TVA Adds 535 MW of Wind to Grid, CRS Report Says Congress Could Be Involved in Keystone, Gov O'Malley Pushes Renewables

Tennessee Valley Authority announed that it has added 535 MW of renewable wind power from four farms in Iowa, Illinois and Kansas to its power grid.  Currently TVA has a total of 542 wind turbines that could help generate more than 1,500 MW of clean and renewable energy. The total wind energy of TVA is 950 MW or over 3 million MWh per annum and it provides sufficient electricity to power over 200,000 homes in the service region.

A  recent legal analysis by the Congressional Research Service notes that while the executive branch has historically handled the approval of border-crossing facilities, it doesn’t have to be that way. “[I]f Congress chose to assert its authority in the area of border crossing facilities, this would likely be considered within its Constitutionally enumerated authority to regulate foreign commerce,” the analysis states.  The CRS analysis may buoy Republicans rallying around the bills to attack Obama’s Jan. 18 denial of TransCanada Corp.’s permit application.  The House Energy and Commerce Committee panel will hold a hearing next Wednesday on Rep. Lee Terry’s (R-Neb.) bill that takes review of the pipeline away from the State Department and instead requires the independent Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to issue a permit.  Sen. John Hoeven (R-N.D.), who is planning a separate bill to put approval in the hands of Congress, requested the study.

Maryland Gov.Martin O'Malley will introduce a second plan to subsidize offshore wind power, but it faces bipartisan opposition in Annapolis and from the energy lobby.  However, powerful Democrats say they are more likely to support the governor’s plan after months of behind-the-scenes negotiations.  The plan would also require state regulators to hire an independent analyst to assess whether the costs to ratepayers — which would probably be added to monthly bills beginning in 2017 and continue for 20 years.  The Governor's office states this would be outweighed by potential benefits: 1,800 new construction jobs, increased electricity production and reduced air pollution.