Wood Mackenzie

30Oct

Inheriting an Electricity Affordability Crisis

In March of this year, federal data revealed the rise in electricity prices was far outpacing general inflation. With electricity demand beginning to soar from electrification, and most notably the data center and AI revolution, that trend is only poised to accelerate. According to new analysis from a leading energy consultancy, utilities are now facing […]
23Oct

The Numbers Aren’t Adding Up

At the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s annual Reliability Technical Conference on Oct. 16, the nation’s top grid reliability expert sounded like a doctor delivering grim news. Despite the many warnings, despite countless reports and congressional testimony, the reliability of the nation’s grid is going from bad to worse. North American Electric Reliability Corp. (NERC) CEO Jim Robb […]
19May

Here Come the Blackouts

We now know that the rolling blackouts that gripped California last summer weren’t an anomaly. They were, in fact, a preview of a reliability crisis that has grown to stretch across the Western grid. The Western Electricity Coordinating Council (WECC) is warning that the West simply doesn’t have enough power supply to meet a region-wide […]
10Nov

Stumbling Over Transmission

The cost of wind and solar power may be falling but building the transmission infrastructure to send power across the country – perhaps the key piece of the renewable puzzle – has only gotten more difficult and more expensive. A reality now playing out in both the U.S. and Europe. Germany’s attempt to pivot to […]
19Aug

When Warnings Become Blackouts

This was not part of the plan. In fact, some might wonder if there was a plan. In the midst of a heatwave, California can’t keep the power on. To ensure the grid for the entire Western U.S. doesn’t collapse, California’s grid operator has been forced to cutoff power for millions of people for hours […]
24Jun

Coal Remains the World’s Leading Fuel for Electricity Generation

The world needs U.S. coal technology leadership more than ever. And if the U.S. is indeed concerned with tackling the global emissions challenge, coal technology can’t be an afterthought in the climate equation, it needs to be a centerpiece of the effort. The 2020 BP Statistical Review of World Energy highlights a trend that is […]
13Nov

No Solution at All

Questions continue to arise about the cost and technical feasibility of moving to an emissions-free grid by 2050. Or, in the case of the Green New Dealers, making that jump even sooner. At a recent hearing on the subject, House Energy & Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-N.J.) said, “a solution that is unaffordable […]
07Aug

When Down is Up

The reduction in the price of electricity from solar and wind power over the last decade has made for a fantastic story. But it’s hiding a more complex and troubling truth. While the price of generating power from renewables has fallen, the cost, or burden, of integrating these intermittent sources of power onto the grid […]
10Jul

No Way in Hell

The North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) analyzes the reliability of our electricity supply. NERC’s reports and statements are consistently measured, typically packing all the flair and excitement of a buttoned-down white dress shirt. So, it’s with good reason that eyebrows were raised when NERC’s CEO, Jim Robb, recently told the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission […]