News

  • PG&E Pleads Guilty in 84 Wildfire Deaths

    Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) has pleaded guilty to 84 counts of involuntary manslaughter for its role in a 2018 wildfire considered the most devastating in California history. The Camp Fire, which began when a transmission line broke from an aged PG&E tower, destroyed the town of Paradise. The utility on Tuesday acknowledged its negligence […]

  • Vectren Will Close Coal Units, Add Renewables

    Vectren Corp., the electric utility that serves much of southern Indiana, has announced a plan to shutter its remaining coal-fired power plants and transition to renewable energy. The utility also said it would add gas-fired generation to back up those renewable resources. Vectren’s June 15 announcement comes about two years after Northern Indiana Public Service […]

  • OPG Becomes First Utility to Snag Ownership Stake in Nuclear Microreactor Project

    Marking the first time a utility has taken an ownership stake in a small modular reactor (SMR) project, Ontario Power Generation (OPG) formed a joint venture with Seattle-based Ultra Safe Nuclear Corp. (USNC) to build, own, and operate a proposed Micro Modular Reactor (MMR) demonstration at the Chalk River Laboratories (CRL) site in Ontario, Canada.  […]

  • UK Energy Giant Will Cut 5,000 Jobs

    Centrica, the major UK utility and the biggest supplier of energy to British homes, on June 11 said it would cut 5,000 jobs as part of a cost-cutting effort. CEO Chris O’Shea, who took over the company three months ago, said he also wants to simplify the utility’s business model. The company Thursday said the […]

  • Hydrogen May Be a Lifeline for Nuclear—But It Won’t Be Easy

    Four U.S. nuclear generators—Energy Harbor, Xcel Energy, Exelon, and Arizona Public Service (APS)—are making headway on projects to demonstrate hydrogen production at nuclear plants, but scaling those efforts up to net new end-users and sources of revenue is still ridden with hurdles, company officials said in a panel discussion at the American Nuclear Society’s (ANS’s) […]

  • Developers Make Progress on Solar-Powered Hydrogen Projects

    Two projects focused on solar-powered hydrogen production made notable steps forward recently. One project, supported by Ricardo plc and the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC), will investigate “using existing solar capacity to produce hydrogen as an alternative to high-carbon fossil fuels.” While the other, developed by HyperSolar Inc., will begin the manufacturing process for its […]

  • The Importance of a Resilient Power System

    It’s hurricane season in the U.S., which runs from June 1 through the end of November, and there have already been three named storms. The most recent was Tropical Storm Christobal, which was the earliest third-named Atlantic storm on record when it formed on June 2. It made landfall in the U.S. along the northern […]

  • Siemens HVDC power bridge will connect Crete with mainland Greece

    • Attica-Crete interconnection will ensure a more secure power supply and increase integration of renewable energy • HVDC project will reduce half a million tons of CO2 emissions in first year of operation • Total order volume for Siemens-led consortium €370 million A consortium led by Siemens Gas and Power (Siemens Energy) has been awarded […]

  • Alabama PSC Backs Plan for New Gas Generation

    Alabama Power’s plan to add about 2 GW of natural gas-fired power generation capacity to its portfolio was approved by the state’s Public Service Commission (PSC) on June 9. The PSC also supported the utility’s request to acquire 240 MW of gas-fired generation under a long-term power purchase agreement (PPA) that should begin this year, […]

  • PPL Group LLC (“PPL”) to Sell New, Nuclear Grade Equipment from Savannah River Nuclear Solutions, LLC’s Cancelled MOX Project

    NORTHBROOK, Ill., June 10, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — PPL Group, a premier buyer and seller of industrial machinery and equipment, is selling surplus assets from the Savannah River Site that are currently located at a property storage location in Barnwell, South Carolina. In partnership with AW Properties Global and Liquidity Services, Inc., PPL will sell approximately 450,000 […]

  • GE Hitachi Awarded Long-Term Outage Services Contract by TVO

    WILMINGTON, NC—June 10, 2020—Teollisuuden Voima Oyj (TVO) has awarded a contract to GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy (GEH) to provide outage services for the Olkiluoto Nuclear Power Plant in Eurajoki, Finland. GEH will provide control rod drive mechanism exchange services for Olkiluoto units 1 and 2 for the remainder of the plant’s operating license. The first […]

  • Radix Develops Artificial Intelligence Tool to Improve Control Room Management and Operations for ISA CTEEP

    June 9, 2020—Houston, Texas – Radix Engineering and Software today announced that ISA CTEEP, one of the main private electric power transmission concessionaires in Brazil, will rely on an Artificial Intelligence (AI) toolset created by Radix to improve its services. The objective is to improve decision-making and implement best practices that provide a comprehensive and […]

  • Another Court Challenge for Nuclear Waste Storage Site

    Another legal challenge has been filed against the ongoing effort to build a storage site for U.S. nuclear waste in the New Mexico desert. Beyond Nuclear, among the environmental and other groups opposed to the project that would be built by Holtec International, on June 4 filed a petition for review in the U.S. Court […]

  • Conduct RATA Tests Faster and Comply with Regulations Using ESC | Spectrum’s New RATAView™ Software

    AUSTIN, TX, June 9, 2020; ESC | Spectrum, the leading provider of CEMS Data Acquisition Software (DAS) and services, is excited to announce the launch of its newest solution: RATAView. RATAView is a subscription-based software that helps stack testers perform RATA tests accurately and efficiently to meet complex regulations and comply with 40 CFR Parts […]

  • SNC-Lavalin awarded inspection contracts for Cernavoda Unit 1 during 2020 outage

    MONTREAL: June 9, 2020 – SNC-Lavalin (TSX:SNC) is pleased to announce its wholly-owned subsidiary Candu Energy Inc., was awarded two contracts by Societatea Nationala Nuclearelectrica S.A. (SNN). The contracts are for fuel channel and feeder assembly inspections on the Cernavoda Unit 1 CANDU® nuclear reactor during the 2020 outage. These contract wins are aligned with […]

  • Siemens to supply high-voltage equipment for major offshore wind project in the U.S.

    • Siemens will provide main equipment for an electrical service platform for wind power project • Mayflower Wind developing a lease area with capacity of up to 1.6 gigawatts of renewable energy • Electricity for up to 680,000 U.S. households Siemens has been awarded an order from Danish customer Semco Maritime to provide the main […]

  • Senior Exec Will Plead Guilty to Fraud in Abandoned Nuclear Project

    The man considered second-in-command at the former SCANA Corp. has agreed to plead guilty to criminal conspiracy fraud charges stemming from his role in the failed V.C. Summer nuclear power plant construction project. Stephen A. Byrne, SCANA’s former chief operating officer, will plead guilty for his alleged criminal actions, according to a document filed June […]

  • Vogtle Project ‘Highly Unlikely’ to Meet Deadlines

    An official monitoring the progress of the Vogtle nuclear expansion project in Georgia said in testimony filed June 5 with the state’s Public Service Commission that the two new reactors are “highly unlikely” to meet state-approved deadlines, and also will probably have additional cost overruns. The expansion project involves construction of two, 1,100-MW AP1000 reactors […]

  • Using Geospatial Data to Strengthen the Grid Against Extreme Weather

    Extreme weather events are hitting more often and harder than ever before, and storm-hardening regulations are prompting utilities to strengthen the electrical grid to withstand storm-force winds. As part of this effort, leading utilities are using drone-based data collection and analysis to assess how their electrical grids can withstand Mother Nature’s punishment. Aerial robotics and […]

  • World’s First Integrated Hydrogen Power-to-Power Demonstration Launched

    A consortium of European companies, research institutes, and universities have launched the world’s first demonstration of a fully integrated power-to-hydrogen-to-power project, at industrial scale and in a real-world power plant application. The four-year project to demonstrate HYFLEXPOWER, which has achieved a technology readiness level of 7, will convert a 12-MWe combined heat and power (CHP) […]

  • NERC: Summer 2020 Reliability Rife With Unknowns

    Despite COVID-19’s impact on power demand, disrupted pre-season generation preparation, and an expected highly active hurricane and wildfire season, industry appears well-positioned to meet peak demand this summer under anticipated weather in nearly all parts of the North American bulk power system (BPS).  Other than in the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), anticipated reserve […]

  • Reduced Cost for Renewables Supports Sector Growth

    A new report from the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) shows costs for renewable power are increasingly cheaper than those for generation from coal, reinforcing the trend of increased investment in solar and wind power and away from fossil fuel-powered electricity production. The IRENA report—Renewable Power Generation Costs in 2019—showed that more than half of […]

  • The POWER Interview: Ameresco’s CEO on Efficiency, Renewables, and Resilience

    The present and future of power generation is and will be driven by new technologies, those designed to increase the efficient use of electricity while limiting emissions and supporting resiliency. It’s a challenging time for those in energy. Developing solutions to solve issues in the power sector involves navigating an uncertain and ever-changing regulatory landscape, […]

  • Germany Brings Last New Coal Plant Online

    What is expected to be the last new coal plant to come online in Germany entered commercial operation on May 30, more than a decade after it was first planned. The 1,100-MW Datteln 4 power plant, owned by Uniper and located in Datteln in the North Rhine-Westphalia region, opened despite the German government’s stated plan […]

  • EPA Curbs State Review of Energy Projects

    The Trump administration on June 1 moved to limit the ability of individual states to use provisions of the Clean Water Act (CWA) to block energy projects, a potential win for the power generation and other energy industry sectors that have battled lengthy licensing and permitting reviews and rejections based on climate change arguments. The […]

  • Salt River Project Issues RFI to Gather Information on Projects up to 500 MW of Wind Power

    Salt River Project has issued a Request for Information (RFI) for up to 500 megawatts (MW) of wind energy. The RFI seeks response from experienced wind project developers who can provide wind energy supply from new or existing wind projects. No contract will be entered into as a direct result of this RFI process; however, […]

  • T-Point 2 Is a Proving Ground for Gas Turbine Advancements

    It may be unusual to recognize a demonstration facility with POWER’s Plant of the Year award, but T-Point 2 is a remarkable unit that is poised to change the way power plants operate. Besides validating new

  • Smart Neighborhood Wins Smart Grid Award

    Alabama Power’s Smart Neighborhood integrates a microgrid into a community filled with high-performance homes containing energy-efficient systems and connected appliances. The innovative initiative, which

  • Company’s Mission: A Clean Energy Building, and Living Laboratory

    Embracing sustainability is more than a slogan for Delta Electronics (Americas); it’s defined by the company’s headquarters building. The site incorporates Delta’s own technologies to promote energy

  • Power Project Provides Shelter from the Storm

    Dozens of microgrids are deployed at schools across Puerto Rico, bringing reliable, resilient power to the island. The project, featuring solar plus storage, is an important part of the region’s recovery