InDepthNH.org (https://indepthnh.org/category/energy/page/12/)
Coverage specific to energy matters.
My conversation with Dan Weeks was a refreshingly optimistic moment in these troubling times. He’s no Pollyanna about the challenges that we face but he definitely sees the magnificent and expansive view from the summit, even as he recognizes the mountains still to climb.
To paraphrase revolutionary pamphleteer Thomas Paine, these are the times that try ratepayers’ souls. The arrival of 22 cent electricity on August 1 in New Hampshire is the biggest and scariest energy-related news to hit the Granite State in 26 years.
Acknowledging the financial impact to New Hampshire consumers is a “significant concern,” the state’s Public Utilities Commission nonetheless approved a six-month, 112 percent increase in the kilowatt-hour cost of electricity for the state’s largest utility as had been feared and expected.
Gov. Chris Sununu announced a $100 million plan Wednesday to help all residential ratepayers in New Hampshire with expected skyrocketing electric costs.
Many New Hampshire consumers will be shocked by their next electric bill. They will see pedal-to-the-metal construction work on a new exit ramp on Interstate 93 in Londonderry and Derry and $50 million in new infrastructure improvements at all 10 county nursing homes to protect seniors from illnesses like COVID-19.
At our Summit this Saturday, June 18, 2022, there will be speakers on climate and business, health, solid waste, plastics, policies from the State House, and the response of faith-based groups… plus opportunities for break-out groups.
Jeffrey Hastings was selected as Photographer of the Year by New Hampshire Press Association (NHPA). The award was announced at the Excellence in Journalism Awards Banquet at the Institute for Politics in Manchester Thursday night.
“In severe events, system operators may be forced to call for controlled power outages to protect the overall grid,” the officials said. “Climate change has caused weather to become more volatile and less predictable, increasing the potential for system operators to resort to these actions.”
Sometimes, in my exasperation, I have been known to complain that New Hampshire’s public utilities are mired in the year 1955. But it turns out that maybe I should be grateful these companies are as evolved as they are.