Featured Articles
| Wednesday Sep 6, 2017 | |
| Conditions have snapped back to normal in California this week after the CAISO saw record breaking demand last Friday. Cooler temperatures across the West coast has chopped nearly 9 GWs off the evening peak load forecasts for Wednesday compared to last Friday. Figure 1 | DA CAISO Cleared Demand – 9/6 vs 9/1 ... » read more | |
| Tuesday Sep 5, 2017 | |
| This is the third and final installment in a series about the Northwest aluminum industry. In the first segment we described the link between aluminum markets and electricity pricing. In the second segment we described the rise and then precipitous fall of the Northwest aluminum industry. Today we describe the struggles of the small number of smelters who attempted to ... » read more | |
| Friday Sep 1, 2017 | |
| This is the second segment in a three-part series which describes the history of the aluminum industry. In yesterday's newsletter we provided the basic foundation that links aluminum smelting to the electricity industry. In today's segment we describe the evolution of the Northwest aluminum industry from its start in the 1940's through the Western electricity crisis of ... » read more | |
| Thursday Aug 31, 2017 | |
| in late April, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross initiated two investigations to determine the effects of imported steel and aluminum on national security pursuant to section 232(b)(1)(A) of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962. The Commerce Department invited any party interested in the steel investigation to submit written comments by May 31, 2017; comments related to the aluminum ... » read more | |
| Wednesday Aug 30, 2017 | |
| Hurricane Harvey continues to ravage Texas resulting in catastrophic flooding in Houston and the surrounding area. As of noon on the 27th Harvey had already reportedly dropped 9 trillion gallons of water across South Texas and remarkably seems to have more steam left. Harvey is expected to continue to rage through the week and move inland as the storm center ... » read more | |
| Tuesday Aug 29, 2017 | |
| We have discussed the below normal temperatures that continue to hover over the portion of the Lower 48 east of the Mississippi River. Remnants of Hurricane Harvey continue to wreak havoc on the South Central region, including Houston where massive flooding continues to threaten the livelihood of local residents, puts strain on all the first response units that are out ... » read more | |
| Monday Aug 28, 2017 | |
| It all started out as a tropical storm in the Gulf of Mexico, but late last week it quickly turned into one of the most powerful Category 4 hurricanes to hit the coastal cities of Texas and parts of Louisiana in 10 years. Cities such as Corpus Christi and Rockport, TX had forced evacuations, at they expected winds to exceed 115 mph and plenty of water come Friday ... » read more | |
| Friday Aug 25, 2017 | |
| Portland Oregon – Solar Capital USA Portland, and the rest of the Pacific Northwest, is known for its rainy weather and luscious landscapes. In 2017 we pushed the limits when it came to the winter season as Portland saw record snowfall on a given day, school cancelled for nearly two full weeks ... » read more | |
| Thursday Aug 24, 2017 | |
| This is the time of year when temperatures start to drop from summer warmth to the mild conditions of fall. Currently, the weather forecasters are calling for an early transition across the Northeast. In Figure 1, we display the average on-peak load for PJM for 2016 and 2017. Heading into next week (the dotted line), the forecasted average on-peak load will be approximately ... » read more | |
| Wednesday Aug 23, 2017 | |
| Condition became unexpectedly tight in the PNW to start this week as the Columbia Generating Station tripped off line on Sunday afternoon. Hydro ramped up to balance the grid but ultimately the Mid-C needed to price its self to keep MWs at home. Figure 1 | BPA Balancing Authority RT Generation Stack – 8/22 ... » read more | |