Harriet Monroe, the founder and longtime editor of Poetry magazine, was the author of a large body of poems that captured the essence of urban industrial modernity. Her 1914 book, You and I ( Macmillan Company, New York), contains two poems about power generation. The first, “The Turbine,” is an engineer’s ode to his turbine. […]

February 14, 2019 California Governor Wants ‘Strike Team’ to Develop Utility Plan California Governor Gavin Newsom on February 12 said the state has formed a “strike team” as it works to develop plans to help not only utility ratepayers but also utility… Read More TVA Mulls Coal Plant Closures, Trump Urges Board to Consider All […]

Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems (MHPS) appears to have snagged the lead in an intensifying competition in a mostly flat market for heavy-duty gas turbines of above 100 MW, but GE retained its lead both for overall installed gas turbine capacity and units in 2018, a much-watched industry ranking suggests. Data from McCoy Power Reports’ latest […]

Pennsylvania, the nation’s second-largest nuclear power-producing state, is now definitively a battleground for nuclear power subsidies.  Last week, in two memos that were circulated in the state House and Senate, seven lawmakers signaled they would soon introduce legislation that would update a 2004 state law—the Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards (AEPS)—to include nuclear power. The law […]

February 7, 2019 Financial and Gas Turbine Blade Troubles Plague GE Power GE Power’s financials spun out further on a dismal trajectory during the fourth quarter of 2018, plagued by slack market demand for products and services, technical glitches of a flagship… Read More Decarbonization, Electrification Key Among 8 Priorities for U.S. Investor-Owned Power Companies  […]

GE Power’s financials spun out further on a dismal trajectory during the fourth quarter of 2018, plagued by slack market demand for products and services, technical glitches of a flagship gas turbine model, and poor project execution. Despite a series of divestments and corporate reshuffles, including of leadership, for the 12 months that ended on […]

In line with customer preferences, U.S. investor-owned electric companies are heavily invested in decarbonization and electrification, the Edison Electric Institute (EEI) told Wall Street analysts and bankers on Feb. 6. In its annual presentation to potential investors and industry observers, the trade association that represents U.S. investor-owned electric companies lamented a number of uncertainties affecting […]

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) want to explore how federal and state authorities could incentivize cybersecurity and physical security in the power and natural gas sectors. The agencies issued a notice on Feb. 4 announcing they would jointly hold a technical conference on Thursday, March 28, 2019, from […]

Behind the digital tools that make the industrial internet of things (IIOT) in the power generation and chemical process industries are people. The upcoming Connected Plant Conference—Feb. 19–21, 2019, in Charlotte, North Carolina—will recognize the achievements of 11 individuals and companies who are fast risers in the field. Through insight and experience, these “Game Changer” champions […]

Interest in hydrogen-powered fuel cells for transportation and machinery applications appears to have kicked up of late, with several companies announcing major developments. Hydrogen Batteries for Spanish Port. The Port of Valencia in Spain in January said it is readying to implement a planned €4 million pilot project to power container-manipulating machinery with hydrogen batteries. The […]

January 31, 2019 Colstrip Power Plant Threatened by Westmoreland Bankruptcy The Colstrip Power Plant, a four-unit, 2,094-MW coal-fired station located about 100 miles east of Billings, Montana, could see its coal supply contract nullified as a result of Westmoreland Coal… Read More Sponsored Content Piping Solutions Using Non-Welded Connections For hydropower and dams, welding has […]

Brutally cold temperatures in the midwestern and northeastern U.S. spurred grid operator alerts as natural gas demand has surged, power prices have soared, and there have been forced generator outages.  The polar vortex, an extreme cold event characterized by back-to-back cold fronts, has so far prompted states of emergency in Wisconsin, Illinois, and Michigan. On […]

GE has announced it will integrate its renewables, grid, and energy storage assets into a simplified, single business that nearly doubles the size of its Renewable Energy division, as the company banks on the accelerated uptake of grid-connected renewables worldwide.  The expansion will see GE’s grid solutions, solar solutions, and storage businesses move from GE […]

A final rule the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) plans to publish this spring to replace pivotal actions it issued after the Fukushima accident will require U.S. nuclear generators to ensure they can mitigate severe events at reactors within a two-year compliance timeframe. More than three years after it was proposed, the NRC’s five commissioners on […]

January 24, 2019 PG&E: Judge’s Proposal Could Cost Utility $150 Billion Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) on Jan. 23 said a federal judge’s proposal that the utility mitigate fire danger in its service territory by trimming trees, along with inspecting and… Read More Sponsored Content On February 19-21, the 3rd Annual Connected Plant Conference will […]

Power companies worldwide are struggling to balance talent shortages with changing skills needed for an increasingly digitalized business, the newly released Global Energy Talent Index (GETI) suggests.  The Jan. 22–released annual energy recruitment and employment trends report by Airswift, a global energy workforce provider, and Energy Jobline, an online jobsite dedicated to the energy and […]

Hydro One, Ontario’s largest transmission and distribution provider, and Spokane, Washington–based U.S. utility Avista Corp., have dropped their merger, citing separate denials of the $5.3 billion deal by regulators in Washington and Idaho. The companies said on Jan. 23 they “mutually agreed” to terminate a merger agreement they announced in July 2017. As required by […]

January 24, 2019 PG&E Says It Will File Chapter 11 Bankruptcy California utility PG&E Corp. on Jan. 14 gave its workers the state-required 15-day advance notice of its intent to file a Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The company on Monday said its… Read More Sponsored Content On February 19-21, the 3rd Annual Connected Plant Conference will […]

GE on Jan. 16 announced testing details of its giant 12-MW Haliade-X offshore wind turbine prototype. On the same day, Siemens Gamesa launched its first 10-MW offshore wind turbine model. The developments point to intensifying competition within the surging offshore wind turbine market.  GE’s 12-MW Offshore Wind Turbine Blusters Toward Commercialization GE Renewable Energy’s Haliade-X 12 […]

January 10, 2019 Governor to TVA: Keep Paradise Coal Unit Open In a letter addressed to Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) CEO Bill Johnson, Kentucky Gov. Matthew G. Bevin said it “would be a huge mistake” to permanently shut down Paradise Unit… Read More Sponsored Content Get Started with Digital Transformation at the 3rd Annual Connected […]

To propel interest and bolster development of advanced nuclear reactor designs, the Department of Energy (DOE) will demonstrate—by October 2020—the production of high assay low enriched uranium (HALEU) fuel in a first-of-its-kind $115 million project at the agency’s uranium enrichment facility in Piketon, Ohio.  HALEU is nuclear fuel that is enriched to a higher degree […]

Operators of the Columbia Generating Station have set a new generation record at the nuclear plant 12 miles north of Richland, Wash., sending more than 9.7 million MWh to the Pacific Northwest power grid during 2018.  The single 1,207-MW single GE-built Mark-2 boiling water reactor that is owned and operated by Energy Northwest—which comprises 26 […]

While the Republican-led U.S. House and Senate in the 115th Congress was mainly focused on reviewing, for modification or repeal, several environmental rules issued under the Clean Air Act (CAA), the new Democrat majority in the House could focus on a slew of different measures, a new report from the Congressional Research Service (CRS) suggests.  […]

January 3, 2019 EPA: Mercury Rules for Coal, Oil Power Units Not ‘Appropriate and Necessary’ Because compliance costs to coal- and oil-fired power plants for the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS) far exceed quantifiable benefits to regulating hazardous air pollutant (HAP) emissions, the Trump… Read More Growth in Renewables Continues Despite Drop in UK […]

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) wants to use two of 12 modules at the NuScale small modular reactor (SMR) plant that Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems intends to build at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL).  One module will be used strictly for research, development, and demonstration activities under the newly launched Joint Use Modular […]

According to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), the nation’s 99 operating nuclear reactors operated at an average capacity factor of 88% in 2017—the same as in 2016—despite market forces that have rendered several units uneconomical. Figures for 2018 are expected in 2019 and may look different. Oyster Creek Nuclear Station, for example, was permanently closed […]

Because compliance costs to coal- and oil-fired power plants for the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS) far exceed quantifiable benefits to regulating hazardous air pollutant (HAP) emissions, the Trump administration has proposed it is not “appropriate and necessary” to regulate HAP emissions from power plants under Section 112 of the Clean Air Act (CAA), […]

December 20, 2018 Hitachi Acquires ABB Power Grids Business in $11 Billion Deal Hitachi Ltd. and ABB on December 17 announced that Hitachi will acquire 80.1% of ABB's Power Grids unit in an $11 billion deal. Reports of the possible acquisition surfaced December… Read More Sponsored Content GE's H-class turbines are spinning the industry forward […]

December 27, 2018 NV Energy Accelerates Retirement of One of Nevada’s Last Coal Units NV Energy plans to retire a 254-MW coal-fired unit in a power-constrained region of Nevada at the end of 2021, four years ahead of schedule. The company will instead purchase… Read More Sponsored Content GE's H-class turbines are spinning the industry […]

Despite higher taxable income and pressure on balance sheets, capital spending by regulated utilities will remain elevated—and much of it will be dedicated to replacing aging infrastructure, hardening or efficiency-boosting measures, and on renewables and environmental projects, said Moody’s Investors Service in a recent sectoral briefing.  The credit ratings agency for the first time this […]