Latest news with #energyinfrastructure
CBS News
5 days ago
- Business
- CBS News
Residents in Colorado's Elbert County fight Xcel Energy over transmission line running through their properties
As Colorado's energy infrastructure ages, Xcel Energy is aiming to build 550 miles of new transmission lines to accommodate the grid and Colorado's continuous growth. However, residents in Elbert County are resisting efforts from Xcel's proposition, as a portion of the project is intended to travel through the county, which they say will disrupt their way of life. Wednesday night, the Planning Commission voted to recommend denying Xcel's application to the Board of County Commissioners at the end of the month. Until then, Xcel has begun eminent domain initiatives as well as having already acquired nearly 50% of the land needed for the project voluntarily. Tuesday night at the county fairgrounds in Kiowa, Xcel presented their application to the Planning Commission. It went so long, it spilled over to Wednesday night. The Elbert County Staff of Community Development and Services deemed the application incomplete for not submitting more detail about wildfire protection, and recommended to the Planning Commission to deny the application, which they did. Route of Segment 5 The entire Power Pathway project consists of five segments, with Segments 2 and 3 completed and Segment 1 under construction. Xcel's $1.7 billion double-circuit 345-kilovolt electric transmission line will be used to increase reliability across Colorado. "If we lose one of our transmission segments, we have the ability to route electricity around the state," Andrew Holder, the Xcel Community Relations Director, told the commission during Tuesday's meeting. Xcel Energy's proposed line, Segment 5. CBS Colorado But for years, Xcel and those directly impacted or simply living in Elbert County have been at odds over the avenue of Segment 5. "The proposed route selected in Elbert County... is the least impactful compared to other route alternatives evaluated," said the Siting and Land Rights Manager, Jennifer Chester, in her presentation for Xcel to the Planning Commission. "A lot of folks are ranchers. It's our charge to take care of this land where we live," says Kerry Jiblits, who lives in Elbert County. Jiblits is a board member for the Elbert County Environmental Alliance (ECEA) with more than 400 people on its mailing list. While the transmission line isn't going through her property, Elbert County is her home. She "moved here for a reason," she says. The group formed to resist projects that harm the environment and wildlife in the area, Jiblits tells CBS Colorado. They are environmentalists who are all in for renewables. "We're not against the project, we're against this route." Xcel on the other hand, is looking to unlock solar and wind power potential with all that open space on the Eastern Plains. The utility company told CBS Colorado in a statement in part, "We have collaborated with the Elbert County community for four years, addressing questions, concerns and acquiring land rights voluntarily. We adjusted the project's location by 50 miles to accommodate community wishes while keeping project costs low for our customers." Those who participated in Tuesday's public comment say otherwise. "There was not one single person who spoke in favor of Xcel other than the Xcel representatives," Jiblits tells CBS Colorado. She and others in ECEA have met with Xcel many times and even with the president of Xcel Energy-Colorado, Robert Kenney. "Their idea of collaboration is to tell you that this is what [they're] going to do. They have not worked with us in the least." Risk of wildfire But the risk of wildfire is why the Community Development and Services staff in its presentation Tuesday recommended that denial. "The applicant has not submitted the request level of detail of information for proof of fire protection or risk associated with fire behavior." "Wildfire is a huge concern out here," says Jiblits. The Magic Dog fire last October near CO-86 used aerial firefighters, Jiblits tells CBS Colorado. The water came from a body that is adjacent to the proposed Segment 5 route. "They scooped water out of a pond nearby. The transmission lines will be going right next to that pond now. How are they going to be able to access that water?" CBS Colorado reached out to Elizabeth Fire Rescue about how they plan to work around the line in the future, but have not heard back. Elbert County fire districts cover at least 700 square miles and firefighters in the area are mostly volunteer. There's a way to avoid the risk. According to a 2021 study by Pacific Gas & Electric Co., the utility company is taking on the ambitious goal of burying 10,000 miles of above-ground electric distribution power lines in high-risk wildfire areas, which is called undergrounding. Even though PG&E has logistical and technical challenges awaiting it, as well as a near $20 billion price tag, it's possible and currently happening. The first speaker at Tuesday's meeting, Mike Walker of Elizabeth, said, "Xcel says it costs too much to bury the lines." What's in it for Elbert County? "There's no benefit. The power is for the Denver metro area," says Jiblits. Xcel told CBS Colorado, "While we do not provide electric service to Elbert County residents, the Pathway project will provide important tax revenue benefiting the county, cities, fire and school districts." Although Jiblits, and many in the county, aren't buying it. "The taxes that we will get from this project, will be offset by the money we lose in decreased property values and property valuations," says Jiblits. On its website, Xcel says they've used a third-party real estate appraiser analysis, and the transmission line will not impact property vales. Additionally, Holder said on Tuesday that Xcel will pay a 1.26% tax on its new facilities, on top of a $2.5 million project impact fee. "Their attitude is, 'We're going to do what we want. What you say doesn't matter.' They're just going through and checking boxes," Jiblits says. Eminent domain "There were several people who wanted to speak," Jiblits says about Tuesday night's meeting, "but who were unable to speak because of the ongoing litigation." That is eminent domain proceedings. Xcel told CBS Colorado partly, "We remain committed to making every effort to reach a fair and reasonable settlement, but when negotiations are unsuccessful, we have to exercise our eminent domain authority." Although alternate lines have been offered, Segment 5 is moving ahead as proposed. Jiblits says, with larger acreage farther east, families won't be as impacted from the project. "There are already rights of way out there that they could follow and use. They don't need to take our land for their project." Xcel and Elbert County residents will have to wait more than two weeks for a vote from the Board of Commissioners on June 24.
Asharq Al-Awsat
5 days ago
- Business
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Eurasian Development Bank Reveals Partnerships with the Gulf to Develop Energy Projects
Chairman of the Management Board at the Eurasian Development Bank (EDB) Nikolai Podguzov revealed plans to cooperate with GCC countries, including Saudi Arabia, to develop energy infrastructure. Podguzov told Asharq Al-Awsat that the bank, which is the international financial organization that operates in Central Asia and in Eurasia, works on implementing a working plan based on three strategies. 'Every year we execute around 30-40 new projects and set up agreements,' he said. 'The investments of the bank are growing at least 20% each year,' Podguzov revealed. 'We are quite a fast developing bank. Uzbekistan has just joined the bank this year.' Regarding the size of loans and investments handled by EDB, Podguzov explained that the bank's average investment ranges between $100 million and $400 million. He added however, that the bank is capable of syndicating larger loans that can reach up to $1 billion or more, while the average annual investment volume is around $2.53 billion. Regarding the bank's work plans for the coming year, Podguzov explained that the Eurasian Development Bank is simultaneously working to strengthen its relations with the GCC countries and the Islamic Development Bank. 'We improve connectivity, transport infrastructure and logistics. We improve access to water for regions in Central Asia. We develop energy infrastructure in our member states,' he told Asharq Al-Awsat. 'We take care of food safety and food safety infrastructure, which provides access to food and provides food security for our member states. And I think in this field we can set up very good economic ties and cooperation between GCC countries and Central Asia.' 'I know that such countries like Saudi Arabia, Emirates, Oman are quite interested in the topics of our strategy,' he said. 'We mainly do non-sovereign finance ... which is very convenient for our potential partners,' he added. Podguzov said there is a partnership with Masdar which 'is a world leader in bringing renewable energy technologies into the world. They are quite active in Central Asia, in Kazakhstan in particular.' 'That is why, for example, we are very much interested in cooperation with Masdar company. This is one of examples. I think logistics and logistics project also could be of interest for Saudi Arabia. A lot of infrastructure could be developed together with the help of Eurasian Development Bank.' 'I believe that it's also very important to build economic bridge between GCC countries and Central Asia. And I think the bank can do a lot in this field and finally we can bring together economic interests of Central Asian and GCC countries.'
Reuters
5 days ago
- Business
- Reuters
Siemens Energy replaces 11 bln eur government-backed funding facility
FRANKFURT, June 5 (Reuters) - Siemens Energy on Thursday said it had replaced a 11 billion euro ($12.6 billion) government-backed funding facility that was put in place in 2023 to stabilise the power equipment maker, a key step to restore its ability to pay dividends. The government had to backstop billions of euros worth of project guarantees in late 2023 to ensure Siemens Energy - a critical player in the energy infrastructure industry - could fulfil its order book in the wake of major quality issues at its wind turbine business. "The federal government's counter-guarantee was instrumental in 2023 during a challenging phase to secure our strong anticipated growth," Siemens Energy's Chief Financial Officer Maria Ferraro said. One of the conditions of the facility was the suspension of dividend payments at Siemens Energy. "Due to our performance in the past two years and the positive market environment we were able to improve margins, cash flow and strengthen our balance sheet," Ferraro said. "This enabled us to replace the facility before the end of our fiscal year and deliver on our commitment as promised." Siemens Energy Chief Executive Christian Bruch last month said that replacing the government facility would enable the company to resume dividend payments for the 2026 fiscal year. ($1 = 0.8701 euros)
National Post
5 days ago
- Business
- National Post
Southwest Power Pool (SPP) Partners with Hitachi to Develop Advanced AI Solution for Critical Power Transmission Reliability and Flexibility Challenges
Article content End-to-end use of industrial AI and advanced computing infrastructure to help significantly speed up safe integration and use of additional energy sources supporting central U.S. power grids. Article content Initial partnership objectives are to reduce generator interconnection analysis times by 80% while facilitating more informed decision-making. Objective to be achieved via advanced AI solutions from Hitachi, powered by NVIDIA's accelerated computing platform. Integrated solution comprised of multiple Hitachi capabilities including an AI-based power simulation algorithm, Hitachi-iQ-accelerated calculations, augmented simulation modelling, predictive analytics, as well as design and engineering services. Wide-ranging impacts to address imminent U.S. energy infrastructure needs by increasing planning processes' speed and efficiency; enabling SPP to better resolve energy capacity shortages, increase grid reliability, and improve emergency response capabilities. Subsequent partnership objectives to address alternative energy integration challenges and power transmission constraints. Article content SANTA CLARA, Calif. & LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Hitachi, Ltd. (TSE:6501, 'Hitachi') and Southwest Power Pool, Inc. (SPP) today announced a strategic partnership to solve critical and imminent problems slowing the modernization of U.S. energy infrastructure. The partnership will produce an integrated AI-based solution that accelerates generator interconnection (GI) by reducing study analysis times by 80% while also informing faster, higher-quality decision-making by GI customers. This will markedly improve SPP's ability to facilitate the addition of its 14-state region's generating capacity to keep pace with increasing demand for electricity. Article content U.S. energy demands are rising by 2 to 3 percent annually *1, driven by data center growth, expanding manufacturing, and electrification. Data centers alone are projected to consume up to 12 percent *2 of U.S. electricity by 2028, versus 4.4 percent in 2023. Such trends drive an alarming supply and demand gap as generating capacity margins in the SPP footprint could decline from 24 percent in 2020 to just 5 percent in 2029 unless an intervention occurs. Article content That intervention starts with end-to-end technical innovation, first at the point of generator interconnection. Currently, the U.S. generates 1.28 terawatts of power *3. More than twice that generated amount waits in a queue as unusable backlog caused by today's grid interconnect process. The long wait times are due to exhaustive, time-consuming analysis and simulation studies required to ensure that new energy source introductions don't compromise existing grid reliability, stability, or performance. Article content To address this gap, the three organizations will combine their industry and technical expertise. The partnership draws on multiple Hitachi competencies for a complete solution: Method's design services; GlobalLogic's software engineering services; Hitachi Energy's energy portfolio management asset modeling solutions; Hitachi R&D's AI-based energy grid algorithm; and Hitachi Vantara's integrated storage and compute platform Hitachi iQ, built on NVIDIA accelerated computing, networking, and AI software. Article content As the regional transmission organization (RTO) framing the project, SPP will guide the integration of these technical solutions and services, leveraging its deep expertise in energy grid optimization. As a reliability coordinator prioritizing operational and customer experience improvements, SPP's input will also ensure the project outcomes align with industry-wide requirements and regulations. 'Our nation's demand for electricity has risen sharply in recent years following a long period of slow growth. Our industry has struggled to keep up with this sudden and significant shift,' said SPP President and CEO Lanny Nickell. 'There are a lot of would-be power producers out there waiting to connect to the grid, but yesterday's systems and technology haven't been sufficient to enable us to bring incremental capacity online fast enough. It's time to fix that, and SPP is proud to work with Hitachi and NVIDIA, two AI industry leaders who have the means to help realize a vision of a better energy future for our nation.' Article content The integrated solution is an industrial AI system differentiated by its advanced proprietary AI algorithms and high performance enabled by Hitachi iQ's enterprise AI solution stack which sit at its core. Ultimately, dynamic AI-driven technologies will be applied to various study areas, such as: Article content The partnership with Hitachi and NVIDIA runs parallel to other improvements underway at SPP, including a from-the-ground-up reimagining of its transmission planning processes to align them with current and future industry needs. Together, these technological and process innovations are expected to set high-water marks in the electricity industry for generator interconnection, mid- and long-term planning, long-term forecast accuracy, analysis and deployment of additional grid-enhancing technologies, and more. Article content 'This initiative is about reimagining the electricity production and distribution process through the lens of modern AI technology,' said Frank Antonysamy, Chief Growth Officer, Hitachi Digital. 'Real-time data access is needed to create truly realistic scenarios caused by new generator introductions. The AI solution we're all developing will provide that data, among other advantages. SPP can then make significantly quicker, better-informed decisions that will increase overall ROI while better serving the nation's population with accessible power. We're proud to be a part of this important three-way collaboration addressing such a crucial problem.' Article content 'Interconnection process acceleration is critical to meet the unprecedented demand on our grid,' said Marc Spieler, Senior Managing Director of the Global Energy Industry at NVIDIA. 'Using advanced NVIDIA accelerated computing and AI, Hitachi and SPP are helping speed interconnection studies to bring essential infrastructure online faster.' Article content The project's phase one milestones are expected to be completed by winter 2025/26. They include initial systems acceleration, data management processes optimization, and the introduction of AI-augmented simulation modeling among other goals. Article content *1: *2: *3: About SPP Southwest Power Pool, Inc. ( is a regional transmission organization: a not-for-profit corporation mandated by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to ensure reliable supplies of power, adequate transmission infrastructure and competitive wholesale electricity prices on behalf of its members in 14 states. SPP ensures electric reliability across a region spanning parts of the central and western U.S., provides energy services on a contract basis to customers in both the Eastern and Western Interconnections, and is expanding its RTO and developing a day-ahead energy market in the west. The company's headquarters are in Little Rock, Arkansas. Article content About Hitachi, Ltd. Article content Article content Article content Contacts Article content Media Contacts Article content Article content Heather Ailara Article content Article content PR Manager Article content Article content Hitachi Digital (NA and EU) Article content Article content +1-973-567-6040 Article content Article content heather@ Article content Article content
Bloomberg
7 days ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
UK Could Miss 2030 Clean Power Goal, Parliament Committee Warns
The UK's goal of a clean power grid by 2030 is in danger of slipping out of reach as planning delays and infrastructure bottlenecks challenge the government. The ambition requires 'building more energy generation and network infrastructure at a faster pace than Great Britain has managed in recent years,' according to a report from the House of Lords Industry and Regulators Committee published on Wednesday.
