Markets

NuScale Power has signed a definitive commercial agreement with mining and processing firm KGHM Polska Miedź S.A. to deploy a VOYGR power plant of up to 924 MWe as early as 2029 to support KGHM’s copper and silver production in Poland. Under an “early works agreement” signed in a ceremony on Feb. 14 in the […]

Parts of Texas have suffered localized, distribution-level power outages as an Arctic outbreak sent temperatures plummeting across the state, but its heavily scrutinized grid is largely prepared to weather the storm, state entities said. Frigid temperatures stemming from a large dome of Arctic high pressure are sending temperatures into the single digits and below zero […]

In February 2021, a severe cold weather event, known as Winter Storm Uri, caused numerous power outages, derates, or failures to start at electric generating plants scattered across Texas and the south-central U.S. The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), which manages the power supply for about 90% of the load in Texas, ordered a […]

The Biden administration has made clear its intention to promote the transition to clean energy, setting ambitious goals like carbon neutrality for the power sector by 2035 and for the entire country by 2050. A critical step toward these goals was congressional passage of the $1 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), which President […]

GE’s first earnings release after the American conglomerate last November announced it would combine and spin-off its Renewable Energy, Power, and Digital business suggests flagging orders for onshore and offshore wind equipment and gas turbines amid a business environment wrought with uncertainty. GE on Jan. 25 reported revenues of $15.7 billion for its Renewable Energy business, […]

Two Vistra Corp. subsidiaries have alleged in a complaint filed with the Texas Railroad Commission that a major pipeline firm has threatened to terminate natural gas service to five Texas gas-fired power plants—a combined 2 GW—“at any time” after Jan. 23. If escalated, the issue could pose new hurdles for the state’s electricity security as […]

Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) efforts are factoring into merger and acquisition (M&A) deal activity within the power and utilities sector across North America, according to a report issued by PwC, a professional services firm serving the “Trust Solutions and Consulting Solutions” segments. “As policies are clarified and ESG strategies are strengthened, broad investor interest […]

New distributed energy resources (DERs) are being added to the power grid every day. However, DERs don’t automatically provide owners with the greatest value possible. In many cases, that requires the help of an aggregator, that is, a company that specializes in managing DERs owned by a pool of clients and optimizing performance of the […]

Ethiopia is reportedly gearing up to begin testing hydropower generation at its flagship 5.2-GW Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), despite a continued diplomatic row about its potential implications on water consumption on the Blue Nile. Citing unnamed project sources, Capital, a weekly Ethiopian business newspaper, reported this week that work to begin test power generation […]

A leaked draft of the European Commission’s proposal to label some natural gas and nuclear power plants as “transitional” or “green” investments has prompted pushback from some European Union (EU) members. Criticism is also mounting in South Korea, where liquefied natural gas (LNG) was included in its new green taxonomy guidelines—but nuclear was left out. […]

The fog of uncertainty that hangs over the global power industry is getting larger and denser as generating companies and utilities navigate ever more complex challenges.

While 2021 kicked off short on optimism given chaos from the COVID-19 pandemic, the year was characterized by an extraordinary series of critical energy crises. Power blackouts, brownouts, interconnection mismatches, severe fuel shortages, and near-misses affected nearly every region in the world. Here’s a brief look back at some of the events that characterized 2021. […]

It’s been another news-filled year in the power industry. The following stories were the top 10 traffic-getters posted in 2021 on POWER’s website. Did you see them all as they were released? 10. Mitsubishi Power Developing 100% Ammonia-Capable Gas Turbine Mitsubishi Power is developing a 40-MW class gas turbine that can directly combust 100% ammonia […]

If you’ve paid attention to the cleantech news cycle this year, you know it’s been a roller-coaster ride. I’ve been in the cleantech/energy transition sector for 20 years and wrote the first history on the term cleantech 15 years ago. I’ve seen the many ups and downs surrounding the industry. Today’s current playing field is […]

New England faces a precarious fuel supply risk that could necessitate emergency actions if a severe prolonged cold snap hits the region this winter, ISO New England (ISO-NE) has warned.  The regional grid operator expects power demand will peak at 19,710 MW during average winter weather conditions of 10F, but if temperatures plunge below 5F, […]

Reliability Imperative efforts key to addressing the needs of the future CARMEL, Ind. — Today, the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) published Markets of the Future: A Reliability Imperative Report focused on redefining markets to meet changing needs posed by the evolving resource mix. The report is intended to illuminate a pathway for our existing […]

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 […]

I have long been a supporter of nuclear power. I’ll admit I’m biased, having spent 13 years in the U.S. Navy’s nuclear power program and having worked for several more years in the commercial nuclear

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

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

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 […]

The seven major organized electricity markets scattered across the U.S. account for roughly two-thirds of all power generated in the country. Most of these markets are made up of Independent System Operators (ISOs) and Regional Transmission Organizations (RTOs) that were created more than twenty years ago. The primary mission of the markets is to neutrally […]

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 […]

Consumers today want their utilities to provide an experience like any other service provider, offering the same control and transparency. User-friendly smart meter technology has allowed consumers to play a bigger role in managing their energy usage and cost. But to give customers true command of their energy consumption, the industry needs distributed intelligence technology. […]

Ten years ago, the energy market was based around the conventional, centralized generation of oil and coal plants. It was predictable and formulaic. These staples of yesterday’s energy market are no longer the future of energy generation. Instead, we see a global push toward clean energy with wind and solar power, and companies are accelerating […]

The Energy Information Administration’s (EIA’s) June 2021 electric generator inventory suggests 260 battery energy storage systems (BESSs) are now operational in the U.S., representing a total nameplate capacity of 2,673 MW. Another 12,914 MW from 212 BESS projects are in various stages of planning or construction, with more than 10 GW readying to begin operations […]

China’s tightening coal supplies, more stringent energy intensity and environmental restrictions, and soaring industrial power demand have triggered another widespread power crisis. Blackouts and brownouts have reportedly afflicted numerous provincial jurisdictions across the economic powerhouse this week, most prominently in Guangdong in the south, and Heilongjiang, Jilin, and Liaoning in the northeast, according to state-run […]

Pennsylvania, a major power producer that relied on fossil fuels for 66% of its net power generation in June, plans to maintain its nuclear generation at current levels until it can ramp up other carbon-free supplies to 100% by 2050, the state’s Sept. 22–released 2021 Climate Action Plan suggests.  The measures are part of a […]

Partners developing the 800-MW Vineyard Wind 1 offshore wind farm have announced they will swap assets jointly owned by their 50/50 Vineyard Wind joint venture to allow each party to focus on its separate expansion within the burgeoning U.S. offshore wind industry once the 800-MW Vineyard Wind 1 offshore wind farm is operational. The Vineyard […]