Latest

  • AI Is Usually Cast as a Grid Burden. The Genesis Mission Is Betting It’s a Grid Tool.

    The explosion of artificial intelligence (AI) computing is, for most utilities, a problem to be absorbed: gigawatts of new data-center demand arriving faster than transmission can be planned or built. The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Genesis Mission does not dispute that framing. But buried in the national research portfolio it unveiled July 22 is […]

  • Maximizing combined cycle plant operating flexibility

    Sponsored by:
    Siemens Energy

    Dynamic swings in both load and hourly spot prices are forcing combined cycle plants to ramp up and down quickly to remain profitable and competitive. This is the third article in a POWER magazine series, with the first titled Futureproofing Gas Power Plant Investments and discussing various technologies to extend the life of existing facilities. […]

  • Avantus Brings Aratina 1 Solar-Plus-Storage Online in California

    Renewable energy developer Avantus said its Aratina 1 solar-plus-storage project has entered commercial operation in California. The 200-MW/500-MWh installation in Kern County has long-term power purchase agreements (PPAs) with Central Coast Community Energy (3CE) and Silicon Valley Clean Energy (SVCE), a pair of community choice aggregators.

  • Quantum Computing Is Emerging as a Tool for Tomorrow’s Electrical Grids

    Artificial intelligence and high-performance computing have helped electrical utilities modernize how they model, forecast, and manage grid operations. These tools already play a central role in maintaining reliability, balancing supply and demand, and planning new infrastructure. But as electrical grids become more distributed, data-intensive, and renewable-heavy, some of the most complex decision-making problems are becoming […]

  • Severe Service Control Valves for Power Plants: Reducing Cavitation, Noise, and Maintenance Costs

    Power industry severe service applications can be difficult, but new advanced trim designs and external noise reduction devices have created higher-performing and more cost-effective alternatives. Power industry applications practically define the phrase “severe service.” Elevated temperatures and pressures, cavitation, erosive solids, and high noise all conspire to push control valve technology to its very limits. […]

  • America Needs a Fifth Nuclear Executive Order

    President Trump’s four nuclear executive orders issued on May 23, 2025, represented a historic liftoff for American nuclear energy. COMMENTARY As electricity demand surges, geopolitical energy competition intensifies, and America’s power infrastructure faces mounting strain, the administration acted decisively. It recognized that American energy dominance—and leadership in the digital age—requires a resurgence of nuclear reactor […]

  • Wildfire Liability Is Becoming a Data Problem, Not Just a Legal One

    For years, utility wildfire liability was largely framed around a straightforward question: who caused the fire? That question still matters, but it is no longer the only one that matters.

  • Terra Innovatum, Waiken ILW Will Deploy Microreactors for Data Center Infrastructure

    A micro-modular nuclear reactor developer with global headquarters in Italy and a U.S. corporate office in Pennsylvania said it has been selected to deploy its equipment for data center infrastructure in Latin America and Brazil.

  • FERC Orders Mandatory NERC Reliability Standards for Data Center and Other Computational Loads

    The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has directed the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) to file one or more new or modified mandatory reliability standards governing the integration of computational loads—a category defined broadly enough to cover generative-AI data centers, cryptocurrency mines, and other information-technology facilities—by Dec. 31, 2026. FERC’s order, issued on July […]

  • Pacific Fusion Says Pulsed-Power Prototype Hits Milestone at National Lab

    California-headquartered Pacific Fusion announced that a pulsed-power prototype designed and built at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) has surpassed 3,000 shots under a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement with the company. Pacific Fusion on July 16 said this marks a key milestone in the development of high-gain fusion, and provides a practical example of government-industry […]