More U.S. Coal Plants Fail Economic Stress Test
More U.S. Coal Plants Fail Economic Stress Test FacebookTwitterLinkedInEmailPrint分享SNL:A recent energy analysis determined that more than 20% of the nation’s coal-generating capacity in 2016 is uneconomic and could face retirement or conversion to other energy sources.The Union of Concerned Scientists, a member-funded nonprofit advocacy group that promotes clean energy, said in its report that much of the remaining coal fleet “faces significant economic uncertainty” due to competition from cheap natural gas and renewable energy.Comparing the cost of electricity generated by coal units and an existing natural gas combined-cycle unit, the report found that 57 GW, or nearly 21% of the country’s roughly 285-GW coal-generating capacity in 2016, are “uncompetitive,” on top of the 18% already scheduled for retirement or conversion.Using S&P Global Market Intelligence data, the report’s authors identified dozens of plants that failed their “economic stress test,” primarily in the southeastern U.S. Florida had the highest number at 16 followed by Georgia with 15 and Virginia with 13.A recent S&P report shows that about 49.5 GW of coal capacity is or was scheduled for retirement between 2013 and 2021, an increase from the 44.1 GW scheduled as of March 27 for that period. 45 coal units are slated to retire from 2017 to 2021, while 395 units have been retired since 2012.More: ($) Report: 21% of US coal fleet ‘uneconomic,’ could face retirements, conversions
Financial institutions are “feeling the need, the need for speed.” With this month’s 30th anniversary of the movie “Top Gun,” this well-known quote also applies to the current global race for constant availability of real-time payments.Opt-in participation for real-time payment delivery is the next phase of the faster-payments movement. This phase is being driven by initiatives from The Clearing House, such as secure tokenization of payment requests and enablement of real-time payments functionality, and its partnership with VocaLink for the deployment of a real-time payments platform.Other larger players involved are Fidelity National Information Services; CUES Supplier member D+H, due to its global focus on payments; and Jack Henry and Associates, due to its presence within the community banking sector.In addition, CUES Supplier member Fiserv, a significant provider of financial services technology, is positioning its payments scope by highlighting its NOW platform, which fuses bill payment, money movement, and a real-time EFT network. continue reading » 8SHARESShareShareSharePrintMailGooglePinterestDiggRedditStumbleuponDeliciousBufferTumblr
Categories: Letters to the Editor, OpinionCan’t take four more years of amoral TrumpPeople with honor and dignity cannot stand working for President Trump very long.Now we have temporary, unconfirmed, acting heads of customs and border protection, acting homeland secretaries, acting heads of citizenship and immigration, acting defense secretary, and vacancies throughout the government.President Trump prefers acting people because they are compliant.One result is the terrible maltreatment of children on the U.S. southern border.We once were horrified to see Syrian parents and babies washing up to be virtual prisoners on the shores of Greece or arriving to find guns and barbed wire pointing at them in Hungary. Now, here in the United States, it’s little and non-nutritious food, little or no drinking water, no bathing, no sleeping, no parents, no asylum hearings, no love, all punishment for children in our care. Are we no better than Greece or Hungary?If we tolerate our amoral, shameless president for four more years, it will get worse. Take back our honor. Save the children. Close the camps.Help the world. Vote in 2020.David GibsonBallston LakeWhy should we all have to pay again?Why do we have to pay again?Montgomery County broke a contract for garbage disposal with Fulton County. I ask Matt Ossenfort, who is responsible. He is Montgomery county executive, just as Ann Thane was responsible for the city of Amsterdam.Who should take the blame for the $5 million in debt when she left?Who takes the blame that obviously we broke the contract by taking in garbage at a higher price than we were paying Fulton County?Who is responsible for the $450,000 that we must pay Fulton County? Was it the country executive, legislatures or some other employee?Who is responsible for the $450,000 that we have to pay? This county has to smarten up. Ann Thane and her cohort Gerry DeCusatis should be liable for some of the city debt, just as Matt Ossenfort should be liable for the garbage fiasco — especially since now we have to pay more again for disposal. Ann Thane and Gerry DeCusatis both have nice, rewarded jobs with the state (paying $97,000 and $86,000 annually by state records). Maybe they should have their wages garnished to pay back the $5 million deficit, neve rmind blaming dead people and others. The county and city are on a bad path.Take off the rose-colored glasses. You might think things are getting better, but ride around and look.Enough is enough.Sandy “Rogo” RoginskiAmsterdamOnly help immigrants who are here legallyBravo. David DeMarco was absolutely right about coming into our country legally in his July 7 letter, (“Want rights? Enter the country legally”).I think we should help all immigrants who come legally, but I don’t think we should help those who come illegally.They broke our laws to get here and should not take away from those who are here legally or were born here.We have too many poor people who need our help and should get it. I also agree that only those who are legally here should get driver’s licenses.Carol VaccaSharon SpringsMore from The Daily Gazette:Foss: Should main downtown branch of the Schenectady County Public Library reopen?EDITORIAL: Beware of voter intimidationEDITORIAL: Urgent: Today is the last day to complete the censusEDITORIAL: Find a way to get family members into nursing homesEDITORIAL: Thruway tax unfair to working motorists
“The majority of cases […] occurred in Greater Jakarta.”The province is home to around 49 million people, some 33 percent of whom can be found in Jakarta’s satellite cities, where people who work in the capital city commonly reside.Data from the administration shows that cases in Jakarta’s satellites accounted for at least 60 percent of the province’s total cases as of Friday, while West Java’s capital Bandung city recorded 271 cases and 31 fatalities, the highest number of deaths in the province.Tight corridors: Medical workers in protective gear escort a man who tested positive for COVID-19 to a hospital in Tasikmalaya, West Java, on May 15. (Kompas.com/Irwan Nugraha) West Java, being a close neighbor of Jakarta, has been among the provinces hardest hit by COVID-19, but it is looking into easing curbs in “low-risk” areas after claiming that large-scale social restrictions (PSBB) have yielded desirable results.The province recorded 40 new cases on Friday, bringing the total confirmed cases to 2,002 with 125 fatalities and 432 recoveries, according to the central government’s tally. This has led the province to become the third hardest-hit province after Jakarta and East Java.”I believe the pandemic is related to density, it’s a density disease. The more dense the area is, the more cases are likely to be found,” West Java Governor Ridwan Kamil said during a recent online discussion with foreign ambassadors. The PSBB have been in place in West Java since May 6, and they are expected to last until May 29, although Bogor, Depok and Bekasi – satellite regions of Jakarta – put curbs in place much earlier on April 15. Greater Bandung also first imposed the PSBB on April 22.It has identified five infection clusters so far: a seminar of the National Police’s Officer Candidate School in Sukabumi; the Bethel Church of Indonesia (GBI) in Lembang; an anti-usury seminar in Bogor; a religious seminar held by the Protestant Churches of Western Indonesia (GPIB) in Bogor; and a West Java youth entrepreneurs forum in Karawang.Read also: National COVID-19 task force chief urges public to obey PSBB to pave way for ‘new normal’Recently, local health authorities said they were still tracing contacts from the first two clusters and ramping up efforts to scale up their polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing capacity.The province had tested some 10,791 people so far, a very low number that made it difficult to effectively capture the scale of the outbreak and decide on the necessary intervention measures, said epidemiologist Panji Hadisoemarto from Padjadjaran University in Bandung.This also applies to measuring the province’s effective reproduction number (Re), which Governor Ridwan revealed to be 1.04 as of May 15. The effective reproduction number refers to the number of secondary cases per infectious case in a population, with a number below 1 indicating the epidemic is under control and in decline.“There must be adequate contact tracing, testing […] and accurate and timely reporting [of new cases],” Panji said.Ridwan said during a press briefing on Wednesday that the number of hospitalized COVID-19 patients had decreased from 430 patients in April to 270 patients following the introduction of the PSBB. Isolation wards were only at 33 percent of capacity, he said.Love exists here: A couple on a motorcycle drive past a makeshift gate in a residential area in Citeureup, Bogor, West Java, on May 7. The gate displays a banner that reads “lovedown”, as opposed to “lockdown”. (JP/PJ Leo)As he claimed the curve of transmission was flattening, Ridwan also announced that the region’s PSBB measures would continue “proportionately” based on each region’s transmission risk level, which would be reviewed using several indicators every two weeks. The PSBB status would also be implemented at the subdistrict or village levels.”Theoretically this is a good policy, but it’ll be difficult to translate into practice at the village level. There must be clear technical guidelines [for enforcement],” Panji said.“They should also anticipate […] the porousness between regions; the people of Bandung regency may work in Bandung city, for example.”The province’s red zones, or those at severe risk, comprise Bekasi regency, Bekasi municipality and Cimahi municipality, meaning that they would have to continue the PSBB, with economic activities operating only at 30 percent of their normal levels.Blue zones, which comprise West Bandung regency, Pangandaran regency, Sumedang regency, Garut regency and Sukabumi municipality, are at moderate risk and would be allowed to reopen all public and commercial facilities while ensuring that there are no crowds.This is despite earlier estimates that predicted Garut would see the highest number of homebound travelers at 177,155 people. The administration predicted that some 720,000 people would insist on going on mudik (exodus) this year ahead of the Idul Fitri holiday.Read also: Some regional leaders to allow mass Idul Fitri prayers despite calls to worship at homeThe remaining regions, meanwhile, are at moderate to severe risk in the yellow zones, which allow for an increase in economic activity to around 60 percent of normal levels, while maintaining physical distancing.No city or regency is a black zone, which indicates critical risk and requires a total lockdown, nor are any considered green zones, which are low-risk areas where people are allowed to gather.However, detailed mapping at the lower levels show that 667 subdistricts and villages are deemed black zones, and most are in Jakarta’s satellite cities and Greater Bandung.Kusnanto Saidi, the director of the Dr. Chasbullah Abdulmadjid COVID-19 referral hospital in Bekasi city, said the hospital had witnessed a decline in the number of patients, although medical professionals remained wary of possible undetected or asymptomatic cases.”Medical workers are wary about a possible second wave [of transmissions]. Their energy has been drained in the past three months, God forbid that there’ll be [a second wave] after Idul Fitri,” he said.Topics :
Queensland is tracking quite well on the affordability front. Picture: Brendan Radke.HOME loan affordability has increased across Queensland while the Brisbane property market has cooled to more sustainable growth, according to the PRDnationwide’s Australian Economic and Property Report 2017 released today.The report showed Brisbane’s median house price grew an average of 1.5 per cent in the first half of 2017 but growth had slowed from an increase of 7.1 per cent in the year to May 2016, to 4 per cent in the following 12 months.PRDnationwide national research manager Dr Diaswati Mardiasmo said it signalled a return to usual, more sustainable levels of strong growth that the Australian market was experiencing prior to the property boom.“Affordability is the key issue and (Queensland) is tracking quite well in that sense,” Dr Mardiasmo said.More from newsMould, age, not enough to stop 17 bidders fighting for this home3 hours agoBuyers ‘crazy’ not to take govt freebies, says 28-yr-old investor3 hours ago“People can still access quite a lot of suburbs under $500,000, which is not the case in Sydney and Melbourne.”She said “the Brisbane rate of income growth was disproportionate to (residential property) price growth”.“Over the past 10 to 15 years growth had tracked around 5 per cent, which was in line with our wage and income growth. So the fact that we’re still growing at 4 per cent is great because we’re still seeing that capital growth but it’s more sustainable.”Across the state, the Queensland regional markets recorded growth of 4 per cent in the first half of 2017, the highest increase of the three main states (NSW, VIC and QLD) and third highest nationally.The PRDnationwide report also found Brisbane rental vacancy rates held steady at 3 per cent and median rents had increased by 1.3 per cent.Dr Mardiasmo said the vacancy rates were the right side of healthy and the rental change was much more affordable compared to other capital cities, so it was good news for investors and tenants alike.Home loan affordability in Queensland increased by 3.6 per cent annually to March 2017, the report found. Nationally the proportion of family income needed to meet home loan repayments decreased from 31.7 per cent to 30.4 per cent and the proportion to meet rent payments decreased from 25.1 per cent to 24.6 per cent in the same time.
General photo of Springfield Lagoon, Wednesday, November 14, 2018 (AAP Image/Richard Walker)Together, the five Queensland hot spots recorded more than $1 billion in building approvals, according to the report. But HIA’s chief economist Tim Reardon said Queensland was a state of two stories.“In the north, it is not a good story to tell,” Mr Reardon said. “They have had a difficult time up there, with the exception being Townsville after the floods but that will be short-term in terms of reconstruction.More from newsParks and wildlife the new lust-haves post coronavirus13 hours agoNoosa’s best beachfront penthouse is about to hit the market13 hours ago“In the southeast, there has been a slowdown but there is still a lot going on which is being driven by employment and interstate migration.”Mr Reardon said that concerns about an apartment oversupply in Brisbane had eased, with increasing demand for the next phase of construction.He said the looming federal election had an impact on building approvals, but the credit squeeze by the banks had been the biggest factor.“We have seen signs of that (credit squeeze) easing so we expect to see a pick up in the second half of the year,” he said. Video Player is loading.Play VideoPlayNext playlist itemMuteCurrent Time 0:00/Duration 1:50Loaded: 0%Stream Type LIVESeek to live, currently playing liveLIVERemaining Time -1:50 Playback Rate1xChaptersChaptersDescriptionsdescriptions off, selectedCaptionscaptions settings, opens captions settings dialogcaptions off, selectedQuality Levels720p720pHD540p540p360p360p180p180pAutoA, selectedAudio Tracken (Main), selectedFullscreenThis is a modal window.Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window.TextColorWhiteBlackRedGreenBlueYellowMagentaCyanTransparencyOpaqueSemi-TransparentBackgroundColorBlackWhiteRedGreenBlueYellowMagentaCyanTransparencyOpaqueSemi-TransparentTransparentWindowColorBlackWhiteRedGreenBlueYellowMagentaCyanTransparencyTransparentSemi-TransparentOpaqueFont Size50%75%100%125%150%175%200%300%400%Text Edge StyleNoneRaisedDepressedUniformDropshadowFont FamilyProportional Sans-SerifMonospace Sans-SerifProportional SerifMonospace SerifCasualScriptSmall CapsReset restore all settings to the default valuesDoneClose Modal DialogEnd of dialog window.This is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button.Close Modal DialogThis is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button.PlayMuteCurrent Time 0:00/Duration 0:00Loaded: 0%Stream Type LIVESeek to live, currently playing liveLIVERemaining Time -0:00 Playback Rate1xFullscreenDifferences between building in new or established estates01:50FIVE Queensland hot spots have been named among the nation’s top 20 strongest markets for new home construction.Pimpama on the Gold Coast recorded the highest dollar value in Queensland, with $282.4 million in building approvals in 2017/18, according to HIA Population and Residential Building Hotspots report. Other Queensland hot spots named in the top 20 were Ripley, Eagle Farm-Pinkenba, Springfield Lakes and South Brisbane.Both Ripley and Springfield Lakes are both within the Ipswich City Council region, which has seen strong growth in recent years. An aerial view of BrisbaneThe HIA report comes after the release of the Quarterly Market Insights report from Oliver Hume.That report also considered Queensland’s population growth during the December quarter, pointing to increasing levels of interstate and overseas migration.It said that while land sales transactions had “dipped” towards the end of 2018, the market had remained steady. “The number of active projects in all southeast Queensland municipalities was up for theDecember quarter, with various estates launching,” the report said.“Overall, the total represented a five per cent increase on the previous quarter. “This number is likely to decrease next quarter as several developments are reaching maturity.”The median land price in the southeast also increased by three per cent over the year, with Logan recording the most number of active projects in the southeast corner, followed by Ipswich.
An aerial view of Ecco Ripley Springfield Lakes, a development by Lendlease, is now sold out, while in Ripley, several developers are active including the likes of Sekisui House (Ecco Ripley), Okeland Communities (Providence South Ripley) and Satterley (Ripley Valley).Victoria dominated the top 20 with 12 of the best performing regions, while NSW had just three hot spots, all in the Sydney region.An area qualifies as a “hotspot” if at least $150 million worth of residential building work was approved during the 2017/18 financial year, and its rate of population growth was faster than the 1.6 per cent national average.Ripley recorded almost $164 million in building approvals, while Springfield Lakes clocked up $214.2 million.
Those surviving who will cherish Ione’s memory include her daughters, Doris Tincher of Brookville, and Donna (Jeff) Moorman of Greensburg; five grandchildren, Jeff (Colleen) Tincher of Brookville, Daphne Porter of Brookville, Danielle (Robert) Ortman of Brookville, Laura Moorman of Tampa, Florida, and Kari Moorman of Bend, Oregon; six great grandchildren; seven great-great grandchildren; two brothers Breck (Annie) Allen of Escondido, California, and Bill (Arlene) Allen of Fairfield, Ohio. Besides her parents, she was preceded in death by her husband, Albert Robertson, on May 9, 2006; her son, Danny Robertson, on February 19, 1979; her son-in-law, Leo Tincher on November 5, 2016, and thirteen brothers and sisters. In lieu of flowers Ione would have wanted gifts be made to the National Kidney Foundation or the Alzheimer’s Association because of how those illnesses affected her son and son-in-law. To sign the online guestbook or to leave a personal condolence, please visit www.cookrosenberger.com. The staff of Cook Rosenberger Funeral Home is honored to care for the family of Ione Robertson. Ione (Allen) Robertson was born on April 19, 1918 in Clay County, Kentucky. She was the daughter of Gilbert and Della Webb Allen. She married Albert Robertson on November 16, 1940 in Manchester, Kentucky. Ione enjoyed gardening, cooking, quilting, crocheting, reading, and taking care of the needs of her family and friends. Her fried chicken was enjoyed by many of those who knew her, and she gladly shared delicious meals with them. She was a member of the Oak Forest Church of Christ in Brookville. In addition to helping her husband farm, she worked at Sperry Rubber and Plastics Company, and retired from there in 1983. Ione went to be with her Lord at the age of 99 on May 7, 2017 at Margaret Mary Health in Batesville.
Friends and family may visit at Rosenberger Cook Funeral Home in Brookville on Wednesday, May 10, 2017 from 3:00-7:00 p.m. and again on Thursday at 10:00 a.m. until the service at 11:00 a.m. Earl Byrd will officiate the service. Burial will follow at the Maple Grove Cemetery in Brookville.
Batesville, Ind. — A two-car crash on State Road 46 west of Tekulve Road complicated the morning commute in Batesville Friday morning around 8 a.m. The rear end collision occurred about 500 feet east of the traffic signal on State Road 46. There appeared to be no serious injuries.
Connersville, IN — The Whitewater Valley Railroad has announced that tickets are now available for their 20th Annual Easter Bunny Express Family Event. Originally, the event was scheduled for April 11th but was postponed due to COVID-19. A new date of this Saturday, September 26th, has been selected for this annual family event.Trains will depart from Connersville’s Grand Central Station and make four round trips south to the Easter Bunny Patch two miles away. If you attend, bring a basket, as there are over a total of 12,000 eggs to hunt. You can also see the Easter Bunny and hunt for his Golden Egg. The egg hunt is open to ages 9 and under.Reservations are recommended. Prices are $10 per person for anyone ages 2 and up. The train departs at 10:01 am, 12:30 pm, 2:30 pm, and 4:30 pm. Trains will operate rain or shine and tickets are limited. Tickets can be purchased by calling the Whitewater Valley Railroad at 765-825-2054 or by visiting www.whitewatervalleyrr.org.
… Cilic loses to SchwartzmanNEW YORK, USA (Reuters) – Venus Williams continued her U.S. Open campaign when the American beat Greek Maria Sakkari 6-3, 6-4 yesterday to advance to the fourth round.Roared on by the Arthur Ashe Stadium crowd Williams, who won her two titles at Flushing Meadows in 2000 and 2001, overcame serve problems to set up a meeting with gritty Spaniard Carla Suarez Navarro.The 37-tear-old managed the only break in the opening set to take control of the match.After a couple of exchanges of breaks in the second, Williams stole her opponent’s serve again to close it out on the first match point when Sakkari’s forehand sailed long.”I’m playing at home, I’ve got a lot to accomplish here, and I’m happy to get the win,” she said.Speaking about her fourth-round opponent, she said: “She plays a similar game to my opponent today. She’s feisty. I know I have to come out, play well, have you all (the crowd) behind me and get a win.”Meanwhile, former champion Marin Cilic suffered a surprise third-round loss to Argentina’s world number 33 Diego Schwartzman at the US Open.Fifth seed Cilic lost 4-6, 7-5, 7-5, 6-4 as Schwartzman reached the fourth round of a Grand Slam for the first time.Cilic, 28, who claimed the US Open title in 2014, is the fourth top-10 seed to exit the competition.Alexander Zverev, Grigor Dimitrov and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga all went out in the second round.Schwartzman, 25, broke his opponent nine times, including four times in the third set, to ensure there are no former title-winners in the bottom half of the draw and guarantee there will be a first-time US Open finalist.Spanish 12th seed Pablo Carreno Busta beat Nicolas Mahut of France 6-3, 6-4, 6-3 to also progress, reaching the fourth round at Flushing Meadows for the first time.