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Solar
Major Solar Tracker Technology Deal as Kinematics Completes Acquisition of P4Q
Kinematics, an Arizona-headquartered global group focused on intelligent motion control, said it has completed its acquisition of P4Q. Kinematics on Feb. 4 said it will now integrate P4Q’s high-performance electronics portfolio—which includes more than 1 million solar controllers deployed across 2,400 solar sites globally—with Kinematics’ installed base of 2.9 million solar actuators (Figure 1). The […]
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Legislative
Oil and Gas Exec Wright Confirmed to Lead DOE
The U.S. Senate in a 59-38 vote has confirmed Colorado-based oil and gas executive Chris Wright as secretary of the Dept. of Energy (DOE). Seven Democrats, including both Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper from Wright’s home state, crossed party lines and voted with Republicans on Feb. 3 to confirm Wright. Angus King, the independent from […]
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Coal
Xcel Says Coal-Fired Texas Plant’s Conversion to Natural Gas Nearly Complete
Xcel Energy said the company’s coal-fired Harrington Generating Station in Amarillo, Texas should fully complete its transition to burning natural gas in May. Harrington, whose three units have 1,018 MW of generation capacity, was Xcel’s first coal-fired power plant in Texas. It came online in 1976. The utility in 2020 made the decision to convert […]
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Nuclear
CORE POWER Hires Engineering Firm to Support Floating Nuclear Power Plants
Shipping nuclear propulsion start-up CORE POWER, which in November of last year announced a deal with Westinghouse for design and development of floating nuclear power plants (FNPPs), has hired an architectural and marine engineering firm to help design FNPPs that could provide energy for operations at U.S. shipping ports. Glosten, with offices in Seattle, Washington, […]
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Solar
Lightsource bp Brings 288-MW Solar Portfolio in Texas Online
Lightsource bp announced two solar power projects in Texas with a combined 288 MW of generation capacity are now online, pushing the company’s operational fleet in that state to more than 1 GW of power production. The company on Jan. 31 said the 163-MW Starr Solar project in Starr County, along with the 125-MW Second […]
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Renewables
Solar Trade Group’s Plan: 700 GWh of Energy Storage by 2030
The Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) published a white paper outlining the industry group’s vision for U.S. energy storage, setting a target to install 10 million distributed energy storage sites and reach 700 kWh of installed storage capacity the end of the decade. The white paper, released Jan. 28 along with a guide to energy […]
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Commentary
DeepSeek Sparks Demand Debate, While Chevron Plans Gas-Fired Plants for Data Centers
The debate over just how much power will be needed to support the artificial intelligence (AI) industry became heated when a Chinese company said it has a low-cost AI model that could upend the sector’s energy needs. DeepSeek created a global stir after releasing information that said the company’s DeepSeek-V3 required less than $6 million […]
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Data Centers
India Energy Group Plans ‘World’s Largest’ Data Center
India’s government is pledging billions in financial support for the country’s ambitions around artificial intelligence (AI), and a Mumbai-headquartered energy group has said it plans to build what it calls the “world’s largest” data center in Jamnagar. Reliance Industries, led by Mukesh Ambani, a billionaire and the company’s chairman, already has a partnership with California-based […]
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Coal
Coal Continues to Lead China’s Record Levels of Power Generation
China’s thermal power generation reached a record high in 2024, primarily due to the country’s coal-fired power plants, even as the country continues to add renewable energy resources to its power grid. Data from China’s National Bureau of Statistics showed electricity production from the country’s coal, oil, natural gas, and nuclear power sectors increased 1.5% […]
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Data Centers
Bill Gates’ TerraPower Has Deal to Use Nuclear Power for Data Centers
TerraPower, the nuclear energy company founded by former Microsoft CEO and co-founder Bill Gates, announced it has a memorandum of understanding with a major U.S. data center developer to deploy advanced nuclear reactors to power existing and future facilities. TerraPower on Jan. 21 said it will work with Sabey Data Centers (SDC) on “a strategic […]
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Solar
UK IPP Acquires Two U.S. Solar Farms Built by Qcells
A UK-based independent power producer (IPP) has acquired solar power projects in Virginia and Colorado, both secured with utility power purchase agreements. ContourGlobal, headquartered in London, on Jan. 21 announced the acquisition of the two solar farms, one nearing commercial operation and the other still under construction. ContourGlobal acquired the projects from Qcells, a South […]
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Gas
Mitsubishi Completes Second Unit of 1.4-GW Gas-Fired Plant in Thailand
Mitsubishi Power announced it has completed construction of a 1.4-GW natural gas-fired combined-cycle power plant in Thailand, with the second unit of the two-unit station now in commercial operation. The company, a subsidiary of Japan’s Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, said the Hin Kong power plant is a joint venture between the RATCH Group and Gulf Energy […]
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RENEWABLE POWER Direct—January 22, 2025
POWER Magazine Jobs White Papers Webinars Events Store January 22, 2025 Google Signs PPAs for Energy From Oklahoma Solar Projects Google has entered into long-term power purchase agreements (PPAs) with Texas-based Leeward Renewable Energy (LRE) to support more than 700 MW of solar power projects in Oklahoma. Google on Jan.… […]
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HYDROGEN POWER Direct—January 21, 2025
POWER Magazine Jobs White Papers Webinars Events Store January 21, 2025 Plug Power Gets $1.7 Billion Loan Guarantee From DOE to Produce Hydrogen Fuel The U.S. Dept. of Energy (DOE) has continued to announce billions of dollars of loan guarantees to energy companies in the final days of the Biden […]
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Renewables
Google Signs PPAs for Energy From Oklahoma Solar Projects
Google has entered into long-term power purchase agreements (PPAs) with Texas-based Leeward Renewable Energy (LRE) to support more than 700 MW of solar power projects in Oklahoma. Google on Jan. 16 said, “the projects are strategically located to support our data center operations,” noting that one installation is “located less than one mile from our […]
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Hydrogen
Plug Power Gets $1.7 Billion Loan Guarantee From DOE to Produce Hydrogen Fuel
The U.S. Dept. of Energy (DOE) has continued to announce billions of dollars of loan guarantees to energy companies in the final days of the Biden administration, including for upgrades to energy infrastructure. The DOE’s Loan Programs Office (LPO) on Jab. 16 said it had given a $1.66 billion loan guarantee to Plug Power’s subsidiary, […]
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Legislative
Biden’s DOE Finalizes $15 Billion Loan Guarantee to California’s PG&E
The Biden administration has finalized a $15 billion loan guarantee to California utility Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E), in the biggest outlay to a single group in the history of the Dept. of Energy’s (DOE) Loan Programs Office (LPO). The Jan. 17 announcement comes one day after the outgoing administration said it would provide nearly […]
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Hydrogen
GE Vernova Validates 100% Hydrogen-Fueled DLN Combustor Technology
GE Vernova said it has completed a validation test series for its advanced Dry Low NOx (DLN) hydrogen combustion technology, designed for the company’s B- and E-class gas turbines. The group on Jan. 15 said the test campaign was conducted at GE Vernova’s Global Technology Center in Greenville, South Carolina. The testing phase “demonstrated successful […]
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Power
Constellation Seeking Permit for Small Modular Reactor at Nine Mile Point
Constellation Energy said the company is applying for federal funding as it evaluates whether to put one or more small modular nuclear reactors (SMRs) at its Nine Mile Point nuclear power plant in New York. Constellation in a news release on Jan. 15 said the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) has […]
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Workforce
BP Cutting Thousands of Jobs in Effort to Reduce Costs
UK energy giant BP said it will cut more than 5% of its global workforce, as the company continues a plan to reduce costs as it transitions to more operations outside of its oil and gas business. The London-based multinational group on Jan. 16 said it would lay off about 4,700 workers, and also cut […]
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Renewables
Prevalon Will Provide Second Energy Storage System for Idaho Power
A Florida-based battery energy storage provider is teaming with Idaho’s largest electric utility for a 200-MW/800-MWh battery energy storage system (BESS) project designed to support grid resiliency. Prevalon Energy, a Mitsubishi Power Americas and EES joint venture, on Jan. 14 announced it had secured a contract with Idaho Power for the project, which will feature […]
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GAS POWER Direct—January 15, 2025
POWER Magazine Jobs White Papers Webinars Events Store January 15, 2025 First of Several LNG-Fueled Power Plants Comes Online in Vietnam PetroVietnam Power (PV Power), a subsidiary of state-owned PetroVietnam, said it has started initial operation of the first of two 812-MW LNG-fired units at its Nhon Trach power plant, […]
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Gas
First of Several LNG-Fueled Power Plants Comes Online in Vietnam
PetroVietnam Power (PV Power), a subsidiary of state-owned PetroVietnam, said it has started initial operation of the first of two 812-MW LNG-fired units at its Nhon Trach power plant, located in Dong Nai province, near Ho Chi Minh City in southern Vietnam. The project is part of the first power plant in Vietnam to be […]
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Nuclear
Estonia Choosing Site for Nuclear Power Plant with GE Hitachi Reactors
Estonia energy company Fermi Energia has begun the site selection process for that country’s first nuclear power plant, more than a decade after government officials initially approved construction of a reactor. Fermi Energia on Jan. 14 announced the company has submitted an application to the Estonian Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications to begin the […]
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Solar
Shell Group Company Starts Solar Farm at Former Kentucky Coal Mine
A 111-MW solar power facility built on reclaimed land at a former coal mine site in Kentucky has entered commercial operation. The Martin County Solar Project (MCSP), developed, built, owned and operated by Savion—a Shell Group portfolio company—is now among the largest solar farms in the state and also one of the first U.S. solar […]
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Gas
2-GW Gas-Fired Plant With GE Vernova Turbines Now Online in China
GE Vernova and Harbin Electric said a 2-GW natural gas-fired power plant has entered commercial operation in China, providing power to that country’s most-populated province. The companies on Jan. 9 announced the start of operation of the Guangming power plant, owned and operated by Chinese state-owned power utility Shenzhen Energy Group Corp. The plant, located […]
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Data Centers
Virginia Officials Oppose Construction of Data Center Complex with Gas-Fired Power Plants
A planning commission in a Virginia county has voted unanimously to recommend denial of a rezoning application from Balico LLC, an industrial developer seeking to build multiple natural gas-fired generation units as part of a large data center campus. The Pittsylvania County planning commission voted Jan. 7 to deny Virginia-based Balico permission to proceed with […]
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Solar
BLM Approves 600-MW Jove Solar Project in Arizona
The U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announced the agency has approved the 600-MW Jove Solar Project, sited on about 3,500 acres of land in La Paz County, Arizona. The solar farm would be among the top five largest solar energy projects in the U.S., based on those currently in operation. The BLM Jan. 6 […]
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Data Centers
Generational Shift—Data Centers Bring Change to Energy Landscape
Deals involving the data center sector are occurring regularly, as tech companies make moves to ensure they have a reliable supply of power for their energy-intensive operations. Several generation types, both thermal and renewable, are being touted and pursued by groups involved with artificial intelligence (AI), data management, and cloud computing. Google, Microsoft, Amazon Web […]
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Gas
Officials Approve Duke Energy’s Plan to Replace Coal with Gas-Fired Units
Regulators in North Carolina have approved Duke Energy’s plan to replace some of the utility’s coal-fired units with natural gas-fired generation. The North Carolina Utilities Commission in December issued orders in support of the gas-fired units. The state’s Dept. of Environmental Quality (DEQ) on Dec. 20 granted air permits for the gas-fired plants. Duke plans […]