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Research Highlights
Savings from Coal to Gas Conversion: Florida’s Deerhaven 2
April 2026
On behalf of Sierra Club, Principal Economist Elizabeth A. Stanton, PhD, Senior Researcher Joshua R. Castigliego, Researcher Jordan Burt, PhD, and Principal Analyst Bryndis Woods, PhD, prepared a white paper that investigates the potential cost savings associated with transitioning Gainesville Regional Utilities’ (GRU) Deerhaven Generation Station to retire its coal-fired operations and run exclusively on natural gas. Using a simple model of annual expenses and revenues at the unit for the period 2026 to 2035, AEC compared net costs under a “business-as-usual” scenario in which the operations of recent historical years continue into the future with a “gas conversion” scenario in which full-time gas operations commence in 2030. Over the 10-year modeling period, elimination of all coal operations at Deerhaven Unit 2 results in a total savings $31.3 million (or a reduction in levelized costs of $7.4 per MWh).
Rhode Island Heat Pump Rate “RI Test” Report
April 2026
On behalf of Conservation Law Foundation and Environmental Defense, Principal Economist Elizabeth A. Stanton, PhD, Senior Researcher Joshua R. Castigliego, and Researcher Jordan Burt, PhD, prepared a report assessing the results of a “Rhode Island Benefit Cost Test” (RI Test) cost-benefit analysis comparing the monetized costs and benefits of a new heat pump electric rate proposed in Rhode Island Public Utility Commission Docket No. 25-45-GE.
Comments Regarding STREAM’s Proposed Data Center
April 2026
In January 2026, STREAM U.S. Data Centers, LLC (STREAM) applied to the Genesee County Economic Development Center to construct a 2.2 million square-foot data center campus in the Town of Alabama, New York, located in Genesee County. On behalf of Tonawanda Seneca Nation and Sierra Club Niagara Group, Senior Analyst Dr. Bryndis Woods drafted comments that address STREAM’s proposed data center, including its claimed costs and benefits for the local community. STREAM does not provide any supporting materials for its cost-benefit analysis (CBA), which fails to meet standards expected in a public decision-making process and is insufficient to determine whether the proposed project would provide net benefits for the local community.
Contact | Address: Applied Economics Clinic, 6 Liberty Sq., PMB 98162, Boston, MA, 02109 | Email: info@aeclinic.org