Sonal Patel is a national award-winning multimedia journalist and senior editor at POWER magazine with nearly two decades of experience delivering technically rigorous reporting across power generation, transmission, distribution, policy, and infrastructure worldwide.
The Department of Energy (DOE) will tag $67 million of federal funds for 83 nuclear energy projects across the country in an effort to boost scientific breakthroughs. The agency said the awards announced on Aug. 20 would help provide “crucial funding” for research and development as well as for training and education of the country’s […]
Europe’s third-largest power provider last week revealed it may be forced to shut down more conventional power plants compromising a total of 1 GW and terminate 470 MW in supply contracts if market conditions in Germany do not improve. RWE has blamed “political intervention” for “making [its] business challenging”—and specifically, the subsidized expansion of renewables […]
The nation’s coal fleet is under threat, alleged Dr. Larry S. Monroe, chief environmental officer and senior vice president for research and environmental affairs with Southern Co. during the keynote plenary session at the Power Plant Pollutant Control “MEGA” Symposium on Aug. 19 in Baltimore, Md. Monroe was part of a four-member panel, which included […]
The Federal Regulatory Energy Commission (FERC) can mandate transmission provider participation in a regional planning process, a federal court has held. In a 97-page decision, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit on Aug. 15 rejected challenges to FERC Order No. 1000 and related orders. FERC’s landmark final transmission-planning […]
The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) is poised to decide on the fate of a coal-fired power plant in Tennessee. At its next meeting on Aug. 21, the TVA board will likely choose to retire three existing coal-fired units at the Allen Fossil Plant in Shelby County, Tenn., by December 2018 and replace them with a […]
NRG Energy is the latest company in a string of generators choosing to cease burning coal at generating units to comply with environmental rules. An environmental action plan to reduce air pollution in Illinois released by the New Jersey–based company on Aug. 7 proposes to retire the 251-MW coal-fired Unit 3 at the 761-MW […]
American Electric Power (AEP) has agreed to close a coal plant and make changes at two others to resolve alleged Clean Water Act (CWA) violations. According to consent decrees filed in two West Virginia federal district courts, the company on Friday agreed to settle allegations from numerous citizen groups that the coal-fired John E. Amos, Kammer, […]
A final rule governing continued storage of used nuclear fuel is expected from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) next month. NRC staff on July 24 submitted a draft final rule to replace the court-vacated 2010 “Waste Confidence Decision” and a supporting generic environmental impact statement to the commission for approval. The D.C. Circuit in June […]
A major environmental settlement will force Southern Co. to repower, convert to natural gas, or shutter several coal units in Mississippi and Alabama. The landmark settlement with the Sierra Club that ends a six-year-long battle over Mississippi Power’s Kemper County integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) project will reshape the Southern Co. subsidiary’s generation fleet so […]
A blaze engulfing the coal-fired Ferrybridge C power station in the UK’s West Yorkshire region is a “serious incident” that required 15 fire crews to quell it, plant owner SSE said on Thursday. The fire that broke out at about 2 p.m. and impacted Units 3 and 4 at the power station activated emergency response […]
The past week saw a flurry of Congressional hearings probing how the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) proposed carbon pollution rules will affect grid reliability and the economy. On Reliability The U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee on Tuesday summoned the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (FERC’s) four sitting commissioners and future chair Norman Bay to testify on […]
Per a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will no longer require Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) or Title V permits for large sources of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, Office of Air and Radiation head Janet McCabe told the agency’s 10 regional administrators in a July 24 memo. The memo outlines […]
The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) June 2–proposed carbon rule for existing power plants favors nuclear, renewable, and natural gas combined cycle sources, but it also grants coal-heavy states wide flexibility to meet carbon goals with continued coal use, EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy told lawmakers at a Senate oversight hearing on Wednesday. Six Democrats and six […]
Forced outages at Entergy’s two Indian Point nuclear units proposed by the New York Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) to protect fish are “unnecessary” and a “terrible idea,” a company official testified at a public hearing on Tuesday. The DEC has proposed Entergy shutter the two units for at least 42 outage days every summer […]
A standard to enhance physical security at critical power system facilities submitted by the North American Electric Reliability Corp. (NERC) will need modifications before it can be approved, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) said last week. FERC ordered NERC on March 7 to develop and submitnew reliability standards requiring owners and operators of the […]
Rep. Fred Upton (R-Mich.), chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, on Tuesday unveiled five pillars on which U.S. energy policy should be built and discussed how the nation should tackle climate risks and grid threats. The lawmaker told attendees at the Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2014 Energy Conference that the nation’s new era […]
Uncertainties about leadership at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) were resolved on Tuesday, as the U.S. Senate voted separately to confirm Norman Bay as chair and Cheryl LaFleur to a second term at the regulatory body. The Senate approved Bay’s nomination by a 52–45 vote, despite claims by Republicans and some Democrats who say […]
Optimism about U.S. energy security, which is rooted in the abundant supply of fossil fuels alone, is misplaced, Maria van der Hoeven, head of the International Energy Agency (IEA) told attendees at an energy conference in Washington, D.C., on Monday. The U.S. has seen a dramatic reversal in its energy fortunes over the past seven […]
Over the past week, the Department of Energy (DOE) made available $4 billion in additional loan guarantees for U.S. renewable energy and energy efficiency projects as it slashed application fees by more than a third for its $8 billion Advanced Fossil Energy Projects Loan Guarantee Solicitation. The agency on July 3 issued a loan solicitation to […]
The White House on Wednesday threatened to veto a proposed $34 billion House bill setting FY 2015 spending for the Department of Energy (DOE), the Department of Interior, and the Army Corps of Engineers, saying it “significantly underfunds” investments to develop clean energy technologies. The 2015 Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act (H.R. […]
Fourteen members of the World Trade Organization (WTO)—including the U.S., China, the European Union (EU), and Japan—on Tuesday launched negotiations to eliminate tariffs or custom duties on wind turbines, solar products, and other environmental goods. The first phase of negotiations between the 14 WTO members, which make up 86% of the global environmental goods trade, […]
The battle over Sunflower Electric Cooperative’s plans to build an 895-MW coal-fired power plant in Holcomb, Kan., returned to court on Friday. The Sierra Club, represented by Earthjustice, filed a lawsuit challenging a new air pollution permit recently issued by the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) to Sunflower to build its proposed Holcomb […]