POWER [May 1, 2017]

Battery Storage Goes Mainstream

Grid-connected batteries have long been touted as a tantalizing prospect that could help balance electricity supply and demand as the amount of installed variable renewable generation ramps up. New

Should Investor-Owned Utilities Be Worried About Community Choice Aggregation?

Community choice aggregation (CCA) is only allowed in seven states currently, but recent developments in California have investor-owned utilities there worried. They fear losing up to 80% of their retail load

Whatever Happened to Fuel Cells?

Hydrogen-powered fuel cells were supposed to be the “Next Big Thing” a decade ago, but the hype ran well ahead of the market and technology. Yet some quiet advances and steady work have the sector on the

3-D Printing: The Future of Manufacturing and Maintenance

Power plants are complex systems with countless moving parts, and in turn, countless opportunities for things to go wrong. With the advent of 3-D printing technology, repairing or replacing those moving parts

Europe Rebuilds Grid to Accommodate Green Energy Swell

A flood of renewable capacity in the European Union is forcing member countries to consider grid upgrades that offer a more substantial power supply management role to distribution system operators. Lee

Malware in Modern ICS: Understanding Impact While Avoiding Hype

Understanding the threat posed to industrial control systems (ICSs) by malware is difficult. It requires knowledge of proper ICS functionality in order to identify illegitimate software. One industrial

New York's Ambitious Transitions: Who Wins? Who Loses? Who Knows?

New York’s electricity system and markets face a blizzard of changes, driven by policy, politics, and economic forces. The New York Independent System Operator and the New York State Energy Research and

Technology Risk Insurance Broadens Power Project Financing Options

Power project financing demands are constantly changing. The current model for structuring project finance transactions began with the emergence of independent power producers (IPPs). Many IPPs only wanted to

As Community Choice Aggregation Expands, the Battle Over "Exit Fees" Intensifies

Community choice aggregation (CCA) continues to emerge as a favorite tool for towns, cities, and counties interested in pursuing local control over their energy supply, increased renewable electricity

Inlet Air Cooling Systems Improve Gas Turbine Performance

An inlet air cooling (IAC) system offers one of the most cost-effective ways to improve gas turbine (GT) performance—especially during the peak hours of hot summer months. After all, GT output depends on

Newly Designed Deluge Valve Improves Functionality

Stanwell Power Station, a 1,460-MW coal-fired power plant located in Queensland, Australia, faced a dilemma. The reliability of its fire protection system was questionable. Many of the plant’s multiple jet

After Blackout, South Australia Wrests Control of Its Power Security

Freshly reeling from a statewide blackout, South Australia’s government in March released an energy plan that seeks to cut its reliance on an electricity interconnector with eastern Australia that feeds the

Indonesia Considers Thorium Molten Salt Reactors

Power-short Indonesia has been mulling building a nuclear power plant for nearly 15 years, and it is exploring a number of novel options, including high-temperature gas-cooled reactors (HTGRs) and a thorium

One of World's Largest Geothermal Units Begins Operations in Indonesia

The first of three 110-MW units at the $1 billion Sarulla geothermal power plant in Indonesia’s North Sumatra province commenced commercial operation this March. When the next two units come online as

POWER Digest

UK Gives First Consent for Hinkley Point C EPRs. The UK’s Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) on March 27 gave its approval to allow a consortium to begin placing structural concrete for a series of

Trends Suggest New Directions for Global Hydropower

While hydropower installations worldwide fell slightly in 2016 to 31.5 GW compared to 33 GW in 2015, the sector marked a colossal jump in pumped storage installations last year, the International Hydropower

Can the U.S. Nuclear Power Industry Survive?

The recent announcement by Westinghouse Electric Co. that it had filed for bankruptcy sent a shockwave through the nuclear power industry. It wasn’t a secret that the company was struggling financially as a