News

The Department of Energy (DOE) has reportedly dropped Luminant’s Comanche Peak Nuclear Power Plant’s expansion planned in Texas from its list of new nuclear projects being considered for the first round of federal loan guarantee. Four projects now remain on the DOE shortlist. New reactors at Southern Co.’s Vogtle plant in Georgia, Scana Corp.’s Summer […]

The Kansas Senate last week approved by a 37–2 vote an energy bill that will allow Sunflower Electric Power Corp. to build a long-delayed coal-fired power plant near Holcombe. The bill’s approval comes days after Kansas’ new governor, Mark Parkinson, and Sunflower Electric Power Corp. reached a compromise that would scale down the company’s plans […]

Saskatchewan and Montana officials last week said they would partner on the development of one of the largest international carbon capture and storage demonstration projects in the world. Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall and Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to collaborate on the construction of a “technology neutral CO2 plant at […]

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Monday signed an enforceable agreement with the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) to oversee the removal of coal ash at the TVA Kingston Fossil Fuel Plant in Roane County, Tenn., where more than 5 million cubic yards of coal ash spilled last December. Under the Administrative Order and Agreement […]

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is committed to issuing proposed regulations for the management of coal combustion waste by utilities by the year’s end, a senior agency official told the House Transportation and Infrastructure committee Thursday. Rules could include tightened restrictions on contaminants in wet scrubber wastewater streams.

LS Power has abandoned a proposed 750-MW pulverized coal power project in Midland, Mich., citing economic and regulatory uncertainties.

The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) last week said it would continue pushing for regulatory approval of its proposed Bellefonte nuclear plant, though the NuStart consortium had shifted priority to another project, while Progress Energy Florida delayed the commercial start of its proposed Levy County plant by almost two years while it awaits a combined construction and operation license (COL)  from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC).

Kansas’ new governor, Mark Parkinson, and Sunflower Electric Power Corp. have reached a compromise that would allow that company to build an 895-MW coal plant in the western part of the state in exchange for Republican support for a state bill that encourages production of more renewable energy.

Legislation introduced last week by members of the House of Representatives and the Senate could spur development of U.S. marine and hydrokinetic energy resources—a sector in which the U.S. has lagged behind other countries.

Ramped-up concerns about the security of the U.S. power grid and media reports that said cyberspies had infiltrated it have prompted the introduction of a congressional bill that would increase the authority of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to help reduce the grid’s vulnerability.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has renewed the first ever 40-year-operating license of a nuclear facility in the U.S., granting it to AREVA NP’s nuclear fabrication facility in Richland, Wash.

The Department of Energy (DOE) last week said it would provide $93 million from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to support further development of wind energy in the U.S., as well $100 million from the act for facility and infrastructure improvements at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL).

Swiss power technology group ABB, which pioneered gas-insulated switchgear 50 years ago, in April announced it had commissioned switchgear rated to handle 1,100 kV. The development marks the biggest leap in capacity and efficiency of AC power transmission in more than two decades.

Emerson Process Management launched a new extreme temperature version of its Rosemount 2130 vibrating fork liquid level switch that is designed for use in extreme temperatures — from – 94F to 500F (–70C to 260C). The new version includes a low-density option suitable for liquids with specific gravity down to 0.5 (500 kg/m ³). In addition to built-in fault-monitoring/self-checking diagnostics to detect corrosion of the forks or any internal or external damage or breaks in the internal electrical wiring, it features a "heartbeat" LED, which provides instant visual indication that the unit is operational. The unit requires no onsite calibration and is available in 316L stainless steel, corrosion-resistant alloy C wet side, or a range of other stainless steel and aluminum options. (www2.emersonprocess.com)

Sweden’s SKF Reliability Systems introduced the SKF Microlog Analyzer AX, an advanced vibration-monitoring technology. With simultaneous triaxial or four-channel vibration measurement capability, the unit speeds up data collection and saves time in monitoring rounds. The 806 MHz Xscale processor also means faster real-time rate and display updates. An available range of application modules allows users to create a custom device to perform several advanced tasks, such as impact tests, digital recording, modal analysis, transient phenomena analysis, and quality inspections.

Schaffner’s filter series now includes ECOsine active harmonics filters — compact, digital units that continuously measure and analyze disturbances in the power network and provide an exactly opposite compensation current. In doing so, the filters actively adapt to changing network topologies and respond in less than half a millisecond, before damage from the disturbances can occur. The improved power quality of the new filters minimizes the risk of downtime and process interruptions.

DW Global Group’s recently announced dry bulk hopper mini-silo system — comprising one or more reusable, translucent containers — is designed for companies wanting to replace fiber drums, cardboard boxes, wood pallets, and super sacks. The rugged plastic containers — lids included — multitask as shipping, storage, and dispensing systems. Each hopper has a valve at the bottom for easy flow of material from hoppers to the manufacturing machine. The system allows for stacking of up to three units with a total weight of as much as 2,400 pounds. According to DW Global, the investment for a multi-purpose dry bulk hopper system can be "as little as $5,000 to $10,000, with a return-on-investment in less than a year." (www.dwglobalgroup.com)

The "TCS Cheetah" air-powered hoist from Harrington Hoists Inc. is now available in two new capacities: the ¼-ton TCS250C/P and the 1-ton TCS1000C/P-2. Built for speed, the units are adjustable to fit all lifting requirements, particularly fast-paced or repetitive lifting applications. Additional features include a compact, lightweight aluminum body with good headroom, a disc brake for reliable load support, a vane monitor for very fine feathering control, and an unlimited duty cycle for continuous operation. (www.harringtonhoists.com)

President Barack Obama has praised Spain as a global leader in renewable electricity generation and has lauded its success at creating so-called "green jobs." However, a recent Spanish university study concluded that Spain’s mad rush to meet overly aggressive renewable standards has destroyed jobs and driven up the real cost of electricity, without cutting carbon emissions.

The Duplex Pump Unit (FRS 660-11-DPU-UL) from RCI Technologies is the newest addition to that company’s line of diesel fuel purifiers and fuel recirculating systems (FRSs). Designed to automatically circulate and clean the fuel in customers’ fuel storage tanks on a preprogrammed schedule, the DPU features two fuel pumps, which operate alternately to circulate fuel through the system. Whereas RCI’s other FRS units utilize a single pump, the duplex pump offers backup in the event of a primary system failure. All FRS units employ filter-less technology. The control system is housed in a weatherproof, NEMA 4, key-lockable cabinet, and the system is equipped with alarms to alert the user in the event of pump failure, purifier high water level, system high pressure, or fuel catch basin leak. (www.rcitechnologies.com)

Spurred by New York’s target to meet 45% of its electricity needs through renewable resources by 2015, the New York Power Authority (NYPA) last week issued a call for proposals to develop offshore wind projects of up to 120 MW in New York State waters of Lake Erie and Lake Ontario.

The performance of automated systems designed to protect infrastructure from damage during severe system conditions must be addressed to limit the scope and severity of bulk power system disturbances in North America, the North American Electric Reliability Corp. (NERC) told stakeholders in a letter last week.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) wants to reconsider an air permit it awarded last July to the 1,500-MW coal-fired Desert Rock Energy Facility project proposed for construction by Sithe Global Power, LLC on the Navajo Nation tribal reservation in New Mexico.

The estimated $30 billion that electric utilities have paid since 1982 to the Nuclear Waste Trust Fund for the construction and operation of the federal nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain could be returned to them if a Senate bill introduced on Thursday passes.

The U.S. may never need new nuclear or coal-fired power plants because renewable energy and improved efficiency can meet future power demand, Jon Wellinghoff, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission chair, last week reportedly said.

The UK will not permit new coal-fired power plants without equipment to capture and store at least 25% of carbon emissions from day one and 100% by 2025, when carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology is expected to be technically and commercially proven, the country’s climate change secretary, Ed Miliband, said last week.

Changes to a state bill that would have allowed AmerenUE to charge customers during the construction of a second nuclear plant at Callaway in Missouri last week prompted the company to pull the plug on the $6 billion project.

Executives of North American utility companies are nearly split on whether President Obama’s proposed energy initiatives will have a significant impact on the structure of the electricity sector, according to the third annual Platts/Capgemini Utilities Executive Study just released. But there is greater executive agreement that environmental regulation and electricity prices for end users will be increasing.

After 14 hearings and 15,000 comments, the Department of Energy has decided to pull the plug on any domestic involvement in the three-year-old Global Nuclear Energy Partnership (GNEP), which the U.S. initiated to focus on reprocessing spent commercial nuclear fuel.

On tax day, Dominion and BP Wind Energy announced full commercial operation of Phase I of the Fowler Ridge Wind Farm in Benton County, Ind. Of the 400-MW facility, BP and Dominion are partners on approximately 300 MW. The two companies could expand the facility to a total of 750 MW in the future.