main costs and impacts associated with a hypothetical 100 percent RPS in Colorado. Because few details have been released regarding the design of such a policy, this study evaluated the costs associated with two very different 100 percent RPS scenarios.
Glitzy headlines can’t hide the failure of subsidy-rich solar
Despite billions in taxpayer subsidies, the United States currently generates less energy from solar and wind, the darlings of government favoritism, than it did from renewables in 1950.
January 20 Colorado Energy Cheat Sheet: Billionaire Steyer plays CO politics; NM files intent to sue EPA over mine spill
Independence Institute associate energy policy analyst Simon Lomax has the latest on green billionaire Tom Steyer’s efforts to tilt the legislative balance in Colorado in 2016: San Francisco billionaire activist Tom Steyer is getting more deeply involved in Colorado politics than ever before. After spending more than $350,000 on research and polling in the Centennial […]
Colorado Energy Cheat Sheet, Christmas Edition: WY report finds fracking 'unlikely' in contamination at Pavillion; EPA spill report gives agency a pass; solar industry acknowledges reliance on tax credits
Energy In Depth picks up on the state of Wyoming’s long-delayed and much-expected report on possible fracking-related contamination in Pavillion, Wyoming as alleged by activists and theorized by the Environmental Protection Agency: The Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) has just released the results of its 30-month investigation into water contamination in Pavillion, Wyoming, and […]
Colorado Energy Cheat Sheet, Christmas Edition: WY report finds fracking ‘unlikely’ in contamination at Pavillion; EPA spill report gives agency a pass; solar industry acknowledges reliance on tax credits
Energy In Depth picks up on the state of Wyoming’s long-delayed and much-expected report on possible fracking-related contamination in Pavillion, Wyoming as alleged by activists and theorized by the Environmental Protection Agency: The Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) has just released the results of its 30-month investigation into water contamination in Pavillion, Wyoming, and […]
December 17 Colorado Energy Cheat Sheet: Environmental 'Propaganda' Agency; electric rate hikes called 'discrimination'; anti-energy activists promise to 'ratchet up' efforts
Some commodity pricing is giving Colorado Xcel ratepayers a temporary reprieve from escalating energy costs: Xcel said the new rates will result in “significantly lower bills, particularly for natural gas customers, for the second half of the current winter heating season. “Compared on a year-to-year basis to better gauge the seasonal impacts of weather, both […]
December 17 Colorado Energy Cheat Sheet: Environmental ‘Propaganda’ Agency; electric rate hikes called ‘discrimination’; anti-energy activists promise to ‘ratchet up’ efforts
Some commodity pricing is giving Colorado Xcel ratepayers a temporary reprieve from escalating energy costs: Xcel said the new rates will result in “significantly lower bills, particularly for natural gas customers, for the second half of the current winter heating season. “Compared on a year-to-year basis to better gauge the seasonal impacts of weather, both […]
Gone with the Wind: IRS can’t measure effectiveness of $14 billion dollars in green energy subsidies
A recent report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) reveals that IRS tax subsidies to green energy operators have resulted in $15.1 billion in foregone revenue to the federal government, $13.7 billion of which was lost to renewable energy projects. The GAO has sounded its concern that Congress cannot evaluate the effectiveness of Investment Tax […]
Gone with the Wind: IRS can't measure effectiveness of $14 billion dollars in green energy subsidies
A recent report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) reveals that IRS tax subsidies to green energy operators have resulted in $15.1 billion in foregone revenue to the federal government, $13.7 billion of which was lost to renewable energy projects. The GAO has sounded its concern that Congress cannot evaluate the effectiveness of Investment Tax […]
Big Wind and Solar Oppose Clean Energy
By Lexi Osborn In the upcoming weeks, House Bill 1118 will be up for debate in the State, Veterans, and Military Affairs Committee. This bill eliminates the restrictions on the hydroelectricity and pumped hydroelectricity that can be counted as a “renewable energy resource” to meet Colorado’s renewable energy standard. Currently, hydroelectricity is only counted towards […]
Solar "Mega-trap" Kills Birds at California Power Plant
Solar power generating facilities in Southern California have been dubbed “mega-traps” for their ability to attract and kill multiple species in a variety of manners including solar flux injury, also known as “singeing,” according to a report from the National Fish and Wildlife Forensics Laboratory issued in April. “At times birds flew into the solar […]
