Author: wedu admin
Electric prices set to double
One of the state’s major utilities is set to double the price of electricity in August, and it’s likely other utilities will be forced to raise their prices, too. The price hikes are being driven by projected high costs of natural gas. In a Monday filing with the Public Utilities Commission, Liberty Utilities proposed increasing the per...
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ISO Warns About Summer Electricity Demand, Rolling Blackouts Possible
CONCORD — Much like last winter, the operators of New England’s electric grid say there should be enough power to meet demand under normal weather conditions this summer, but a prolonged hot spell or other severe events could require rolling blackouts. Making its summer forecast, Independent System Operators New England Inc. said Wednesday there should...
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Burgess Biomass bill compromise is up for approval in N.H. House and Senate
The House and Senate will make a final decision Thursday on a compromise on a bill that would extend an agreement to help Berlin’s biomass plant continue operating. The Burgess biomass plant has long produced energy that’s more expensive than the market rate, and Eversource’s ratepayers have shouldered that burden. The agreement between members of the House...
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Berlin’s new city manager sees challenge, promise in new position
BERLIN — Berlin’s new city manager Phillip Warren Jr. said he came to Berlin looking for a new challenge after working for over a decade as the town manager of Meredith. Warren said he sees a lot of potential and reasons to be optimistic for the future of Berlin. Warren said he sees Berlin as...
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Coming this Summer: Spiking Electricity Bills Plus Blackouts
Climate change and poor planning puts strain on the grid and consumers. The sun sets behind power lines in Los Angeles, California on Sept. 3, 2020, ahead of a heatwave. Credit: Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images   Electricity prices are rising in much of the country at the same time that climate change is...
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Bill Supports Burgess Biomass Plant
BERLIN — An electric power plant that North Country residents see as a key part of their economy may get a reprieve if Senate Bill 271 makes it into law. The bill would grant a one-year extension to Burgess Biopower’s operations cap to allow it to continue selling energy created through the burning of low-grade...
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The latest on environment and energy bills in the New Hampshire legislature
House and Senate lawmakers took up a variety of environment and energy bills this week. Here’s how they voted. In the House  Lawmakers in the New Hampshire House of Representatives voted down a bill Thursday that would have required state government agencies to reduce their fossil fuel use and encouraged those agencies to transition to...
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House committee approves Burgess BioPower bill
CONCORD — An amended Burgess BioPower bill passed a key House committee on a 20-2 vote Tuesday, fueling optimism that the Legislature will ultimately approve a bill that will allow the biomass plant to continue operations. “We were pleased with the strong committee vote in favor of SB 271 yesterday and hope for a similar...
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In a House committee hearing on Burgess biomass bill, legislators look toward long-term solutions
A New Hampshire house committee approved a bill Tuesday extending an agreement that helps Berlin’s Burgess biomass power plant continue to operate for another year. Included in that bill was a new amendment that would significantly change the Senate’s bill passed in March. Their version would have forgiven a debt Burgess owed to New Hampshire ratepayers,...
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Action on Burgess BioPower bill delayed until Tuesday
CONCORD — Action on legislation to keep the Burgess BioPower biomass plant operating was postponed until Tuesday, April 26, while discussions are held on a compromise solution. Senate Bill 271 is currently before the House, having already passed the Senate. At a public hearing last week, the House Science, Technology, and Energy Committee heard strong...
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