In This Issue
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NewsTHE BIG PICTURE: Wind Turbine Trends
Average wind turbine capacity, rotor diameter, and hub height increased in 2017, continuing a long-term trend. One reason that wind producers choose bigger turbines is to optimize wind power project cost and performance, according to the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. Source: U.S. DOE, 2017 Wind Technologies Market Report, […]
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CybersecurityThree Things ICS Security Pros Can Do to Maximize Uptime
Before industrial control systems (ICSs) were network-connected, operators had little to worry about in the way of cyber threats. But as industrial environments, such as energy utilities, become more connected, they’re exposed to vulnerabilities and attacks. ICSs are used in large amounts of critical infrastructure, including the electrical grid, transportation systems, and wastewater plants. How […]
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NewsCleanup and Closure Projects on a Massive Scale
Thousands of workers are involved, and billions of dollars are being spent, as U.S. utilities convert and close dozens of coal ash impoundments in an effort to meet government regulations and prevent future
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EnvironmentalThe Impact of Environmental Regulations on Power Generation
For many years, air pollution control (APC) rules and regulations have governed the design and economics of the world’s power generation fleet. These rules have had a tremendous impact, improving air quality
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NewsA Legal Guide to Power Generation Mergers and Acquisitions
A myriad of issues come into play when parties execute power industry mergers and acquisitions. Part 2 of this two-part series looks at the issues involved with acquisition agreements, and some of the more
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Connected PlantCyber Breaches: Is Fear Misplaced?
The power sector’s terror of a debilitating cybersecurity attack is magnified seemingly every day as new vulnerabilities or destructive threat actors are identified. But according to several industrial
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NuclearMolten Salt Reactors: Military Applications Behind the Energy Promises
The commercial nuclear power sector has evolved with great help from the military-industrial complex. Research and development funded for the purpose of national defense has resulted in advances directly
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SafetyEquipment Showcase: Tools and Safety Products
Safety should always be a priority for any business, no matter the industry. This is particularly true for power generation facilities, which feature multiple pieces of complex machinery that can present risks
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Connected PlantHow to Prepare for NERC CIP-013-1
It’s an exciting era in energy generation. The rapid adoption of IT systems and networked technology has enabled new business models and catalyzed production decentralization. However, with innovation comes
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Distributed EnergyDistributed Energy: A Burgeoning Market
It’s not particularly easy to find reliable and detailed statistics on the deployment of distributed energy systems. One reason is that a lot of distributed energy is installed behind-the-meter. As a result
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NewsAustralia’s Victoria State Ramps Up Renewables
Victoria state in Australia continues to see dramatic growth in solar and wind power, as well as battery storage systems, as the region rapidly expands its power generation capacity, in large part to serve the
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NewsPOWER Digest [December 2018]
Veolia Hungary Creates VPP Portfolio. Veolia Hungary in October acquired a 51% ownership share in CHP Eromu Kft., the first step in a process for Veolia to create a virtual power plant (VPP) portfolio. The
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NewsSpain Closing Mines in Transition Away from Coal
Coal from domestic mines provides just more than 2% of Spain’s electricity generation, as the country has increasingly moved away from coal-fired power toward renewable sources. The administration of new
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NewsMoroccan Molten Salt Tower Project Clears Reliability Test
A 10-day reliability test for the 150-MW Noor Ouarzazate III thermoelectric solar plant in Morocco has wrapped up, demonstrating that the project can provide continuous rated power even in the absence of
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NewsNovel Floating Power Plants on the Horizon
For decades, floating power plants have been used widely as a source of flexible, decentralized power generation for several reasons. Among them are that they can be built cost-effectively and rapidly; they
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NewsEliminate Transient Vacuums by Air Injection
Most operators know that air should be kept out of a heat exchanger’s cooling water supply line. Air can collect in pockets and block flow, increasing velocities, increasing system resistance, decreasing
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CommentaryCourts Back State Flexibility on Choice of Generation
Power regulation in the U.S. is split between the federal and state levels, with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) having jurisdiction over the wholesale sales of electricity and the states