Darrell Proctor
Articles By

Darrell Proctor

  • Another Court Challenge for Nuclear Waste Storage Site

    Another legal challenge has been filed against the ongoing effort to build a storage site for U.S. nuclear waste in the New Mexico desert. Beyond Nuclear, among the environmental and other groups opposed to the project that would be built by Holtec International, on June 4 filed a petition for review in the U.S. Court […]

  • Senior Exec Will Plead Guilty to Fraud in Abandoned Nuclear Project

    The man considered second-in-command at the former SCANA Corp. has agreed to plead guilty to criminal conspiracy fraud charges stemming from his role in the failed V.C. Summer nuclear power plant construction project. Stephen A. Byrne, SCANA’s former chief operating officer, will plead guilty for his alleged criminal actions, according to a document filed June […]

  • Vogtle Project ‘Highly Unlikely’ to Meet Deadlines

    An official monitoring the progress of the Vogtle nuclear expansion project in Georgia said in testimony filed June 5 with the state’s Public Service Commission that the two new reactors are “highly unlikely” to meet state-approved deadlines, and also will probably have additional cost overruns. The expansion project involves construction of two, 1,100-MW AP1000 reactors […]

  • The POWER Interview: Modernizing the Grid with DERs

    Energy industry experts have for years talked about the need to modernize the power grid. The focus can be on replacing and upgrading infrastructure, improving the efficiency of power delivery through digitization and smart grid technologies, or on the dispatch of renewable energy resources. Often, it’s all of the above. Industry analysts know that a […]

  • Reduced Cost for Renewables Supports Sector Growth

    A new report from the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) shows costs for renewable power are increasingly cheaper than those for generation from coal, reinforcing the trend of increased investment in solar and wind power and away from fossil fuel-powered electricity production. The IRENA report—Renewable Power Generation Costs in 2019—showed that more than half of […]

  • The POWER Interview: Ameresco’s CEO on Efficiency, Renewables, and Resilience

    The present and future of power generation is and will be driven by new technologies, those designed to increase the efficient use of electricity while limiting emissions and supporting resiliency. It’s a challenging time for those in energy. Developing solutions to solve issues in the power sector involves navigating an uncertain and ever-changing regulatory landscape, […]

  • Germany Brings Last New Coal Plant Online

    What is expected to be the last new coal plant to come online in Germany entered commercial operation on May 30, more than a decade after it was first planned. The 1,100-MW Datteln 4 power plant, owned by Uniper and located in Datteln in the North Rhine-Westphalia region, opened despite the German government’s stated plan […]

  • EPA Curbs State Review of Energy Projects

    The Trump administration on June 1 moved to limit the ability of individual states to use provisions of the Clean Water Act (CWA) to block energy projects, a potential win for the power generation and other energy industry sectors that have battled lengthy licensing and permitting reviews and rejections based on climate change arguments. The […]

  • Company’s Mission: A Clean Energy Building, and Living Laboratory

    Embracing sustainability is more than a slogan for Delta Electronics (Americas); it’s defined by the company’s headquarters building. The site incorporates Delta’s own technologies to promote energy

  • Power Project Provides Shelter from the Storm

    Dozens of microgrids are deployed at schools across Puerto Rico, bringing reliable, resilient power to the island. The project, featuring solar plus storage, is an important part of the region’s recovery

  • Renewables Gain Investors as Some Flee Oil, Gas, and Coal

    The global crash of prices for crude oil, on top of a prolonged slump in the price of natural gas, is taking a toll on the oil and gas sector. The coal industry also continues to suffer, as the supply of

  • Record-Low Solar Prices Drive Middle East Projects

    Abu Dhabi Power Corp. (ADPower) in late April announced what it called the lowest-ever cost-competitive tariff for a solar photovoltaic (PV) project, a few months after a project in Dubai made that claim for

  • POWER Digest [June 2020]

    SGRE Signs Deal for O&M on Wind Turbines. Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy (SGRE) has secured a long-term, 20-year contract to provide full-scope operation and maintenance (O&M) services for a 135-MW

  • Data Tool Shows Pandemic’s Impact on Power Prices

    A clean energy valuation and risk analytics company said that low demand for energy during the COVID-19 pandemic, along with low prices for natural gas and strong power generation from renewable energy resources, has brought unprecedented low prices for electricity in multiple U.S. markets.  REsurety said its Renewable Energy Market Analytics Platform (REmap) shows that […]

  • Siemens Details Spinoff of Energy Business

    The parent of Siemens Energy on May 26 provided details of the planned spinoff of the company’s energy business, saying 55% of Siemens Energy will be spun off to Siemens’ shareholders. The company said Siemens shareholders would automatically receive one share of Siemens Energy AG for every two shares they own of the parent, Siemens […]

  • Alliant Closing Coal Unit, Brings Gas Plant Online

    Wisconsin-based Alliant Energy on May 22 said it would retire the coal-fired Edgewater Generating Station in Sheboygan by year-end 2022, an announcement coming just one week after the utility said it had placed the new 730-MW West Riverside Energy Center, a natural gas-fired combined cycle plant in Beloit, into commercial operation. Alliant, which also has […]

  • GenOn Will Close Three Coal-Fired Units

    The Texas-based company that owns a coal-fired power plant in Maryland announced it will retire the facility’s three generating units, which have been in operation for about 60 years. GenOn Holdings said Units 1, 2, and 3 at its Dickerson Generating Station will be closed due to “unfavorable economic conditions and increased costs associated with […]

  • Group Says It Will Launch World’s Largest Green Hydrogen Project

    Global energy company SGH2, part of Washington, D.C.-based Solena Group, said it has a deal with Lancaster, California, to build what the company calls the world’s biggest green hydrogen production plant, set to be in full operation in early 2023. The company on May 20 said the plant will feature SGH2’s technology that uses recycled […]

  • Construction Halted on 1-GW Polish Coal Plant

    Polish energy companies Enea and Energa late on May 19 announced they were ending their involvement with construction of the Ostroleka C coal-fired power plant, after new co-owner PKN Orlen said it would not be involved in the project if it utilizes coal. PKN Orlen, a Poland state-owned energy company that recently acquired Energa, said […]

  • Siemens Launches ‘Most Powerful’ HL-Class Gas Turbine

    Siemens on May 15 began moving what the company calls its “largest, most powerful, and most efficient heavy-duty gas turbine” from Germany to the UK, where the company will test the equipment for use in a combined cycle power plant. The SGT5-9000 HL turbine, built by Siemens Gas and Power in its Berlin factory, will […]

  • Analysts Say 594,300 Jobs in Clean Energy Lost to Pandemic

    Four groups analyzing data from the U.S. Dept. of Labor said more than half-a-million jobs in the clean energy sector were lost in March and April due to shutdowns caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The losses, representing about 18% of the industry’s total workforce, were detailed in a report released May 13. The groups said […]

  • GAS POWER Direct—May 13, 2020

    POWER Magazine   Jobs   White Papers  Webinars   Events   Store   May 13, 2020 Featured FERC Plans Discussion of COVID-19 Impacts The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is planning a technical conference this summer that would look at long-term impacts of the coronavirus pandemic on the energy industry. The discussion would…   Trump […]

  • Feds Approve Largest U.S. Solar Project

    A Nevada installation that would be the largest solar power project in U.S. history was approved by the U.S. Department of the Interior on May 11. The estimated $1 billion, 690-MW Gemini solar photovoltaic electric generating facility is sited on 7,000 acres about 30 miles northeast of Las Vegas. Interior Secretary David L. Bernhardt signed […]

  • U.S. Coal-Fired Generation at Lowest Level Since 1976

    U.S. coal-fired power generation last year was at its lowest level since 1976, according to data released May 11 by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). The EIA in its latest Short-Term Energy Outlook report said energy from renewable resources could this year for the first time surpass coal-fired generation in the U.S. The agency […]

  • FERC Plans Discussion of COVID-19 Impacts

    The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is planning a technical conference this summer that would look at long-term impacts of the coronavirus pandemic on the energy industry. The discussion would look at how the industry should approach investments and infrastructure development should the trend of lessening demand for electricity, and oil and gas, continue. Industry […]

  • North Dakota’s Largest Coal Plant Set to Close

    The largest coal-fired power plant in North Dakota is scheduled to close in 2022, with the Minnesota-based wholesale electric power cooperative that operates the facility saying the lost generation will be mostly replaced by wind power. Minnesota-based Great River Energy, which supplies electricity to the suburbs of Minneapolis and St. Paul, along with other parts […]

  • 150 Hours of Storage? Company Says That’s True to Form

    The Minnesota-based power cooperative that on May 7 said it would close a large Midwest coal-fired power plant also noted it has a contract with Form Energy, a Bill Gates-backed company that offers a long-duration energy storage solution, one that the group says could provide 150 hours of continuous power. Form Energy has been a […]

  • NARUC Report Focuses on DERs, Microgrids, and Grid Resilience

    The National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) has released a report focused on how distributed energy resources (DERs) and microgrids can improve the resilience of the power grid. The report, Advancing Electric System Resilience with Distributed Energy Resources: A Review of State Policies, is designed in part as a guide to help state regulators […]

  • Officials Levy $1.9 Billion Penalty For PG&E

    California officials on May 7 approved a $1.9-billion penalty against Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) for the company’s role in a series of wildfires that left more than 100 people dead and caused billions of dollars in damage in 2017 and 2018. The damage claims led PG&E to file for bankruptcy in January 2019. PG&E, […]

  • The POWER Interview: Utilities Find Opportunities in Distributed Energy

    The growth in renewable energy, along with new forms of power generation not dependent on transmission via the traditional grid, has created new business opportunities for both legacy generators and start-up power producers. BOND, a Massachusetts-based company founded in 1907, is today a fifth-generation construction management and civil and utility general contracting firm, providing services […]