T&D

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) last week unanimously adopted a final rule on reliability standards to address the threat to the grid from geomagnetic disturbances (GMD).

Global resources of variable renewable energy—primarily wind and solar—despite breakneck growth over the past two decades, are beginning to run up against technological and policy limitations on further deployment, and future growth will depend on significant changes in policy and grid design, according to a new report. Released on September 20, Variable Renewable Energy Sources […]

A merger proposed between Canadian firm Enbridge and Houston-based Spectra Energy Corp. could create the largest energy infrastructure company in North America. The companies announced on September 6 that they have entered into a definitive agreement to combine in a stock-for-stock merger transaction that has an enterprise value of $127 billion. The transaction was reportedly […]

UK Abolishes Climate Change Department. As part of the major governmental shakeup triggered by Brexit—the UK’s momentous vote to leave the European Union—newly appointed UK Prime Minister Theresa May

Reliability and cybersecurity ranked as the two most important issues currently confronting the electric industry, according to surveys completed by 672 qualified utility, municipal, commercial, and community stakeholders for Black & Veatch’s “2016 Strategic Directions: Electric Industry Report.” It’s not particularly surprising to see reliability rank at the top of the list. “Reliability has always […]

The governments of Ireland and Northern Ireland have big ambitions for their unified electricity market, including a wind-heavy 40% renewable generation target by 2020. Making that happen while delivering safe, reliable electricity to customers across the island means a sea change in how the grid is operated. One of the first big steps is installation […]

Dutch power grid operator TenneT on June 10 unveiled plans for a large-scale island transmission hub in the North Sea that could connect numerous offshore wind farms and transmit their generated power to the Netherlands, the UK, Belgium, Norway, Germany, and Denmark via direct current (DC) cables. Those cables, or “spokes” could also serve as […]

A severe solar storm striking the continental U.S. could cause trillions of dollars in damage to the global economy and shut down portions of the U.S. grid for up to a year, according to a new study prepared by the Cambridge Centre for Risk Studies for insurance firm AIG. The study, Helios Solar Storm Scenario, […]

2016 EEI Edison Award winners are AEP and AES

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) internally recognizes that a power grid failure resulting from an electromagnetic pulse (EMP) or a solar storm can pose great risk to the security of the nation, but it hasn’t prepared adequately, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) said in a newly released report. The GAO’s 68-page report, “Federal Agencies […]

It’s not being overly dramatic to say that the power industry is at its biggest inflection point to date. Even ignoring the effects of environmental regulations and (in North America, at least) cheap natural

What are distributed energy resources (DERs)? For many people, rooftop solar is the first thing that comes to mind, but when you ask that question of an independent system operator (ISO)—the folks who

Getting the most cost-effective use out of a battery storage system isn’t just a matter of plug-and-play. Where and how you site a battery can make a big difference in how well it does its job. Several battery experts who spoke to POWER explain what you need to think about. So you want to buy […]

Two senior power sector executives opened the 2016 ELECTRIC POWER Conference and Exhibition in New Orleans April 19 with a message that generators need to “think big” and embrace possibilities of disruptive technologies—or risk being run over on the road to the future. Leo Denault, chairman and CEO of Entergy Corp., delivered the opening keynote […]

Canadian utility Fortis wants to acquire ITC Holdings Corp., the largest independent electric transmission company in the U.S., to benefit from “low-risk” regulated power markets. The deal valued at about $11.3 billion will allow Fortis to enter the U.S. regulated power market overseen by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), providing a “unique, highly diversified, […]

Calpine Corp. will idle a 578-MW natural gas–fired combined cycle (CCGT) power plant in northern California for likely the remainder of the year. The Houston-headquartered company told POWER on January 15 that it will put the 2001-built Sutter Energy Center in Yuba City in “cold layup.” That means that while will the plant will not […]

A new grid modernization blueprint released by the Department of Energy (DOE) on January 14 seeks to integrate conventional and renewable power sources with energy storage and efficiency measures, while ensuring the grid is resilient against cyberattacks and climate change threats. The DOE said that the plan will help “frame new grid architecture design elements, […]

The autonomous region of Xinjiang has an important strategic position in China’s economy—which consumes more energy than any other nation—yet several conditions limit the most effective use of its fuels. This article provides an overview of the situation. Since ancient times, the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (Xinjiang) has been in a particularly important position in […]

Grid resiliency has become a widely discussed topic recently. Experts have been called before congressional hearings to testify on the topic, and close calls—including a massive solar storm that missed Earth

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 […]

It is true that electric motors and transformers are some of the most dependable pieces of equipment installed at power plants. They can, in many cases, withstand a high level of mistreatment while continuing

Siemens, the only provider of direct-current (DC) offshore wind connection projects, in October unveiled a potentially game-changing technology that it says enables cheaper and simpler grid connection of wind

The final session of the annual meeting of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) in Austin ended on Nov. 11 on a “high note,” as outgoing president and Florida Commissioner Lisa Edgar had promised, with a panel titled “The Straight Dope on Energy & the Marijuana Industry.” The subtitle, “(Don’t laugh, it could […]

Following regulatory approval of a $10.6 billion transaction in over 20 countries and regions, GE’s acquisition of Alstom’s energy activities is now complete. GE and Alstom sealed the deal first proposed in early 2014 with the signing of a 1,500-page “master agreement.” GE had initially proposed buying Alstom’s lucrative business for €12.35 billion, but following […]

The Clean Power Plan could force the retirement of up to 4 GW of coal-fired capacity in the region served by the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) starting as soon as 2022, an updated analysis suggests.  The independent system operator that manages about 90% of Texas’ electric load acknowledged that fewer coal units are […]

Integrating California Independent System Operator’s (CAISO’s) and PacifiCorp’s networks—the two largest high-voltage transmission grids in the West—could yield billions of dollars in shared cost reductions within the first 20 years alone through efficiencies, a new study says.  The report commissioned by PacifiCorp stems from a memorandum of understanding signed by the independent system operator (ISO) […]

Battery energy storage has exploded in deployment over the past several years, but the majority of it by capacity, especially in North America, is deployed at grid scale. That may be a problem, because a new study from the Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) suggests the greatest value to the system lies with behind-the-meter batteries—distributing battery […]

ABB in August commissioned the world’s first high- and medium-voltage gas-insulated switchgear (GIS) bays that use a new “eco-efficient” gas mixture instead of sulfur hexafluoride, the greenhouse gas that is typically used. The 170/24-kV switchgear bays were supplied to Swiss utility ewz for a new 3 x 50-megavolt-ampere substation (Figure 5) in Zurich, Switzerland, which […]

The societal impact of a “Black Sky Day”—a term used by electric infrastructure security experts when discussing a collapse of the North American power grid—would be devastating, according to Dr. Daniel Baker, distinguished professor of Planetary and Space Physics at the University of Colorado, Boulder. Baker testified before two subcommittees of the U.S. House of […]

Broad, bipartisan energy legislation that would allocate federal funding to grid technology research and demonstration along with a number of other initiatives, including cybersecurity and the energy-water nexus, has cleared the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee with an 18–4 vote.  The committee’s chair, Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), and Ranking Member Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) […]