Aaron Larson
Articles By

Aaron Larson

  • Ionpure CEDI modules to provide vital demineralization for Quassim’s supercritical steam generators

    1 July 2016 Installation of Evoqua’s Ionpure brand continuous electro-deionization (CEDI) modules is in progress as part of the Quassim Power Plant conversion project, on the Arabian Peninsula. The Saudi Arabian Electrical Company (SEC) project will convert two power generation extensions from simple cycle to combined cycle operation, adding over 120MW output from each of […]

  • Nuclear Regulatory Commission Down to Three Active Commissioners

    Following the end of William C. Ostendorff’s term on June 30, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is now down to only three active commissioners on staff. Ostendorff became a commissioner on April 1, 2010, following a distinguished career as a U.S. naval officer, engineer, lawyer, and policy advisor. His departure adds another vacancy to the […]

  • Altaaqa Global and Caterpillar Team Up to Power Cameroon and Empower Locals through Customer Development Program

    The program through Caterpillar University helps solve Cameroon’s energy challenge while facilitating the transfer of engineering and advanced technical knowledge to local professionals at state-of-the-art 50 MW project DUBAI – Altaaqa Global Caterpillar Rental Power, a leading global temporary power solutions provider, and Caterpillar Inc. have developed a solution to one of Cameroon’s biggest challenges: […]

  • Brexit Implications for UK Nuclear Power

    When the UK, the European Union’s (EU’s) second-largest economy, voted to leave the union on June 23, reactions were swift and sometimes unexpected, but what does the Brexit vote mean for the nuclear power industry, which is an increasingly global one? Based on comments made at this week’s World Nuclear Exhibition (WNE) outside Paris, the […]

  • SNC-Lavalin joint venture awarded two nuclear services contracts

    SNC-Lavalin (TSX: SNC) is pleased to announce that its joint venture (JV) with Aecon Group has been awarded two multimillion-dollar contracts by Ontario Power Generation (OPG) for nuclear services at the Darlington Nuclear Generating Station in Ontario, Canada. The first contract, valued at $265 million, is for the refurbishment of all four 935-megawatt steam turbine […]

  • U.S. Nuclear Power Plant Closures [Slideshow]

    According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, nuclear power has accounted for about 20% of electricity generated in the U.S. each year since 1990. In fact, the U.S. nuclear fleet out produced France—the country with the next highest nuclear generation—by more than two to one in 2012. Russia was a distant third, generating less than […]

  • District Energy Systems Improve Efficiency and Reduce Carbon Emissions

    Although it’s not widely publicized, a majority of the energy used to generate electricity is wasted in the form of heat discharged to the environment. For better or worse, that’s just the way a typical thermal power plant works. Fuel, such as coal, biomass, natural gas, or uranium (in the case of nuclear plants), is […]

  • GE-Powered Combined Cycle Plant Sets New Efficiency Record

    Guinness World Records recognized GE’s HA gas turbine for powering the world’s most efficient—up to 62.22%—combined cycle power plant. The first unit equipped with an HA turbine officially began operation on June 17 at EDF’s plant located in Bouchain, France. “Today we are making history with this power plant for the future,” said Steve Bolze, […]

  • Fort Calhoun Nuclear Power Plant to Close by Year-end

    The Omaha Public Power District (OPPD) board of directors voted unanimously on June 16 to close Fort Calhoun Station, the smallest nuclear power plant in the U.S., due to economic reasons. In April, OPPD Board Chairman Mick Mines asked senior management to develop potential scenarios regarding future power resources. Tim Burke, president and CEO of […]

  • APR Energy Awarded 350MW of Mobile Turbine Projects in Argentina

    Five-year deal is largest single award in company history JACKSONVILLE, Fla., June 16, 2016 /PRNewswire/ — APR Energy, a global leader in fast-track power solutions, announces today that it has been awarded two five-year projects valued at more than $450 million by the Ministry of Energy and Mining of Argentina to provide a total 350MW […]

  • Regulators Approve Plan to Close Four Minnesota Coal Units

    The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (MPUC) approved Minnesota Power Co.’s integrated resource plan (IRP) on June 9, which calls for the economic idling of the company’s Taconite Harbor Energy Center—a two-unit 150-MW facility (Unit 3 was retired in June 2015)—this fall and ceasing coal operations at the site in 2020. The MPUC also adjusted the […]

  • How Will the Supreme Court Stay Affect the Clean Power Plan?

    One of the witnesses testifying before the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works on June 9 believes states and regulated entities will be granted additional time to comply with the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) Clean Power Plan (CPP), if the rule is ultimately found to be lawful. Currently, the U.S. Supreme Court has […]

  • COAL POWER Direct—June 8, 2016

    Coal Power   Current Issue | Find a Job | Post a Job Supporting Coal Power Plant Workers Through Plant Closures Coal-fired power plants around the U.S. are closing—rapidly. It’s a trend that will continue for the foreseeable future as dozens more units are slated for closure in the next few years. According to a&hellips; […]

  • Watts Bar Unit 2 Nuclear Plant Synchronized to Power Grid

    The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) reached another milestone on June 3 when operators at Watts Bar Unit 2—the nation’s newest nuclear power plant and the first added to the fleet in 20 years—synchronized its generator to the power grid, generating electricity from the plant for the first time (Figure 1). 1. Reactor Operator Bill Hahn […]

  • Exelon Makes Good on Threat—Quad Cities and Clinton Nuclear Plants to Close

    Given the lack of progress on Illinois energy legislation, Exelon Corp. announced on June 2 that it would begin taking steps to permanently shut down its Quad Cities and Clinton nuclear power plants. In a statement, the company said Clinton would close on June 1, 2017, and that Quad Cities would follow exactly one year […]

  • Fuel Tech Licenses SNCR Technology to India’s ISGEC Heavy Engineering Ltd.

    WARRENVILLE, Ill.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Fuel Tech, Inc. (NASDAQ: FTEK), a world leader in advanced engineering solutions for the optimization of combustion systems and emissions control in utility and industrial applications, today announced the signing of an exclusive agreement under which Fuel Tech has licensed its Selective Non-Catalytic Reduction (SNCR) technology to ISGEC Heavy Engineering Ltd. (ISGEC), one […]

  • Last of “Big 6” modules placed for Vogtle Unit 3

    Vertical construction of Unit 4 cooling tower completed ATLANTA, May 31, 2016 /PRNewswire/ — Georgia Power today announced the safe placement of the last of the “Big 6” modules in the nuclear island for Unit 3 – CA02 and CA03. The modules, weighing 52 tons and 237 tons respectively, are critical components and part of […]

  • Great Plains Energy to Acquire Westar Energy in Deal Worth $12.2 Billion

    Kansas City–based Great Plains Energy has agreed to purchase Westar Energy—Kansas’ largest electric utility—in a combined cash and stock transaction with an enterprise value of about $12.2 billion. The deal was announced on May 31. When complete, Westar will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Great Plains Energy, which also owns Kansas City Power and […]

  • Wärtsilä supplies 67 MW Smart Power Generation power plant to Mauritius

    Wärtsilä will supply a 67 MW Smart Power Generation plant to Mauritius. The order includes four Wärtsilä 46 engines running on heavy fuel oil. The equipment will be delivered in late 2016, and the plant is scheduled to be operational by September 2017. “Wärtsilä has been our trustworthy and professional partner for over 10 years. […]

  • Energy Policy Differences Between Trump and Clinton Are Black and White

    The two probable major-party U.S. presidential candidates hold very different views on energy and climate. One intends to focus on expanding and developing America’s fossil-fuel industries, while the other plans to grow renewable energy and promote efficiency. Can you guess who’s who? Fossil vs. Renewable Donald Trump, the presumed Republican nominee, presented his “America-First Energy […]

  • First Westinghouse AP1000® Completes Cold Hydro Test at Sanmen 1

    BEIJING–(BUSINESS WIRE)–The world’s first AP1000® nuclear power plant moved a step closer to commissioning with the completion of the cold hydrostatic test (CHT) at Sanmen Unit 1 in Zhejiang Province, China. The successful completion of CHT confirms that the reactor systems meet design pressures under operating and accident conditions and signifies the completion of the […]

  • Toshiba Receives Order for Steam Turbine and Generator for Coal-Fired Thermal Power Plant in Vietnam

    -Company awarded additional major order to supply equipment for Vinh Tan4- TOKYO—Toshiba Corporation has received an order to supply steam turbines and generators (STGs) for the extension of Vinh Tan 4 coal-fired thermal power plant by state-owned Vietnam Electricity (EVN). The order is from Mitsubishi Corporation of Japan and Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction Co., […]

  • Watts Bar Unit 2 Reactor Goes Critical (and That’s a Good Thing)

    The Tennessee Valley Authority’s (TVA’s) newest nuclear plant, Watts Bar Unit 2, achieved initial criticality on May 23 at 2:16 a.m. Although that may sound ominous to anyone untrained in nuclear terminology, initial criticality simply means that Watts Bar Unit 2 reached a state in which the reactor’s neutron population remained steady from one generation […]

  • Repurposed: Coal Gasification Plant Will Be Used to Produce Fertilizer

    Phibro—an independent commodity merchant company based in Stamford, Conn.—through its affiliate Philipp Brothers Fertilizer, recently announced that it is acquiring a clean coal gasification plant just outside of West Terre Haute, Ind., from SG Solutions. The plant had been used to produce synthetic gas and steam to fuel the adjacent Wabash River Combined Cycle Plant, […]

  • Fire Is Latest Hurdle for Ivanpah Concentrating Solar Power Plant

    Misaligned mirrors at the Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System in California caused electrical cables to catch fire about two-thirds of the way up the Unit 3 tower on May 19, according to several media reports of statements attributed to fire department personnel. The San Bernardino County (Calif.) Fire Department (SBCFD) reported on its Facebook page […]

  • U.S. Water’s Cambridge Facility wins Minnesota Governor’s Safety Award

    CAMBRIDGE, Minn. (May 23, 2016) – U.S. Water’s Cambridge, Minnesota, facility, the leading national provider of integrated solutions for water treatment, was awarded a Meritorious Achievement in Occupational Safety 2015 Governor’s Safety Award during the 2016 Minnesota Safety & Health Conference in Minneapolis. The 2016 Minnesota Safety & Health Conference was organized by the Minnesota […]

  • New video from MidAmerican Energy depicts construction of tallest wind turbine

    DES MOINES, Iowa – (May 23, 2016) – MidAmerican Energy Company released a video today depicting the construction of the largest land-based wind turbine ever built in the United States. “Reaching New Heights” uses a combination of time-lapse footage, aerial photography and behind-the-scenes action shots to document the steps involved in building MidAmerican Energy’s first […]

  • Bechtel, Partners Selected to Build New UK Nuclear Plant

    LONDON – May 20, 2016 Plant in Wales will provide low-carbon energy for up to 5 million households Bechtel, the global engineering and construction firm, today announced it has been selected, with joint venture partners Hitachi Nuclear Energy Europe, Ltd. and Japan Gas Corporation, to deliver a new, two-reactor nuclear plant in Wales, United Kingdom […]

  • Moniz: Incentives Needed to Alleviate Nuclear Power Woes

    U.S. Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz said the time will come—perhaps 10 to 15 years from now—when “nuclear power is going to have to see a substantial resurgence.” Moniz was speaking on May 19 at the “Summit on Improving the Economics of America’s Nuclear Power Plants.” He provided opening remarks, framing the challenges facing the […]

  • MAN Diesel & Turbo builds power plant in Saudi Arabia

    MAN Diesel & Turbo has received an EPC-contract to build a power plant for the Arabian Cement Company (ACC) in Saudi Arabia. The 40 MW plant will be equipped with two type 18V48/60 TS engines and will provide power to a cement factory in Rabigh, around 120 km north of Jeddah, at the red sea […]