Trends

PJM, the largest grid operator in North America, has launched a multiyear partnership with tech giant Google and its Alphabet X moonshot Tapestry to streamline PJM’s grid interconnection process using artificial intelligence (AI) tools. The companies said the effort could significantly improve planning and decision-making as grid pressures intensify. Under the initiative, announced on April […]

Seven major U.S. grid operators have raised a unified alarm about an impending capacity crunch, warning that the pace and scale of explosive demand—including from data centers, manufacturing, and electrification—pose a precarious misalignment with accelerating generator retirements and transmission constraints. At a March 25 hearing before the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Energy, the […]

In January, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) said U.S. wholesale electricity prices were less volatile in 2024 than they have been over the last few years. But that’s just one, limited perspective on the data. If we consider the macrotrends at play, it’s clear that U.S. markets won’t return any time soon—if ever—to the […]

Gas power is experiencing a stunning resurgence, driven by soaring electricity demand. But as utilities scramble to secure new capacity, a turbine supply crunch is unfolding, forcing urgent procurement

I think most POWER readers are familiar with financial indexes such as the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) and the S&P 500. These indices are widely reported on by news outlets and followed by many

Data centers serve as the silent backbone of our daily lives, the epicenter of digital communication, corporate data, and countless innovations including artificial intelligence (AI), cloud computing, and the

This whitepaper from SimuTech Group explores how multiphysics simulation helps engineers solve performance and reliability challenges across the energy generation industry. Covering structural, thermal, fluid, and electromagnetic domains, it highlights practical applications across fossil, nuclear, hydro, wind, solar, and hydrogen systems. Backed by 40+ years of experience, SimuTech Group offers proven strategies to accelerate innovation […]

Electric utilities are facing numerous converging challenges posing major complications to the way they manage their infrastructure, manage their operations, and meet evolving customer needs. The increasing frequency of storms and wildfires are pressing issues. Aging infrastructure and a graying workforce create additional vulnerabilities. And other challenges include unprecedented increases in demand, supply chain disruptions […]

A coalition of large energy users—including Google, Amazon, Meta, Occidental, and Dow—have pledged their support for tripling global nuclear capacity by 2050. The cross-industry commitment, announced on the sidelines of CERAWeek by S&P Global in Houston, marks the first time large energy users beyond the nuclear sector have collectively backed such an extensive expansion of […]

PPL subsidiaries Louisville Gas and Electric Company (LG&E) and Kentucky Utilities Company (KU) have proposed to upgrade environmental controls at a 1974-built coal unit, build two new gas-fired power plants at a combined cost of $2.8 billion, and add 400 MW of battery storage. The measures seek to significantly boost the companies’ capacity to ready […]

The power industry was once considered slow-moving and perhaps even boring. That is no longer the case as technology has expanded and power demand projections skyrocket. New reports released by analysts at

The decentralization of electricity production and delivery is evident in the commercial and industrial (C&I) sector, as businesses move to produce their own power to ensure a reliable and resilient supply

Since 2013, when China launched its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), interest in the measure has been sharply divided. Proponents in Beijing and across the Global South view the BRI as a transformational

Major Solar-Plus-Storage Project Announced in Middle East. A solar-plus-storage project that could provide gigawatts of generation capacity was unveiled in January during Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week (ADSW)

Battery energy storage systems (BESS) play an essential role in balancing grids with high renewable energy. They can charge during low price hours and discharge during high price hours in the wholesale markets, or support grid stability participating in the ancillary markets. It is important for BESS owners to maximise their profit by deciding how […]

As power plants confront aging infrastructure, surging demand, and the sweeping changes of rapid electrification, operations and maintenance (O&M) are being redefined to tackle unprecedented challenges and

As the power sector grapples with aging infrastructure, stricter sustainability mandates, and the rapid integration of renewables, innovation in operations and maintenance (O&M) has become critical to

Southern Co. subsidiary Georgia Power has proposed a pivot toward extending the life of several existing coal and natural gas-fired power plants into the late 2030s—well beyond previous retirement timelines—citing rising electricity demand, regulatory constraints, and grid reliability risks. The utility’s 2025 Integrated Resource Plan (IRP), filed with the Georgia Public Service Commission (PSC) on […]

Texas A&M University System has unveiled four nuclear developers with which it plans to explore building and operating small modular reactor plants (SMRs) at its Texas A&M-RELLIS campus near College Station. The project—dubbed “The Energy Proving Ground”—is part of a state-supported initiative to deploy operational advanced reactors in Texas within the next five to seven […]

The energy grid is confronting unprecedented challenges, including surging demand, aging infrastructure, and the increasing frequency of extreme weather events. A deep freeze across the East Coast recently generated an all-time winter high demand on the PJM grid, while Texas and Florida dealt with a rare snowstorm. Demand response has emerged as a proven and […]

Prominent private equity investment firm Blackstone has agreed to acquire the 774-MW Potomac Energy Center—a natural gas power plant located in Virginia’s “Data Center Alley”—in a deal reportedly valued at approximately $1 billion, according to sources familiar with the matter. Previously known as the Panda Stonewall Energy Facility, the Potomac Energy Center is situated within […]

Facing a projected surge in power demand across the country, NextEra Energy is taking steps to potentially restart its shuttered 615-MW Duane Arnold nuclear plant in Iowa as early as 2028, while also signing a new partnership with GE Vernova to develop natural gas generation projects that could be paired with renewable energy and storage. […]

South Carolina’s largest power provider Santee Cooper has issued a request for proposals (RFP) aimed at finding a buyer—or visionary—to take on what remains of the Virgil C. Summer Nuclear Station expansion. The two partly constructed AP1000 projects, abandoned in 2017 after a cascade of delays and cost overruns, could now offer a second chance […]

2025 will test the progress of the world’s energy transition and could forecast its direction for the next decade. With major economies pursuing budget cuts, it will be a year that challenges the economic viability of any publicly funded projects, with growing pressures to deliver faster and cheaper. For emerging technologies in particular, such as […]

As we enter 2025, the world’s growing need for charging large battery storage in vehicles is driving many changes in how we generate, transmit, distribute and use energy. Against this backdrop, four major trends are poised to impact the energy sector in the coming year and beyond. We expect significant advancements to be seen in […]

Is it possible that the digital infrastructure and energy/power industries are overestimating the need for data centers, and for development of new energy facilities to be used to power them? The growth of generative artificial intelligence (Gen AI) is expected to account for 3.5% of global electricity consumption by 2030, according to Gartner, a consultancy. […]

Advanced nuclear technology firm Oklo is partnering with Texas-based prime and backup solutions company RPower to roll out an innovative “phased energy model” that will combine natural gas and nuclear to offer a scalable and sustainable turnkey solution for data centers. The companies on Jan. 17 said they signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to […]

Sweden has broken ground on its final repository for spent nuclear fuel (SNF)—a milestone reached after 40 years of research and development—making it the world’s second deep geological repository (DGR) now under construction. Svensk Kärnbränslehantering AB (SKB), a nuclear fuel and waste management company owned by Sweden’s nuclear operators, officially announced the start of construction […]

During the 2016 U.S. presidential campaign, then-candidate Donald J. Trump took an extremely tough stance on bringing back jobs lost to foreign countries by incentivizing domestic manufacturing. Trump took a hard line against the Clean Power Plan, many times referring to it as a “jobs killer” and an “inflation creator.” Energy independence became a resounding […]

Competitive generation giant Constellation has agreed to acquire Calpine Corp. in a $16.4 billion deal that is set to create the largest producer of clean and reliable energy in the U.S. with an asset portfolio of more than 60 GW. The definitive agreement, announced on Jan. 10, includes a cash and stock transaction valued at […]