Renewables

  • FERC Backs First Compliance Filings on Energy Storage Rule

    The energy storage market received a boost Oct. 17 when the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approved the first two compliance filings implementing Order 841, a rule the commission said is designed to eliminate market barriers to electricity storage. Order 841 was enacted in February 2018. The measure directs regional power grid operators to establish […]

  • Aries Clean Energy’s New Jersey Biosolids Gasification Facility To Set New Standards In Wastewater Industry

    LINDEN, NJ and FRANKLIN, TN – (October 17, 2019) – Aries Clean Energy was joined by local officials and dignitaries to break ground on New Jersey’s first biosolids-only gasification facility on Tuesday. The Aries Linden Biosolids Gasification Facility will bring environmental and sustainable benefits to the area by processing 430 tons of biosolids daily into […]

  • Buffett Still Banking on Energy—BHE Announces Canadian Wind Farm

    The evolving landscape of power includes not only new types of generation, but also involves new investors, including some of the most well-known names in global business. Bill Gates, who co-founded Microsoft with the late Paul Allen, formed Breakthrough Energy Ventures (BEV) in 2016, a group that supports battery energy storage, nuclear power innovation, geothermal, […]

  • Exelon Utilities’ CEO Retires as Federal Investigation Continues

    The CEO of major U.S. energy company Exelon Utilities retired on Oct. 15, leaving the company as federal officials investigate Exelon’s lobbying activities at the Illinois State Capitol. The retirement of Anne Pramaggiore, 61, who became CEO of Exelon Utilities in 2018, comes less than a week after Exelon subsidiary Commonwealth Edison (ComEd), Illinois’ largest […]

  • Solar & Hydro Hybridization: Ciel & Terre’s Floating PV Plant on Sobradinho Hydroelectric Dam

    Sobradinho hydroelectric plant, located in the state of Bahia, Brazil, is now upgraded with a floating solar system developed by Ciel & Terre® in partnership with SUNLUTION. The combination of the two energies – Solar and Hydro – is an answer to meet the region’s electricity consumption needs. This 1 MWp floating photovoltaic project, inaugurated […]

  • Vanguard Renewables Selects Kinsley Energy Systems to Power Unique Farm Application

    EAST GRANBY, Conn., Oct. 15, 2019 — Vanguard Renewables has selected Kinsley Energy Systems to supply high-efficiency combined heat and power (CHP) for a groundbreaking renewable energy project. Kinsley will provide an 800 kW TEDOM CHP system to power a new renewable natural gas (RNG) production facility located on Goodrich Farm in Salisbury, Vermont. The […]

  • Uptake of GE’s Biggest Wind Turbines Gain Traction

    GE Renewable Energy has made major gains in orders for its 5.3-MW Cypress onshore wind turbine and the 12-MW Haliade-X offshore wind turbine. Prototypes of both are still being tested in the Netherlands. Key Contracts for Innovative 5-MW Onshore Machine  The GE business division introduced the first turbine in the Cypress platform, a 4.8-MW machine, […]

  • Judge: Court Will Consider Rival Proposal for PG&E Reorganization

    A federal bankruptcy judge on Oct. 9 ruled that Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E), California’s largest utility, does not have the sole right to determine the terms of its reorganization. Judge Dennis Montali said those who support a rival proposal, which was devised by a group of the utility’s creditors, can have their plan considered. […]

  • Four Projects Picked to Speed Up Pumped Storage Hydro Construction 

    Four projects have won a competition launched by the Department of Energy (DOE) in April 2019 to help shorten the commissioning time for pumped storage hydropower projects and revitalize the hydropower industry.  The grand prize winners or the Furthering Advancements to Shorten Time (FAST) Prize competition were selected by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) […]

  • Can Corporate America Ensure a Clean Energy Future?

    Renewable energy off-take by large corporate entities is on the rise. Google in September of this year made its largest-ever renewable energy procurement announcement, announcing 18 new renewable energy agreements, totaling 1,600 MW. That puts Google at the top of the voluntary renewable energy purchasers list, after Facebook had grabbed the top spot a year […]

  • Distress and Deals Continue to Persist in Energy Sector

    At the end of last year, the power market began to lose steam. The credit market wasn’t as strong as it was at the start of the year and many people began speculating “doom and gloom” for the market. However, over the last few months, the power market has picked up and is beginning to […]

  • Researchers: $71 Billion of Japan’s Coal Assets at Risk

    Research from the University of Tokyo, along with that of two other groups, shows Japan’s coal-fired power plant fleet is at economic risk as the country adds more generation from renewable energy resources such as solar and wind. The report, called “Land of the Rising Sun and Offshore Wind,” released Oct. 6 and based on […]

  • Reports: Perry Will Resign as Head of DOE

    Reports from several news outlets say that Energy Secretary Rick Perry could step down from that role as soon as November. The Washington Post on Oct. 4 said Perry plans to step down by year-end and return to the private sector. The Post cited four unnamed individuals who it said had been briefed on Perry’s […]

  • EIA: Renewables Will Account for Half of Global Power Generation by 2050

    Solar power is expected to take a larger share of global power generation across the next 30 years, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), as renewable energy continues to be adopted worldwide. The EIA’s International Energy Outlook 2019 (IEO2019), released Oct. 2, shows 28% of the world’s power came from renewables in 2018, […]

  • Xcel Announces Deal to Power Steel Mill with Solar

    Xcel Energy has announced an agreement with Lightsource BP and EVRAZ North America to develop a $250-million, 240-MW solar power facility in Pueblo, Colorado. The plant will provide power to the EVRAZ Rocky Mountain Steel facility in Pueblo. Xcel said the plant will be the largest on-site solar facility dedicated to a single company. The […]

  • How Remote Operation Centers Can Help Companies Transition

    The energy industry is currently moving from a traditional, highly regulated production model dominated by electricity utilities to a decentralized, deregulated model featuring a higher proportion of renewable energy sources such as wind and solar power. With subsidies in decline, renewables are reaching grid parity—with costs equal to or less than traditional sources. Not surprisingly, […]

  • POWER Digest—October 2019

    First Unit at 2-GW Coal Plant in Malaysia Begins Operation. The first of two proposed 1-GW coal-fired power plants in Port Dickson, Negi Sembilan, Malaysia, began commercial operation on Aug. 22, expanding

  • THE BIG PICTURE: Hydrogen Power

    Hydrogen is emerging as a formidable player in the energy transition, owing to its potential to decarbonize a range of sectors and its versatility. According to a June 2019–released report prepared for the G20 by the International Energy Agency (IEA) and the government of Japan, 76% of dedicated hydrogen produced today (around 70 metric tons) […]

  • Empowering Data to Efficiently Build the Connected Grid of the Future

    The power industry is witnessing rapid changes thanks to technology. Networks are evolving, and the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) has taken root, with autonomous systems contributing to the rise of

  • What’s Driving the Rise of Behind-the-Meter Distributed Energy Resources

    A substantial shift in implementation of distributed energy resources (DERs) is on the horizon with the collision of new technologies and higher energy demand. Innovation is spawning an abundance of potential

  • Investing in African Energy—Weighing Risks and Rewards

    Foreign energy companies are investing in Africa as that continent builds out its power generation infrastructure. But there are risks to those investments, as some governments—Angola, Tanzania, and Libya

  • Upward Trajectory: Energy Storage Paired with Renewables

    The growth of distributed power generation worldwide is increasingly reliant on microgrid systems incorporating several technologies, including solar power plus battery storage. The move toward more commercial

  • Improving Field Operations with New Technologies

    Utilizing new technologies in today’s business environment is a necessity for operations leaders looking to optimize their resources. Smartphones, GPS, radio-frequency identification (RFID), on-demand/cloud

  • Northeastern’s Wind Technology Program Receives Donated Nacelle from NextEra Energy Resources

    STERLING, COLO. – Sept. 30, 2019 – NextEra Energy Resources is donating a fully-functional decommissioned wind turbine nacelle to Northeastern Junior College’s Wind Technology program as a learning tool for one of the nation’s top wind technology education programs. A nacelle is the protective shell that houses all of the turbine machinery atop a wind […]

  • Signal Energy Creates Subsidiary To Serve The Distributed Generation Energy Market

    CHATTANOOGA, Tenn., Sept. 26, 2019 /PRNewswire/ — Signal Energy, the Chattanooga-based leading engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) firm in the renewable energy industry, has created a new subsidiary called Signal Energy DG to serve the distributed generation energy market. Distributed generation power is generated by energy sources like solar panels or wind turbines to create electricity […]

  • ENGIE, Microsoft Seal Innovative ‘Firm Power’ PPA for 230 MW Wind and Solar in Texas

    ENGIE, the world’s largest independent power producer, has signed an innovative volume firming agreement (VFA) with Microsoft that will allow the technology giant to buy “firm” power from wind and solar projects in Texas under a specially structured power purchase agreement (PPA).  The companies on Sept. 24 said the long-term PPA will allow Microsoft to […]

  • NRG Aligns Carbon Goals with 1.5-Degree-C Climate Trajectory

    NRG Energy has joined a growing list of major U.S. coal generators that want to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2050.  The Princeton, New Jersey-based energy company on Sept. 24 said it would accelerate carbon goals it set in 2014 to reach its 50% GHG reduction target (from a 2014 baseline) by 2025—not […]

  • DTE Energy Latest to Target Net-Zero Carbon Emissions

    DTE Energy has announced a goal to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, following steps by Duke Energy, American Electric Power, and NRG Energy to do the same over the past two weeks. The Detroit-based company on Sept. 26 said it would go beyond its existing commitment to reduce carbon emissions 50% by 2030 and […]

  • Tri Global Energy and TERNA ENERGY Announce Commercial Operations of Texas Wind Project

    DALLAS, Sept. 24, 2019 /PRNewswire/ — Tri Global Energy, LLC, the leading wind developer in Texas and a dominant wind leader in the U.S., and the managers of the Fluvanna Renewable Energy Project, LLC, announced today that project owner and partner, TERNA ENERGY, S.A., has achieved commercial operations on the 158 megawatts (MW) Gopher Creek Wind […]

  • Clean Tech Leaders Honored at North America Smart Energy Week

    Winners of The Cleanie Awards—the only comprehensive awards program focused exclusively on the clean energy industry—were unveiled on Sept. 24 during North America Smart Energy Week in Salt Lake City, Utah. “The Cleanie Awards honors companies and individuals at the forefront of innovation for the clean technology and renewables industries,” said Elyssa Haynes, program director for […]