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Environmental Research Digest – July 2012

Summary

Black & Veatch has recently conducted its sixth annual electric utility industry survey. The engineering and consulting firm surveyed 543 managers and engineers across the US from Feb. 22 through March 23.

Key Findings

• Carbon emissions rank third—up from sixth last year—among electric utilities’ top environmental concerns.
• For the sixth straight year, water supply issues were second only to carbon emissions legislation as the top environmental concern in the industry.
• More than 90 percent of respondents believe that renewables will increase prices for consumers anywhere from 5 to 30 percent, with the largest percentage (38 percent) assuming a 10 percent increase for their customers.
• Additionally, 65 percent of utility respondents reported rate increases during the past year, and 92 percent reported that the cost of regulations will cause prices to rise for consumers.
• More than 52 percent said complying with regulatory and environmental rules reduce emissions will require them to “significantly” raise customer rates, while 40 percent expected rates to increase “slightly.”
• When it comes to “viable clean energy” technologies, the “big three” that electric utilities project for 2020 are:
  • natural gas (79 percent),
  • hydroelectric (61 percent) and
  • nuclear (52 percent).
• Which rank above:
  • wind power (40 percent),
  • solar energy (32 percent),
  • biomass (29 percent),
  • coal gasification (19 percent) and
  • tidal generation (9 percent).

Author(s)

Black & Veatch Corp

Source

PDF report

Tags: Black & Veatch Corp, carbon emissions, electric utility, engineers, renewables, US, water supply