February 08, 2010

The strains to our transmission system have been evident for some time.

"The U.S. transmission system is under tremendous strain and only marginally stable," Wayne Brunetti, the former chief executive officer of Xcel Energy, observed in 2002. "It was designed as a regional system and has been forced to function as a national system, a function for which it was not designed and does not handle very well."

February 05, 2010

American energy policy is a bit stop and go. While it's now centered on going green, the signals coming from Washington are always yellow and continually making participants hesitant to commit to long-term projects.

Relatively inexpensive hydrocarbons have fueled this country for decades. But spiraling prices along with concerns over air quality and dependence on foreign governments have forced policymakers to rethink this situation. That is what has propelled the renewable energy movement forward -- a condition that has led to the development of better and cheaper technologies, permitting those sustainable fuels a foothold in markets.

Below are a few letters received at EnergyBiz Insider on topics that appeared in the past few weeks. They capture the essence of how many readers say they feel.
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February 03, 2010

Renewable energy is making a gradual presence in this country. But the key question facing U.S. lawmakers is whether to mandate broad portfolio standards or whether to continue giving the states the authority to determine such measures.

The greening of America has a permanent place in the mindset of most citizens. And policymakers are keenly aware of this sentiment despite some concerns over rising costs and the creation of unrealistic goals. Through cooperative efforts that have involved all participants, state officials were first to require a certain percentage of utility portfolios to come from green fuels. Now, though, federal lawmakers are considering the same.

Marc Gunther: This is Marc Gunther for GreenBiz.com. I'm here today with Dan Yates. Dan is the founder and CEO of OPower. OPower is a company that helps people conserve energy, and we'll talk about that in a moment, but first a little about Dan. He's just 32, but he previously started and sold an educational software company, then spent about a year traveling with his girlfriend, now his wife, from the Arctic Circle in Alaska to the tip of South America. It was that adventure that led Dan to start OPower. Dan, first tell us why you started the company, and then please describe OPower. Tell us what you do.

Dan Yates: Thanks, Marc. Yeah. I started with my good friend and co-founder Alex Lasky, who is president of OPower. We started it very specifically to have a large scaled impact on emissions. I, in light of my background in information services, having started up a previous internet start-up, and Alex, with his background in politics and policy, surveyed the landscape looking at a bunch of different opportunities.