Hydro

  • Transmission for Transition: Solving the South African Energy Crisis Through Logistics

    South Africa is in the midst of an energy crisis characterized by electricity shortages, blackouts, and lack of new infrastructure investment. Eskom, the state-owned utility supplying more than 90% of the nation’s electricity, has suffered from operational failures, maintenance issues, and breakdowns at aging, poorly maintained power stations, leading to steady declines in the energy […]

  • POWER and Enverus Partner on New Power Industry Data and Insights Tool

    Power industry professionals searching for valuable data and insights on U.S. power plants will find a wealth of information in the POWER Plant ID (Intelligence Database) research tool. Data available includes plant locations, capacities, generation types, ownership breakdown, production history, emissions data, and more.   HOUSTON/AUSTIN, Texas (July 18, 2023) — POWER, the leading power […]

  • Watertight AUMA actuators for underwater hydro turbine control

    An AUMA electric actuation solution ensures high-precision guide vane adjustment for a fully-submersible hydro turbine from Natel Energy at the Sauerbrunn hydropower plant near Graz, Austria, thus helping to boost green energy. California-based turbine manufacturer Natel Energy required an actuator that could operate continuously underwater, provide accurate positioning to optimally control the water supply to […]

  • Integration of Hydropower and Hydrogen Gains Momentum

    In May, U.S. national laboratories Idaho National Laboratory (INL) and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) partnered with regulated utility Idaho Power to determine the viability of integrating

  • Digitalization Is Now a Power Sector Imperative: Takeaways from Connected Plant Conference 2023

    Digitalization is now so firmly embedded in the power sector that if participants haven’t yet begun their digital journey, they’ve inherently fallen behind. That was a message repeated at the three-day 7th annual Connected Plant Conference (CPC), which took place this week in New Orleans, Louisiana. POWER magazine and Chemical Engineering magazine’s conference this year […]

  • First Phase of 100-GW China Hydro/Solar Project Enters Service

    Chinese officials on June 25 said the first phase of what is considered the world’s largest combined hydro and solar power plant has entered commercial operation. The Kela hydro/solar plant, part of an ambitious project anchored by the Lianghekou Hydropower Station on the Yalong River, is located in Yaijiang County in southwest China’s Sichuan Province. […]

  • Devastating Ukraine Dam Breach Raises Concerns for Nearby Nuclear Plant

    A breach at the Nova Kakhovka Dam stemming from the destruction of the 351-MW hydroelectric power plant in southern Ukraine on June 6 has triggered massive flooding, prompted an environmental crisis, and raised new perils for a nearby nuclear plant on the frontlines of the Russia-Ukraine war. Completed in 1956, the Kakhovka hydropower power plant […]

  • Westinghouse, Fortum to Study Possibilities for AP1000, AP300 Nuclear Reactors in Finland and Sweden 

    Westinghouse Electric and Finnish utility Fortum will cooperate to explore developing and deploying AP1000 and AP300 reactor projects in Finland and Sweden.  The companies on June 7 signed memoranda of understanding (MOUs) to establish a framework of collaboration “for detailed technical and commercial discussions and explore cooperation on the next steps” to implement Westinghouse’s advanced […]

  • POWER Digest [June 2023]

    KEPCO Wants to Extend Operations of Two Reactors. Japanese utility Kansai Electric Power Co. (KEPCO) in April asked Japan’s Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) for permission to extend the lifespan of Units 3

  • Hydro, Gas Projects Aim to Bolster Cameroon’s Electricity Supply

    A new hydroelectric dam in Cameroon is expected to begin producing power by the end of this year, with commercial operation beginning in 2024, according to an official with the African Development Bank (AfDB). Rokhaya Diop Diallo, who leads the project for AfDB, recently said work on the Nachtigal hydropower station is more than 80% […]

  • Our Carbon-Neutral Future Demands Disparate Renewable Energy Technologies

    Our global marketplace is certainly a competitive one but there is no reason why renewable energy technologies, whether they emanate from energy metals including lithium, uranium, zinc, cobalt, etc., or from the sun and wind or hydropower, should be competing for market dominance. Why shouldn’t renewable energy technologies compete for market dominance in the manner […]

  • Utilizing Data Is Key for Top Grid, Power Plant Performance

    The wealth of data available for today’s power generators is supporting more efficient electricity production, and more reliability and resiliency for the grid. There are many reasons utilities and power

  • POWER Digest [May 2023]

    European Grid Operator Secures 22 GW of HVDC Projects. European transmission system operator (TSO) TenneT will lead a charge to install 11 2-GW high-voltage direct current (HVDC) systems by 2031. A long-term

  • Winter Demand for Coal, Gas Falls Across EU Despite Energy Concerns

    An analysis from an energy research group shows European Union (EU) countries burned less coal and natural gas for power generation than in prior years, despite an ongoing energy crisis driven by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. A study from Ember, a think-tank based in the UK, said coal-fired generation in the EU dropped 27 TWh […]

  • FirstLight Power and H2O Power Announce Completion of Planned Integration

    BURLINGTON, Mass. and OSHAWA, Ontario – April 11, 2023 – FirstLight Power, a leading clean power producer, developer, and energy storage company, today announced the company completed the planned integration of H2O Power, the third largest provider of hydroelectric power in Ontario. As the majority owner of over 150 Megawatts (MW) of generating capacity with […]

  • POWER Digest [April 2023]

    New Natural Gas–Fired Plant Approved for Philippines. San Miguel Consolidated Power Corp. (SMCPC), a wholly owned subsidiary of SMC Global Power Holdings Corp., said it received environmental approval to

  • Henry Ford, J.P. Morgan, and FDR: Big Players in U.S. Hydropower History

    When you study the history of hydropower, you expect to learn about people like British-American engineer James Francis, who developed the first modern hydro turbine in 1849. A testament to his genius is that the Francis turbine continues to be the most widely used water turbine in the world today. Or you assume American inventor […]

  • New Coal-Fired Unit Operating at Zimbabwe’s Largest Thermal Power Plant

    The first of two 300-MW units being built as part of the expansion of a coal-fired generating station in Zimbabwe has come online. The Zimbabwe Power Co. (ZPC) said the unit began sending electricity to the national grid late on March 20. ZPC in a statement said, “Power will be progressively fed into the grid […]

  • Voith Hydro and STRUCINSPECT advance monitoring of hydropower civil structures

    Voith Hydro and STRUCINSPECT advance monitoring of hydropower civil structures Strong partnership between experienced equipment supplier and successful corporate start-up from Austria. Digital inspections lead to state-of-the-art digital infrastructure and lifecycle management. First hydropower facility monitoring currently underway in Scotland. HEIDENHEIM/VIENNA. Hydropower is the world’s largest source of renewable energy. In order to make the […]

  • Voith Hydro opens new center of competence for generator components

    Portfolio covers bars, coils, and poles for hydropower generators. Located in central Europe the sate-of-the art facility supplies Voith Hydro’s African and European markets as well as the Americas. Local officials and company representatives inaugurated the new generator component hub by the end of last year. LUKAVAC, BOSNIA AND HERCEGOVINA. Voith Hydro officially opened the […]

  • Trial Operation of Innovative Horizontal Pelton Hydropower Turbine Underway in Austria

    A pioneering horizontal, six-nozzle Pelton turbine developed by Voith Hydro at the 326-GWh Gerlos 1 pumped storage facility in the Ziller Valley, Austria, is setting new benchmarks for the 140-year-old

  • South Africa Energy Crisis at Critical Stage as Load-Shedding Continues

    The energy crisis in South Africa has prompted continued calls for government action, and officials in January said an energy action plan announced last year is starting to be implemented. The plan was laid

  • POWER Digest [March 2023]

    Pakistan Begins Commercial Operation of 1.3-GW Coal Plant. Pakistan on Feb. 7 began commercial operation of a 1.3-GW coal-fired power plant in the Thar Desert in Sindh province, southern Pakistan. The project

  • Madagascar Ready to Ramp Up Hydropower Projects

    Madagascar has significant hydropower potential, but to date less than 20% of the country’s energy comes from hydroelectric facilities. The Economic Development Agency of Madagascar (EDBM) estimates the island nation, located in the Indian Ocean off the cost of Southeast Africa, could produce as much as 7.8 GW of power from hydro resources, but at […]

  • IRENA Says Hydropower Capacity Must Double by 2050 to Meet Climate Goals

    A new report issued this week by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) says hydropower, which is already the largest source of renewable electricity in the world, must double in capacity if the world is to meet the climate goals outlined in the Paris Agreement by 2050. The report says installed hydro capacity must reach […]

  • The Big Picture: Off-Grid Power [Infographic]

    An estimated 91% of the world’s population had access to electricity in 2020, marking substantial progress toward goals to ensure universal access to power. Still, according to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), 733 million people remain unserved. Off-grid and decentralized energy systems may be emerging as an alternative to facilitate energy access and resilience, […]

  • POWER Digest [February 2023]

    Geothermal Plant Planned in Colombia. Colombian petroleum company Ecopetrol in December announced plans to build a 250-kW geothermal power plant in the Apiay oil complex in Meta, Colombia. The power plant will

  • Peninsula Clean Energy Signs Four Contracts Expanding Renewable Power, Storage Capability

    REDWOOD CITY, CA – Jan. 24, 2023 – Peninsula Clean Energy is moving forward with energy storage, geothermal, wind and small hydropower projects that will assist the agency’s industry leading effort to provide customers with renewable power on an hourly basis. Nova III will be Peninsula Clean Energy’s first stand-alone storage project and will provide […]

  • Grid Infrastructure and Renewable Energy Projects Thrive, Workforce and Supply Chain Issues Continue in 2023

    The Inflation Reduction Act will spur growth in clean energy and upgrades to grid infrastructure, but workforce shortages and supply chain constraints are likely to challenge power companies for at least the

  • 10 Near-Term Global Power Sector Trends

    While 2021 provided its own share of extraordinary energy debacles, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in early 2022 cascaded into full-blown energy turmoil. This year will begin with the world “in the midst of