Environmental

  • Headway for Potential Deployment of BWRX-300 Nuclear Reactor in Saskatchewan

    The potential deployment of a BWRX-300 small modular reactor (SMR) in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan gained a boost with a cooperation agreement between GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy’s (GEH’s) Canadian subsidiary GEH SMR Technologies Canada and the Saskatchewan Industrial and Mining Supplier’s Association (SIMSA). GEH SMR Canada on May 26 said a memorandum of understanding […]

  • Honeywell Introduces Emissions Control & Reduction Initiative to Support Customers’ Sustainability Goals

    Initial offering to focus on the detection and reporting of fugitive methane emissions to help users reduce production losses, improve productivity and comply with ongoing legislation  ORLANDO, Florida, May 24, 2022 – Honeywell (NASDAQ: HON) today announced an Emissions Control & Reduction Initiative designed to help customers achieve carbon neutrality in a wide range of areas. […]

  • SRP Warns Arizona Regulator Reliability at Risk by 2024 Without Gas Plant Expansion

    Salt River Project Agricultural Improvement and Power District (SRP) is seeking a rehearing and reconsideration of the Arizona Corporation Commission’s (ACC’s) denial of a major gas power plant expansion, which the public power utility has stressed will be crucial for near-term system reliability and long-term renewable integration.  In a filing on May 16, SRP urged […]

  • Carbon America to Construct, Own and Operate the First Two Commercial Carbon Capture and Sequestration Projects in Colorado

    ARVADA, STERLING, and YUMA, Colo. (May 12, 2022) – Carbon America, the first vertically integrated carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) super developer, announced today two agreements with Sterling Ethanol, LLC and Yuma Ethanol, LLC to develop CCS projects at two Colorado ethanol production facilities that will capture and store 95 percent of the carbon dioxide […]

  • Keeping Coal Relevant: University of Wyoming Leads the Way

    To say the coal industry faces challenges is an understatement. Coal-fired power plants are being retired around the globe as efforts to decarbonize the world’s power supply have intensified due to climate change concerns. That’s a problem for people working in the coal industry, as well as for states and governments that rely on coal […]

  • History of Power: Duke Energy’s Century-Old Legacy

    Duke Energy, one of the largest energy companies in the world, grew out of a system of lakes and dams along the Catawba River to generate power for the Piedmont Carolinas. While the company has sustained a

  • UK Leans Heavily on Nuclear in Bold New Energy Strategy

    A long-awaited energy strategy published by the UK government on April 6 lays out bold commitments that tackle Great Britain’s multi-pronged challenges, including achieving net-zero carbon emissions while

  • Natural Gas Bans Expensive, and Would Impact Electric Grid Reliability

    Major cities including San Francisco, Seattle, Denver, and New York have either enacted or proposed measures to ban or discourage the use of natural gas in new homes and buildings, just a few years after

  • Electrification Is the Sustainable Choice, but the Transition Is Not Just Technical

    Energy powers everything we do. Where and how we create it—and how we store and distribute it—is constantly evolving. One of the most likely evolutions is electrification, which promises to have a huge

  • INL Mulling Building New Nuclear Reactor to Energize Net-Zero Campus Microgrid

    Idaho National Laboratory (INL) is exploring designing, building, and operating an onsite nuclear reactor resource as part of a broader effort to achieve net-zero emissions at its sprawling campus in Idaho Falls by 2031. Battelle Energy Alliance (BEA), an entity that manages and operates the Department of Energy (DOE) national laboratory, on April 29 launched […]

  • Understanding Climate Change Risks Associated with the Power Generation Industry

    Increased temperatures, precipitation, sea level, as well as the frequency and severity of extreme events, will inevitably have an impact on the amount of energy generated, transported, and consumed in the U.S. Climate change is increasing dangers to human health and safety, quality of life, and the rate of economic growth, introducing new risks and […]

  • ACES Delta’s Giant Utah Salt Cavern Hydrogen Storage Project Gets $504M Conditional DOE Loan Guarantee

    The Advanced Clean Energy Storage Project, a much-watched project under development in Delta, Utah, that is shaping up to be the largest renewable hydrogen energy hub in the U.S., has garnered a conditional commitment for a $504.4 million loan guarantee from the Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) federal loan guarantee program. The conditional loan guarantee commitment […]

  • DOE Poised to Issue Guidance Document for Civil Nuclear Credit Program

    The Department of Energy (DOE) will next week kick off its much-watched $6 billion Civil Nuclear Credit (CNC) program to bolster the existing U.S. nuclear fleet by issuing a guidance document that will set down criteria for a combined certification and a sealed bid auction process. The agency said in an April 6 update the […]

  • EPA Proposes Tighter Controls on NOx Emissions from Power Plants, Industrial Sources

    A sweeping new proposed rule published in the Federal Register by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on April 6 establishes new nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions budgets that will require fossil fuel–fired power plants in 25 states to participate in an allowance-based ozone season trading program starting in 2023. The proposal, which builds on the agency’s […]

  • Arizona Regulator Rejects SRP’s 820-MW Aeroderivative Gas-Fired Expansion

    The Arizona Corporate Commission (ACC) has delivered a major blow to the Salt River Project Agricultural Improvement and Power District’s (SRP’s) urgent plans to expand the 575-MW gas-fired Coolidge Generating Station with 820 MW of fast-start capacity. The ACC in a 4–1 vote on April 12 denied approval of the public power utility’s Certificate of […]

  • The POWER Interview: How Gas Power Can Reap Value from Digitalization

    Digitalization is furnishing nearly every facet of the power industry with new insights that promise value for generating assets, including refining efficiencies and shaving down operating costs. But though myriad solutions have been introduced, adoption by some power sub-sectors has been cautious, mainly because the advantages of the industrial internet of things (IIOT) are not […]

  • Major Wind Power Producer Sentenced in Wind Farm Eagle Deaths

    A Wyoming court on April 5 sentenced NextEra Energy Resources affiliate ESI Energy to five years of probation and fined the wind power developer more than $8 million for three counts of violating the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA). The violations include alleged failures to apply for “eagle take permits” (ETPs) at facilities in Wyoming […]

  • SCOTUS Reinstates Trump-Era Environmental Certification Rule

    The U.S. Supreme Court on April 6 reinstated a Trump-era environmental rule that limited state and tribal roles in enforcing a section of the Clean Water Act (CWA) related to project certification. The order is a temporary triumph for eight states and three energy trade associations, including the National Hydropower Association (NHA). The high court’s […]

  • Wood launches next generation of hydrogen production technology

    Wood, the global consulting and engineering company, has unveiled its new steam methane reforming (SMR) technology, which can achieve 95% CO2 emissions reduction, compared to a traditional hydrogen production plant. The technology aims to counter inefficiencies in energy, heat production and industrial processes, which together account for more than half of all global greenhouse gas […]

  • Optical Continuous Emissions Monitoring for Combustion Turbine Systems

    Natural gas electrical generation has increased significantly in recent years due to its cost advantage and reduced carbon footprint relative to coal. Many utilities are shifting to natural gas as a bridge fuel on their path to the ultimate goal of a net-zero carbon future. With the increase in gas-fired generation, the evaluation and demonstration […]

  • Fueling a Cleaner Future with a Hydrogen-First Economy: The New Green Energy Disrupting Power Distribution Companies

    Today, hydrogen is experiencing unprecedented demand. Its potential to become a key facilitator of a global transition to a net-zero emission economy, and provide a clean energy solution, has not gone unnoticed by industries worldwide—especially in the energy, utilities, and resources sector. But introducing a hydrogen-powered energy economy is no light decision, it will affect […]

  • SEC’s Landmark Climate Disclosure Rule Weighing on Power Sector

    Investor-owned electric companies are thoroughly reviewing the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC’s) broad new proposed rule that requires registrants to disclose climate-related risks and governance, and plan to remain engaged with the regulatory agency as the rulemaking continues. The proposed rule, which the SEC approved 3–1 on March 21, has drawn intense interest from the […]

  • New Jersey’s Last Two Coal Power Plants to Close within Months

    The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) approved a petition filed by Atlantic City Electric Co. (ACE) that modifies power purchase agreements (PPAs) and power sales agreements (PSAs) between ACE and Chambers Cogeneration Ltd. and Logan Generating Co., the last two coal-fired electricity generation units in New Jersey. Under the agreements, coal-fired generation will […]

  • How Ammonia Could Help the World Transition to Clean Energy

    Hydrogen is widely seen as a vital component in efforts to decarbonize the world’s power supply. One example of this is a strategy being piloted by at least a couple of major gas turbine manufacturers, which involves storing “green hydrogen” produced through electrolysis using excess wind or solar power when renewable energy supplies exceed grid […]

  • Fish Travel from Santee River to Lake Marion for the First Time in 80 Years

    Electric Power Research Institute, Santee Cooper and Whooshh Innovations conduct field study of fish passage portal. PINEVILLE, S.C. – For more than 80 years, the Santee Spillway has helped control water flow between Lake Marion and the Santee River, but it has also blocked the migration of fish swimming upstream to spawn.  Now, a new […]

  • DOE Funds New Program to Recycle Used Nuclear Fuel, GE Conducting Innovative Related Research

    The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced this week that it would provide up to $48 million for a new Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) program that could substantially reduce the disposal impact of used nuclear fuel (UNF). The program, dubbed CURIE (Converting UNF Radioisotopes Into Energy), is intended to support “a comprehensive national strategy […]

  • NRC Dramatically Reconsiders SLR Approvals, Sets New Conditions for Nuclear Life Extensions

    The Nuclear Regulatory Commission  (NRC) in a dramatic reversal on Feb. 24 threw out a key environmental review that staff applied to subsequent license renewal (SLR) approvals for units at Turkey Point and Peach Bottom nuclear plants in 2019 and 2020, deeming their applications “incomplete.” In a series of orders, the federal regulatory agency’s three […]

  • Charah Solutions Places Final 20% of All Real Property Acreage at Former TMPA Gibbons Creek Steam Electric Station Under Contract

    In Less than One Year Since Acquisition, Environmental Risk Transfer Services Leader Has Successfully Executed Contracts for the Sale of 100% of Real Property Acreage and Demolition of Power Plant; Remediation of Existing Ash Ponds and Landfills Underway Proven Environmental Risk Transfer Services Model Benefits Utility Partners, Shareholders, Local Communities and the Environment LOUISVILLE, KY […]

  • New Realms for Gas Power Technology

    Gas power technology developers are exploring new roles and applications to ensure gas power will remain relevant as power markets embrace decarbonization. At the end of 2020, about 1,600 GW of gas turbines

  • Sweden’s Government Approves Construction of Spent Nuclear Fuel Repository 

    Sweden’s government in late January gave radioactive waste management company Svensk Kärnbränslehantering AB (SKB) the green light to proceed with a deep geological repository (DGR) for spent nuclear fuel (SNF) at a site near Vattenfall’s 3.2-GW Forsmark nuclear power plant. The milestone, which wraps up a planning process that has taken more than 40 years, makes Sweden only the second country, after Finland, to take active steps on building a permanent SNF repository.