Full Coverage
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Solar
Space-Based Solar Power May Be Closer Than You Think
The vision sounds far-fetched: If a kilometer-scale satellite could be outfitted with a hybrid array of photovoltaic (PV) and concentrating solar power (CSP) panels and launched into orbit 22,400 miles above
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Hydrogen
Power Event Attendees Welcome the In-Person Experience
POWER hosted Experience POWER, the Distributed Energy Conference, and HydrogeNext at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center in San Antonio, Texas, October 18–21, 2021. The events were well-received by
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Coal
The Convoluted Tale of U.S. Coal Ash Management
Sometime around midnight on Dec. 22, 2008, a dike at the coal ash dewatering pond for the Tennessee Valley Authority’s (TVA’s) 1,400-MW Kingston power plant in Roane County, Tennessee, failed. That led to what has been reported as the largest industrial spill in U.S. history. TVA and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) initially estimated […]
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Coal
Unit Flexibility and Asset Optimization: Helping Coal-Fired Power Plants Survive in a Renewables-Driven Market
Many coal-fired power plants are being asked to ramp output up and down regularly, and often to levels less than units were originally designed to operate at. Implementing a Unit Flexibility and Asset
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Connected Plant
Build for Today, Design for Tomorrow: Five Things to Look for in an Intelligent Remote Monitoring Solution
Today’s electric power grids are evolving at an alarming pace. Distributed energy resources are quickly taking the place of central power stations, making grid operators’ jobs of managing power flows in
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IIOT
How to Manage Cyber Risk as Grid Modernization Efforts Intensify
A survey of chief information security officers revealed great insight on cyber risks and perceived vulnerabilities. While some insiders may think working hand-in-hand with government agencies to develop sound
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Nuclear
DOE Revives Consent-Based Siting Process for Commercial Spent Nuclear Fuel Disposal
Potentially jumpstarting long-paralyzed efforts to address the federal management of spent nuclear fuel (SNF), the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) on Nov. 30 issued a request for information (RFI) that could determine where the agency will temporarily consolidate and store spent fuel from nuclear reactors across the nation. Under the RFI, the DOE is seeking […]
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Energy Storage
California 3,200-MWh CAES Project Proposed for Grid Stability After Diablo Canyon Nuclear Plant Retires
Hydrostor, developer of a 400-MW, 8-hour long-duration advanced compressed air energy storage (A-CAES) facility, has filed an application for certification (AFC) with the California Energy Commission (CEC) for its first project in the state, envisioning its commercial operation as early as 2026. If the 3,200-MWh Pecho Energy Storage Center is built as planned in San […]
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Full Coverage
NERC Issues Grim Outlook for Bulk Power System Winter Reliability
The North American Electric Reliability Corp. (NERC) is warning that much of the central U.S.—a region that stretches from the Great Lakes into southern Texas—may face critical power deficiencies during extreme winter weather conditions over the next three months. Natural gas supply disruptions and low hydropower conditions could also imperil power reliability in New England […]
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Nuclear
Coal Plant Site Unveiled for 500-MW Natrium Advanced Nuclear Pilot
A site at PacifiCorp’s retiring 600-MW coal and gas–fired Naughton Power Plant in Kemmerer, Wyoming, will house the Natrium demonstration, a pioneering commercial-scale 500-MW project that will pair a 345-MW sodium-cooled fast reactor with a molten salt-based energy storage system. Project stakeholders on Nov. 16 unveiled the site for the federally backed demonstration, which will validate […]
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News
Thorium-Fueled Reactors Offer Huge Potential Benefits for the Nuclear Power Industry
Nuclear power opponents often point to radioactive waste as one of their main concerns. However, most people don’t realize that problems associated with long-lived waste can actually be solved in an economic way with technology that’s already well-proven. Long-lived actinides can be “burned” in a thorium molten salt reactor (MSR), or a breeder reactor. They […]
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Offshore Wind
Dominion Estimates $10B Installation Cost for 2.6-GW Virginia Offshore Wind Farm
Dominion Energy is revving up its efforts to build the 2.6-GW Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) commercial project before 2027 to meet state requirements, it said in a detailed filing for the $9.8 billion project submitted to the Virginia State Corporation Commission (SCC) on Nov. 5. CVOW, which will be sited on a federal lease […]
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POWER Podcasts
The POWER Podcast Archive Vol. 4
The POWER Podcast is available through Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, YouTube Music, Amazon Music, iHeart, TuneIn, SoundCloud, and some other podcast apps. Follow the links below to subscribe via your favorite platform: Apple Podcasts Spotify YouTube YouTube Music Amazon Music iHeart TuneIn SoundCloud The POWER Podcast Archive (Jan. 27, 2021 – Nov. 4, 2021) How […]
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T&D
How to Get Up to 40% More Capacity from Existing Power Grid Transmission Lines
Experts claim power grid infrastructure needs to be upgraded to accommodate the vast amount of renewable energy expected to be added to the system in coming decades. That could require billions of dollars in investments, millions of hours of planning and permitting work, and years of construction in the field. Another option that could help […]
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Solar
Status of Solar Power Adoption in India from an EPC’s Perspective
Solar power has emerged as one of the most promising solutions to the world’s energy problems, enabling countries to find the proper balance between energy security, economic progress, and environmental sustainability. Solar photovoltaic (PV) technology, which began as an experimental method of energy production by Bell Labs in 1954, is now poised to change the […]
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News
Quick-Mounted Lightweight Tower for Emergency Work on Power Lines
We have all experienced power outages; accidents, alas, do happen. The length of time it takes to restore the power supply always comes to the fore, because in addition to the millions of dollars in potential losses for the industry, a prolonged outage can have social consequences, especially if homes, schools, hospitals, and other vital […]
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International
How an AP1000 Plant Is Changing the Nuclear Power Paradigm Through District Heating, Desalination
Already remarkable for being the world’s second Westinghouse AP1000 reactor to be brought online, Shandong Nuclear Power Co.’s Haiyang nuclear power plant is pioneering two significant aspects of nuclear
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Nuclear
A Newcomer to Nuclear Power, UAE Has Showcase Facility in Barakah
Creating a nuclear power program in a country that is new to the industry requires a lot of work, but it helps to have some experienced support. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) found good partners and put in
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IIOT Power
A New Frontier: Quantum Computing in the Power Sector
Digitalization, driven by big data, the industrial internet of things (IIOT), and even artificial intelligence (AI), has made its mark on the power industry, allowing for greater transparency into operations
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News
Ensuring Power Grid Health Through Better Asset Management
The power sector has been evolving for years and technology has been instrumental in the change. Today, asset performance management and predictive maintenance tools can help power companies avoid outages
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Solar
How Different Power Grid Operators Are Approaching Renewable-Storage Hybrid Participation
Pairing renewable resources with energy storage systems makes a lot of sense. However, grid operators are still developing frameworks for handling these hybrid projects but they may need to be treated
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Biomass
Development of a Digital Twin for the Atikokan Station
A digital twin designed for the Atikokan biomass power plant uses science-based Bayesian machine learning methods combined with surrogate models developed from a suite of validated, multi-physics simulations
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O&M
Combating Varnish in Turbines: A Two-Step Solution
As operational conditions continue to evolve and change with power generation, so does the degree of complexity within those systems, becoming a common pain point for plant managers that requires rigorous
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Finance
Standardized Documents and Solid Partners Make Financing Less Stressful for Project Developers
Many small- and medium-sized power projects are simply not large enough to gain the interest of highly sought-after institutional investors. The complexity and related costs of smaller projects means risks and
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Hydrogen
Hydropower: A Cost-Effective Source of Energy for Hydrogen Production
With more countries announcing net-zero plans for 2050 or sooner, hydrogen’s time has come to play a major and integrated role in our energy infrastructure. The energy industry has shown an increased interest in understanding the opportunities, challenges, and economic realities in integrating hydrogen into their energy portfolios. The March 2020 BloombergNEF Hydrogen outlook estimates […]
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Hydrogen
Ready for the Energy Transition: Hydrogen Considerations for Combined Cycle Power Plants
Following the European Green Deal, the European Union has set the objective to become climate-neutral by 2050, much like the U.S. and many other countries that joined the Paris Agreement. To meet this goal, greenhouse gas emissions cannot exceed capture and storage, meaning that fossil fuels will unavoidably need to be phased out. In power […]
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News
AEP Will Shed Kentucky Operations in $2.9B Sale
American Electric Power (AEP) is shedding its Kentucky-based assets—including its longstanding regulated utility Kentucky Power and transmission business AEP Kentucky Transco—to better position itself to invest in projects that will support a resilient, cleaner energy system. The Columbus, Ohio, headquartered company on Oct. 26 announced it has entered into an agreement for the sale of […]
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Gas
The POWER Interview: Pioneering STEP Supercritical Carbon Dioxide Demonstration Readying for 2022 Commissioning
Construction of the 10-MWe Supercritical Transformational Electric Power (STEP) pilot plant, a public-private collaboration to demonstrate and test supercritical carbon dioxide (sCO2) power generating technology, is making marked progress toward a mid-2022 startup date. Attendees from Experience POWER, HydrogeNext, and the Distributed Energy Conference, three of POWER’s annual in-person events, which took place last week in […]
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Gas
Texas-Based Utility Teams Up with Mitsubishi Power to Explore Carbon Reduction Opportunities
El Paso Electric (EPE) and Mitsubishi Power have signed a joint development agreement (JDA) “creating a collaboration framework to jointly develop projects that will enable EPE to achieve its clean energy goals.” EPE is a regional electric utility providing generation, transmission, and distribution service to approximately 444,300 retail and wholesale customers in a 10,000-square-mile area […]
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Hydrogen
Power-to-Power Hydrogen Demonstration Involving Largest U.S. Nuclear Plant Gets Federal Funding
Palo Verde Generating Station, a 4-GW nuclear power plant in Arizona, is gearing up to produce hydrogen from a low-temperature electrolysis (LTE) system, and that hydrogen will then be used to fuel a natural gas–fired power plant owned by Arizona Public Service (APS). The innovative power-to-power demonstration led by PNW Hydrogen is set to receive […]