International

  • Battery research group heralds 100th global member

    Global battery research group, the Consortium for Battery Innovation, is celebrating its 100th member company, Surrette Battery Company, a north American battery manufacturer providing batteries for a range of applications, including renewable energy storage for remote wind and solar farms. Surrette, based in Springhill, Nova Scotia in Canada produces deep cycle lead batteries under the […]

  • A Decade of Turmoil: How Nuclear and Coal Have Struggled to Survive

    The past 10 years have been filled with trials and tribulations for both the nuclear and coal power industries. From accidents to plant closures there has been little to cheer about. Still, nuclear and coal power continue to provide reliable baseload generation to billions of customers around the globe. Here’s a look back at the […]

  • THE BIG PICTURE [Infographic]: Solar’s Explosive Growth

    According to the International Energy Agency’s (IEA’s) World Energy Outlook 2019, solar photovoltaic (PV) is set to become the largest source of installed electrical capacity in about 2035, if countries pursue policies as planned. By 2040, solar could make up 24% of global installed capacity—up from 7% in 2018—but its share of generation could hover […]

  • 10 Power Sector Insights from the IEA’s World Energy Outlook 2019

    The International Energy Agency’s (IEA’s) November 2019–released World Energy Outlook 2019 (WEO2019) is studded with interesting findings about emerging trends in the power sector. Here are 10 from the

  • U.S. Company Has Deal with Jordan for Nuclear Technology

    There have long been grand plans for developing nuclear power in the Middle East. After Iran brought the Bushehr plant online in 2011, the country talked of building another dozen or so reactors. Saudi Arabia

  • Obrador Administration Rolling Back Energy Reform in Mexico

    The future of energy in Mexico is being shaped by the administration of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, who wants state-owned energy companies to have more influence over the country’s power

  • Power Industry Disrupters: Gas, Renewables, and Storage

    The power industry is experiencing significant changes. Natural gas, wind, solar, and battery storage seem to be the wave of the future. What’s compelling the transformation? Some people point to

  • Transformative Coal Power Technologies Take Shape

    The coal power industry acknowledges that to play a stable role in future power markets, it needs to modernize, and perhaps even overhaul its long-held status as a “conventional generator.” Could new

  • Innovation Propels Nuclear Power on New Trajectory

    Innovation is ushering in a new age for nuclear power. As well as boosting plant economics, efficiency, and flexibility, advanced technologies could open up new markets to meet soaring demand for heat and

  • Water Chemistry: Power Plant Life and Death

    Power plants that use steam to generate electricity need water. Without it, they can’t do their job. But water and steam are complicated, much as is blood in our veins and arteries. So, water chemistry is a

  • Hydraulic Stability of Surge Tanks

    When needed, surge tanks can provide a critical feature to the hydraulic design of hydropower projects. Principally, they can mitigate the overpressure effects of pressure transients or water hammer and allow

  • Optimizing Power Plant Decisions with 5G Technology

    The power industry is always looking for ways to improve efficiency and enhance reliability. 5G, that is, fifth-generation wireless technology, may help utilities reach new heights. Every day, we learn a

  • Why America Must Let Go of Coal and Avoid Renewable Subsidies

    The 2019 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP25), held in December in Madrid, Spain, showcased politicians and activists vying for the title of the world’s climate savior. In particular, youth

  • Is Hydrogen the Power Industry’s Holy Grail?

    Some power industry insiders believe hydrogen offers a solution to large-scale energy storage problems. The concept generally revolves around utilizing electricity generated by renewables when supply is high

  • Why the 2010s Were a Definitive Decade for Power

    Every one of the 13 decades that POWER magazine has been in print has been definitive for electric generation technology, policy, and business in some significant way, but few have been as transformative as the 2010s. The decade opened just as the global economy began to crawl toward recovery from a historically unprecedented downturn that […]

  • UAE Set to Start First Nuclear Plant; Sweden, Germany Shut Units

    The first nuclear power plant in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) reportedly will come online in early 2020. The report comes one day after Sweden on Dec. 30 shut down one of four reactors at the nation’s largest nuclear plant, closing Unit 2 at the Ringhals facility after more than 40 years of operation. Germany […]

  • Top 6 Nuclear Power Achievements of 2019

    The past year has been filled with firsts for the nuclear power industry. Three power plants sporting first-of-a-kind reactors entered commercial operation, while the first U.S. AP1000 nuclear project reached key milestones on its path to completion. Furthermore, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) granted the first early site permit for a utility to construct […]

  • Switzerland Closes One of World’s Oldest Nuclear Plants

    Switzerland on Dec. 20 shut down one of the world’s oldest nuclear power plants, as part of its plan to shutter all its reactors by 2050. Muehleberg Nuclear Power Plant, the smallest of the country’s four remaining plants, began operating in 1972. The 355-MW facility operated by Bernische Kraftwerke AG (BKW) and majority-owned by the […]

  • Successfully empowering professionals with sought-after welding qualifications through Work-Based Learning (WBL) opportunities

    The WoW project has proven the concept effectiveness and developed a practical guide to assist other training centers on their initiatives to better leverage Vocational Education and Training (VET) for businesses Porto Salvo, 20 December 2019 – As materials and technologies quickly evolve, welders are required to step up their skillset, as they must perform […]

  • The POWER Interview: NCC Group on Cybersecurity

    Reliability and resiliency are buzzwords in today’s world of power generation. The focus is often on valuing those attributes, be it through subsidizing baseload power to make it more economically viable, or through other means. Reliable delivery of electricity, of course, also depends on cyber-resilient systems, at power plants and across the grid. Cyberattacks against […]

  • GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy Completes Reactor Decommissioning Project in Sweden

    WILMINGTON, North Carolina (December 18, 2019) —GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy (GEH) announced today that it has completed its work supporting the decommissioning of the Oskarshamn Nuclear Power Plant (OKG) in Oskarshamn Municipality in Sweden. GEH recently completed the segmentation of reactor internals at OKG Unit 1. The company’s work at the Oskarshamn site began in […]

  • Nuvera Breaks Ground on Automated Fuel Cell Production Facility in China

    Billerica, Massachusetts, December 18, 2019 — Nuvera Fuel Cells, LLC, a provider of fuel cell power solutions for motive applications, is pleased to announce construction of a fuel cell stack production line in the Hangzhou district government of Fuyang, China. A ground-breaking ceremony was held on Dec. 17, 2019 attended by Lucien Robroek, CEO and Jon […]

  • RED WING TRADESWOMAN BOOT: DESIGNED BY WOMEN FOR WOMEN

    Tradeswoman offers women in the trades enhanced comfort and fit RED WING, Minn. (Dec. 19, 2019) — Red Wing Shoe Company has unveiled the Tradeswoman (models 2328, 2329, 2345, 2346), a new work boot designed for women in the trades, available now. Designed for women in construction, light manufacturing and warehouse or distribution industries, Tradeswoman work […]

  • NERC: Long-Term Reliability Uncertain Amid Rapid Changes to Bulk Power System

    Significant and rapid changes that are reshaping North America’s power sector will likely leave Texas and Ontario, Canada, with supply shortfalls over the next decade, and energy deficiencies could also occur during off-peak conditions in the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) area and the Western Electricity Coordinating Council (WECC) region, the North American Electric Reliability […]

  • Subsidy-Free Onshore Wind Farm Will Host First Siemens Gamesa 5-MW Turbines

    Three first-of-their-kind Siemens Gamesa 5-MW wind turbines will be installed on the island of Thyholm in Denmark at a project that will be operated without subsidies. The company announced on Dec. 19 it has entered into a contract with Torp Vind I/S for the delivery of three SG 5.0-132 models for the 15-MW Torp Vindmoellepark […]

  • New Siemens Gamesa wind turbine debuts in Denmark

    Siemens Gamesa has entered into a contract with Torp Vind I/S for the delivery of three wind turbines of the new SG 5.0-132 model for Torp Vindmoellepark in the municipality of Struer. The three wind turbines will be the first in the world of their kind to be installed. Torp Vindmoellepark will have a total […]

  • 547 Energy in Partnership with ENORA S.A. Secures 135 MW of Wind Energy Projects in Greece

    HOUSTON, Dec. 19, 2019 — 547 Energy, LLC (547 Energy), the clean energy platform of Quantum Energy Partners, today announced that its affiliate, 547 Energy International European Holdings, LLC, has, in partnership with ENORA S.A. (ENORA), been awarded by the Regulatory Authority for Energy (RAE) in Greece four 20-year power purchase agreements for 135 megawatts […]

  • Hitachi Exiting MHPS; MHI Will be Venture’s Sole Owner

    Japanese technology conglomerate Hitachi will withdraw from Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems (MHPS), a joint venture it established in 2014 with another power equipment giant, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI), over a dispute stemming from construction of two massive defect-ridden coal plants in South Africa. Under a Dec. 18-announced settlement reached by MHI and Hitachi, Hitachi will […]

  • Canadian Company Has Funding for Fusion Demonstration Plant

    A Canada-based company that wants to commercialize nuclear fusion technology announced Dec. 16 that it raised more than $100 million in its latest round of financing, doubling its financial support. General Fusion, headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia, is backed by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. The company, which includes investors Bezos Expeditions and Chrysalix Venture Capital, […]

  • EU Finalizes ‘Green Deal’ for Clean Energy Investment

    The European Union (EU) on Dec. 16 announced an agreement among its member states on rules involving the financing of green energy projects. Lawmakers approved a list of technologies and activities that can be classified as green, after disagreement about whether nuclear energy and natural gas should be included. The so-called “Green Deal” is a […]