Commentary: Electric Transmission Buildout Could Cost Americans Trillions of Dollars

Electric Grid

Though windmills and solar panels get the headlines, the big energy topic in Washington is electric transmission. Whether it is Congress’s newfound interest in permitting reform, the U.S. Department of Energy’s new Grid Deployment Office, or the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (FERC) upcoming final rule on transmission planning and cost allocation, how to build and pay for long-range transmission to connect generators to customers is considered the final piece in the quest to meet net-zero goals.   

Like so many issues in Washington, the need for more transmission lines is accepted without question and the costs are not considered. But for American consumers, especially low-income and elderly, as well as small businesses and energy intense manufacturers, building new transmission lines could result in much higher monthly bills and leave them on the hook for stranded assets.

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Commentary: Onsite Nuclear Provides 24/7 Clean Power

Most of us don’t think about the huge data centers that enable our constant internet usage. But they’re essential to our civilization—and they consume enormous amounts of electricity 24/7.

Powering these data centers is fast becoming a problem. Northern Virginia, for instance, hosts the largest concentration of data centers in the world. Tech giants like Amazon, Facebook, Microsoft, and Google have invested $126 billion in Virginia data centers. And the region’s insatiable appetite for power continues to grow due to surging demand for cloud computing services. 

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Poll: Plurality of Americans Believes We Are Heading for Next World War

As the war in Ukraine and tensions with China intensify, more Americans fear we’re on the brink of World War III, according to a new Convention of States Action poll. 

The survey of more than 1,000 U.S. voters, conducted Feb. 22-26 by The Trafalgar Group, finds more than 43 percent of respondents worry that Russia’s continued war and threats against other European nations, as well as China’s aggressive actions, have put the world on the precipice of another global conflict.

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Report: Text Messages Show Ohio Lieutenant Governor’s Involvement with FirstEnergy

Text messages between FirstEnergy Corp. executives indicate Ohio Lieutenant Governor John Husted (R) had discussions with company officials related to the scandal-plagued House Bill 6, according to a motion filed with the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio. 

In July 2019, Governor Mike DeWine (R) signed that measure into law, bailing out the FirstEnergy-operated Perry and Davis-Besse nuclear power plants to $1.3 billion. Federal attorneys have since accused numerous political bigwigs, including former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder, of partaking in a $61 million bribery scheme to enact the bill. The company has itself been smacked with a $230 million fine for its part in the scandal. 

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Commentary: The New Nuclear Arms Race

President Joe Biden and Personal Aide Stephen Goepfert walk through the Colonnade, Friday, August 6, 2021, on the way to the Oval Office of the White House. (Official White House Photo by Adam Schultz)

The Defense Department just released its annual report on China’s military power, and the report undermines those in the Biden administration who are promoting nuclear arms reductions with Russia and the adoption of a policy of “no first use” of nuclear weapons — a policy that is opposed by most of America’s allies.

The Pentagon’s report could not be clearer: “Over the next decade, the PRC aims to modernize, diversify, and expand its nuclear forces.” It is “expanding the number of its land-, sea-, and air-based nuclear delivery platforms and constructing the infrastructure necessary to support this major expansion of its nuclear forces.” This includes the construction of “fast breeder reactors and reprocessing facilities” that will enable China to “produce and separate plutonium.”

The report projects that the PRC will have up to 700 deliverable nuclear warheads by 2027, and perhaps 1,000 by 2030, significantly more than the Pentagon projected in last year’s report. China has what the report calls a “nascent ‘nuclear triad,’” with the capability to launch nuclear missiles from land, sea, and air platforms. It has expanded its silo-based force and moved to a “launch-on-warning” posture. Last year, the PLA “launched more than 250 ballistic missiles for testing and training,” a number greater then the rest of the world combined. It is growing its inventory of DF-26 intermediate range ballistic missiles (IRBMs) and intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), and those missiles are capable of launching multiple independent warheads — known as MIRV capabilities. The CCP has ordered the construction of “hundreds of new ICBM silos” and is “doubling the number of launchers in some ICBM units.” China’s CSS-10 Mod 2 ICBM has a range of 11,000 kilometers, which makes it capable or reaching most targets within the continental United States. China is also investing in space and counterspace capabilities, including kinetic-kill missiles, orbiting space robots, and ground-based lasers.

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Ohio House Speaker Defends Nuclear Bailout as Key to Saving Jobs, Avoiding Energy Dependency

  In the days before it passed in the Ohio House, Speaker Larry Householder argued that state aid for the nuclear industry was appropriate because it produces the bulk of the state’s clean energy. Householder, R-Glenford, appeared on the TV program “The State of Ohio” and went on the attack when the discussion focused on House Bill 6, which is designed to preserve the state’s two nuclear power plants and their 700 jobs. While the legislation has been derided by critics as a bailout bill for bankrupt First Energy, which owns the Davis-Besse and Perry nuclear plants, Householder argued that the plants produce 90 percent of the state’s clean energy. “We cannot walk away from that,” he said. Householder’s interview was taped prior to House Republicans stripping provisions that would bolster efforts to generate wind and solar energy in the state. The current version of the bill would add a surcharge to consumer’s power bill that would benefit First Energy and Ohio Valley Electric Corp. Ohio law requires the state to get an eighth of its energy from clean, renewable sources by 2027. Since that law was passed 11 years ago, Householder said only 3 percent of Ohio’s current energy…

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Ohio House Approves Controversial Nuclear Bailout Bill

by Todd DeFeo   The Ohio House approved a controversial bill that proponents say will preserve carbon-free energy production and that opponents say is a bailout of the nuclear industry in the state. If it becomes law, House Bill 6 would create a new Ohio Clean Air Program to subsidize power plants fueled by nuclear and solar power. Beginning January 1, 2020, consumers would fund the program through a dedicated monthly charge – including 50 cents per month in 2020 and $1 per month in 2021 through 2026 for residential customers. The move comes after Akron-based FirstEnergy Solutions announced its intentions to close Davis-Besse Nuclear Power Station in Oak Harbor near Toledo and Perry Nuclear Power Plant in Perry. The company filed for bankruptcy in March 2018. “I know this issue is difficult because there are so many Ohioans affected and so many parties interested in the outcome,” Gov. Mike DeWine said in a statement following the voted 53-43 vote Wednesday in favor of the bailout. “As I have previously stated, Ohio needs to maintain carbon-free nuclear energy generation as part of our energy portfolio. In addition, these energy jobs are vital to Ohio’s economy. I look forward to this…

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Consumers Would Pay More Under Ohio Nuclear, Coal Bailout

by Tyler Arnold   Legislation that would bail out nuclear and coal power companies passed the House Energy and Natural Resources Committee Thursday. To pay for the bailout, consumers would be charged an extra one dollar every month on their utility bills for the next six years. The fee is expected to raise about $200 million, most of which will go toward the plants. The bill, which is called the Ohio Clean Air Program, left out wind and solar plants, which caused controversy among Democrats and environmental groups. The bailout also received criticism from residents testifying against the legislation in the committee hearing, and some complained that the name is misleading. FirstEnergy Solutions would receive the bulk of the aid for its two nuclear powerplants: the Perry Powerplant in North Perry and the Davis-Besse power plant in Ottowa County. The Perry Powerplant employees about 700 people and the Davis-Besse powerplant employes about 650 people. Ohio Valley Electric, a coal company, would also receive funding under the bill. If utilities sell electricity at a rate lower than production costs, they would be able to charge consumers the extra cost, but if they charge higher than the cost of production, the consumers…

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DeWine Supports Bailout of Ohio’s Nuclear Power Plants

  Gov. Mike DeWine expressed support for saving Ohio’s two nuclear power plants that are expected to close if they don’t receive legislative relief. As The Ohio Star previously reported, lawmakers introduced a bill in early April that would effectively save Ohio’s only two nuclear plants. FirstEnergy Solutions, a subsidiary of FirstEnergy, announced in February that it would be closing its two Ohio-based plants, as well as a third in Shippingport, Pennsylvania, which employs a substantial number of Ohioans. A bankruptcy judge, however, rejected the company’s plan to shut down its plants, and so lawmakers are stepping in. Under House Bill 6, the state would subsidize the plant with taxpayer dollars through a new “Ohio Clean Air Program.” As reported: These funds would be passed to the energy company under the newly created ‘Ohio Clean Air Program.’ Funding would come from a $2.50 surcharge for every residential electric consumer in the state, and an additional $20 for all commercial customers, and a further $250 from industrial customers. In total, $300 million would be raised with $180 million going directly to FirstEnergy Solutions. According to The Columbus Dispatch, DeWine supports the plan, though he didn’t directly comment on House Bill 6.…

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Two Ohio-Based Nuclear Power Plants Will Receive Bailouts Under Legislators’ New Plan

Ohio legislators revealed Monday their latest plan to save Ohio’s only two nuclear power plants from bankruptcy. As previously reported, FirstEnergy Solutions, a subsidiary of FirstEnergy that manages several power stations across the Midwest, announced that it was closing all three of the nuclear plants it owns and operates throughout the region. Two of these plants are located in Ohio, with the third in Shippingport, Pennsylvania. Due to its close proximity to the Ohio border, many of the Pennsylvania plant’s employees hail from the Buckeye State, meaning that the overwhelming majority of the 2,300 employees set to be laid off from all three plants would be native Ohioans. The organization’s subsequent moves sparked national outrage and condemnation from Democrats, Republicans, and environmental groups: Energy companies like FirstEnergy and its subsidiaries are required to keep enough money in reserve to cover the cost of environmental cleanup should it be necessary. When FES filed for bankruptcy, FirstEnergy, the parent company, immediately began filing extensions with the federal government to discuss these requirements. Simultaneously, they met with private creditors to ensure all personal debts were either paid, nullified, or managed. When this was completed, FirstEnergy then decided to “spin-off” FES and act as if they were a wholly independent…

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National Energy Company, FirstEnergy, is Attempting to Stick Ohioans with Billion Dollar Cleanup Bill

Ohio Taxpayers could be stuck with a $1 billion nuclear cleanup bill if one national energy company has its way. The U.S Department of Justice, along with the “U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the Office of the Ohio Attorney General, acting on behalf of the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency and the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, and the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection,” are all jointly fighting to make sure that doesn’t happen. FirstEnergy, one of the nation’s largest investor-owned utilities, maintains the subsidiary; FirstEnergy Solutions (FES). That subsidiary actively managed three nuclear power plants, three coal plants, two natural gas plants, and three wind plants. A majority of these plants are based on Ohio with nuclear plants in Oak Harbor and Perry, a gas plant on Lorain, and a wind plant in Blue Creek. While only one of the coal plants is located in Ohio, in Stratton, the other two rest just outside Ohio’s borders in West Virginia and Pennsylvania. As a result, they too employ many Ohioans. In March, FES announced that all three nuclear power plants would be shuttered within the next five years, laying off 2,300 workers. After attempting, and failing,…

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Once a Stable and High-Paying Career, Workers at Nuclear Plants Now Fear for Their Jobs

by Jason Hopkins   Nuclear plant engineers are highly trained professionals with high-paying salaries, but the beleaguered nuclear industry is putting their jobs at risk all across the country. The country’s nuclear fleet is suffering under a grim market. Competing against cheap natural gas and subsidy-backed renewables, many nuclear facilities — weighed down by archaic regulations — have been rendered unprofitable. Six nuclear plants have closed since 2013. The future does not look much brighter, with nine other plants expected to shut down by 2025. “The thought of it really stresses me out,” Christine DeSantis said to The Wall Street Journal in a report published Friday. “Who knows what’s going to happen to nuclear power in the next couple of years.” DeSantis is a mechanical engineer working at the Three Mile Island Nuclear Generating Station located in southern Pennsylvania. A nuclear mechanical engineer’s average salary is over $85,000, according to PayScale, with the top 90 percent of earners raking in over $130,000. The plant — which has been in operation since the 1970s — is slated to close in 2019, taking with it hundreds of well-paying jobs and $1 million in annual taxes. “The value of these jobs is that…

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North Korea Nuclear Talks – Approach With Caution, Analysts Say

North Korea’s agreement to enter into talks with the United States could be a diplomatic breakthrough to reach a peaceful resolution to the nuclear crisis, or a ruse to weaken sanctions, or both. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s willingness to engage with the United States in negotiations to end his country’s nuclear weapons program, and his promise to suspend nuclear and missile tests while talks are under way, was reported on Tuesday by Chung Eui-yong, the head of South Korea’s National Security Office, following his meeting with Kim in Pyongyang.

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