Wind
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News and Notes
POWER Digest [January 2024]
Azerbaijan’s First Utility-Scale Solar Project Online. Officials in Azerbaijan in November announced the country’s first and largest utility-scale solar photovoltaic power plant is now operating. The
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Solar
India’s Adani Group Announces $1 Billion Investment in Renewable Energy
India’s Adani Group announced more development of renewable energy, with the company on Dec. 27 saying its Adani Green Energy arm has received $300 million for the transfer of a 1,050-MW clean energy portfolio as part of a joint venture (JV) with France’s TotalEnergies. The announcement Wednesday came one day after Adani, led by billionaire […]
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Trends
Seven European Countries Set Ambitious But ‘Necessary’ Target to Decarbonize Power System by 2035
The seven European countries that make up the Pentalateral Energy Forum—Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and Switzerland—will strive for the decarbonization of their interconnected electricity system by 2035. The countries, which form the Pentalateral Energy Forum—a 2005-convened voluntary framework for regional energy cooperation—in a joint statement on Dec. 18 formally concluded, “timely decarbonization […]
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Sustainability
Shining Light on Life Cycle Analysis for Renewable Energy Systems
Life cycle analysis or assessments (LCAs) are a quintessential tool for power and utility industry professionals and tradespeople. They determine the environmental and financial value of new technologies. Consumer products get the most attention, but LCAs for renewable energy systems (Figure 1) should be discussed more. It is time to synthesize known information to create […]
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Solar
How Renewable Energy Companies Can Address Increasing Foreign Exchange Challenges
Following a difficult period for the renewable energy industry, firms must begin prioritising foreign exchange (FX) risk management against the rising threat of currency movements. It has been a tough year for the renewable energy industry. The post-COVID inflationary pressures that have gripped the global economy over the last two years are weighing heavily on […]
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Trends
COP28 Concludes with Landmark Decision to Shift Away from Fossil Fuels
Negotiators from nearly every country in the world closed COP28 with a decision that—for the first time—formally recognizes the necessity of moving away from fossil fuels to achieve Paris Agreement targets. The decision, adopted on the last day of the two-week 28th Conference of the Parties (COP 28) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate […]
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Wind
GE Vernova, Forestalia Reach Deal for Wind Farms in Spain
GE Vernova said the company’s turbines will play a major role in supporting renewable energy in Spain through a collaboration with Forestalia, one of that country’s leading clean energy developers. The companies on Dec. 14 said they had a framework agreement in which GE Vernova will install as much as 693 MW of onshore wind […]
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Coal
Tri-State Closing Arizona, Colorado Coal Plants Early, Investing in More Renewables
Colorado-based cooperative Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association will accelerate the closure of a coal-fired unit in the northwestern part of the state, and also announced a retirement date for an Arizona coal plant, as part of the utility’s latest electric resource plan (ERP). Tri-State on Dec. 1 also said it wants to acquire at least […]
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Electrification
Undersea Cable Projects to Transmit Renewable Energy Move Forward
Government officials in the UK have shown further support for a plan to bring renewable energy from a massive project in Morocco to Britain, one of at least three projects worldwide in which miles-long subsea
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Wind
UAE Launches 104-MW Wind Project Despite Low Winds
A landmark utility-scale wind project is now operational in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), despite previous concerns that large-scale wind energy is not viable owing to the region’s low wind speeds. Abu
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O&M
Cold Weather: How to Maintain Power Plant Readiness and Reliable Operation
Extreme temperature and weather events have become more prevalent in the past decade. The December 2022 Christmas freeze in the southeast U.S. saw many areas experiencing single-digit temperatures. The February 2021 Texas freeze saw temperatures in Dallas reach as low as –2F. Meanwhile, the January–February 2019 Midwest Arctic Polar Vortex saw temperatures plunge as low […]
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Commentary
Energy in Transition—Where Are Investors Looking Next?
Renewables are far from the primary power source in the U.S. No longer is the cost of renewable energy, particularly onshore wind and solar, the most substantial hurdle to the energy transition. New obstacles loom large. Predominant among these is connecting the infrastructure dots between new alternative sources and the current grid, all while maintaining […]
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Sustainability
Five Key Transformations Required to Achieve Net-Zero in the U.S.
During President Biden’s first year in office, his administration published a document titled “The Long-Term Strategy of the United States: Pathways to Net-Zero Greenhouse Gas Emissions by 2050.” The document says all viable routes to net-zero involve five key transformations. They are: Decarbonize electricity. Electrify end uses and switch to other clean fuels. Cut energy […]
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Trends
SRP Shifts from Traditional IRP to ‘Holistic’ Power Planning
Salt River Project (SRP) has become one of the first U.S. utilities to shift from an Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) to an Integrated System Plan (ISP), a “holistic roadmap” that takes into account evolving power system needs, energy affordability, and carbon reduction goals. The pioneering move by the public power entity that provides power and […]
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Electrification
POWER Notebook: New Projects For Energy Storage, Community Solar, Electric Buses; Google Announces PPA
An Arizona utility plans to build a battery energy storage system (BESS) that will help it store more of the region’s abundant solar energy, enabling the power to be used after the sun goes down. Tucson Electric Power (TEP) in early October said it plans to start operating what would be the largest energy storage […]
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Trends
Decommissioning Dilemmas: Navigating the End-of-Life Challenges in Clean Energy Sources
Planning, building, operating, or overhauling power plants has long been an emphasis in the power sector—and an important one, given that the creation of new power capacity plays an outsized role in
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Wind
California Group Inks Deal for Power from Massive New Mexico Wind Farm
A California company that specializes in providing renewable energy to electricity customers has signed its largest procurement contract. Peninsula Clean Energy (PCE) on September 28 said it will receive 220 MW of wind power from Pattern Energy’s SunZia Wind installation in New Mexico, a 3.5-GW project that at present would be the largest wind onshore […]
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O&M
How Power Companies Benefit from Accurate Weather Forecasts
It’s pretty easy to understand how the weather affects certain forms of power generation and infrastructure. Sunlight is obviously needed to generate solar power, wind is required to produce wind energy, and extreme storms of all kinds can wreak havoc on transmission and distribution lines, and other energy-related assets. Therefore, having accurate and constantly updated […]
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Electrification
Deloitte Report Details Importance of Energy Storage to U.S. Power Grid
Energy industry analysts have said energy storage will be needed to support the integration of renewable energy into the U.S. power grid, and to provide grid flexibility and reliability. Energy storage, including the use of battery energy storage systems (BESS), also will support moves toward electrification and continued decentralization of U.S. power generation. A new […]
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Legal & Regulatory
New Labor Regulations Could Have Implications for Renewables Developers
Developers of renewable energy projects generally haven’t concerned themselves with the Davis-Bacon Act, the Great Depression-era federal law that mandates the paying of prevailing wages to laborers on public works projects. However, if the Department of Labor (DOL) gets its way, that might soon change. On August 23, 2023, DOL published new Davis-Bacon and Related Acts regulations that contain […]
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Wind
Elevating Wind Energy: ‘Intelligent Inspection’ Transforms Turbine Operations
A successful clean energy transition depends on maximizing output and minimizing the costs of renewable investments.In particular, wind turbines are highly effective assets but require frequent detailed inspections and maintenance to ensure they are fully operational and maximize their energy production. This can be ‘easier said than done’ for many wind turbine owners and operations […]
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Wind
A Symbol of Courage and Invincibility: DTEK Completes Wind Farm Despite War
When a hostile foreign country invades your homeland, many power projects might fall by the wayside, but for DTEK, providing reliable power to customers and continuing to develop secure energy resources was
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Solar
AusNet Embraces Data-Driven Storm Impact Modeling
Power companies must respond to outages caused by extreme weather events. Having accurate predictions concerning the severity of impending storms can ensure companies are prepared with the right resources on
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Legal & Regulatory
Streamlined Permitting Key to California’s Floating Offshore Wind Development
Earlier this year the Biden administration hosted its inaugural Floating Offshore Wind Shot Summit, showcasing the efforts of federal departments to work with state, tribal, industry, and other interests to
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Wind
Texas Adding to U.S.-Leading Renewable Portfolio with 200-MW RWE Wind Farm
A 200-MW onshore wind farm project is under construction in Texas, an installation that will add to the state’s U.S.-leading renewable energy portfolio. RWE, a German multinational energy provider, on August 31 said the Montgomery Ranch Wind Farm is being built in Foard County. The company said it the project will increase RWE’s installed wind […]
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Energy Security
Dispute Brews About Wind Farm’s Role in Kenya’s Nationwide Blackout
Kenya’s government is pinning a nationwide blackout on Aug. 25 to the loss of 270 MW from the 310-MW Lake Turkana Wind Power Plant (LTWP), though the wind generator has denied it was the cause. The blackout, which lasted more than 20 hours, began at about 9:45 p.m. on Friday, plunging the East African country’s […]
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Wind
The Future of Wind Energy Depends on Technicians and Technology
New global renewable energy deployments are set to increase by more than 440 GW by the end of 2023, the largest increase to date. To put that into perspective, a power plant with a capacity of 1 GW could power approximately 876,000 households. So, this increase is expected to provide the renewable energy equivalent of a plant […]
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Wind
How Wind Turbine Pitch-Control and Sealing Systems Work
With over 350,000 wind turbines currently in use globally, wind continues to be one of the fastest growing forms of renewable energy. In 2021, 93.6 GW of new installations brought global cumulative wind power capacity to 837 GW, showing year-over-year growth of 12%. The Global Wind Report 2022 notes that 557 GW of new capacity […]
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Legal & Regulatory
FERC Adopts ‘Historic’ Reforms to Ease Nationwide Generation Interconnection Backlog
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has approved key transmission reforms aimed at clearing a staggering backlog of more than 10,000 generation and storage projects—more than 2,000 GW—stalled in interconnection queues across the country. Order 2023, a final rule unanimously adopted by FERC’s four commissioners at a July 27 open meeting and posted in full […]
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Hydrogen
POWER Digest [August 2023]
Colombian Dam Site of Major Floating Solar Project. A new solar power system that will float on the reservoir at the Urrá Dam in Colombia is designed to demonstrate that hydroelectric stations dealing with