Nuclear

Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) technologies can help make electric generating plants more efficient while increasing availability. The electric power industry is going through a transformational change

The power industry faces many challenges, which require a dedicated workforce to overcome. How can a company get everyone pulling in the same direction? It starts with a strong culture. The electric utility

Falling natural gas prices tamped down annual U.S. wholesale power prices over the last decade by $7/MWh to $53/MWh—to a much higher degree compared to the impact of wind and solar growth—a new report from Lawrence Berkeley National Lab (LBNL) suggests.  The Nov. 20–published report, The Impact of Wind, Solar, and Other Factors on Wholesale Power […]

A filing by Georgia Public Service Commission (PSC) staff and consultants on Nov. 22 said Georgia Power’s expansion of the Vogtle nuclear power plant is falling further behind schedule. The filing Friday came the same day that the utility announced the sixth and last containment ring for the two-unit expansion was set in place. The […]

A bill to amend the Nuclear Waste Policy Act (NWPA) of 1982 and give the Department of Energy (DOE) the authority to site, build, and operate one or more interim storage sites that would consolidate spent nuclear fuel (SNF) from decommissioned nuclear reactors has passed out of committee and been reported to the full House […]

A nationwide survey of state utility commissions suggests regulators are increasingly grappling with issues that could “profoundly” alter energy delivery and utility business models. However, over the next decade, they expect central station generation will continue to dominate state portfolios, and utility-scale solar growth will surpass customer-owned photovoltaic (PV).  The survey to take the “regulatory […]

Exelon Generation said EDF Group—a French integrated electricity company—is exercising a put option to sell its 49.99% interest in the R.E. Ginna, Nine Mile Point, and Calvert Cliffs nuclear energy facilities. The two companies will now begin negotiations for Exelon to acquire full ownership of the plants. EDF’s involvement in the facilities was through the […]

The Ways and Means Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives on Nov. 19 released a draft tax package for clean energy projects that includes a five-year extension of the 30% solar Investment Tax Credit (ITC), along with new incentives for energy storage. The legislation also supports incentives for electric vehicles (EVs), offshore and onshore […]

GE Renewable Energy has confirmed the company will close its GE Grid Solutions manufacturing plant in Waynesboro, Georgia, with the 200 workers at the facility offered the chance to relocate to a similar site in Charleroi, Pennsylvania, or apply for other jobs within the company. The plant is expected to close by year-end 2020. The […]

As the world continues to face climate uncertainties, industrial companies are looking for ways to ensure they are as sustainable as possible while maintaining profitability. POWER’s recent Distributed Energy Conference included a session on sustainability from the viewpoint of utilities and others in the power generation industry. Many companies are working toward the goal of […]

Solar photovoltaic (PV) could surge ahead of coal and gas and become the largest source of installed power capacity in the world in the next two decades if countries pursue stated policies and targets, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said in its newly released World Energy Outlook 2019 (WEO2019).  The agency’s annual publication, which it […]

The long-overdue Olkiluoto 3 nuclear power plant (NPP) in Finland has been delayed again, but nuclear projects in Russia, Canada, and Iran achieved important milestones in November. New Novovoronezh Unit Enters Commercial Operation Rosatom announced on Nov. 1 that Unit 2 at the Novovoronezh Nuclear Power Plant II entered commercial operation 30 days ahead of […]

Twenty-three projects chosen by the Department of Energy (DOE) in response to its 2019 Grid Modernization Lab Call provide a broad look at the critical issues that are roiling the nation’s power sector, as well as the tools and technologies that it has determined will best bolster the grid of the future in the near […]

EDF previously selected Bilfinger as preferred bidder to deliver NSSS and fabrication of BOP Bilfinger continues with preparation work based on existing framework contract French energy company EDF (Électricité de France) has re-affirmed to Bilfinger its aspiration to award NSSS (Nuclear Steam Supply System) and the fabrication elements of BOP (Balance of Plant) contracts to […]

Efforts to commercialize production of high-assay, low-enriched uranium (HALEU) fuel, which is needed for an array of advanced reactors, ramped up this week with two major announcements.  As the Department of Energy (DOE) contracted Centrus Energy to demonstrate production of HALEU fuel for advanced reactors at the DOE’s American Centrifuge Plant in Piketon, Ohio, private […]

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has issued long-awaited proposed revisions of two 2015 Obama-era rules that apply to effluent limitations guidelines (ELGs) for steam electric power plants and coal combustion residuals (CCR) management by electric utilities.  The agency coordinated the release of the two related revisions, which apply overwhelmingly to coal-fired steam power plants, after […]

POWER in 2018 reported on the lasting impact that a dip in training programs has had on the utility workforce. In the 1980s, there were fewer training programs and the impact is still being felt today. There are fewer utility workers able to move into middle- and upper-management positions, contributing to a workforce gap as […]

Drones represent a classic good news/bad news scenario. The good news is great. The bad news is terrifying. On the good news front, drones can keep utility-sector workers safely on the ground, with the

Of the many challenges power and industrial plant maintenance teams face, stretching the capabilities of their ultra-lean staff is one of the most critical. Assets can range from industrial generators, to

Unit 1 at the Taishan Nuclear Power Plant in China is the site of a milestone for nuclear technology. It also illustrates cooperation between France and China, using the lessons learned from earlier projects

Polish officials have said it is “not possible” for the country to meet the European Union’s (EU’s) goal of cutting net carbon emissions to zero by 2050, and as such the government will continue to

The Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant completed an extended power uprate (EPU) that increased the total capacity of the facility’s three units by about 465 MW. The addition is an important part of the Tennessee

Boiler and burner manufacturers, along with suppliers of combustion control systems, work with the power generation sector along with other industries. They provide equipment for low- and high-pressure steam

A historical analysis of nuclear power technology by researchers from the German Institute for Economic Research suggests that none of the 674 reactors developed globally since 1945 were developed based on “economic grounds”—as private investments in the context of a market-based competitive system.  Until the 1950s, only four major countries dominated nuclear technology by establishing independent […]

France’s nuclear research agency, Commissariat à l’énergie atomique (CEA), in September confirmed it abandoned plans to build a prototype Advanced Sodium Technological Reactor for Industrial

Completion of the first ACPR1000 reactor at Yangjiang 5 within a mere 58 months marks a major achievement for China’s lengthy efforts to commercialize the first-of-its-kind 1,000-MW evolutionary

Is your plant’s natural disaster preparedness plan leaving your site vulnerable? This article provides some best practices to help you prepare for the worst. At some point in a plant’s life, there will

The closure of the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station in 2013 left a stranded coastal asset. However, the existing transmission infrastructure, site control, and geographic topology make it an ideal site

Market forces are playing as much if not more of a role than regulatory policy in the transition from fossil-fueled power generation to renewables, as utilities in the U.S. and worldwide establish decarbonization goals. That was the message from Bill Ritter Jr., former governor of Colorado, during his keynote address at POWER’s Distributed Energy Conference […]

Attorneys general from 11 states ramped up pressure on the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to recognize state policy goals as it makes decisions related to market design, siting of new gas pipelines and storage facilities, and grid reliability.  The measure is the latest in a string of recent pushes by states to ensure federally […]