Renewables

  • Establishing a Culture of Continuous Learning and Improvement

    With many challenges facing both fossil fuel and nuclear power generation facilities, training and workforce development has never been more important. Establishing a culture of continuous improvement is

  • Why a Single Source Is Best for Chemical-Feed Systems

    What is the best way to construct a complete chemical-feed system for use in a power plant—piecing together equipment acquired from a hodgepodge of suppliers or creating a system with components sourced from

  • How Digital Technology Is Changing Power Plants

    Digital technology is everywhere today including in most power plants. Computer hardware and software are changing the way plants are operated and maintained. Many technology experts will tell you that

  • POWER Digest [January 2019]

    EDF Inks Agreement for O&M Services at UAE Nuclear Plant. French nuclear power plant operator EDF will operate and maintain the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) under a

  • Innovative Microgrid Will Power Finnish Distribution Center

    A distribution center in Finland is installing what is being called the country’s largest industrial microgrid, a system that will use 100% renewable energy. The system is being built by Schneider Electric

  • 10 Takeaways from the IEA’s Newest World Energy Outlook

    The International Energy Agency (IEA) deemed growth and disruptions of the world’s power sector so significant to the future of energy, it dedicated—for the first time—a four-chapter “special focus”

  • Control Room Considerations: What You Need to Know

    Control rooms are vital for organizations to efficiently and effectively monitor multiple information streams and make accurate mission-critical decisions. With an ever-increasing number of content sources and

  • Natural Gas and Renewable Energy to Continue Leading the Market

    Cheap natural gas and social pressure to reduce carbon emissions give gas-fired power plants and renewable energy resources a competitive advantage over traditional coal and nuclear generation. Energy storage

  • Blockchain Technology Will Transform the Power Industry

    What began in the world of finance has moved into the power sector. Blockchain, a nascent technology most often associated with cryptocurrency, is a new frontier in the energy space, changing the way power is

  • NREL Details Great Potential for Floating PV Systems

    National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) researchers estimate that installing floating solar photovoltaics on the more than 24,000 man-made U.S. reservoirs could generate about 10 percent of the nation’s annual electricity production. Their findings, published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology, reveal for the first time the potential for floating PV to produce electricity in […]

  • NV Energy Accelerates Retirement of One of Nevada’s Last Coal Units

    NV Energy plans to retire a 254-MW coal-fired unit in a power-constrained region of Nevada at the end of 2021, four years ahead of schedule. The company will instead purchase 1,001 MW from new solar photovoltaic projects equipped with 100 MW of long-term battery storage, effectively doubling its total renewable generation from 14% in 2017 […]

  • Bailing Out Coal and Nuclear Plants Is Misguided

    For decades the U.S. has relied on coal for much of its energy supply. States with abundant coal—Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Kentucky, and others—have towns and cities whose economies are driven by the coal industry. Now, as the coal industry declines and those areas struggle, the Trump administration wants to use taxpayer money to save coal […]

  • NERC: Accelerated Coal and Nuclear Retirements Pose Limited Reliability Risks

    The accelerated retirement of coal-fired and nuclear generation by 2022 could adversely affect reliability in four regions, including in the East and over parts of the central U.S., the North American Electric Reliability Corp. (NERC) warned as it released findings from a “stress-test” scenario.  But the entity tasked with ensuring reliability and security of the […]

  • Small hydropower plant in Macedonia: Voith wins order to supply two StreamDivers

    Heidenheim / Skopje. Technology group Voith has won an order for the manufacture, supply and commissioning of two StreamDivers for the small hydropower plant Gradiste in Macedonia. The company will also supervise installation and supply the gate valves. The power plant is set to go into operation early in 2020 and will supply clean power […]

  • Regulators Back Dominion Takeover of SCANA

    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 Acquires ABB Power Grids Business in $11 Billion Deal

    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 […]

  • France’s first tidal energy plant gets smarter with QOS Energy’s data intelligence platform

    Quimper, France, 17 December 2018. Sabella, a pioneering tidal and ocean stream turbine developer, has partnered with QOS Energy to improve the performance monitoring of its ground-breaking Ushant tidal energy project. The first 1MW tidal turbine of the plant, immersed 55 metres under water off the west coast of France, is equipped with more than […]

  • Valmet to supply automation technology to Pori Energia’s new Aittaluoto biomass power plant in Pori, Finland

    Valmet will supply automation technology to Pori Energia Oy’s Aittaluoto biomass power plant in Pori, Finland. The target of the company’s Aittaluoto 2020 project is to replace the outdated low-efficiency power plant processes, decrease the use of fossil fuels in energy production, and meet the operational requirements of the industry in the area. The modernization […]

  • ABB Nears Sale of Power Grids Division to Hitachi in $11 Billion Deal

    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 […]

  • Record-smashing auction dramatically expands Massachusetts’ offshore wind potential

    Equinor, Mayflower Wind Energy, and Vineyard Wind placed winning bids totaling $405 million to begin planning wind farms WASHINGTON—A highly-competitive auction for three offshore wind lease areas off the coast of Massachusetts concluded today with winning bids totaling a record-breaking $405 million dollars from Equinor; Mayflower Wind Energy, a Royal Dutch Shell and EDP Renewables […]

  • CON EDISON NOW # 2 SOLAR ENERGY PRODUCER IN NORTH AMERICA

    Company’s New Sustainability Report Also Details Operational and Environmental Improvements NEW YORK – Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE: ED) (“Con Edison”) announced today that its subsidiary has completed its previously announced purchase of a Sempra Energy subsidiary that owns 980 megawatts (MW) AC of operating renewable electric production projects and certain development rights for additional solar electric […]

  • Sammons Renewable Energy Adds 238-MW Texas Wind Project to Portfolio

    Dallas, Texas (December 12, 2018) — Sammons Renewable Energy (SRE) today announced the acquisition of the 238 MW Rio Bravo wind project from Longroad Energy Holdings, LLC (Longroad). Rio Bravo is the second wind farm acquired by the company, bringing the wind portion of SRE’s portfolio to 400 MW. Franklin Park identified and assisted with […]

  • Siemens Cutting 200 Jobs at Texas Service Center

    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 […]

  • Blockchain-Enabled VPP Planned for South Korea

    The South Korean government has pledged 4 billion Korean won (about $3.5 million) to support a blockchain-enabled virtual power plant (VPP) in Busan, the country’s second-most-populous city after Seoul. Busan officials said they have selected a project to build a VPP on a “citizens-shared” blockchain. Technology Aggregates Resources, Standardizes Transactions A VPP is a cloud-based […]

  • Siemens Gamesa signs second order with Enel in Russia for more than 200 MW

    Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy (SGRE) has secured a second order in Russia from Enel Russia, one of the country’s independent power producers (IPP), for the supply of 201 MW of wind turbines. The scope of the agreement includes supply, installation and commissioning of 57 Siemens Gamesa 3.X platform turbines at the Kola wind farm, located […]

  • FERC Follows Up on Tax Reform Response

    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 […]

  • Siemens Gamesa signs first contract to supply its new wind turbine of the Siemens Gamesa 4.X platform totaling 249 MW in Mexico

    Siemens Gamesa will supply 60 units of its SG 4.5-145 wind turbines with a flexible power rating of 4.2 MW to Enel Green Power’s Parque Amistad III and IV wind farms in Coahuila, Mexico Projects were awarded during the 2017 Mexican Auction Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy made a big step forward in strengthening its product […]

  • Senate Confirms McNamee as FERC Commissioner

    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 […]

  • Siemens wins order for its largest offshore grid connection in the UK to date

    Siemens has been awarded an order to connect the Moray East offshore wind farm to the grid. Moray East is being developed by a joint venture company owned by EDP Renewables, a subsidiary of the Portuguese utility Energias de Portugal, ENGIE, a global energy and services group based in Paris, and Diamond Generation Europe Ltd., […]

  • TCI and CIER Partners With The Climate Group to Help Taiwanese Companies Commit to 100% Renewable Electricity

    TAIPEI, Taiwan (Dec. 5, 2018) — The Taiwanese market links the global supply chain; from Apple to IKEA Group, Google to Unilever it creates products and services the world depends on. These companies have also all committed to using 100% renewable electricity, now Taiwanese companies are making the shift. The CIER-RE100 Partnership Launch event happened […]