Nuclear

Wood has won a contract to supply programmable digital control technologies to the Sellafield nuclear site in Cumbria, UK. The 10-year framework, worth $66 million, covers all stages of system design, manufacture and assembly of equipment, obsolescence management and maintenance support to project work and decommissioning carried out by Sellafield Ltd. The contract will help […]

Dominion Energy’s bid to purchase SCANA Corp. and its South Carolina Electric & Gas (SCE&G) utility, approved by South Carolina regulators on Dec. 14, could bring some stability to SCANA. Shareholders hope that’s the case; they’re excited about swapping their devalued SCANA shares for more valuable Dominion stock. Workers, though, remain uncertain about their futures, […]

Hitachi Ltd. and ABB on December 17 announced that Hitachi will acquire 80.1% of ABB’s Power Grids unit in an $11 billion deal. Reports of the possible acquisition surfaced December 16, with several media outlets including POWER  discussing the agreement, citing sources familiar with the deal who asked not to be identified. Hitachi plans to […]

Unit 1 of the Taishan Nuclear Power Plant completed its final regulatory test of continuous operation and full power for 168 hours on Dec. 13, marking the final milestone toward achievement of commercial operation, China General Nuclear Power Group (CGN) and EDF announced at a joint press conference held in Beijing, China, on Dec. 14. […]

Hitachi Ltd. and ABB could announce an $11 billion deal as soon as December 17 in which Hitachi will acquire 80% of ABB’s power grids unit. Reports of the possible deal surfaced December 16, with Bloomberg and others citing sources familiar with the agreement who asked not to be identified. Neither ABB nor Hitachi commented […]

Additional Diablo Canyon Power Plant Proposal Affirms PG&E’s Commitment to Meet California’s Renewable and Clean Energy Goals SAN FRANCISCO–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Reflecting the company’s commitment to address the growing threat of wildfires, PG&E is proposing a series of important additional safety investments as part of its 2020 General Rate Case (GRC) to help further protect the 16 […]

In a move widely applauded by the power industry, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Department of the Army proposed a new definition of “waters of the U.S.” (WOTUS) that could exempt groundwater and ditches from regulation under the Clean Water Act (CWA).  The measures follow other recent significant regulatory actions by the agency. On […]

Siemens on December 11 said it would lay off about 200 workers at a gas turbines parts and components service center in Houston, Texas, sometime in late 2019 or early 2020. A company spokesperson made the announcement Tuesday, saying the cuts are due to weak global demand for the company’s turbines. Siemens in a statement […]

WILMINGTON, North Carolina—December 10, 2018—GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy (GEH) announced today its intent to acquire the business and certain assets of REI Nuclear, LLC (REI Nuclear), a Columbia, South Carolina-based decommissioning technology and tooling design company. Subject to ongoing discussions, the acquisition is expected to close by the end of 2018. REI Nuclear specializes in […]

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC, the Commission) took several actions in November to address impacts from the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the Tax Act). FERC had previously issued a Notice of Inquiry seeking comments on how to address the impact of the Tax Act’s reduction in the corporate federal income tax (FIT) rate […]

Wood has won a major contract from Magnox Ltd to retrieve, process and dispose of radioactive waste from a UK nuclear power station that is being decommissioned. The construction, design and management project will involve the removal of 47m³ of radioactive wet waste stored in tanks at Dungeness A in Kent, which ceased generating in […]

The U.S. Senate on a 50-49 party-line vote December 6 confirmed Bernard McNamee to a seat on the five-member Federal Energy and Regulatory Commission (FERC), despite questions about his independence from the Trump administration and his previous comments in support of a bailout of coal and nuclear U.S. power plants at the expense of renewable […]

The two-unit Vogtle expansion in Georgia faces major challenges that are poised to derail its schedule and ramp up costs—and the project is already behind schedule, a consulting firm tasked with construction oversight of the project told regulators. In revealing testimony filed with the Georgia Public Service Commission’s (PSC’s) public interest advocacy staff on November […]

Fifteen notable industry groups have urged Congressional leaders to act on the federal used nuclear fuel program, noting no progress on the Yucca Mountain repository license application and consolidated interim storage is “untenable.” The broad coalition of labor unions, state public service commissioners, clean energy organizations, and energy trade associations told U.S. House and Senate […]

Nemo Link interconnector is a joint venture between the Transmission System Operators Elia (Belgium) and National Grid (UK), to exchange electricity up to 1,000 MW between the UK and Belgium, using high voltage direct current (HVDC) technology. Nemo Link connects the Belgian and the British power grid with a combination of subsea and underground cables. […]

Xcel Energy has announced its plan to move to 100% carbon-free power generation by 2050, with the utility also saying it will reduce carbon emissions by 80% by 2030, from 2005 levels. Xcel, headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, serves customers in eight states and over the past two years has announced a significant number of renewable […]

The real estate developer who has tried for more than two years to buy the assets of the canceled Bellefonte nuclear power plant project in Alabama has sued the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) after TVA last week pulled out of the deal to sell the plant. Attorneys for Franklin Haney, whose Nuclear Development LLC (NDLLC) […]

Veolia Hungary Creates VPP Portfolio. Veolia Hungary in October acquired a 51% ownership share in CHP Eromu Kft., the first step in a process for Veolia to create a virtual power plant (VPP) portfolio. The

For decades, floating power plants have been used widely as a source of flexible, decentralized power generation for several reasons. Among them are that they can be built cost-effectively and rapidly; they

Most operators know that air should be kept out of a heat exchanger’s cooling water supply line. Air can collect in pockets and block flow, increasing velocities, increasing system resistance, decreasing

Power regulation in the U.S. is split between the federal and state levels, with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) having jurisdiction over the wholesale sales of electricity and the states

A myriad of issues come into play when parties execute power industry mergers and acquisitions. Part 2 of this two-part series looks at the issues involved with acquisition agreements, and some of the more

The commercial nuclear power sector has evolved with great help from the military-industrial complex. Research and development funded for the purpose of national defense has resulted in advances directly

Applied Flow Technology Releases New Version of Their Waterhammer and Surge Analysis Software Bordeaux, France – November 14, 2018 – Applied Flow Technology President, Trey Walters, P.E., announced the release of AFT Impulse™ 7 to help engineers visualize more at the prestigious Pressure Surge Conference in Bordeaux, France where AFT joins top authorities to discuss global advancements on […]

France will shut down 14 of its 58 nuclear reactors by 2035 as well its remaining four coal power plants by 2022, French President Emmanuel Macron said November 27 in a lengthy speech that sought to clarify the country’s future energy direction. According to the World Nuclear Association, France’s nuclear power share has steadily expanded […]

A research group that provides information to institutional investors said cost estimates to decommission U.S. nuclear plants fell in 2017 for the first time in a decade. The Callan Institute, headquartered in San Francisco, California, in its report said decommissioning cost estimates dropped by 2.5% last year, to $88.8 billion. Callan’s data shows costs estimates […]

MONTREAL: November 27, 2018 – SNC-Lavalin (TSX:SNC) and its joint venture partner Eclipse Automation Inc. was awarded the $33 million production tooling contract to support Bruce Power’s fuel channel and feeder replacement (FCFR) project. The installation and inspection tools were designed and prototype-tested by SNC-Lavalin and Eclipse under an earlier agreement. Specialized tools are necessary […]

In a referendum held alongside local elections, the Taiwanese electorate voted overwhelmingly to abolish a stipulation in the country’s Electricity Act that called for all nuclear energy-based power-generating facilities to completely cease operations by 2025. Many experts considered it a surprising victory for pro-nuclear activists. In January 2016, Taiwan’s Democratic Progressive Party garnered widespread support […]

A new study from BloombergNEF (BNEF) says developing countries lead the way on new investments in clean energy, with those nations taking advantage of lower project costs for solar and wind power as they move away from fossil fuel-powered generation. Today’s report, from a survey by BNEF’s annual Climatescope project, says “emerging market nations … […]

PORTLAND, Ore. (November 27, 2018) — NuScale Power announced today that it has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Bruce Power L.P., Canada’s first private nuclear generator, to develop a business case to introduce NuScale’s small modular reactor (SMR) technology to the Canadian market. This latest agreement demonstrates the growing enthusiasm in Canada for […]