A coal-fired power plant operating in the western U.S. was experiencing short gearbox life in its coal-pulverizing operation. After an annual gearbox inspection, oil analysis results indicated that the AGMA 6EP (ISO 320) gear oil recommended by the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) had failed to provide adequate lubrication and protection. This conclusion was based on […]

The Gasification Technologies Council (GTC, www.gasification.org) was created in 1995 with a straightforward mission: to promote the greater use of gasification as an environmentally and economically preferred alternative for the production of power, fuels, and chemicals from low-value energy sources. Those energy sources include high-sulfur coal, petroleum coke, and wastes. Since that time the GTC […]

Reliant Energy Commits $350 Million for Environmental Upgrades at Two Key Facilities Reliant Energy has announced plans to install state-of-the-art emission control systems at two Pennsylvania power plants, a major step in the company’s strategy for maximizing the long-term value of its power generation assets while reducing air emissions. The utility, Reliant Energy, estimated it […]

Cape Wind’s economics questioned The cited study concludes that the Cape Wind Project will "receive a 25% return on equity, 2.5 times the historical average for all corporations" when the present value of federal production tax credits, Massachusetts green credits, and accelerated depreciation for tax purposes are included. Our elected officials passed these laws, and […]

The sale or merger of any company takes its toll on employees. Though it’s merely a hassle adapting to a different T&E form, the sudden uncertainty about health-care coverage and pension can be truly stressful. For plant managers, the impact is even greater—adapting to a new budgeting process and reporting requirements, not to mention answering hundreds of subordinates’ questions about the future, even before the deal closes. However, plant managers may actually end up better off as a result of a merger or acquisition.

Safer, "virtual" reactor walkdowns; Beating the heat with inlet cooling; Reaching remote substations without fiber; One-year payback for lightning protection systems; Reaching remote substations without fiber

By Quin Shea, Edison Electric Institute The U.S. electric power industry is committed to improving America’s air quality. Progress over the past 25 years has been real and significant and something we all can be proud of. However, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is now proposing a new, lower limit on emissions of particulate […]

  More than 20 states now require their investor-owned utilities to serve a certain percentage of their load with renewable energy by a date certain. Other states are considering following suit. Failure to meet its "renewable power" mandate can subject a utility to financial and other regulatory penalties. If structured and supervised correctly, these initiatives […]

On the following pages, we introduce the magazine’s 12 Top Plants of 2006. Among this year’s winners are two solar energy plants and another that marries fuel cells with heat and waste gas recovery. As those projects make clear, a plant doesn’t have to be big to earn kudos from us. What we typically like […]

Iberdrola is rapidly making a name for itself on the world stage for building large, very efficient combined-cycle plants and for being the largest owner and operator of wind power plants. The utility’s most recent achievement was the successful commissioning of the Arcos de la Frontera Group III project, which marks the commercial debut of General Electric’s Frame 9FB gas turbine.