Energy User News articles from April 2003

Energy User News archives from April 2003

Gas crisis talk rattles confidence in nation's economy.(natural gas prices soar)
April 1, 2003... Recent soaring natural gas prices, influenced in part by colder than expected weather and dwindling storage inventories, along with the memory of similar wholesale price spikes in the winter of 2000-2001, have sparked a flurry of talk about a...

Much of failed energy bill resurrected by new congress.(Rep. Joe Barton introduces new legislation for national energy policy)
April 1, 2003... WASHINGTON, DC -- Although Congress failed to pass substantive energy legislation during its last session, Rep. Joe Barton (RTX) has introduced new legislation this term to put in place a national energy policy this year. The draft...

EUNLoad Profile.(Energy User News; commercial building energy consumption)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... EUNLOAD PROFILE Commercial Building Energy End-Use Lighting 24% Space Heating 15% Space Cooling 12% Water Heating 7% Office Equipment 6% Computers 3% Ventilation 5%...

Novar plc. (EUN Ticker).(to acquire assets of Alerton Technologies Inc., name to be changed to Alerton Inc.)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Novar plc of the United Kingdom will acquire the assets of Alerton Technologies, Inc., of Redmond, WA. Alerton is a designer and manufacturer of building automation and control systems for heating, ventilation, and air conditioning...

ISO New England Inc. (EUN Ticker).(re-designed wholesale power market system)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... ISO New England Inc., operator of the region's bulk power system and wholesale power exchange, announced that New England's re-designed wholesale power-market opened for business March 1, replacing the current market system with a new method...

U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) has again introduced legislation to promote wind energy. (EUN Ticker).(Bipartisan Renewable, Efficient Energy with Zero Effluent (BREEZE) Act,)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... U.S. Sen. Chuck Gassley (R-IA) has again introduced legislation to promote wind energy. The bill, called the Bipartisan Renewable, Efficient Energy with Zero Effluent (BREEZE) Act, was introduced with 12 bipartisan co-sponsors. The measure...

Dyess Air Force Base. (EUN Ticker).(TXU Corp. renewable energy contract )(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Dyess Air force Base in Abilene, TX, has become the nation's largest single buyer of renewable energy through a. contract with TXU Corp., the Dallas-based utility says. Under the contract, TXU provides Dyess each year with about 78 million...

California Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) on February 24 said she will offer legislation to regulate private energy trading among big companies. (EUN Ticker).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... California Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) on February 24 said she will offer legislation to regulate private energy trading among big companies. The Senate bill would close a loophole that allows billions of dollars in energy derivatives...

Constellation Energy Group. (EUN Ticker).(CMS Energy Corp., CMS Marketing Services and Trade)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Constellation Energy Group has reached an agreement with CMS Energy Corp. to acquire substantially all of the customer load-serving contracts and supply portfolio of CMS subsidiary CMS Marketing, Services & Trading Co.

Sempra Energy. (EUN Ticker).(acquired liquefied natural gas receiving-terminal project from Dynegy Inc.)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Sempra Energy announced the acquisition of an LNG receiving-terminal project in Louisiana from Dynegy Inc. The $700 million acquisition, under Sempra Energy Global Enterprises, is part of Sempra's planned expansion into the liquefied natural...

CTN announces broadcast schedule. (News).
April 1, 2003... CTN, a subsidiary of Southern Gas Association (SGA), announced its 2003 schedule of natural gas and other energy-related distance learning events. Highlights of the 2003 program, include the April 29th broadcast of the general session...

Chicago Merc sees weather contract high. (News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... WASHINGTON, DC, and CHICAGO, IL -- Trading of weather-related futures and options contracts on Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. (CME) reached record levels in January, with a significant increase over the transactions level in January 2002,...

California names 60 energy firms in market manipulation report. (News).
April 1, 2003... SACREMENTO, CA -- California officials on March 3 continued their bid to get billions in energy refunds for alleged overcharges during the state's 2000-2001 energy crisis with yet another filing with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission...

EUN Calendar.(Calendar)
April 1, 2003... APRIL 23-25 BuilConn, the Adams Mark Hotel, Dallas, TX. Clasma, Inc. For more information: call: (972) 714-0500, email: info@clasma.com, visit: www.ciasma.com 30-May 2 EnviroDesign 7, Hilton Washington & Towers, Washington, DC, IS...

ASHRAE funds research to determine energy use. (News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... CHICAGO. IL--The use of simplified system models to reduce energy use in buildings has become common, but no general procedure exists that can be easily implemented by energy professionals, says the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating...

San Francisco working toward first community power aggregation plan. (News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... SACRAMENTO, CA--California Assembly Bill (AB 117), enacted Jan. 1, 2003, allows cities and counties to aggregate local electrical load and to supply power to the city and/or county electric consumers, and San Francisco's Local Agency...

Kinko's Inc. goes green. (News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Kinko's, Inc. on February 12 announced a series of agreements that increases its projected annual use of green power by 37% to approximately 11.2 million kilowatt-hours (kWh). Sixty-six Kinko's locations in California, Oregon, Pennsylvania,...

Letters.
April 1, 2003... The Color of Money Investment and energy strategies are questioned by readers Ken Betz's recent Green Matters (December) provoked a number of responses, mostly positive, encouraging EUN to continue its coverage of environmental...

Advanced meters make a difference: meters can improve energy service quality. (Critical Issues: Power Quality and Reliability).
April 1, 2003... New technology, especially silicon chips or computer power, has dramatically improved many products. Silicon substrates are slowly beginning to replace the rotating disc and jewel bearings of traditional residential electric meters, creating...

The next big thing? dot-com refugees eye alternative energy market. (Green Matters: Environmental Policies).(Editorial)
April 1, 2003... Don't look now, but the "next big thing" may be just over the horizon. That may be hard to believe be-cause we know that the next big thing is unlikely to emerge from traditional areas of the energy business, spooked as they are by the Enron...

Keeping up isn't easy: conferences serve an important purpose. (Editorial).(Editorial)
April 1, 2003... Not very long ago, I went to sleep believing that natural gas had closed at around $6.70/mmbtu or slightly higher on the NYMEX exchange, which was reasonable since trading had closed at that already high level just the day before. When I woke...

Energy-efficient programs evolve at utility and state level: rebates aren't dead.
April 1, 2003... The wholesale adoption of maximum energy-efficiency measures would save an estimated $1/square foot ([ft.sup.2]) ($0.50/[ft.sup.2] for lighting efficiency alone)--which translates, based on building statistics compiled by the U.S. Department...

Watt's the word on T8 retrofits? A T8 retrofit is not the final word.
April 1, 2003... Many people may be surprised to learn luminaires that already have common T8 lamps and generic electronic ballasts can be retrofitted cost effectively. End users may find that a retrofit/relighting project would be more cost effective than a...

Technovar pump controller. (Power and Reliability Products).
April 1, 2003... Pump controller for HVAC, water supply, irrigation, pressure boosting, and similar applications is a variable frequency drive with integral micro-processor controller that mounts directly on the motor. The controller adjusts power consumption...

Power-Flex 700 ac drive. (Power and Reliability Products).
April 1, 2003... AC drive offers precise speed and torque regulation in a package that is roughly 50% more compact than similar drives, the manufacturer says. The drive provides motor speed regulation of 0.001% over a wide operating speed range along with the...

WEG Stock Productts Catalog. (Power and Reliability Products).
April 1, 2003... Motors, drives, and controls catalog contains information on UL recognized and certified products, including: NEMA Premium Efficient motors from 1-500 hp in totally enclosed fan-cooled and open drip-proof designs; severe duty motors; food...

DJ Series batteries. (Power and Reliability Products).
April 1, 2003... Battery series features compact design, longer life, and improved capacity, manufacturer says. The batteries utilize the company's epoxy post seal design and feature a narrow jar design for a compact footprint for up to 40% savings in rack...

Monitoring and control service. (Power and Reliability Products).
April 1, 2003... Web-enabled monitoring and control service integrates operation of distributed generation systems with energy management solutions to reduce an enterprise's overall energy costs and improve operational efficiency. The service provides energy...

City Multi VRFZ systems. (Power and Reliability Products).
April 1, 2003... Variable refrigerant flow zoning (VRFZ) system features inverter technology and simultaneous cooling and heating. The system allows building owners to provide individual spaces with their own personalized, zoned comfort system, while...

ATH4/ATV4 automatic transfer switch. (Power and Reliability Products).
April 1, 2003... Automatic transfer switch with logic control is available both open and closed designs for wall mount applications up to 1000 A in NEMA 1, 3R, and 12 enclosures. The new switches replace the solid-state ATHS/ATVS and Genswitch product...

SVR Series ac voltage regulators. (Power and Reliability Products).
April 1, 2003... AC voltage regulators utilize the manufacturer's patented regenerative on-line inverter technology. They are available in 1, 1.8, 2, 2.4, and 3-kVA rack-mount models and are UL listed. Output voltage regulation is [+ or -]2%, frequency [+ or...

CriticaLink UPS system. (Power and Reliability Products).
April 1, 2003... Uninterruptible power system (UPS) offers power protection for sensitive, mission-critical applications in 2 to 4 ins, picking up the electrical load until it is possible to transfer it to the standby power system. The system only draws power...

STV25K series surge supressors. (Power and Reliability Products).
April 1, 2003... Surge protection devices (SPD) protect critical and sensitive equipment during extremely high-energy, short-duration transients The narrow-sized units are designed to handle damaging spikes of up to 25k amps at the dedicated equipment levels...

MicroTech II DDC system. (Power and Reliability Products).
April 1, 2003... Direct digital control (DDC) system for the company's applied rooftop systems features open, standard protocol selectability for easy integration into most building automation systems. By simply inserting a communications card, users can...

PowerWorks microturbines. (Power and Reliability Products).
April 1, 2003... Microturbine systems, 70 and 250 kW, can bum non-conventional and renewable fuels from sources such as landfills, wastewater treatment plants, biogas sources, oil refineries, and oil and gas fields. The 250kW unit is adapted directly from the...

Soy food producer offsets electricity with wind power. (News).
April 1, 2003... BOULDER, CO--White Wave, a major producer of soy-based foods, is now buying enough wind power credits to offset all the electricity used in its manufacturing and operations, according to a company press release. White Wave's purchase of 20...

NYS pushes generation, slashes metering funds. (News).
April 1, 2003... GUILDERLAND, NY--The New York Independent System Operator (NYISO) on February 23 forecast that New York City, Long Island, and the state as a whole should have adequate power supplies during the summer months of 2003. The NYISO forecast...

Confidence in deregulation falls. (News).
April 1, 2003... The results of a Cap Gemini Ernst & Young (CGEY) survey show mixed messages about the success of deregulation. In contrast to the very strong global endorsement CGEY found in 2001, overall, less than 30% of responses were more positive about...

Environmental groups sue EPA for weakening Clean Air Act. (News).
April 1, 2003... WASHINGTON, DC--The Bush administration's changes to the New Source Review provisions provision of the Clean Air Act are illegal and will dramatically increase air pollution, threatening the health of millions of Americans, according to a...

Fuel cell system installations proliferate in several states. (News).
April 1, 2003... The Long Island Power Authority (LIPA) announced on February 26 that it has installed a 5-kilowatt (kW) fuel cell system at a McDonald's restaurant, the first of 45 new fuel cell systems to be installed across Long Island this year. Although...

NREL highlights leading utility green power programs. (News).
April 1, 2003... GOLDEN, CO--The U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) on February 20 released its annual ranking of leading utility "green pricing" programs. More than 300 utilities in 32 states now offer these...

Climate-change research plan is good start, but improvements needed. (News).
April 1, 2003... WASHINGTON, DC -- While the federal government has taken a good first step toward better understanding and responding to climate change by drafting a strategic plan that contains new research initiatives, the plan lacks a clear guiding vision...

Financial derivatives grow rapidly in oil and gas markets. (News).
April 1, 2003... The daily average volume of energy-related futures contracts on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) grew from approximately 7340 in 1982 to 467,042 in the first half of 2002. Essentially all of these contracts involve natural gas and...

CHP plants generate growing interest. (News).(Calpine Corp.)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... WASHINGTON, DC--Combined heat and power projects are a growing trend, according to the Department of Energy's (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EREN). Two new combined heat and power (CHP) projects, in New York and New...

American Gas Association offers policy recommendations to Senate Committee. (News).
April 1, 2003... WASHINGNTON, DC -- The American Gas Association (AGA), testifying before a U. S. Senate Energy Committee hearing on gas supply and prices on February 25, urged Congress to "revaluate current restrictions on access to new sources of natural...

Chicago Climate Exchange names founding members. (News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... CHICAGO, IL--Leading U.S. and international companies and the City of Chicago announced January 16 that they would be the founding members of Chicago Climate Exchange (CCX), a voluntary cap-and-trade program for reducing and trading...

AIM Foundation gives Massachusetts electric restructuring positive report. (News).(Associated Industries of Massachusetts)
April 1, 2003... BOSTON, MA-A status report on the progress of electricity restructuring in Massachusetts gives positive marks for the plan's progress but says a need for more com petition. still exists in some sectors of the marketplace. The report,...

Distributed Energy market has softened, smaller Niche market remains promising. (News).
April 1, 2003... PALO ALTO, CA--Fewer industrial and commercial businesses express interest in adopting onsite electric generators this year, according to a study by Primen, a Boulder-based energy market intelligence company and a wholly-owned subsidiary of...

Lower cost system for cleaner coal combustion to be tested. (News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... FINNEY COUNTY, KS--A combination of high-tech combustion modifications and sophisticated control systems will be tested on a Kansas coal-fired power plant as part of the federal government's efforts to show how new technology can reduce air...

MA takes renewable energy funds. (News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... BOSTON, MA-Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney on March 5 approved taking $17 million from the state's renewable energy trust fund to help reduce the state's budget deficit, according to the Boston Globe. The governor pledged he would offset...

Marketplace: Statistics, Trends and Energy Data.(rates)
April 1, 2003... Marketplace Statistics, Trends and Energy Data Electricity Price Comparison Breakeven Rates ($/kWh) ...