So far, the 2013-2014 winter has been exceptionally cold across the eastern half of the U.S. Arctic outbreaks and the bitter cold winds from the Polar Vortex have spilled across major natural gas consuming regions. Massive draws from inventory have been needed to meet surging demand for heating from the residential, commercial and electric power sectors. This season has been characterized by withdrawals that have been much larger than average.
Topics: Heating Season\, Polar Vortex, energy risk management, energy sourcing, Acclaim Energy Advisors, energy management consulting, risk management, energy, energy procurement, demand response, energy regulations, energy reliability, energy costs, power generation, Weekly Energy Insights, natural gas, energy management, energy management consultants, energy price spikes, Price Spike, energy blog, Natural Gas Supply, energy supply, U.S. energy, capacity markets, refueling season
Platts recently reported that the 58 U.S. nuclear power plants totaling almost 60,000MW are expected to refuel in 2014, compared to 54 units totaling over 55,000MW in 2013. The analysis is based on historical refueling data from the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Topics: energy risk management, Acclaim Energy Advisors, energy management consulting, energy procurement, reliable energy, energy regulations, energy reliability, energy costs, power generation, Weekly Energy Insights, energy management, energy price spikes, Price Spike, power outages, U.S. energy, capacity markets, nuclear units, power plants, refueling season
During the hot summer months in Texas, participants in the energy markets, including the independent system operator known as the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), turn their attention to making sure that there is sufficient generation available to meet power demand. While ERCOT is unlikely to have significant reliability challenges during the balance of 2013’s summer, there are concerns about whether this will hold true in the future. In order to address these concerns, some market participants, such as NRG, have argued that Texas should consider implementation of a capacity market, and preferably one similar to the capacity market in the Mid-Atlantic region of the country.
Topics: ERCOT, energy sourcing, PJM, energy management consultants, capacity markets
