Darrell Proctor
Articles By

Darrell Proctor

  • RENEWABLE POWER Direct—December 18, 2024

    POWER Magazine   Jobs   White Papers  Webinars   Events   Store   December 18, 2024 Regulators Approve Largest Solar Project in Wisconsin History The Public Service Commission (PSCW) of Wisconsin has approved construction of a $2 billion solar power project that could have more than 1,300 MW of generation capacity. The Vista Sands…   […]

  • DOE Announces $15 Billion Loan Guarantee for PG&E

    The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Loan Programs Office (LPO) has announced a conditional commitment for a loan guarantee of up to $15 billion to Pacific Gas & Electric, (PG&E), the natural gas and electric utility serving Northern and Central California. It’s the largest loan guarantee ever for the LPO, which under the Biden administration […]

  • Vestas Will Supply Turbines for 1.1-GW Scottish Offshore Wind Project

    Wind turbine manufacturer Vestas said the company will supply, install, and commission dozens of the company’s 15-MW turbines for the 1.1-GW Inch Cape offshore wind project in Scotland. The company on Dec. 16 said the order is for 72 of Vestas’ V236-15.0-MW turbines. The Inch Cape site is in the North Sea, about 9 miles […]

  • Report Says $6.5 Billion in Unburned Coal Sitting at U.S. Power Plants

    A new report from the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) says U.S. coal-fired power plants have as much as $6.5 billion of unused coal inventory, based on the latest figures on fuel stockpiles from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). The IEEFA on Dec. 16 said the nation’s coal-fired power stations today […]

  • Regulators Approve Largest Solar Project in Wisconsin History

    The Public Service Commission (PSCW) of Wisconsin has approved construction of a $2 billion solar power project that could have more than 1,300 MW of generation capacity. The Vista Sands Solar Project, sited on more than 6,000 acres in Portage County, was greenlighted by a unanimous vote of the PSCW on Dec. 12. Vista Sands […]

  • The POWER Interview: Energy Storage Also Eyed for Data Centers

    Recent news about continued growth in the U.S. energy storage market highlighted continued deployments of grid-scale systems, along with ongoing demand from commercial and industrial and residential sectors. Electric utilities and power grid operators, along with those using storage to support distributed energy installations, want to make their power supplies more flexible, reliable, and resilient. […]

  • GAS POWER Direct—December 11, 2024

    POWER Magazine   Jobs   White Papers  Webinars   Events   Store   December 11, 2024 Hundreds of New Gas-Fired Power Units Planned as U.S. Gas Output Soars The latest data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) published Dec. 10 shows five states accounted for more than 70% of record U.S. natural gas production […]

  • ExxonMobil Planning Large Gas-Fired Plant to Serve Data Centers

    ExxonMobil is preparing to join the power generation business, seeing an opportunity to support the electricity supply for energy-intensive data centers. The company on Dec. 11 said it is designing what was referred to as a “massive” natural gas-fired power plant that would be dedicated to producing power for data centers. Reports said the facility […]

  • Google Invests in Partnership to Develop Energy Assets at Data Center Parks

    Technology companies are looking at various ways to source electricity for energy-intensive data centers. Google on Dec. 10 unveiled a plan to join with several partners in supporting power generation, as part of what could be a $20 billion investment to develop industrial parks that would have renewable energy and energy storage built alongside those […]

  • Hundreds of New Gas-Fired Power Units Planned as U.S. Gas Output Soars

    The latest data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) published Dec. 10 shows five states accounted for more than 70% of record U.S. natural gas production this year and last year, which includes a period when electricity generation from natural gas also reached new summer highs. The availability of domestic natural gas, along with […]

  • Avantus Signs PPA with Arizona Utility for 100-MW Solar Project

    A major U.S. solar power developer announced it has a power purchase agreement (PPA) with Arizona Public Service (APS) for the energy produced from the Kitt Solar Project. Avantus, the former 8minute Solar Energy, on Dec. 9 said the PPA includes 100 MWac/130 MWdc of solar from the installation in Eloy, in Pinal County. It […]

  • Largest Pennsylvania Coal-Fired Plant Will Convert to Natural Gas

    A major Pennsylvania coal-fired power plant, the largest coal-burning facility in the state before it was closed in 2023, may be converted to a natural gas-fired station. Officials in Homer City on Dec. 3 announced plans to restart the Homer City Generating Station and increase its generating capacity through burning natural gas. A redevelopment group […]

  • North Dakota Carbon Capture Project in Limbo After Canada Group’s Exit

    A Canada-based energy group reportedly has withdrawn from a $2 billion carbon capture project in North Dakota. Project Tundra, which aimed to capture carbon dioxide from flue gas from two coal-fired units at the 705-MW Milton R. Young Station near Center, North Dakota, is now in limbo just two months after securing more than $4 […]

  • The POWER Interview: Growth in Renewables Brings Opportunities for Energy Storage

    Energy storage technologies have become more important to the power generation sector, in part because of their ability to support the deployment of renewable energy resources. Battery energy storage systems, or BESS, enable renewable resources such as solar and wind power to be stored for when that electricity is needed. Storage systems help balance the […]

  • Tech Giant Meta Seeking Nuclear Power to Support Data Centers

    Facebook parent Meta wants to find developers that can provide nuclear reactors to support electricity demand from the tech company’s data centers and artificial intelligence (AI) efforts. The group said the new generation capacity also could support local power grids. Meta on Dec. 3 announced a request for proposals (RFP) “to identify nuclear energy developers […]

  • GE Vernova Will Modernize Two Units at Dominion Hydropower Plant

    GE Vernova said it has secured an order with Dominion Energy South Carolina to modernize two hydropower units at the Saluda Hydro facility on the Saluda River about 10 miles west of Columbia, South Carolina. The company on Dec. 2 said the project “will help extend the lifetime, reliability, performance, and operational flexibility of the […]

  • Renewable Energy Event Showcases Innovation in Energy Storage

    Attendees of this year’s RE+ trade show saw several advanced designs for energy storage systems, with experts across utility-scale, commercial and industrial, and residential sectors providing insight into

  • Solar Power Leads Buildout of India’s Renewable Energy

    India has long been dependent on coal-fired power for much of its electricity, and the country still gets about 70% of its energy from burning coal according to government data. The Institute for Energy

  • POWER Digest (December 2024)

    Egypt Reducing Renewable Energy Target. Karim Badawi, petroleum minister for Egypt, said the country has cut the amount of renewable energy it will likely have online by 2040. Badawi on Oct. 20, speaking at

  • Westinghouse, CORE POWER Partner for Floating Nuclear Power Plants

    Westinghouse Electric Co. and CORE POWER said the companies have formalized a deal for the design and development of a floating nuclear power plant (FNPP) using the Westinghouse eVinci microreactor. The companies on Nov. 25 called the floating facilities “a game-changing approach to deploying nuclear energy to islands, ports, coastal communities and industry.” “There’s no […]

  • Japan, Korea Groups Will Build 2.4-GW Gas-Fired Power Plant in Qatar

    Four major Japanese and Korean energy companies have jointly won the rights to build and operate a natural gas-fired power plant and a seawater desalination facility near Doha in Qatar. Tokyo-based Sumitomo Corp. on Nov. 26 announced it will lead the group, which includes Japan’s Shikoku Electric Power along with Korea Southern Power and Korea […]

  • Trump’s Focus on Energy Will Have Variety of Impacts

    President-elect Donald Trump’s transition team has made the U.S. energy industry a focus of its plans for his first days in office, with analysts and energy experts expecting a rollback of environmental regulations for coal- and natural gas-fired power plants. That may have some utilities rethinking their strategies about the scheduled closure of some fossil […]

  • Kenya Moves Forward with Plans for Country’s First Nuclear Power Plant

    Officials with Kenya’s Nuclear Power and Energy Agency (NuPEA) said the country is on track to start construction on its first nuclear power plant by 2027. The group at a parliamentary hearing this month said the facility would begin generating power by 2034. Kenya’s move is the latest by an African nation as more countries […]

  • Leading U.S. Coal Producer Developing Solar, Energy Storage at Former Mines

    A leading U.S. coal producer is partnering with a major developer of renewable energy projects to put solar energy and battery storage installations on reclaimed mine lands in Illinois and Indiana. Peabody Energy, headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, and RWE on Nov. 21 announced a collaboration that will “invest in the rural parts of the […]

  • Norway’s Equinor Cuts 20% of Renewable Energy Staff

    European energy major Equinor said it is cutting 20% of the workforce, or about 250 jobs, in its renewable energy division due to continued economic challenges. The Norway-based company said the layoffs are part of the company’s effort to streamline its operations. Equinor in recent months has canceled offshore wind projects in several countries, including […]

  • Cologix Plans $7 Billion, 800-MW Data Center Complex in Ohio

    A company that provides connectivity and colocation services for customers across North America has announced plans to build a data center campus in Central Ohio. Cologix, headquartered in Denver, Colorado, on Nov. 20 said it had acquired land in Johnstown, Ohio, where it will develop eight artificial intelligence (AI) data centers. Cologix is considered a […]

  • RENEWABLE POWER Direct—November 20, 2024

    POWER Magazine   Jobs   White Papers  Webinars   Events   Store   November 20, 2024 WoodMac Analysis Says Trump Energy Agenda Will Face Roadblocks An analysis from global data and analytics group Wood Mackenzie says Republican control of the White House and Congress means U.S. energy policy will move away from net-zero emissions targets,… […]

  • Entergy Louisiana Eyes 2.2 GW of New Gas-Fired Generation to Support Data Center Demand

    A filing with the Louisiana Public Service Commission shows that Entergy plans to build more than 2 GW of natural gas-fired power generation in the state, including a 1,500-MW facility in northeast Louisiana that would provide power for a large Meta data center operation in an area off Interstate 20 in Holly Ridge (Figure 1). […]

  • Mobility, Flexibility, Scalability: SMRs Forging Nuclear’s Future

    The need for emissions-free power generation, along with the ability to provide more power when and where it’s needed, is driving research and development of smaller nuclear reactors. Energy industry

  • Tear It Down or Start It Back Up? Plant Owners Weigh Options Around Retired Reactors

    Nuclear power plants are still being dismantled, and the business of decommissioning remains strong, but the need for more baseload power and emissions-free generation has some companies ready to restart idled