Man trying to steal copper shocked by 7,000 volts - Crime & Courts - TheState.com

"LADSON, S.C. — Authorities say a man trying to steel copper from a utility substation in Ladson was shocked by 7,000 volts and knocked out power to 3,500 homes."

Rising cost of Florida’s new nuclear power getting scrutiny - Florida - MiamiHerald.com

Mary Ellek Klas

"The Legislature gave the PSC the authority to decide how much to charge customers for new nuclear power as part of its 2008 energy bill. It was a trade-off to the utility companies in exchange for strict new rules intended to encourage the development of renewable energy, energy conservation, and wean the state off its dependence on fossil fuels.

Although legislators have never followed through on the renewable energy standards, and the PSC last week all but ignored the energy conservation improvements, the nuclear power provision remains."

Some Scientists Fear Computer Chips Will Soon Hit a Wall - NYTimes.com

John Markoff

"Now, however, researchers fear that this extraordinary acceleration is about to meet its limits. The problem is not that they cannot squeeze more transistors onto the chips — they surely can — but instead, like a city that cannot provide electricity for its entire streetlight system, that all those transistors could require too much power to run economically. They could overheat, too."

Data Centers Using Less Power Than Forecast, Report Says - NYTimes.com

John Markoff

"In the new study, prepared at the request of The New York Times, Mr. Koomey found that electricity used by data centers worldwide grew significantly, but it was an increase of only about 56 percent from 2005 to 2010. In the United States, power consumption increased by 36 percent, according to Mr. Koomey’s report, titled “Growth in Data Center Power Use 2005 to 2010.”"

Washington Religious Groups Unite to Find Reduced-Rate Energy Deals - NYTimes.com

Mireya Navarro

"The windfall arose after 11 churches and a nonprofit youth group got together to solicit reduced-rate bids for electricity — most of it from renewable energy sources — from local suppliers. In the first year of its contract, which ends in May, the group expects combined savings of nearly $100,000."

Berkeley Electric plans big expansion | The Post and Courier, Charleston SC - News, Sports, Entertainment

Warren Wise

"But by this time next year, the Moncks Corner-based utility will serve its 5,000 or so customers in the growing Awendaw and McClellanville markets from a 30,000-square-foot district office with an additional 50,000 square feet of warehouse space on U.S. Highway 17."

[FLA] PSC reverses electric conservation goals for FPL and Progress Energy | Naked Politics

"The Public Service Commission agreed with the utilities' projections that the cost of implementing the program for the state's two largest electric monopolies would raise bills for customers so they voted to ignore a 2008 law and not require utilities to expand their existing conservation programs."