Latham's Clean Energy Law Report

Tag Archives: Renewable Energy

California Legislature Eyes 100% Clean Energy Target

The California Assembly is expected to vote this summer to establish increased renewable energy targets and set a target of 100% clean energy by 2045. By Marc T. Campopiano, Jennifer K. Roy, Diego Enrique Flores SB 100, Senator Kevin De Leon’s renewable energy bill, would increase California’s already ambitious renewable energy standards by 2030 with … Continue Reading

FERC Narrowly Approves ISO-NE Proposal Regarding State-Sponsored Generation Resources

The split ruling may have broader implications for FERC’s stance toward state-sponsored resources. By Michael J. Gergen, Tyler Brown, and Peter R. Viola The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has approved ISO New England Inc.’s (ISO-NE’s) two-stage capacity market proposal, Competitive Auctions with Sponsored Policy Resources (CASPR), by a 3-2 vote, with Chairman Kevin McIntyre … Continue Reading

Wholesale Capacity Market in New England Aims to Better Accommodate State-Sponsored Generation Resources

The regional transmission organization’s proposal seeks to reconcile the increasing deployment of state-sponsored subsidized clean energy resources with competitive forward auctions. By Michael Gergen and Tyler Brown Proposed New Auction Process in New England The ISO New England Inc. (ISO-NE), the regional transmission organization serving Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont has filed proposed … Continue Reading

Fifth Circuit Holds that Texas Public Utility Commission Can Limit Ability of Intermittent Wind Generators to Sell Their Power Under PURPA As “Firm Power,” Contrary to FERC and District Court

By Michael J. Gergen and Tyler Brown On September 8, 2014, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (“Fifth Circuit”), in a 2-1 decision, reversed an opinion by the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas (“District Court”) and held that the Public Utility Commission of Texas (“PUCT”) acted within … Continue Reading

DOE Announces New Renewable and Efficient Energy Loan Guarantee Solicitation

By Michael Gergen and Eli Hopson On July 3, 2014, the United States Department of Energy’s (DOE) Loan Programs Office issued a new “Renewable Energy and Efficient Energy” solicitation for loan guarantees. DOE issued the Renewable Energy and Efficient Energy solicitation under Title XVII of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 and its implementing regulations … Continue Reading

Assembly Bill 327 Removes Upper Limit From California’s Renewables Portfolio Standard

By Michael J. Carroll and Marc T. Campopiano On October 7, 2013, Governor Jerry Brown signed into law Assembly Bill (AB) 327, removing the current ceiling on California’s Renewables Portfolio Standard (RPS).  As discussed previously, the RPS requires regulated sellers of electricity to obtain a percentage of their electricity from certified renewable resources. In 2011, … Continue Reading

California Energy Commission Issues Proposed Regulations for the Enforcement of the 33% Renewables Portfolio Standard for Publicly Owned Utilities

By Jared W. Johnson As we detailed in prior commentary, almost two years ago, California Governor Jerry Brown signed Senate Bill (SB) 2 1X (2011), which increased California’s Renewables Portfolio Standard (RPS) to 33% by 2020.  Among the features of SB 2 1X was the expansion of the RPS to cover publicly owned utilities or … Continue Reading

Federal Government Approves Designation of Renewable Energy Development Areas in Arizona

By Anne B. Beaumont  On January 18, 2013, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar announced the approval of Arizona’s Restoration Design Energy Project (RDEP), a Bureau of Land Management (BLM) initiative to identify public lands in Arizona that may be suitable for renewable energy development. The RDEP Record of Decision (ROD)[1] establishes 192,100 acres of … Continue Reading

U.S. Navy Steams Full Speed Ahead with Renewable Energy Development on Military Lands

By Taiga Takahashi In previous commentary, we discussed the opening of Department of Defense lands to renewable energy development, as well as some of the difficulties that may be encountered in developing on or near military lands. Notwithstanding technical and national security considerations, renewable energy development on or near Department of Defense lands appears to … Continue Reading

Renewable Energy Project Challenges — Snapshot of the Litigation Landscape

Janice Schneider of our Washington, D.C. office and Taiga Takahashi of our San Diego office have co-authored a Client Alert entitled “Renewable Energy Project Challenges — Snapshot of the Litigation Landscape.” Since the beginning of 2011, we have been conducting regular and comprehensive surveys of court challenges to renewable energy project approvals in the Western … Continue Reading

Department of Defense and Department of Interior Open 16 Million Acres of Federal Lands to Renewable Energy Projects

By Janice Schneider, Laura A. Godfrey, Buck Endemann and Taiga Takahashi Earlier this year, the Navy, Army, and Air Force committed to deploy three gigawatts total of renewable energy on service installations by 2025. In late July, the Department of the Interior (“DOI”) and the Department of Defense (“DOD”) took the first steps to implement this … Continue Reading
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