GAS POWER Direct

Not all is well in the realm of PJM, as several states in its jurisdiction have chafed under perceived roadblocks for expanding generation capacity. In April, Maryland fired a shot across the ISO’s bow, as its Public Service Commission ordered the construction of a new gas-fired plant.

Municipal landfills across the country have been quietly harnessing their methane emissions for years. But as the appetite for natural gas grows and the price of oil skyrockets, some creative sanitation departments are starting to make some real noise.

The failure of cap and trade seemed to have doomed the U.S. to missing greenhouse gas emissions cuts it committed to at the 2009 Copenhagen conference. But a funny thing happened on the way to the hothouse.

There are legitimate concerns with the effects hydraulic fracturing can have on health and the environment, but the discussion is in need of some perspective.

Do we really have only a decade of gas left? Or a century? Or more than that? The answer requires agreement on some definitions, and a solid grip on the big picture.

New federal regulations promise to change the fracking landscape in the coming years, perhaps substantially. But technology may be running ahead of the law, as improvements in the fracking process threaten to make some of the new rules unnecessary.

All but unthinkable a decade ago, the U.S. gas industry is gearing up for a major shift toward export of liquefied natural gas. Across the country, projects are afoot that could make the U.S. a serious LNG exporter within the next decade. GAS POWER reviews some of the major players and issues.

A lot goes into the decision to upgrade a simple-cycle plant to combined cycle. Careful planning and analysis can make the difference between a profitable, successful switch and an expensive hassle.

New regulations from the EPA have created alarm in some corners of the electricity sector. A fair review of the state of the industry indicates that most stakeholders are well-positioned to comply without sacrificing reliability.

The gas business and electric business have been joined at the hip for decades, despite numerous artificial barriers preventing an efficient coordination of resources. It’s past time to rethink the relationship.