A study conducted by the Union of Concerned Scientists and applauded by the Nuclear Energy Institute claimed that 21 of 60 nuclear plants in the United States are at risk of early retirement largely due to inadequate rates of return and lower pricing of other competing generation types. To combat early retirements, many states are establishing nuclear subsidy programs to compensate financially challenged nuclear plants for the environmental attributes of
Continue reading
Insights
New Jersey among Many States Combatting Early Nuclear Retirement
Starbucks Coffee Now Brewing with Wind Power
Soon the cup of coffee customers buy from a Starbucks in the state of Illinois will be brewed using renewable energy generated by wind turbines. The Seattle-based coffee giant recently signed a long-term agreement with Constellation, Exelon’s commercial business, to power more than 340 Starbucks locations in Illinois with 100% carbon-free energy.
Continue reading
Xcel Energy Prepares for the Future with Its Integrated Distribution Plan Filing in Minnesota
On November 1, 2018, Northern States Power Minnesota, d/b/a Xcel Energy, filed its first Integrated Distribution Plan (IDP), fulfilling the requirements of an IDP Order issued by the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (MPUC) on August 30, 2018. The comprehensive filing includes a wealth of information regarding the current state of the distribution system, notice of near-term investments, and a 15-year roadmap of potential future investments. The plan highlights Xcel Energy’s focus on customers, linking the grid investments to the expected customer benefits and new offerings. Xcel Energy notes that it intends to formally request approval for the investments and bring forward the costs and benefits for the MPUC’s approval through future IDP/grid modernization filings or as part of a general rate case.
Continue reading
Advantages of Cognitive Recruiting
Introduction
The wave of automation is taking root in talent acquisition. Talent acquisition is reaping the benefits of intelligent automation (IA) and using it to transform sourcing, recruiting, and onboarding processes. This article will introduce the concept of cognitive recruiting and cover the benefits and considerations of implementing these capabilities within your talent acquisition organization.
Continue reading
Applying Robotic Process Automation to Human Resources
The concept of using Robotic Process Automation (RPA) as a tool to unlock additional value in your organization is a common topic of conferences, technology presentations, and HR publications. However, HR leaders are often left with more questions than answers around how HR departments can benefit from this technology. Can bots be used to execute people processes? Is the work in HR too sensitive for automation? How does human judgment come into play? The answer is that RPA can be used in HR, but processes should be carefully evaluated, and the focus should be on paper-oriented, repetitive tasks, allowing HR professionals to spend more time on people-facing strategic initiatives.
Continue reading
Establishing a Center of Expertise for an Enterprise-wide RPA Program
As companies begin the journey into Intelligent Automation (IA), they often start with a Robotics Process Automation (RPA) pilot. An RPA pilot provides a test case for automation of a process and is governed more easily than an enterprise-wide program. As a pilot, the limited processes (often one process) have little impact on the entire company, and longer-term operational decisions about RPA do not have to be resolved. However, as RPA implementations expand within your organization, you will need to answer more complex governance questions regarding workforce management, vendor selection, infrastructure, robot maintenance, RPA orchestration across departments, and robot development standards. An enterprise-wide RPA governance model will eventually be required to efficiently manage numerous robots performing tasks that touch multiple business units, functions, and/or internal/external customers.
Continue reading
What the State [Puerto Rico] Giveth [Monopoly Power to Its Electric Utility PREPA] the State Is Proposing to Taketh Away…
On October 17, Senate Vice President Larry Seilhamer and Minority Leader Eduardo Bhatia introduced Senate Bill 1121, The Puerto Rico Energy Public Policy Act, which would bring widespread change to the state’s electric utility industry. The most notable provision of SB1121 is the elimination of monopoly status for the island’s electric utility, Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA). PREPA is a government run agency that is responsible for the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity for the vast majority of Puerto Rico’s population. The utility, which is currently $9 billion in debt, filed for bankruptcy in 2017 and is in the midst of a multi-year effort to rebuild the island’s electric grid which was severely damaged last year by Hurricanes Irma and Maria.
Continue reading
The Energy Industry Update Webcast: Don’t Stop Believin’
Webcast
To coincide with the release of the latest Energy Industry Update, ScottMadden joined forces with Energy Central to present an interactive webinar, “ScottMadden’s Energy Industry Update: Don’t Stop Believin’.” During this session, our industry experts shared their views and fielded questions related to grid modernization efforts around the nation, evolving federal policy toward wholesale energy infrastructure development, and opportunities for and possible trade-offs with increased electrification.
Continue reading
What’s Next for Duke Energy’s North Carolina Grid Modernization Plan?
In April 2017, Duke Energy proposed a $13 billion, 10-year plan to modernize North Carolina’s electric system. Dubbed the Power/Forward Carolinas initiative, Duke had proposed grid hardening, resilience, advanced metering infrastructure, and smart grid investments. However, after opposition from environmental groups, the plan was scaled down to $2.5 billion over a three-year period. Although settlement was filed with the North Carolina Utilities Commission (NCUC) on June 1, 2018, on June 22, 2018, the NCUC rejected the Power/Forward Carolinas initiative outright without taking into consideration the settlement agreement.
Continue reading
Welcome to ScottMadden!
Sussex Economic Advisors is now part of ScottMadden. We invite you to learn more about our expanded firm. Please use the Contact Us form to request additional information.