Power Demand

Wholesale power prices across the nation plunged between 27% and 37% at major trading hubs last year compared to 2014, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported. The agency said on January 11 that the drop was driven largely by lower natural gas prices. Natural gas spot prices in 2015 at the Henry Hub averaged $2.61 […]

The autonomous region of Xinjiang has a strategic position in China’s economy, yet several conditions limit the most effective use of its fuels. This article provides an overview of the situation. A more detailed version, with maps and tables, appears here under the same title. Since ancient times, the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (Xinjiang) has held […]

Ghana’s Ministry of Power released a statement on Dec. 30 proclaiming the end of the country’s load-shedding program. The news may not be welcomed by all of the nation’s residents however, as many Ghanaians were reportedly looking forward to the power minister’s self-promised resignation, if load shedding had not been terminated by year end. Citi […]

North America’s reserve margins are trending downward, even though electricity demand has generally fallen, the North American Electric Reliability Corp. (NERC) warned in a new report. The international regulatory authority established to gauge and improve the reliability of North America’s bulk power system (BPS) said in its annual long-term report that electricity demand has dropped […]

Germany’s largest power generator RWE, following in the footsteps of its competitor E.ON, plans to split its company to bank on renewable energy and grid operations, which it says is the future for utility companies. If approved by RWE’s supervisory board, the Essen-headquartered company that produces more than 40% of its power from hard coal […]

A regional haze program final rule for Texas expected soon from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) could speed up the retirement of about 4.7 GW of coal-fired capacity, warns the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) in a new generation outlook. The grid operator’s Dec. 1–released “Report on the Capacity, Demand and Reserves (CDR) in […]

Legal marijuana, cultivated indoors on a large scale, poses a growing threat to electrical safety and a booming new business demand for electric power. Legal marijuana cultivation is posing electrical problems in three of the four states where recreational cannabis use is now permitted. The problem is that indoor growing operations—long a production staple when […]