
New York's Con Edison urges customers to conserve power amid heatwave
June 24 (Reuters) - New York-based utility Con Edison (ED.N), opens new tab has asked customers to conserve energy during the ongoing heatwave, adding that it has reduced voltage by 8% in parts of eastern Brooklyn to protect equipment and keep power flowing as crews carry out repairs.
Meteorologists at AccuWeather forecast that high temperatures in New York City, the largest city in the United States, could reach up to 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit (37 degrees Celsius) on Tuesday.
As temperatures soar, the widespread use of air conditioners by homes and businesses puts extra strain on the power grid, increasing the risk of outages.
The heatwave, meanwhile, boosted power prices in some regions to their highest since January.
Next-day power prices in New England jumped about 17% to around $189 per megawatt hour for Tuesday, while spot power at the PJM West hub remained over $200 for a second day in a row.
That compares with an average of $81 per MWh in New England so far this year and $47 in calendar 2024, and an average of $56 in PJM so far this year and $42 in calendar 2024.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

The National
2 hours ago
- The National
Aberdeenshire housebuilding firm to axe up to 25 jobs
Scotia Homes, based in Ellon, said the decision to make some of its workforce redundant is due to 'significant challenges' facing the housebuilding sector. It's the second time in two years that Scotia Homes, which employs around 168 people, has been forced to make redundancies. Joint managing director Richard Begbie said the redundancies were in response to 'current market conditions', the Press and Journal reported. READ MORE: Closure of Alexander Dennis would be 'catastrophic' for Falkirk area, MSPs told Begbie said the decision for the latest round of job cuts was not taken lightly and will predominantly be made at their head office and not from its team of trades. He said: 'As widely reported, the housebuilding sector is currently facing significant challenges due to a range of external factors. 'In response to these market conditions, we are taking proactive steps to ensure the continued strength of our business. 'As part of this strategy, we are proposing changes to our workforce structure. We deeply value the contributions of our team, and this decision has not been made lightly. 'Scotia Homes remains dedicated to delivering quality homes and building vibrant communities, and these changes will help position us for future growth and continued success in a rapidly evolving market. 'It is anticipated that those affected by redundancy will be less than 25 employees.' The firm has been building homes in the north and north-east of Scotland for more than 30 years and has current developments in Kintore, Tarves, Aviemore, Arbroath, Blairgowrie and Brechin. Scotia Homes acquired fellow Ellon-based firm timber kit manufacturer Caledonia Homes for nearly £4.2 million in 2022. The firm was previously controlled by the Bruce family, but the firm is now 95% owned by Camlin Group, a joint venture of property entrepreneurs Bruce Linton and David Cameron, who took over Scotia Homes in 2020.

South Wales Argus
3 hours ago
- South Wales Argus
Plans to boost manufacturing and semiconductors in Newport
UK Business Secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, launched a fresh strategic approach for industry which has major benefits to Wales, the minister said. He has the backing of the UK Government's Secretary of State for Wales, Jo Stevens and local industry leaders in Newport. The plan will see further subsidies for manufacturing that are high energy users and also a boost to the semiconductor industry, which is strong along the M4 corridor area in Gwent. Other Welsh boosts, largely outside Gwent, will see cost benefits for defence, chemical and steel making, with further subsidised energy costs being offered. From 2027, electricity costs will be cut by up to £40 per megawatt hour for electricity-intensive businesses. The Business Secretary has said the cash boost will help Welsh industry and attract new investment: "It will make existing Welsh industry a lot more competitive and attract new investment," he added. Energy-intensive industries will get help from the British Industry Supercharger, which will use more taxpayers' money to increase subsidies in energy intense production. The subsidies will increase from 60 per cent to 90 percent in 2026. The industrial strategy is a decade-long plan to 'make business cheaper and easier' and assist UK Government in its growth aims. The plan is to "make it quicker, easier and cheaper" to do business in the UK, he clarified. The package for Wales will see a university-led growth in research into semiconductors, which will feed the Gwent-based manufacturers. The doctoral centre will be 'world- leading' and based in Swansea. The funding will see £275million for skills and training in England and a related, so-called Barnett consequential funding for Wales. That funding will be at the heart of the strategy, it is claimed. Skills training is devolved to Wales and Wales ordinarily gets a bigger share of funding from what is called the Barnett consequential. This means Wales should get a bigger proportionate share for training than is available in England. The Welsh Government can add to the sums and further boost work in education and training, which is already proportionately bigger in Wales's smaller and less competitive job market. However, adding to the sums is entirely the decision of the Welsh Government, Mr Reynolds has pointed out. UK Secretary of State for Wales, Jo Stevens, said the industrial strategy was good for Wales and its businesses. She added: "The strategy will support key sectors like compound semiconductors while developing industries of the future like floating offshore wind where Wales is well-placed to be a world leader.' The strategy aims to harness an 'investment zone' around the semiconductor sector in Newport. Dr Wyn Meredith, Chair of CSconnected, the collective brand for advanced semiconductor activities in South East Wales, said: "This announcement marks a major milestone in strengthening South Wales' position as a global leader in compound semiconductor technologies. "The Cardiff Capital Region Investment Zone will support the growth of this strategically important industry, accelerating supply chain growth, workforce development programmes, and innovation to produce the products and services of the future. These factors are critical drivers for further job creation, inward investment and remaining globally competitive in this highly competitive global industry." Michael O'Sullivan, Executive Vice President of Vishay, which operates the largest semiconductor factory in the UK based in Newport, said: 'This is a critical milestone for South Wales and the UK as a whole – a vote of confidence in the talented workers who have attracted investment from Government and companies across the globe. "We know that the world class semiconductor cluster in South Wales has the expertise to meet the great challenges of our age – from Net Zero to the huge energy demands that will come from the growth of AI and electric vehicles. 'We plan to invest £250m, supporting 500 jobs to manufacture cutting edge compound semiconductors. These microchips with faster processing speeds will reduce energy losses and support advanced manufacturing industries from next generation wind turbines, data centres, to the latest electric vehicles and chargers. 'We look forward to working in partnership with leaders in the Welsh Government, Cardiff Capital Region and beyond to make the most of this opportunity for growth." Welsh Labour ministers are expressing delight at recent events and are buoyed ahead of next year's Senedd elections by this news. The boost follows the recent spending review that saw £445million pumped into rail, bus, cycling and walking alternatives to the congestion on the M4. Rebecca Evans, Welsh Government Minister for the Economy and Energy, has told media the boost is the result of the government partnership between the Senedd and Westminster. A spokeswoman for Plaid Cymru said Wales is being short changed by Westminster again and will remain an afterthought in Labour's plans, which seem to centre on Senedd elections, not economic renewal. Key factors for Wales: UK Government to establish a centre for doctoral training in semiconductors, building on the world-leading cluster based in south Wales. A Defence Growth Deal cluster to build on Wales's major strengths. The top five Ministry of Defence suppliers all have a presence in Wales. A new British Business Bank champion for the Cardiff Capital Region to connect investors with businesses and kickstart growth. £30m for a Local Innovation Partnerships Fund in Wales to work with the Welsh Government and Innovate UK to grow innovation. The National Wealth Fund working with the Development Bank of Wales to identify and secure financing for investment projects in Wales. Support for the UK's city regions and clusters by increasing the supply of investment sites through a new £600m Strategic Sites Accelerator. Strengthened support from the Office for Investment to help identify, shape and deliver strategic investment opportunities.


The Guardian
3 hours ago
- The Guardian
Purdue Pharma plan moves forward despite challenge from opioid victim
A New York bankruptcy judge approved a disclosure statement last week laying out Purdue Pharma's proposed reorganization plan – despite an objection alleging the disclosure omits information about the US government's plan to seize Purdue money that could be used to compensate prescription opioid victims under the Mandatory Victims Restitution Act instead. It's been five years since Purdue Pharma pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy in a New Jersey federal court, including for unlawfully dispensing opioid products without a legitimate medical purpose. In a press release at the time, the Department of Justice emphasized that the convictions were part of a strategy to defeat the opioid crisis. But the plea agreement did not include restitution for opioid victims, reasoning that it would not be 'administratively feasible' to distribute the funds. Since then, opioid victims have been unable to seek settlements from Purdue, as the company's 2019 bankruptcy filing stayed civil lawsuits against the company, and will likely instead be settled in bankruptcy court as part of the reorganization plan. Creighton Bloyd – a plaintiff in a class-action suit against Purdue demanding the company pay for prescription opioid victims' recovery treatment – objected to the disclosure statement in the bankruptcy court this month. In his objection, he alleged that the disclosure statement omitted relevant information about US government plans to seize $225m that could instead go to prescription opioid victims under the Mandatory Victims Restitution Act (MVRA), which requires prosecutors to financially compensate victims of criminal cases. Purdue agreed to forfeit $2bn for the value of 'misbranded' drugs that may have led patients to become addicted. Bloyd argued that $225m of that should go to opioid victims under the MVRA, because a federal attorney acknowledged these misbranded drugs harmed individuals. Instead, the New Jersey plea deal gives that money to the Department of Justice, citing administrative hurdles to distributing the funds as restitution. Information about the MVRA and the possibility of using the $225m as restitution is not included in the bankruptcy disclosure statement. Val Early III, an attorney representing personal injury claimants in the bankruptcy case, said the disclosure statement was a 'frustrating' read, because 'a lot of it was in brackets in the body of the document. Brackets, meaning 'to be determined', right?' Despite the omission in the disclosure statement, a New York bankruptcy judge approved it on Friday, and set a September deadline for creditors, including personal injury claimants, to vote to approve or reject the plan. 'If you're asking me to vote on something, and you don't even know what you're asking me to vote on, then how can I possibly vote on it?' Early said. Adam Zimmerman, a law professor at the University of Southern California, said it was unlikely that a judge would find the MVRA applies in this case, because there are 'a variety of exceptions' to the law, including for cases that are large or complex. 'We might call [Purdue's case] a 'mega mass tort', because of the size and scope of the problem it's trying to address here,' Zimmerman explained, adding: 'We're not dealing with a product that just affected a small group of people … We have not just private parties suing, but we have cities suing, Native American tribes suing. We have counties suing. We have states suing. We even have foreign countries that are suing.' Zimmerman added that 'bankruptcy is a really powerful tool for defendants [such as Purdue]' because it allows them to reach what's called a global settlement with all the parties all at once, rather than litigating every claim separately in court. This also means that plaintiffs have fewer opportunities to negotiate individual settlements. Frank Ozment, another lawyer representing personal injury claimants, disagrees that the case is too complex for the MVRA to apply. He says that, since all personal injury claimants had to file claims in the bankruptcy court by a specific deadline along with their names and addresses, it should be relatively simple to identify victims and compensate them. Ozment also rejects the argument that it would be too administratively difficult to ensure prescription opioid victims use payouts for treatment and nothing else. He says the money could be distributed via reloadable payment cards, which allow victims and no one else to purchase medication and nothing else from a pharmacy located in the victim's zip code, similar to how people receive certain Medicaid and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (Snap) payouts. Purdue Pharma and the Department of Justice did not respond to the Guardian's request for comment.