by Jeff Ihnen | Mar 11, 2025 | Energy Rant
Before getting to the main topic this week, I wanted to give an update on the Moss Landing battery fire. Is the fire out? What did investigators find? My investigation took on a life of its own. In my search, I found a webpage from Moss Landing plant-owner Vistra...
by Jeff Ihnen | Mar 4, 2025 | Energy Rant
Pouring Into Texas Money talks, and if states were holding speech contests, Texas would be the frontrunner. While states like California boycott conferences in Florida and Texas over DEI and reproductive policies, those things, unfortunately, don’t matter to some of...
by Jeff Ihnen | Feb 25, 2025 | Energy Rant
Last week, I explored the macro impacts of electrifying our heating systems and using ground source (aka geothermal) heat pump (GHP) systems rather than cold-climate air-source heat pumps (CCHPs). In a nutshell, deploying GHPs in the colder regions of the country...
by Jeff Ihnen | Feb 18, 2025 | Energy Rant
Over the many years I have taught electrification basics for the Wisconsin Public Utilities Institute’s (WPUI) Energy Utilities Basics course, I dive deeply into heat pumps and their impact on the grid. I explain the messy chart in Figure 1 like a palm reader, except...
by Jeff Ihnen | Feb 11, 2025 | Energy Rant
Last week, I described elements of Trump’s Unleashing American Energy executive order. It: Expands oil and gas exploration on federal lands Promotes mining and recovery of rare and exotic earth minerals for manufacturing leadership Targets federal spending on...
by Jeff Ihnen | Feb 4, 2025 | Energy Rant
President Trump’s top priorities include closing the border and restoring “energy dominance.” Readers know he ran on “drill baby, drill” and ending wind generation and electric vehicle subsidies, but what are some of the finer points? His...
