POWER

Fusion provides the energy of the sun and all stars, but harnessing fusion for civilian electric power has proven exceptionally difficult. For over 50 years the U.S. government has pursued

In a leap for fast neutron power technology, Russia’s Rosatom has connected Unit 4 of its Beloyarsk nuclear plant in the Urals region to the grid. The 880-MW BN-800 unit–the latest generation of fast reactors

There is perhaps no industry in the U.S. experiencing a greater range of fortunes than nuclear power. Across much of the country, nuclear plants that must compete in deregulated markets are often economically

Plans to build a pumped-storage hydroelectric plant in the world’s driest region won the approval of environmental regulators in Chile this December. The unique 300-MW project proposed by Valhalla Energia

Europe’s largest generator of renewable power will no longer invest in new offshore wind projects and may postpone some international hydro plants. Norwegian state-owned power company Statkraft will stop

The autonomous region of Xinjiang has an important strategic position in China’s economy—which consumes more energy than any other nation—yet several conditions limit the most effective use of its fuels. This article provides an overview of the situation. Since ancient times, the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (Xinjiang) has been in a particularly important position in […]

The Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI), in conjunction with Suprock Technologies, has conducted a research project to develop and demonstrate an advanced wireless sensor technology for monitoring torque

All power generating companies and plant operators value reliability, but they may be paying too little attention to a critical variable: people. One million. That’s the approximate number of people in the sky over the U.S. as you read this article. Remarkably, all will land safely. Aviation achieves among the highest reliability of any industry. […]

The autonomous region of Xinjiang has a strategic position in China’s economy, yet several conditions limit the most effective use of its fuels. This article provides an overview of the situation. A more detailed version, with maps and tables, appears here under the same title. Since ancient times, the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (Xinjiang) has held […]

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is a country flush with fossil fuels, so why does its government want nuclear power to form the backbone of its electricity supply? POWER interviewed Emirates Nuclear Energy Corp. CEO Mohamed Al Hammadi to find the answer and to learn more about the world’s largest in-progress nuclear construction project. Located […]

January has traditionally been POWER’ s forecast issue, and there’s one overriding prediction I feel confident making: The speed of changes will continue to exceed the power industry’s ability to fully

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published the final version of the Obama administration’s Clean Power Plan (CPP) on Oct. 23, 2015, and within hours more than two dozen challenges were filed

Grid resiliency has become a widely discussed topic recently. Experts have been called before congressional hearings to testify on the topic, and close calls—including a massive solar storm that missed Earth

Millennials have landed in the workforce. This is the generation that marketing and lifestyle gurus have been attempting to dissect, and now senior executives are starting to internalize what all the fuss was about—Millennials are a little different. At Student Energy, we’re working with university students to create the next generation of energy leaders. We […]

A significant transformation of the global power mix is under way, noted the International Energy Agency (IEA) in its newly released World Energy Outlook (WEO-2015). Renewables are getting subsidized boosts

In mid-November, current members of POWER’ s Generating Company Advisory Team responded by email to a set of questions about their concerns, challenges, and new initiatives as they plan for the year ahead

Thomas Edison State College, located in Trenton, N.J., has created an online program through which students can obtain a graduate certificate in cybersecurity with a focus on utility environments. The

Another megatrend has hit the power generation industry: the Internet of Things (IoT)—countless devices with embedded electronics, sensors, and connectivity to digitally communicate with one another and

China Makes Nuclear Export Gains in Argentina, Romania. As it boosts its domestic nuclear power capacity, China is also snapping up lucrative contracts to build new reactors abroad. This November, China

Nearly five years after the world’s first large-scale floating deepwater wind turbine was erected 11 kilometers (km) offshore Karmøy, southeast Norway, Norwegian energy firm Statoil has made a final

Wind production in the U.S. hit record highs in October 2015, natural gas prices hit record lows, and solar photovoltaic (PV) adoption is continuing to grow to unprecedented levels. Energy storage prices are

The power industry is challenged by many changes in generating portfolio, operating mission profiles, grid interconnections, customer engagement, and a workforce that is losing knowledge and experience to

The near-simultaneous surge in U.S. natural gas production and recent enactment of environmental regulations will usher U.S. power supply from reliance on coal to increased usage of natural gas and renewables

In today’s world, it’s hard to operate a power plant without the benefit of information technology (IT) systems. Staff tasked with managing these systems can take a beating when the tools don’t work as advertised. Here’s how one IT department focused on building and sustaining cross-functional relationships, culminating in a win-win for the department and […]

Editors note: Corrected (Dec. 7). A previous version of this infographic listed Russia’s nuclear total as 1.9 GW. It is 2.9 GW.

Florida’s Seminole Electric Cooperative faces what may be the most difficult generation transition in the nation as a result of the Obama administration’s Clean Power Plan. One of the nation’s largest generation and transmission rural electric cooperatives, Seminole owes its origins and its current position primarily to a single coal-fired plant. When electric utility veteran […]

The world has a problem. According to the World Bank, 1.1 billion people lack access to any form of modern energy service, and more than double that number lack access to adequate, reliable, affordable, and

One of the world’s largest biomass-fed organic rankine cycle (ORC) plants is getting ready to begin operations. Italian firm Turboden is preparing to put online an 8-MW power unit in Athens, Maine, that will

The challenge of getting a new generation of workers interested in the power sector is one I hear about frequently. Too many young adults are more fascinated by the tech sector, plant folks say. That may be