Category: Utilities

Welcome to the Jungle: An Overview of Louisiana's Jungle Primary

11/15/2022

By Austen Angers

Louisiana has adopted an election mechanism and timetable that is unique and not widely used in the United States. We have what is sometimes called a “jungle primary” process.

This means that for a single office, every candidate is listed on one ballot, regardless of political party affiliation. This serves as a sort of “first round.” This can be confusing for some voters, since Louisiana’s jungle primary actually occurs when the rest of the U.S. holds its general election. In order for this round to resolve the election, a single candidate must receive at least 50% of the vote. If this occurs, then that candidate wins the election outright in the first round.

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St. James Parish temporary blocks solar farms, despite pleas from Entergy CEO, advocates by David J. Mitchell

8/18/2022

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Article by David J. Mitchell
Originally published on The Advocate
August 18, 2022

After weeks of debate, St. James Parish officials adopted a temporary halt on new large solar complexes in the parish to take a closer look a rules for the land-intensive operations.

The St. James Parish Council voted 6-1 for the moratorium despite pleas from the backer of a 3,900-acre solar project in Vacherie that has rankled neighbors.

Entergy Louisiana's top executive urged the council not to approve the moratorium because of the poor signal it would send to investors. Environmental and community groups also opposed the measure as backward looking that would end up leaving the parish behind.

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Louisiana utility regulators blame Entergy for creating grid dependent on costly gas by Wesley Muller

8/5/2022

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Article by Wesley Muller
Originally Published on the Louisiana Illuminator
August 2, 2022

For years, utility giant resisted diversifying its fuel sources, critics say

With Louisiana residents receiving unprecedentedly high electricity bills, Democrats on the Louisiana Public Service Commission last week blamed Entergy Louisiana for the “mess,” saying the utility giant ignored calls to diversify its sources of fuel for power generation.

While some commissioners blamed Entergy for the problem, one advocate said the commission also bears responsibility. Logan Burke, executive director of the Alliance for Affordable Energy, said the commission never really pushed hard for renewables. The energy industry knew years ago that renewables were going to become the cheapest sources of power, yet the commission over the course of four years approved four new natural gas power plants in Louisiana, Burke said.

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Entergy offered a $588M settlement to end allegations at Grand Gulf. Should Louisiana agree? By Sam Karlin

7/7/2022

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Article by Sam Karlin
Originally Published on The Advocate
July 7, 2022

Amid wide-ranging allegations that it soaked ratepayers for inflated costs at its troubled Grand Gulf nuclear power plant, which serves customers in three states, Entergy has struck a settlement with Mississippi, agreeing to refund the state $300 million.

But it’s not yet clear if regulators in Louisiana will opt into the deal, and some officials are skeptical.

The Alliance's take: This plant has been a problem from the jump. Louisianans are owed far more than this pittance and we’re glad to see regulators in the state indicate the same sentiment.

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Entergy New Orleans Reliability Judgment

6/14/2022

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On Monday, June 13, 2022, Orleans Parish Civil District Court Judge Rachael Johnson issued a ruling from the bench granting Entergy New Orleans’ petition for injunctive relief from a $1M fine that the New Orleans City Council imposed in 2019 as a result of routine reliability issues.

The Council opened docket UD-17-04 in 2017 to investigate Entergy’s decision to defer maintenance and upgrades to its distribution system. The Council, as the utility’s regulator, concluded that Entergy had acted imprudently and penalized the company accordingly. Entergy immediately filed suit for injunctive relief, claiming that the Council had not created reliability standards to which it could be held accountable.

The Watchdog

Welcome to the Jungle: An Overview of Louisiana's Jungle Primary

St. James Parish temporary blocks solar farms, despite pleas from Entergy CEO, advocates by David J. Mitchell

Louisiana utility regulators blame Entergy for creating grid dependent on costly gas by Wesley Muller

Entergy offered a $588M settlement to end allegations at Grand Gulf. Should Louisiana agree? By Sam Karlin

Entergy New Orleans Reliability Judgment

NRDC Report: "Decoupling" is Transforming the Utility Industry

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