News

The Department of Energy (DOE) on Wednesday selected three projects to proceed to the second phase of its offshore wind advanced technology demonstration initiative: Fishermen’s Atlantic City Windfarm, Principle Power’s Oregon project, and Dominion Virginia Power’s Virginia Beach project.  Assistant Secretary of the DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) David Danielson revealed […]

[Update May 13] A serious fire at the Martin Drake Power Plant in downtown Colorado Springs will leave the facility offline for an indefinite period of time. The fire began at approximately 9:40 a.m. on May 5. The first firefighters arrived on the scene within five minutes and faced a difficult decision on how to […]

A report released on May 5 by staffing firm Manpower suggests that utilities are under a “double squeeze”—a shortage of skilled workers at both the entry and senior level—caused by an aging workforce, advances in technology, and a breakdown in the educational system. In its report, “Strategies to Fuel the Energy Workforce,” Manpower noted that […]

On May 1, President Obama announced his intention to nominate Cheryl A. LaFleur for a second term as commissioner at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). LaFleur was first nominated to serve as a member of FERC in 2010. She became the acting chairman in November 2013 following Jon Wellinghoff’s resignation. Her term is slated […]

Gas, wind, and solar are it for any new generation in North America for the next five to 10 years (with a few one-offs), speakers at this year’s Platts Global Power Markets conference agreed. The annual event for those involved in power project development, financing, and litigation was held in Las Vegas Apr. 7 to […]

The 59-MW Gyeonggi Green Energy fuel cell park (Figure 3) in South Korea’s Hwasung City—one of the world’s largest fuel cell facilities—began operation in February. The five-acre facility built by

Exelon Corp. and Pepco Holdings Inc. announced on April 30 that they have reached an agreement to combine the two companies. Assuming all approvals are received, Exelon will acquire Pepco in an all-cash deal valued at $6.83 billion, which represents a 24.7% premium to the volume-weighted average share price over the last 20 trading days […]

Taiwan’s governing party has agreed to halt construction on the island’s fourth nuclear power plant due to anti-nuclear public sentiment. Protestors staged a sit-in along a main street near the central train station in Taipei, the capital city of Taiwan, beginning on April 26, which was the 28th anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear accident. According […]

Energy Future Holdings Corp. (EFH)—the Dallas-based holding company whose portfolio includes Luminant and TXU Energy—filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection today. With support of key financial stakeholders, the company reached an agreement on a restructuring plan that it says will reduce debt, lower annual interest costs, allow access to additional capital, and create a sustainable […]

A German court on April 14 reaffirmed that a nuclear fuel rod tax is unconstitutional and has ordered federal tax authorities to reimburse €2.2. billion ($3.04 billion) paid by five nuclear-owning utilities until compatibility with European and German law is established.  The Financial Court of Hamburg had held in January 2013 that the federal nuclear […]

Oklahoma’s Gov. Mary Fallin (R) on Monday signed into law a measure that would allow regulated electric utilities to recover revenues needed to pay for transmission infrastructure as the number of distributed generation users increases.  Senate Bill 1456, which drew strong opposition from environmental and distributed generation groups, reversed a 1977 law that prohibited public […]

On Apr. 22, Duke Energy updated the N.C. Joint Environmental Review Commission on near- and long-term actions it is considering to address coal ash storage across the state. Paul Newton, N.C. state president for Duke, explained that actions outlined in a letter sent to N.C. Gov. Pat McCrory (R) and N.C. Department of Environment and […]

Calpine Corp. has agreed to sell six of its Southeast region combined cycle power plants with a total capacity of nearly 3.5 GW to LS Power Equity Advisors LLC for $1.57 billion. The deal includes the 1,134-MW Oneta plant in Coweta, Okla., the 795-MW Decatur plant in Decatur, Ala., the 606-MW Columbia plant in Calhoun […]

According to recently released data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), 80% of total wind generation in 2013 was produced in only 12 states. A little more than 21% of the total—35,875 GWh—was generated in Texas. While that is a significant figure, Iowa would actually have led the nation in wind production if generation […]

The Department of Energy (DOE) plans to make an additional $4 billion in loan guarantees available to help commercialize U.S. renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies that avoid, reduce, or sequester greenhouse gases. The DOE on Wednesday issued a draft loan guarantee solicitation under Title XVII of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (through Section […]

The 270-MW South Kent Wind project has been completed in Ontario. The project includes 124 wind turbines and is the largest wind power facility in Canada. The wind farm utilizes Siemens 2.3-MW wind turbines with blades manufactured at the company’s Tillsonburg facility and towers made by CS Wind at its Windsor location using Ontario-made steel. […]

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) failed to issue a final rule governing power plant cooling water by April 17 as agreed with environmental groups. In court papers, the agency instead stated its intention to complete the rulemaking by May 16, 2014.  The agency secured more time under a modified settlement agreement with a coalition of […]

A federal court on April 15 upheld the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) February 2012-finalized Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS), ruling in a 2–1 decision that the agency is not required to take costs into account when it promulgates rules that are “appropriate and necessary” to address hazards to public health. In the U.S. Court […]

In a stark departure from the zero-nuclear future proposed by a previous administration, the cabinet of Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe Friday endorsed restarting the country’s idled nuclear reactors as it develops more renewables.  The cabinet on Friday officially adopted the first Basic Energy Plan since the Fukushima disaster, a 78-page document (in Japanese) that […]

Ten witnesses from federal and state regulatory agencies, a public power entity, environmental groups, and power companies today outlined a number of threats to the bulk power system’s reliability in a Senate hearing to assess whether enough was being done to keep the lights on. General measures to address day-to-day issues affecting reliability—such as tree […]

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) should have classified and protected a sensitive grid-related document created by its staff, the Department of Energy’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) said in a memorandum on Wednesday.  Sens. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) requested that the inspector general investigate sensitive information leaks suspected to have originated […]

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) on Tuesday issued a final rule that revises a 42-year-old construction standard for electric power line work to make it more consistent with general industry standards.  The final rule, which is scheduled to be published in the Federal Register on April 11 and becomes effective 90 days after that, […]

By 2029, renewable sources in Arizona’s energy mix will double and natural gas’s share will surpass coal’s and nuclear’s, the state’s largest utility, Arizona Public Service (APS) projects in its newly released “Integrated Resource Plan.”  The report, which foresees that the state’s energy needs will grow 52% while peak demand will surge 60% compared to […]

Florida Power and Light (FPL) on Wednesday asked the Florida Public Service Commission (PSC) to approve a unique pilot program through which the company will build new solar facilities and participating customers will fund them via voluntary contributions.  During the next three years, depending on customer participation, FPL projects that the program could support the […]

When Sanmen Nuclear Power Co. and State Nuclear Power Technology Corp. declared the main control room at the Sanmen Unit 1 nuclear power plant—currently under construction in China—operational on March 31, it marked the first AP1000 unit to reach that important milestone. Several instrumentation and control (I&C) systems were integrated and tested before the declaration […]

North Carolina state officials on Friday cited Duke Energy for a 40-foot-long crack in an earthen dam at the 2012-retired Cape Fear Plant’s ash impoundment, to which the company last week made emergency repairs. The North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) issued Duke Energy with a notice of deficiency on Friday for the longitudinal […]

On the energy front, Australia seemingly has it all. It is endowed with significant reserves of coal, natural gas, uranium, and thorium—as well as resources that excel by world standards for wind, solar

In a letter to Department of Energy Inspector General Gregory Friedman, U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources Chair Mary Landrieu (D-La.) and Ranking Member Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) requested an investigation into sensitive information leaks suspected to have originated in Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) offices. The letter—dated March 27—stated that “Recent reports in […]

On the 35th anniversary of the most serious accident in U.S. commercial nuclear power plant operating history, it seems fitting to take a look back at the Three Mile Island Unit 2 (TMI-2) meltdown. One of POWER’s contributing editors—Kennedy Maize—wrote an article on the 30th anniversary that recollected his experience covering the event. It’s still […]

When Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Gina McCarthy testified at the House Appropriations subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies today, Rep. Hal Rogers (R-Ky.) made it clear from the start that he would be at odds with her. “For years, it seems the EPA has worked hard to devise new regulations that are designed […]