National Hydropower Association’s Post

Secy. Granholm, it seems that more efficient HVDC transmission is essential for additional energy generation capacity in remote places to be fully utilized. DOE has acknowledged the need for this transmission, but as far as I can tell it has not put a $ amount on what the country ought to invest or the cost of not having such transmission. There is already a preference for using/co-locating transmission on existing rights-of-way such as freeway and railroad corridors. If DOE would come up with above public value & lost opportunity cost, that would provide some clarity on how we might get from here to there. For instance, the public may have dual interests in opening up certain rail corridors as open access, electrified freight/passenger corridors to increase utilization and sustainability AND simultaneously have an interest in HVDC transmission co-located on such corridors as backbone for SuperGrid. If DOE established cause for investment and cost of failure to invest and proposed amount for investment - it could work with DOT (and OEQ, EPA, FRA, etc) to deliver multiple public benefits. Thank you for your service. Bill Moyer info@SolutionaryRail.org http://SolutionaryRail.org https://lnkd.in/epqwB2e4

The U.S. Department of Transportation just granted $426.7 million to the Humboldt Bay Harbor District for a groundbreaking project aiming to construct a deepwater port and marine terminal in Humboldt Bay, an important step forward in meeting California’s ambitious goals of installing 5 gigawatts of offshore wind by 2030 and 2 gigawatts by 2045. Funded through the Nationally Significant Multimodal Freight and Highway Projects ("INFRA") grant program, the project plans to rehabilitate a defunct marine terminal to establish the first offshore wind terminal on the Pacific Coast, in hopes of fostering the development of many more offshore wind turbine devices throughout the region, from Morro Bay, California to the Southern Oregon Coast. Once operational in 2029, the marine terminal will handle turbines as massive as 25 megawatts, producing around one turbine per week - an exciting new development in addressing climate change and revolutionizing our energy systems in California and throughout the country. You can read more about the project here: https://bit.ly/4bduh7j Downey Brand contributors: Brian Cragg, Christian Marsh, Kathryn Oehlschlager, Megan Somogyi, and Christopher Marelich #DowneyBrand #Energy #RenewableEnergy #Infrastructure #OffshoreWind 

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)’s Water Power Technologies Office (WPTO) has announced the availability of $45M under the U.S. Tidal Energy Advancement Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA). This FOA aims to significantly advance a comprehensive approach to tidal and current energy development in the United States. Through this FOA, DOE will invest $35M to fund the development of a pilot tidal and/or current Research, Development, and Demonstration (RD&D) site in the U.S. An additional $10M will be invested in a community-led tidal and/or current energy project, where balancing community energy priorities and technology innovation will accelerate tidal and current energy technologies for the generation of power to promote the resilience and economic development of coastal communities. Topic 1 🌊 Advancing Tidal and/or Current Site Development 💲 Individual awards: $3M - $32M ❗ Concept papers are due on June 5, 2023, and full applications are due on July 25, 2023. ❗ Topic 2 🌊 Community-led Tidal and/or Current Energy Planning and Development 💲 Individual awards: $500,000 - $10M ❗ Concept papers are due on July 13, 2023, and full applications are due on October 19, 2023. ❗ Contact Climate Finance Solutions for support in securing this critical funding stream! Find out more here: https://lnkd.in/e6R3B_pb Image credit: National Geographic. #tidalenergy #coastalcommunities #energydevelopment #federal #funding

Read this op-ed from BHE GT&S President, Paul Ruppert, as he takes on his new role as chair of the Interstate Natural Gas Association of America. In this piece, Paul calls on lawmakers to ensure Americans have access to affordable, reliable energy by asking Congress to march forward on reforms that have been hampering necessary natural gas infrastructure. He also emphasizes the need for the Biden Administration to nominate a bipartisan pair of Federal Energy Regulatory Commission commissioners to ensure a well-functioning agency and nation. #ReliableEnergy #NaturalGasInfrastructure #INGAA #NaturalGasIndustry #Energy https://lnkd.in/eHT6Y_vQ

Looking for an example of how challenging and time-consuming it can be to secure permits for energy-related infrastructure? Look no further than the TransWest Express Transmission Project, which was proposed in 2005 to help move wind power from Wyoming to the Desert Southwest and only recently received its final OK. In today’s blog, we discuss TransWest’s long road to approval and how some permitting-reform proposals might help shorten project timelines. https://lnkd.in/g-jSQcs4