POWER
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O&M
Get in the Zone for Safety in Hazardous Areas
Hazardous area solutions from foreign suppliers may not be tested to the same standards as those in general use across the U.S. It’s essential to understand there is tremendous liability to use those
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O&M
Prioritizing O&M in Early Stages of Project Design Yields Big Payoff
The Connecticut State Colleges & Universities (CSCU) system wanted to install solar power to save money on energy costs, reduce its carbon footprint, and demonstrate its commitment to sustainability for
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Connected Plant
Experiencing the Power of Virtualization
While virtualization has been a trend in the information technology sector for some time, it is also becoming increasingly attractive for operational technology. An Austrian steel producer therefore decided to
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Trends
POWER Digest [April 2022]
Taiwan Suffers New Blackout. Another massive blackout hit major cities in Taiwan on the morning of March 3, causing disruptions in the capital Taipei, Hsinchu, and Kaohsiung in the south. State-run
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Gas
New Realms for Gas Power Technology
Gas power technology developers are exploring new roles and applications to ensure gas power will remain relevant as power markets embrace decarbonization. At the end of 2020, about 1,600 GW of gas turbines
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News
Repowering Provides New Purpose for Existing Plants
The benefits of repowering—cost savings from upgraded performance, and utilizing existing infrastructure—make it an important part of the energy landscape. Repowering is occurring in both thermal and
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Workforce
Power Industry People: Finding Top Talent in the Military
Last month, POWER published an article written by Senior Associate Editor Darrell Proctor that detailed the challenges power companies have been facing when trying to attract high-quality recruits in the increasingly competitive labor market for engineers and other workers with technical backgrounds (see “Groups Grapple with Labor Logistics as Energy Evolves” in the February 2022 […]
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Gas
U.S. Natural Gas Key to Mexico’s Power Buildout
Mexico wants to secure a greater supply of natural gas, including from the U.S., as the country continues to build more gas-fired power plants. The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) said U.S
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Nuclear
Sweden’s Government Approves Construction of Spent Nuclear Fuel Repository
Sweden’s government in late January gave radioactive waste management company Svensk Kärnbränslehantering AB (SKB) the green light to proceed with a deep geological repository (DGR) for spent nuclear fuel (SNF) at a site near Vattenfall’s 3.2-GW Forsmark nuclear power plant. The milestone, which wraps up a planning process that has taken more than 40 years, makes Sweden only the second country, after Finland, to take active steps on building a permanent SNF repository.
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Nuclear
Brazil Looks at Nuclear Power as Demand for Electricity Grows
A government agency that supports research into Brazil’s energy sector has forecast a significant jump in demand for electricity within the country over the next several years. Empresa de Pesquisa
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Nuclear
Accelerated Decommissioning of Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station: A Progress Report
Holtec is decommissioning the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station. The company has a fairly aggressive schedule that could see site restoration work completed in 2027. This article provides a current-day status
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Markets
Market Transitions: The MOPR Merry-Go-Round
The PJM Interconnection’s Minimum Offer Price Rule (MOPR) was introduced in 2006 as a floor to bar new generators from artificially depressing capacity auction clearing prices through below-cost bids.
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Gas
Low-Cost Long-Duration Energy Storage at a Natural Gas Pipeline
An energy storage project based on Compressed Natural Gas Energy Storage (CNGES) technology is being studied at the Abbott Power Plant in Illinois. This article presents an overview of CNGES technology
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O&M
Monitoring of Power Station Components: Predictive Maintenance in Flexible Plant Operation
An innovative software program, coupled with an experienced team of engineers, allows plant operators to evaluate creep and fatigue stress in components exposed to more frequent cycling, thereby identifying
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Nuclear
District Heating Supply from Nuclear Power Plants: Technical and Economic Aspects
In the February 2022 issue of POWER, an overview of existing district heating systems that utilize nuclear power for their energy source was presented and best practices of successful installations were
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T&D
Composite Insulator Application and Design for a Growing and Evolving Transmission Grid
The need to integrate renewable energy resources, and prepare for increased demand for power as electrification takes hold in transportation and other sectors, creates challenges for an aging grid. Some
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Solar
Renewable Energy Ready to Deliver Despite Continued Uncertainty
Notwithstanding the ongoing impacts of COVID-19, in 2021 the deployment of solar, solar + storage, stand-alone storage, wind, and other renewable energy technologies continued to rapidly expand across the U.S
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O&M
How Electric Utilities’ Risk Management Supports Operational Resilience Efforts and Emergency Response
Severe weather conditions have a tremendous impact on our power grid as well as downstream costs for people, property, and brands that are costly and time-consuming to recover from. For example, Entergy New
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Gas
2022 CTOTF Innovation Excellence Award Winners Announced
The Combustion Turbine Operations Technical Forum (CTOTF), in association with POWER, is excited to announce the recipients of its annual Innovation Excellence Awards. Winners were selected through a judging process performed by an independent panel of recognized utility industry experts. Selections were made in five categories: maintenance, environmental stewardship, safety process, operational, and management and […]
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Energy Storage
Harnessing the Benefits of Energy Storage to Reshape Sustainable Operations
In today’s challenging business environment, it is paramount for organizations of all disciplines to reduce operating expenses while creating processes to meet strict greenhouse gas emissions standards. There is a worldwide focus on utilizing the full power of renewable energy and distributed assets to help organizations become more sustainable and decarbonized. Energy consumers, producers, utilities, […]
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Nuclear
Natural Gas and Nuclear Power Are Not ‘Green’ Investments
It is not an over-reaction to state that we are in the midst of a planetary emergency. We face the combined threats of climate, nature loss, and human health pandemics. Of the nine planetary boundaries that
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Coal
POWER Digest [March 2022]
Oman Adds Major Solar Project. A consortium consisting of Saudi Arabia-based ACWA Power, Kuwait-based Gulf Investment Corp., and Kuwait’s Alternative Energy Projects Co. in January inaugurated Ibri 2, the
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History
New Era for NextEra: A Utility Spotlight
Since its inception as Florida Power & Light Co. in 1925, NextEra Energy has transformed into the world’s largest utility company. The company’s history is symbolic of the growth and uncertainty that has characterized the history of power.
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News
Groups Grapple with Labor Logistics as Energy Evolves
The continuing transition in the power generation sector means workers need new skills. The challenge for utilities and other power producers is finding the top talent at a time the labor pool is shallow
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Coal
Coal Will Remain Prominent for Decades Despite Growing Renewable Power Capacity
There are a lot of changes taking place in the world’s energy supplies. We seem to read announcements almost every day about coal plant retirements, and solar and wind farm installations. Yet, when you look
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News
Italian Group Taps CO2 for Energy Storage
New technologies for energy storage are being developed as the industry continues to mature. Energy Dome, an Italian energy storage technology company founded in 2019, recently announced it will use the
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Nuclear
China Starts Up First Fourth-Generation Nuclear Reactor
The first of two units at China’s much-watched high-temperature gas-cooled modular pebble bed (HTR-PM) demonstration project was successfully connected to the grid on Dec. 20. The achievement marks a major
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Gas
Rolls-Royce Sets Megawatt Milestone for Hybrid-Electric Aircraft System
Bracing for explosive growth in the electrification of mobility, UK-based engineering giant Rolls-Royce is developing various all-electric and hybrid-electric drive systems for aircraft. At one of its most
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Hydro
Blueprint Underway for Commercial Mine Energy Storage Facility in Sweden
A blueprint for what could become the world’s first commercial underground mine storage facility has garnered financial backing from Swedish Mining Innovation.
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Biomass
Biomass Power: Environmental Benefit or Numbers Game?
Many bioenergy industry proponents put forth carbon neutrality as a basis for their support. However, the claim may not hold up under scrutiny. By some accounts, biomass power plant emissions including those