NV Energy

High school teachers and students are invited to get involved in Nevada Poetry Out Loud, the dynamic poetry program that is structured similarly to the National Spelling Bee, but focuses on literary heritage through memorization and performance of classic and contemporary poetry. Registration for The Eighth Annual Nevada Poetry Out Loud competition is open to all Nevada public, private, charter, parochial and alternative schools and home school associations through Dec. 1.

With Nov. 16 as its opening day, the countdown is on at Heavenly Mountain Resort. From intense competitions and events to the return of the halfpipe, excitement is stirring at Lake Tahoe’s largest winter playground.

This is an annual reminder that a number of nearby fishing waters will be closing for the year at sunset on September 30. Those waters include the following:

NV Energy warned on Thursday of another scam designed to obtain credit card numbers and money transfers from unsuspecting customers. The company has learned that imposters are calling customers demanding payments and threatening to turn off power.
Company spokesman Karl Walquist said NV Energy does not call customers about utility payments, regardless if they owe money. The company does not solicit credit card or other payments over the phone. Customers whose accounts are in arrears are notified through the U.S. Postal Service that payment is due.

CARSON CITY – Rep. Mark Amodei, R-Nev., said today that any “green energy” policy that leads to higher electric bills for Nevadans who are looking for work in tough economic times is the wrong energy policy for the state.

“Nobody is anti-green,” he said. “We struggle to compete with the cost of a kilowatt hour when we talk about economic development. And economic development has something to do with jobs.”

CARSON CITY – With U.S. Sen. Harry Reid’s 5^th annual National Clean Energy Summit set to kick off today in Las Vegas, the debate over alternative energy development and the government’s role in its future rages on.

CARSON CITY – State lawmakers today approved $46,284 from a legislative contingency fund to help the Nevada Office of the Military cover a budget shortfall due to high energy costs resulting from a solar project built at three of its sites around the state.

But lawmakers also asked for an attorney general review of the 20-year deal with Sierra Solar to see if the 15 cent per kilowatt hour charge for the electricity can be modified. The rate is now higher than what the agency could get buying power directly from NV Energy.

There will be two events today in Carson City dedicating new solar generation installations.

This morning at 11:30 a.m., Officials with Western Nevada College, Black Rock Solar and NV Energy will be celebrating completion of a 200-kilowatt solar project at the WNC college. NV Energy will be presenting a check for $940,000 to the college as part of the company's SolarGenerations program to help offset the cost.

The Carson City Democratic Women's Club will be meeting Saturday April 21 at Grandma Hatties (note the change of date for this month). Please arrive from 11:15 to 11:45 AM to order off the menu. At noon, the speaker will be Chris Jones from NV Energy to explain "Smart Meters". We are also expecting some candidates to briefly address the Club. The very successful Fashion Show will be discussed as well as plans for having a series of "forums" , a possible "ERA/History event and a Women's Rights Rally. If there are questions please call Donna at 884-3037.

CARSON CITY – Nevada’s Office of the Military figured it would be money ahead after entering into a contract with a firm to build solar panels on three of its sites around the state to supply it with electricity.

But today officials with the office won approval from the state Board of Examiners to seek $46,284 from a legislative contingency fund to pay excess utility costs. The reason is because the solar energy being provided under the contract is costing the agency more than if it purchased electricity directly from NV Energy.

CARSON CITY – A meeting of the State Apprenticeship Council was cancelled today because of a lack of a quorum, and the chairman of the panel said the appointed members will be surveyed to ensure they can commit to attending the quarterly meetings.

February 11 is the opening day of the 2012 fishing seasons for the following waters in Lyon County:
01. The Fort Churchill Cooling Ponds, near Wabuska.
02. Applicable open waters (Bass Pond, Beaver Slough, Crappie Pond, Hinkson Slough, North Pond and the Walker River), all on the Mason Valley Wildlife Management Area (MVWMA), near Yerington.
All of the waters listed above will close on Sept. 30.
If you are interested in fishing at any of those waters on Opening Day, here is some miscellaneous information:

Fort Churchill Cooling Ponds:

RENO, Nev. – An online graduate certificate in renewable energy that provides an opportunity to study the policies and practices in the diverse fields of renewable energy is being offered at the University of Nevada, Reno beginning in the spring 2012 semester.

“With an emphasis on renewable energy by the Governor’s Task Force on Economic Development, this should be a popular program,” Nancy LaTourrette, of the University’s College of Engineering, said. “The program provides a breadth of understanding of the different aspects of renewable energy in a traditional semester-long time frame.”

Following last week’s workshop to discuss issues and concerns related to Smart Meter deployment, the Public Utilities Commission of Nevada has asked NV Energy to submit proposals allowing ratepayers to opt-out of Smart Meter installation.

NV Energy must file its opt-out proposal by noon Wednesday, Dec. 28. People may file written reply comments by noon Friday, Jan. 13.

As part of its investigation into NV Energy’s Smart Meters program and its implementation, the Public Utilities Commission of Nevada has scheduled a workshop at 10 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 6, at the PUCN’s Las Vegas office, 9075 West Diablo Drive, Suite 250, with videoconferencing to the Commission’s Carson City office, 1150 East William St.

NV Energy began installing Smart Meters in southern Nevada earlier this year. NV Energy is scheduled to start its second phase of installation in northern Nevada in December. The statewide installation project is scheduled to be completed by December 2012.

Update 11:53 a.m.: Congressmen Mark Amodei (NV-2) and Joe Heck (NV-3) released the following joint statement regarding the Caughlin Ranch fire:
"Our thoughts and prayers go out to everyone affected by this disaster. We are in contact with the Governor’s office and the Federal Emergency Management Agency in Washington, D.C. to offer guidance and assistance in providing resources to address the emergency. We are coordinating efforts to ensure the Prepositioned Equipment Program (PEP) located in Las Vegas is prepared to deploy and assist with controlling the fire if needed. Anyone wishing to make financial contributions to help the victims of this disaster may do so through the Red Cross."

Update 10 a.m: The State of Nevada, Washoe County and the City of Reno have declared a state of emergency. More than 9,500 people have been evacuated, according to City of Reno spokesman Chris Good. The 400-plus-acre fire is still zero percent contained. As of now, Galena High School is the evacuation point. If that fills up, Damonte Ranch High School will be the next evacuation point. Go here for the latest from UNR's Nevada Sagebrush and here from MyNews4.com.

Update 8:15: Fire now officially named Caughlin Fire.

Update 7:11 a.m.: KRNV is on the air talking with Reno Fire Chief Michael Hernandez who is saying they have lost about 20 homes so far, and the strong winds are a big problem. He also said the winds are so strong that there is no way to get air attacks on this fire.

An Emergency 211 number is being set up to provide better information for Reno residents.

A wind-driven wildfire has burned more than 400 acres and has consumed at least six homes in the Caughlin Ranch area in southwest Reno this morning. The Pine Haven fire broke out around 12:30 this morning and thousands have been told to evacuate. Residents are being evacuated to Reno High School, the designated area for evacuations. Fire agencies from the Carson City and Carson Valley areas are responding as are from the Lake Tahoe area. Power is out to at least 1,000 homes in the area, according to NV Energy.
Flames are threatening homes near Manzanita Lane and Dant Boulevard, and police officers were going to residences to evacuate residents. An officer went to the house of a panicking Kathy Harrah. The officer told her to take a deep breath and said "you are fairly safe," as she and her two sons, John and Kody, grabbed items and put them into their truck. "I have been watching the fire all night. I didn't know it was going to get this bad," she told the Reno Gazette-Journal before ordering her son to rip a computer out of a wall. The area was thick with smoke that hung over over Manzanita. Flames in the canyon below Manzanita shot up dozens of feet in the air as they hit brush. Go here and here for story.

Videos of the fire

Map of fire area

NV Energy recently provided a group of volunteers to help with trail-building work on the Genoa Canyon segment of the Genoa Loop Trail. Supervised by trail builders from the Carson Valley Trails...

The -'s "Silver Dollar" and "Wooden Nickel" feature recognizes positive achievements from the capital region and, when warranted, points out others that missed the mark.SILVER DOLLAR: To NV EnerCop...

Carson City firefighters responded this afternoon to a wildland fire in an empty field near the 3000 block of South Carson Street south of Mill House. Initial attack of the fire at different flanks has the fire reportedly knocked down, but fire units continue to arrive and are staging at the Mill House parking lot. Windy conditions caused the fire to spread to about an acre in size. Mop up is happening now but firefighers on the scene are reporting that, because of the wind, the burn area needs a good dousing to stop stray embers from spreading. The area is dense with brush and tall grass.

Effective today, NV Energy is cutting its overall electric rates by 2.43 percent for Northern Nevada customers and decreasing overall natural-gas rates by 10.72 percent for Reno-Sparks customers. W...

Effective Saturday, Oct. 1, NV Energy will decrease its overall electric rates by 2.43 percent for northern Nevada customers and decreasing overall natural gas rates by 10.72 percent for Reno-Sparks customers.

With this change, total electric rates will have decreased nearly 25 percent, while total natural gas rates have dropped nearly 30 percent since January 2009. According to the company, adding today’s decreases will roll back total electric prices to 2004 levels and total natural gas prices to 2001.

If momentum for a proposed 120-kilovolt transmission line between Carson City and a substation near Dayton was slow before, it's nonexistent now.There's been little movement on the project since Ma...

After installing solar arrays at five schools, the Carson City School District will receive a $9.7 million rebate from NV Energy at today's school board meeting.The rebate, through NV Energy's Sola...

By Karl Walquist
NV Energy is presenting a $9.7 million rebate to the Carson City School District, which is taking advantage of Nevada’s abundant sunshine and using it to reduce operating costs with electricity generated by photovoltaic solar panels.

On Sept. 27, the district will receive the rebate through NV Energy’s SolarGenerations program for installing 1,949 kilowatts of solar energy at five schools, including Carson High School, the Fritsch and Seeliger elementary schools and the Eagle Valley and Carson middle schools.

CARSON CITY – The state of Nevada has been approved for a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) competitive grant to assist in energy retrofits across the state.
The grant will help commercial buildings develop energy efficient retrofit projects, making it easier for businesses, contractors and energy suppliers to undertake these efforts.
The $765,000 grant will be augmented with a $250,000 in-kind match from NV Energy.

This is an annual reminder that a number of nearby fishing waters will be closing for the year at sunset on September 30. Those waters include the following:

A home was destroyed in the 400 block of Wialaki Street near Mono and South Curry streets in Carson City on Sunday afternoon. One Carson City firefighter was injured in the blaze, officials said.
The fire was reported at 2:24 p.m. and burned the house and about a tenth of an acre of sagebrush on tribal land. It was ignited when slag from a grinder sparked brush during a welding operation, said Bob Charles, Battalion Chief for the Carson City Fire Department. The extent of injuries to the firefighter are not known at this time, but Charles did indicate the firefighter was going to be OK. He was taken to a hospital. The fire forced the evacuation of nearby homes in the immediate area.

Two Utah men were apprehended early Sunday morning after deputies witnessed them breaking into the NV Energy storage yard near the 800 block of East Long Street, allegedly to steal copper wire.

CARSON CITY – On deadline day for Gov. Brian Sandoval to act on the remaining bills from the 2011 legislative session, measures extending existing taxes for two more years, authorizing the creation of a toll road around Boulder City and banning the use of hand-held cell phones while driving were all approved.

Power has been restored in Dayton after an outage about 11 a.m. is affectied nearly 2,000 customers, according to NV Energy.Spokeswoman Faye Anderson said a bird got into a substation in equipment ...