Today is proving to be a better commute in some ways for people in the Pittsburgh area. The main roads are in good shape but that has led to more people deciding to get back to their normal routine, so volume of traffic is at its highest for this week.
Pittsburgh public works crews have been targeting trouble spots to get secondary and residential streets clear of snow. City officials are calling it the "blitz" which continued throughout the night and into this morning's rush hour. This morning crews are intensifying their efforts to clear streets in Squirrel Hill and South Side Flats.
At the request of the city, the Parking Authority is suspending fees and enforcement on Parking Authority surface lots and metered parking through Tuesday.
The Pennsylvania National Guard has demobilized their mission in the city to help residents with transportation for medical reasons or picking up prescriptions. A limited number of hum-vees and guardsmen will remain to assist public safety efforts.
The city's 3-1-1 response line is still operating 24 hours a day with 16 lines open. Operators took more than 2,000 calls yesterday....ten times their normal daily call volume.
About 18,000 Allegheny Power customers in southwestern Pennsylvania are still without electricity. Service is not expected to be completely restored till Sunday.
Duquesne Light says crews have reduced their number of outages to 160 and they should be restored by tonight.
Showing posts with label Utilities. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Utilities. Show all posts
Friday, February 12, 2010
Thursday, February 11, 2010
FirstEnergy and Allegheny Energy Merge
Akron, Ohio based FirstEnergy is buying Greensburg based Allegheny Energy, Inc. The boards of directors of both companies have unanimously approved a stock-for-stock transaction. Allegheny shareholders would receive 0.667 shares of FirstEnergy common stock in exchange for each share of Allegheny they own. Based on yesterday’s closing price that is more than a 30% premium per share and it puts a value on Allegheny Energy of $4.7 billion. Allegheny shareholders would own approximately 27% of the combined company. FirstEnergy spokesperson Scott Surgeoner says the deal is expected to take 12-14 months to complete. It is pending regulatory approval from all of the states involved and a few federal entities. The combined company will be headquartered at FirstEnergy’s home base of Akron and Surgeoner says it is unclear at this time what will happen to Allegheny Energy’s Greensburg office. He says a team of top management from both companies will be gathered to guide the transition and answer those types of questions. Surgeoner says the new company will have approximately $16 billion in annual revenues, operate ten electric distribution companies servicing more than six million customers, and nearly 20,000 miles of high-voltage transmission lines. The production assets have approximately 24,000 megawatts of generating capacity. Surgeoner says the companies have contiguous service areas and fit well together in other ways. He says for customers, the merger should be seamless.
Service area images (Allegheny Energy left, FirstEnergy right) from company websites.
Service area images (Allegheny Energy left, FirstEnergy right) from company websites.
Monday, December 7, 2009
Rate Cap Measure Could Move
Days after declaring the effort all but dead, Pennsylvania House Democratic leaders say they'll make a final push to pass a bill cushioning the impact of expiring electric rate caps.
PPL's rate caps come off on January 1st, which means central and northeastern Pennsylvania consumers might see their bills go up by thirty percent. Other companies' restrictions expire in 211.
A House bill that would phase in those increases hasn't seen any action since April, but Bob Caton, a spokesman for Speaker Keith McCall, says Democrats will try to pass it and send it to the Senate before the new year.
Caton says an amendment will ditch the bill's 20 percent cap on increases.
"There is no set percentage. It would just have to be broken up into three equal annual pieces. This way the people who are looking at their rates possibly going up would be able to plan for it a little better. They would be able to absorb the blow more easily and be able to plan for their economic future."
Governor Rendell says he supports the effort.
"We still need to do it. We still cannot rely on the fact that rates are low now, and therefore there's no immediacy to this problem. That can flip--we've seen it flip with a hurricane. We've seen it flip with international conditions. So we need to do something about what happens when the caps come off."
If the bill became law, a 15 percent increase could be be divided into three five percent hikes. Customers would have to pay interest on the deferred payments, though, so some industry experts say the program might not be worth the effort.
Electric Power Generation Association general counsel Terry Fitzpatrick equates the option to a loan customers would be taking out to pay their bills.
PPL's rate caps come off on January 1st, which means central and northeastern Pennsylvania consumers might see their bills go up by thirty percent. Other companies' restrictions expire in 211.
A House bill that would phase in those increases hasn't seen any action since April, but Bob Caton, a spokesman for Speaker Keith McCall, says Democrats will try to pass it and send it to the Senate before the new year.
Caton says an amendment will ditch the bill's 20 percent cap on increases.
"There is no set percentage. It would just have to be broken up into three equal annual pieces. This way the people who are looking at their rates possibly going up would be able to plan for it a little better. They would be able to absorb the blow more easily and be able to plan for their economic future."
Governor Rendell says he supports the effort.
"We still need to do it. We still cannot rely on the fact that rates are low now, and therefore there's no immediacy to this problem. That can flip--we've seen it flip with a hurricane. We've seen it flip with international conditions. So we need to do something about what happens when the caps come off."
If the bill became law, a 15 percent increase could be be divided into three five percent hikes. Customers would have to pay interest on the deferred payments, though, so some industry experts say the program might not be worth the effort.
Electric Power Generation Association general counsel Terry Fitzpatrick equates the option to a loan customers would be taking out to pay their bills.
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Natural Gas Boom Poses Challenges for Municipalities
The natural gas boom in Pennsylvania is posing new challenges for municipal officials. Drilling rigs and other heavy equipment have destroyed roads. Some residents also say the noisy operations cause a disturbance 24 hours a day. Municipal officials are also considering lease offers from several gas companies, but many of them have not negotiated these types of deals before. Their constituents are getting similar offers, and are looking to local leaders for advice.
A workshop tomorrow will address some of those challenges. The Pennsylvania State Association of Township Supervisors is connecting township officials in nine counties with state officials via video uplink. Representatives from the Department of Environmental Protection and PennDoT are among those who will participate.
Drilling in Pennsylvania is booming because of renewed interest in the Marcellus shale formation. The shale is deep underground in much of Pennsylvania as well as parts of New York, West Virginia and Ohio. Its presence has been known for years, but high energy prices and newer technology have made it increasingly attractive as a source of natural gas. Many gas companies are offering huge signing bonuses plus royalties to homeowners who allow drilling on their property.
A workshop tomorrow will address some of those challenges. The Pennsylvania State Association of Township Supervisors is connecting township officials in nine counties with state officials via video uplink. Representatives from the Department of Environmental Protection and PennDoT are among those who will participate.
Drilling in Pennsylvania is booming because of renewed interest in the Marcellus shale formation. The shale is deep underground in much of Pennsylvania as well as parts of New York, West Virginia and Ohio. Its presence has been known for years, but high energy prices and newer technology have made it increasingly attractive as a source of natural gas. Many gas companies are offering huge signing bonuses plus royalties to homeowners who allow drilling on their property.
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Labor, Business Groups Support Power Line Project
Pennsylvania needs new transmission lines in order to prevent future blackouts, according to the group Pennsylvanians for Reliable Power. The group is made up mostly of power industry, labor and business organizations. They held a press conference today marking five years since a massive blackout in the northeastern United States.
Joe Kirk with the Mon Valley Progress Council says a lot of people don't realize how much more electricity we're using today compared to 30 or 40 years ago. He says conservation is fine, but it will not eliminate the need to improve Pennsylvania's power infrastructure. Allegheny Energy, which wants to build new transmission lines in Washington and Greene counties, has said the region is at risk of blackouts by 2011.
Several residents who live in the path of Allegheny Energy's proposed Trans-Allegheny Interstate Line oppose the project. They say the lines would destroy the region's rural character, lower their property values and possibly cause health problems. The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission is expected to issue a decision on the project this fall.
Joe Kirk with the Mon Valley Progress Council says a lot of people don't realize how much more electricity we're using today compared to 30 or 40 years ago. He says conservation is fine, but it will not eliminate the need to improve Pennsylvania's power infrastructure. Allegheny Energy, which wants to build new transmission lines in Washington and Greene counties, has said the region is at risk of blackouts by 2011.
Several residents who live in the path of Allegheny Energy's proposed Trans-Allegheny Interstate Line oppose the project. They say the lines would destroy the region's rural character, lower their property values and possibly cause health problems. The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission is expected to issue a decision on the project this fall.
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