Secretary Salazar Holds Press Conference
Last week, Department of Interior Secretary Salazar held a press conference to discuss, among other things, the Mineral Management Service’s plans for management of the Outer Continental Shelf. Earth2tech.com has a good summary here. Salazar stated that he is committed to issuing the long awaited rules for authorizing alternative energy projects on the Outer Continental [...]
FERC Chairman Kelliher To Depart
On January 7, 2009, FERC Chair Joseph Kelliher announced his intention to step down from the Commission effective January 20, 2009. Kelliher, who was appointed by President Bush, served on the Commission for three and a half years. In a recently issued Press Release, OREC thanked Chairman Kelliher for his service as Chairman and his [...]
MMS-FERC Jurisdictional Dispute Continues
In an order issued in October 2008 , FERC upped the ante in the ongoing dispute with MMS over which agency has jurisdiction over marine renewables projects on the Outer Continental Shelf. FERC claims authority to license marine renewables projects under the Federal Power Act (FPA), but acknowledges that developers will still need to obtain [...]
OREC Comments on MMS NOPR (9/09)
On September 9, 2008, OREC filed sixty pages of comments in response to MMS Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for Alternative Energy Leases on the Outer Continental Shelf. The rules represented a culmination of extensive participation and comment on MMS’ development of rules for issuing leases on the OCS. While OREC commends MMS’ efforts to oversee [...]
OREC Offers Support, and Constructive Comments on FERC’s Conditional License Policy
In November 2007, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issued a Policy Statement announcing the Commission’s intent to issue conditional licenses for certain wave, tidal and hydrokinetic projects. The conditional license would enable FERC to approve the license, without waiting for other state and federal agencies to issue necessary authorizations. But the conditional license does not [...]
OREC Secures Some Benefits for Ocean Energy in New Energy Bill…But Tax Credits Must Wait Until Next Year
On December 19, 2007, President Bush signed into law the Energy Act 2007. OREC played an instrumental role in securing important benefits for the ocean and marine renewable energy industry, including: * Authorizing $250 million for Research, Development, Demonstration and Commercial Application to Expand Marine and Hydrokinetic Renewable Energy Production. * Authorizing the Secretary of [...]
Update on FERC Pilot Project Process
On October 2, 2007, FERC held a public hearing and technical conference on a proposed expedited process for pilot projects. Carolyn Elefant, legislative and regulatory counsel for OREC, delivered an abbreviated version of these comments which will be filed with the Commission. In addition, you can view the full transcript of the FERC conference at [...]
President Sean O’Neill Gives Update on Legislative and Regulatory Developments
If you’d like to get a summary on what’s happening the wave and tidal industry, take a look at Sean O’Neill’s recent Ask the Expertscolumn that summarizes what’s been going on with wave and tidal energy over the past few months. There’s a run down on the status of tax incentives for the House and [...]
FERC Adopts OREC Recommendation for Short Term, Super-Expedited License
On July 19, 2007, the Commission issued this Press Release announcing that it will convene a technical conference to discuss a proposal for a process for new wave, tidal and hydrokinetic technologies that would allow them to complete licensing in as little as six months. The process would be available for projects 5 megawatts or [...]
Comments on FERC Preliminary Permits for Tidal and Wave Power Due April 15
On February 15, 2007, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issued this Notice of Inquiry and Policy Statement on policies governing issuance of preliminary permits for wave and tidal projects. FERC seeks comment on whether its existing system governing issuance of preliminary permits should apply to wave and tidal technologies, whether to retain the existing system [...]
