Latest
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Trends
Microsoft Commits to Full Electricity Cost Recovery in Data Center Communities
Microsoft has committed to “paying its way” to ensure its data centers will not ramp up residential utility rates, becoming the first major hyperscaler to publicly commit to a comprehensive framework that ties artificial intelligence (AI) data center growth to cost-recovery rate design. The hyperscaler also pledged to advance utility coordination, directly fund grid infrastructure, […]
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Renewables
Former Smelter Site Now Home to 1.2-GW Pumped Storage Hydro Project
Developers of a new pumped storage hydropower installation in Washington state said the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has issued a 50-year operating license for the project. Rye Development, a U.S.-based developer of pumped storage hydropower, and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP), on behalf of its Flagship Fund CI V, on January 22 said FERC gave […]
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Nuclear
Oak Ridge Lab, Type One Energy Partnering on Nuclear Fusion Project
The Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Type One Energy and the University of Tennessee in Knoxville are partnering to establish a world-class facility that will drive American innovation and move fusion energy closer to reality. This high-heat flux (HHF) facility, located at the Tennessee Valley Authority’s (TVA) Bull Run Energy Complex in East Tennessee, will evaluate how materials react under extreme conditions in a fusion device.
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Interview
The POWER Interview: Grid Integration of DERs
Integrating distributed energy resources (DERs) such as solar, wind, batteries, and electric vehicles into the power grid is an important part of the energy transition. Utilities and transmission system operators know they need more flexibility when it comes to power generation and delivery, which involves modernizing infrastructure, using advanced controls, and developing new market rules to manage two-way power flow.
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Press Releases
ERMCO Expands Transformer Manufacturing West with New Arizona Facility
The distribution transformer manufacturer’s first plant west of the Mississippi River will add three-phase production capacity to address ongoing supply constraints. Distribution transformer manufacturer ERMCO announced Jan. 21 it will open a new manufacturing facility in Maricopa County, Arizona—the company’s first expansion west of the Mississippi River. The 566,121-square-foot plant in Waddell, approximately 30 miles […]
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Engineering
Solving Problems, Not Chasing Technology
In recent years, the artificial intelligence (AI) landscape has shifted from quiet curiosity to relentless noise. Conference taglines, vendor solicitations, and slide decks all seem to begin with the same question: What can AI do for you? And too often the answer comes in the form of a catalog of hundreds of “use cases,” neatly […]
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Press Releases
Switched Source Expands Grid-Enhancing Technology Deployments by 60%
Chicago-based Switched Source reported a 60% increase in deployments of its Phase-EQ grid-enhancing technology (Figure 1) over the past year, with units now operating across more than 10 utility service areas from Alaska to Florida. The company’s Phase-EQ device dynamically balances power between phases on distribution circuits, addressing load imbalances that limit how much capacity […]
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Management
Five Years After Winter Storm Uri, a Texas Co-op Shares Its Lessons Learned
Rayburn Electric Cooperative faced three years of power costs in five days during the 2021 storm. The experience transformed the organization’s approach to risk, generation assets, and long-term planning. When Winter Storm Uri swept across Texas in February 2021, Rayburn Electric Cooperative found itself staring down a crisis that would reshape the organization’s entire operational […]
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Press Releases
NKT Secures €2 Billion in Contracts for Scottish HVDC Transmission Links
NKT has finalized contracts with SSEN Transmission for two high-voltage direct-current (HVDC) transmission links in Scotland, the company announced January 19. The projects, valued at approximately €2 billion combined, represent the largest contract award in SSEN Transmission’s history. The Danish cable manufacturer will deliver turnkey 525-kV HVDC power cable systems for the Western Isles and […]
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Business
Constellation Completes Acquisition of Calpine; Groups Have 55 GW of Generation Capacity
Major U.S. utility Constellation said it has completed its acquisition of Calpine Corp. from Energy Capital Partners (ECP), creating the nation’s largest producer of electricity. The companies on January 7 noted that the transaction, first announced as a $16.4-billion deal a year ago, unites Constellation’s nuclear power fleet with Calpine’s natural gas-fired and geothermal generation. […]