Energy Roundup: New NJ Wind Farm, Uranium Enrichment in Idaho, and More

(MoneyWatch)  Seattle company proposes wind farm off New Jersey coast -- Seattle-based Grays Harbor Ocean Energy has proposed an offshore wind farm 10 miles off the coast of Atlantic City, N.J. The project could power an estimated 300,000 homes with 1,000 megawatts of energy, in contrast to three other proposed N.J. wind farms, each of which would produce no more than 350 megawatts. The location is one of six U.S. locations the company has proposed. [Source: Atlantic City Press]Areva wants to build uranium facility in Idaho -- The French nuclear-services company Areva has filed an application to build a $2 billion uranium-enrichment facility near Idaho Falls, Idaho. The new enrichment facility, could employ more than 200 people, first requires approval by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Construction could begin in 2011. [Source: KIFI-TV (Idaho Falls), AP via Forbes]

Federal panel calls for fuel tax hike -- The gas and diesel fuel taxes should be increased by 50 percent to pay for highway construction and repair, according to a federal commission. The National Commission on Surface Transportation Infrastructure Financing, a 15-member panel set up by Congress, says that because motorists are driving less and buying less fuel, the current 18.4 cents and 24.4 cents a gallon tax on gasoline and diesel respectively aren't enough to keep pace with the cost of transportation-infrastructure costs. [Source: AP]

Senate committee to review coal-ash spill in Tennessee -- The Senate Environment and Public Works committee will hold a hearing on Jan. 8 to review the causes of the coal-ash spill at the Tennessee Valley Authority's Kingston Fossil Plant. The spill released 1.1 billion gallons of fly ash and water onto a 300-acre site on Dec. 22. [Source: Knoxville News Sentinel]

N.Y. businesses can sell back excess power in 2009 -- Among other measures that go into effect in the new year, businesses, schools and other nonprofits in New York state can now sell back energy they generate from windmills, solar panels and other renewable sources to power companies. Before the law, that right was limited mostly to residents. [Source: Star-Gazette]