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A Nevada installation that would be the largest solar power project in U.S. history was approved by the U.S. Department of the Interior on May 11. The estimated $1 billion, 690-MW Gemini solar photovoltaic electric generating facility is sited on 7,000 acres about 30 miles northeast of Las Vegas. Interior Secretary David L. Bernhardt signed […]

U.S. coal-fired power generation last year was at its lowest level since 1976, according to data released May 11 by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). The EIA in its latest Short-Term Energy Outlook report said energy from renewable resources could this year for the first time surpass coal-fired generation in the U.S. The agency […]

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is planning a technical conference this summer that would look at long-term impacts of the coronavirus pandemic on the energy industry. The discussion would look at how the industry should approach investments and infrastructure development should the trend of lessening demand for electricity, and oil and gas, continue. Industry […]

It’s spring outage season in the power industry. A time when plants of all types typically shut down and perform scheduled maintenance to ensure all essential equipment is as ready as possible to run reliably at full load for days on end during the peak summer season. This year, outages have been complicated by the […]

The largest coal-fired power plant in North Dakota is scheduled to close in 2022, with the Minnesota-based wholesale electric power cooperative that operates the facility saying the lost generation will be mostly replaced by wind power. Minnesota-based Great River Energy, which supplies electricity to the suburbs of Minneapolis and St. Paul, along with other parts […]

The Minnesota-based power cooperative that on May 7 said it would close a large Midwest coal-fired power plant also noted it has a contract with Form Energy, a Bill Gates-backed company that offers a long-duration energy storage solution, one that the group says could provide 150 hours of continuous power. Form Energy has been a […]

California officials on May 7 approved a $1.9-billion penalty against Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) for the company’s role in a series of wildfires that left more than 100 people dead and caused billions of dollars in damage in 2017 and 2018. The damage claims led PG&E to file for bankruptcy in January 2019. PG&E, […]

The growth in renewable energy, along with new forms of power generation not dependent on transmission via the traditional grid, has created new business opportunities for both legacy generators and start-up power producers. BOND, a Massachusetts-based company founded in 1907, is today a fifth-generation construction management and civil and utility general contracting firm, providing services […]

The Electricity Subsector Coordinating Council (ESCC) has released guidance on what the power sector should prioritize as it prepares to shift from remote operations to having employees return to the workplace.   In the seventh version of the “ESCC Resource Guide—Assessing and Mitigating the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19),” the power industry’s collaborative body identifies four strategic priorities […]

Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) gas is produced as a result of the microbial breakdown of organic materials in the absence of oxygen. It can be found in tanks, vaults, voids, and other confined spaces at industrial facilities including power plants. Besides being flammable and corrosive, H2S is also colorless and toxic, even in relatively low concentrations, […]