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Keyword: calpowercrisis

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  • Palo Alto looks to require electric vehicle circuitry in new homes

    09/28/2013 10:11:23 AM PDT · by ProtectOurFreedom · 45 replies
    San Jose Mercury News ^ | 9/28/13 | Jason Green
    Hoping to play a bigger role in the electric vehicle revolution, the Palo Alto City Council embraced a proposal Monday night that would require new homes to come pre-wired for chargers. Council members were unanimous in their support for the building code change, which was floated in a colleagues' memo by Mayor Greg Scharff, Vice Mayor Nancy Shepherd and Council Member Gail Price. The city council also backed related proposals to streamline the process for obtaining a permit for a charger as well as develop strategies to further encourage electric vehicle use in Palo Alto. "Let's figure out as a...
  • Did Obama endorse rolling blackouts? ( Remember Gray Davis...Gov of California...Yikes!)

    08/05/2008 3:49:43 PM PDT · by Ernest_at_the_Beach · 9 replies · 208+ views
    Hot Air ^ | August 5, 2008 1:30 pm | Ed Morrissey
    Barack Obama repeated his call for a 15% reduction in electrical demand in Youngstown, Ohio, and held California up as a model for the rest of the nation to follow. Claiming that the Golden State made great strides towards efficiency, Obama apparently forgot the travails California went through: Finally, I will call on businesses, government, and the American people to meet the goal of reducing our demand for electricity 15% by the end of the next decade. This is by far the fastest, easiest, and cheapest way to reduce our energy consumption – and it will save us $130 billion...
  • California grid urges conservation amid heat and fires

    07/07/2008 8:02:53 PM PDT · by Brilliant · 25 replies · 194+ views
    Reuters ^ | 7/7/08 | Bernie Woodall
    With fires still causing concern among California power grid operators, this week brings high heat that may lead to near-record electricity demand throughout the state, the grid manager said on Monday. The California Independent System Operator asked consumers to curb their power use in the peak 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. period Tuesday through Thursday as the grid nears capacity. The Cal ISO manages lines owned by the three big investor-owned utilities that handle 80 percent of the state's power flow. "This is going to be the first significant heat wave of the summer," said Cal ISO spokeswoman Stephanie McCorkle....
  • Howard Kaloogian: Now we know who created Calif. energy crisis

    07/05/2008 1:36:43 PM PDT · by calcowgirl · 13 replies · 244+ views
    The Providence Journal ^ | July 3, 2008 | Howard Kaloogian
    Howard Kaloogian is a lawyer and a former member of the California State Assembly. GITMO AND GUNS are getting all the press. But energy mavens are talking about another recent far-reaching — but little noted — U.S. Supreme Court decision on the California energy crisis: It took them seven years but they finally figured it out. The revisionist part of the story is well known: Big bad oil traders like Enron gamed the market and drove up energy costs fifteen-fold. The blackouts, insolvent utilities and economic chaos are remembered as the worst energy crisis in American history. But the Supreme...
  • CA: Obscure veto threatens $3 billion loss to state from power settlements (EOB veto boo-boo?)

    06/12/2008 2:34:39 PM PDT · by NormsRevenge · 3 replies · 151+ views
    Capitol Weekly ^ | 6/12/08 | John Howard
    When Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger used his veto power to eliminate the obscure Electricity Oversight Board, he put at risk $3 billion in state funds – money due the state from settlements with power merchants who victimized California during the electricity crisis. The governor’s 2007 action removing the EOB also means oversight over the state’s electricity grid is likely to be placed under the control of the PUC, which would entail a significant expansion of the authority of the Public Utilities Commission. This maneuvering comes amid an intensifying power clash between the Legislature and the Public Utilities Commission, led by president...
  • How Media and Attorney General Demonized Power Companies During 2001 California Energy Crisis

    12/31/2006 11:30:58 AM PST · by WayneLusvardi · 11 replies · 597+ views
    The Pasadena Pundit ^ | December 31, 2006 | Wayne Lusvardi
    How Media and Attorney General Demonized Power Companies During 2001 California Energy Crisis The Pasadena Pundit Below is an excerpt from "Can Electricity Restructuring Survive? Lessons from California and Pennsylvania" in Electric Choices: Deregulation and the Future of Electric Power (2006) by Andrew N. Kleit. (At the peak of the California Energy Crisis)"...on January 17, 2001, Duke Power offered to operate an inefficient and polluting (fossil fuel) generator for $3,880 per megawatt hour with most of the proposed fee representing a 'credit premium,' because it estimated that there was only a 20% chance that it would ever get paid. The...
  • Brush Fire Near Gorman [CA] Threatens Power Plant

    08/13/2006 2:35:08 PM PDT · by BenLurkin · 15 replies · 1,380+ views
    KCAL9/CBS2 ^ | Aug 13, 2006 2:21 pm US/Pacific
    CBS) GORMAN, Calif. Firefighters battled a two alarm brush fire in Gorman whose flames were threatening a nearby power plant. "There is a power plant that is less that 200 yards from the fire. It's (the fire) going in that direction now," said Los Angeles County Fire Department Inspector Stan Padilla. Fire personnel were dispatched at 12:34 p.m. to the scene off the northbound Golden State (5) Freeway near Lancaster (138) Road at Quail Lake. No injuries were reported and the approximate number of acres burned was not immediately known.
  • CA: Appeals court orders feds to revisit energy-market manipulation (9th Circus)

    08/02/2006 12:31:16 PM PDT · by NormsRevenge · 6 replies · 451+ views
    AP on Bakersfield Californian ^ | 8/2/06 | David Kravets - ap
    A federal appeals court ordered energy regulators Wednesday to consider ordering stiffer penalties for power companies that manipulated the market and caused blackouts during the 2000-2001 energy crisis. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's 2003 handling of some of the fallout from California's energy crisis was "arbitrary, capricious and an abuse of discretion." The state has sought reimbursement for an estimated $8 billion to $10 billion paid by consumers and businesses for overpriced power. FERC ordered energy companies, including several subsidiaries of bankrupt Enron Corp., to pay about $3 billion for market manipulation....
  • California's record power demand shocks energy officials - DWP

    07/28/2006 9:12:42 AM PDT · by NormsRevenge · 66 replies · 1,345+ views
    A record-setting thirst for power during the heat wave that has scorched the state this month caught Department of Water and Power officials by surprise, the Los Angeles Times reported Friday. Before this week, the utility's highest peak energy use was recorded at 5,661 megawatts. A stretch of 100-plus temperatures this week, however, created a demand that set a new all-time high of 6,165 megawatts - shocking DWP officials who predicted power usage wouldn't top 6,100 megawatts for four years. "They didn't even believe our customers could ever put such a load on our system - that we could even...
  • {West Coast} Power company asks public to chill out on energy use

    07/27/2006 12:17:17 PM PDT · by thackney · 9 replies · 413+ views
    The News-Review ^ | July 27, 2006 | The News-Review
    The demand for electricity has gone up right along with the temperature outside. As a result, Pacific Power is encouraging customers to reduce electricity consumption. Power companies, responding to widespread heat along the West Coast, are facing short electricity supplies and transmission constraints. Further action might be needed at some point, according to a Pacific Power release, to reduce pressure on the regional power grid. The public will be notified if such actions are necessary. In the meantime, Pacific Power, which has nearly 43,000 customers in Douglas County, recommends a number of ways to reduce energy consumption in homes and...
  • CA: Power plant construction lags projected 2008 need

    07/26/2006 10:26:11 AM PDT · by NormsRevenge · 12 replies · 519+ views
    Mercury News ^ | 7/26/06 | Sarah Jane Tribble
    California has approved 18 power plants to be built in the next few years, but only two are under construction and will cover only half of the expected growth in peak energy demand state officials are predicting by 2008. Five years after the state's power crisis, anxiety over insufficient supply stems from a more cautious power market in which generators want to be sure they can sell the energy they produce before spending billions on new plants. Energy experts warned that the record-setting heat wave alone should not spur a power plant boom. The two plants being built will add...
  • Heat Stretches California Power Network to the Limit(25k without power in City of LA)

    07/25/2006 3:07:37 PM PDT · by BurbankKarl · 11 replies · 486+ views
    LA Times ^ | 7/25/06 | By Sharon Bernstein, Patrick McGreevy and Marc Lifsher, Times Staff Writers
    Southern California was struck with a new round of power outages Monday as demand for electricity stretched the state's supply and the aging system of local lines and transformers continued to fail in the face of a record heat wave. The demand for electricity was so great that California's power regulators asked some businesses to cut back their power usage. The state narrowly avoiding rolling blackouts as temperatures moderated slightly — a cooling trend expected to continue today. Officials were more immediately concerned about the nearly 1,000 transformers atop power poles and in underground vaults that have been overwhelmed in...
  • CA: Little risk to Schwarzenegger of blackouts, thanks to Gray Davis

    07/21/2006 8:15:49 PM PDT · by NormsRevenge · 32 replies · 1,265+ views
    ap on Riverside Press Enterprise ^ | 7/21/06 | Laura Kurtzman - ap
    SACRAMENTO Despite a midsummer heat wave that has pushed energy use to an all-time high this week, experts say Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger probably does not have to fear the blackouts that ended former Gov. Gray Davis' political career. And he has Davis to thank for that. The long-term contracts Davis signed, at great political cost, guarantee plentiful energy for the next few years at what now look like good rates. "In an interesting twist of fate, he's benefiting from the decisions that his predecessor suffered for," said Frank Wolak, a Stanford economist who specializes in energy. "The terrible contracts" Davis...
  • CA: Don't forget: Politicians share blame with Lay for energy debacle

    07/07/2006 9:40:23 AM PDT · by NormsRevenge · 18 replies · 969+ views
    Sac Bee ^ | 7/7/06 | Dan Walters
    The purveyors of revisionist political history are back at work this week, inspired by the death of Enron Corp. founder -- and convicted felon -- Kenneth Lay to revive the myth that were it not for Enron and Lay, California wouldn't have experienced its 2001 energy crisis. ... --snip-- Attorney General Bill Lockyer had the good manners to remain silent about Lay's death from heart disease three months before he was to be sentenced for lying to mask the failing company's condition. It was Lockyer who in 2001 told an interviewer that "I would love to personally escort Lay to...
  • SWITCHED OFF

    01/17/2006 6:37:04 PM PST · by SmithL · 11 replies · 716+ views
    San Francisco Chronicle ^ | 1/17/6 | David R. Baker
    The order came late in the morning on Jan. 17, 2001. Faced with shrinking electricity reserves, California officials at 11:40 a.m. ordered the first statewide rolling blackouts of the energy crisis. Blocks of homes and businesses throughout Northern California suddenly lost power. Lights died, elevators stopped in their tracks, computer screens went black. The crisis had been building for months. But on this day five years ago, the full scope of the disaster finally became clear. By the day's end, Gov. Gray Davis had declared a state of emergency and ordered the state Department of Water Resources to start buying...
  • CALPINE FILES FOR BANKRUPCTY (HOUSTON CHRONICLE PERSPECTIVE)

    12/21/2005 6:21:25 AM PST · by MeneMeneTekelUpharsin · 13 replies · 703+ views
    The Houston Chronicle ^ | 21 December 2005 | TOM BECKER and JIM POLSON
    Calpine Corp., the power plant owner saddled with more than $17 billion in debt, filed for bankruptcy protection Tuesday after soaring natural gas prices left it unable to make loan and bond payments. The filing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in New York followed the ouster of top executives after they lost a fight with bondholders over using asset sale proceeds for plant fuel. "I would expect bondholders to receive about par following an abbreviated bankruptcy," Jon Kyle Cartwright, director of research for BOSC in Clearwater, Fla., said in an interview Tuesday before the filing. "I would expect them to be...
  • California Transmission Emergency

    12/21/2005 12:55:41 PM PST · by Robert357 · 28 replies · 1,482+ views
    Cal ISO website & Oasis site ^ | 12/21/05 | California Independent Syst Operator
    The California ISO hereby issues a Southern CA Region TRANSMISSION EMERGENCY Notice for loss of a major transmission line within the Southern |portion of the CAISO Control Area effective 12/21/2005 11:36 through 12/21/2005 23:59 based on conditions as of 12/21/2005 11:41. Reason: Major transmission line forced out of service. Monitor system conditions on the California ISO Website at www.caiso.com and check with local electric utilities for additional information. This message was sent by Market Operations at the California ISO.
  • CA: Calpine's Troubles Rooted in Power Crisis

    12/19/2005 11:20:13 AM PST · by calcowgirl · 22 replies · 687+ views
    LA Times ^ | December 19, 2005 | Michael Hiltzik
    Californians are known to love a good, gory accident scene, but for those of us who like our violent smashups to be more metaphorical than real, the 2000-01 electrical power crisis is the gift that keeps on giving. The latest near-corpse about which the paramedics are hovering is Calpine Corp. At this writing, the San Jose power company is wheezing toward an expected bankruptcy filing in January, possibly followed by extinction. On Nov. 29 its founder and chief executive, Peter Cartwright, and its chief financial officer, Robert Kelly, were dismissed by the board of directors. Because they were leaders of...
  • Twelve plaintiffs reach settlement with SRE in class-action lawsuit. (Sempra Energy Co.)

    10/31/2005 10:00:03 AM PST · by granite · 392+ views
    Roger Ziemer at Southern California Gas Company. | Sun Oct 30 11:08:50 2005 | Steve Baum
    We want to provide you with an update from our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Steve Baum, on the class-action lawsuit that began last week. Our employees have been made aware of this settlement as well. Yesterday (Saturday, Oct. 29, 2005), we released a media statement to alert the public that Los Angeles County and 11 other plaintiffs in the class-action, anti-trust lawsuit against Sempra Energy, Southern California Gas Company and San Diego Gas & Electric agreed to settle for an undisclosed amount. As you know, trial began last week on the lawsuit which stems from the energy crisis of...
  • Another California energy crisis looms, draft report warns

    09/16/2005 9:59:01 PM PDT · by NormsRevenge · 47 replies · 974+ views
    ap on San Diego Union Tribune ^ | 9/16/05 | Don Thompson - ap
    SACRAMENTO – Four years after electricity prices soared and blackouts rolled across California, the state is in danger of another energy crisis – this one involving gasoline and natural gas as well, said a draft report Friday. The state is a captive of its own geographic and regulatory isolation, separated by miles and mountains from many refineries and fossil fuel sources. Moreover, the state sets stricter fuel standards to trim air pollution, driving up prices and limiting availability as is evident in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, said the California Energy Commission. "California's way of life is threatened by its...