POWERnews

  • BWRX-300 SMR Reaches Regulatory Milestone in UK

    The GE Vernova Hitachi Nuclear Energy (GVH) BWRX-300 small modular reactor (SMR) has completed Step 2 of the Generic Design Assessment (GDA) process in the UK.

  • GE Vernova Inks Turbine Deal with Romania Wind Farm

    GE Vernova said the company has signed an agreement with Public Power Corporation Renewables (PPC R) to supply, install, and commission 14 of its 6.1 MW–158m turbines for a wind farm in Vaslui County, Romania.

  • Coal’s Not Dead Yet: B&W CTO Suggests Fossil Fuels Are Back in Favor

    “The result of the 2024 presidential election probably had the biggest impact on the direction the U.S. energy industry is headed right now,” Brandy Johnson, Chief Technology Officer (CTO) with Babcock & Wilcox (B&W), told POWER. “It has opened up the pathway for fossil fuels in power generation again.” That shift is already visible across […]

  • The Uranium Renaissance: Revitalizing America’s Nuclear Supply Chain

    As the global demand for clean energy intensifies, nuclear power is enjoying a resurgence not seen in decades. However, this renewed interest has exposed a critical vulnerability in the U.S. energy sector: a massive disconnect between uranium consumption and domestic production. As a guest on The POWER Podcast, Thomas Lamb, president and CEO of Myriad […]

  • BayWa r.e. Moving Forward with California Solar-Plus-Storage Project

    Renewable energy company BayWa r.e. said it has closed financing for a solar-plus-storage installation in San Diego County, California. The group on December 9 said the Jacumba Valley Ranch (JVR) Energy Park is expected to enter commercial operation in 2026.

  • Report: U.S. Adds 11.7 GW of New Solar Capacity in Q3

    The U.S. solar power industry installed 11.7 GW of new generation in the third quarter of this year, according to a report from Wood Mackenzie and the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA). It’s the third-largest quarterly gain on record, and moves total solar installations in 2025 above the 30-GW level.

  • The POWER Interview: Data Collection Optimizing Gas Delivery, Safety

    Utilities that provide natural gas to customers are investing in smart technologies to modernize their infrastructure. These measures are leading to better efficiency in gas delivery, while also enhancing safety measures along their delivery networks.

  • Nuclear Startup Announces Kansas Site for Mile-Deep Reactor Pilot

    A California-based nuclear energy company with plans to place small modular reactors (SMRs) in mile-deep boreholes said it will break ground December 9 for a pilot project at a site in Parsons, Kansas. Berkeley-headquartered Deep Fission on December 4 said the company’s Gravity Nuclear Reactor is bring prepared for the Great Plains Industrial Park. Deep […]

  • Idaho Utility Celebrates 125 Years, Brings New Peaker Plant Online

    Idaho Falls Power celebrated the formal launch of a new natural gas-fired peaking generation plant on December 4, calling the occasion a “major milestone” in its 125-year history.

  • Alight Commissions 215-MW Solar Park in Denmark

    Alight, a Nordic solar developer and independent power producer, has commissioned the Lidsø solar park on Lolland in Denmark. The solar installation is the second-largest in Denmark with an installed capacity of 215 MWp. The new solar park marks Alight’s first operational asset in the Danish market. The park covers 253 hectares at Rødby Harbour […]

  • Looking Back at 2025 to Look Forward for 2026: Navigating Policy Shifts and Market Surges

    The past year saw a multitude of factors driving up electricity prices, including rapid growth in electricity demand, supply chain tightness, deployment delays for transmission and production projects, and an uncertain political and permitting climate. We expect all of these trends to continue in 2026. Changing economics have turned the justification for project development in […]

  • POWERnews—Dec. 4, 2025

    POWER Magazine   Jobs   White Papers  Webinars   Events   Store   December 4, 2025 INL Taps AWS, GE Vernova, Oil Majors for First MARVEL Microreactor Experiments Idaho National Laboratory (INL) has selected the five commercial teams that will potentially demonstrate advanced applications—including data center integration—at its much-watched Microreactor Application Research Validation and Evaluation […]

  • A First for Military Nuclear Power: TRISO Fuel Arrives at Project Pele

    Project Pele, the Department of War’s (DOW’s) first-of-its-kind transportable nuclear microreactor prototype, has received its tri-structural isotropic (TRISO) particle fuel at Idaho National Laboratory (INL), where formal system testing is slated to begin as early as 2027. The fuel—manufactured by BWXT Technologies (BWXT) and shipped from its Lynchburg, Virginia, facility—represents the first TRISO microreactor fuel […]

  • INL Taps AWS, GE Vernova, Oil Majors for First MARVEL Microreactor Experiments

    Idaho National Laboratory (INL) has selected the five commercial teams that will potentially demonstrate advanced applications—including data center integration—at its much-watched Microreactor Application Research Validation and Evaluation (MARVEL) platform, an 85-kWth/20-kWe liquid-metal-cooled test bed currently under construction at the lab. The initial selections, unveiled on Dec. 4, mark the “first potential end users for MARVEL,” […]

  • Framatome Selected to Deliver Critical Digital Control Upgrades at Columbia Generating Station

    Framatome said it has been awarded a contract to upgrade several digital control systems at Energy Northwest’s Columbia Generating Station. The scope of the project includes system design, engineering, manufacturing, testing and installation for new digital feedwater level control and feedwater heater vents and drains systems. The upgrades announced December 4 are part of Energy […]

  • SmartestEnergy US Partners with GridBeyond to Optimize Three Energy Storage Resources in ERCOT Totalling 29.7 MW

    SmartestEnergy US, part of a global energy company helping businesses navigate the energy transition, has selected GridBeyond, a global smart energy company, as its technology partner to optimize battery energy storage systems (BESS) in the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) market. The strategic partnership will leverage GridBeyond’s advanced price forecasting, bid optimization, and trading […]

  • INTEC Chosen to Build 50-MW Solar Power Facility in Germany

    Global renewable energy contractor INTEC Energy Solutions has been selected by a leading European renewable energy investment group to lead construction of a 50-MW solar power plant in Lachendorf, Germany. INTEC on December 3 said it has been commissioned by AUKERA as the engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contractor for the project. The solar farm […]

  • Antares Raises $96 Million in Series B Funding to Accelerate Nuclear Microreactor Development

    Antares, an advanced nuclear energy startup, announced the close of its $96-million Series B funding round, which was led by Shine Capital with participation from Alt Capital, Caffeinated, FiftyThree Stations, Industrious, and other investors.

  • DOE Selects TVA, Holtec to Receive $800 Million to Advance SMR Deployment

    The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) said the agency has selected the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) and Holtec Government Services to support early deployments of advanced light-water small modular reactors (SMRs) in the U.S. The DOE on December 2 said project teams with the two groups will receive up to $800 million in “federal cost-shared funding” targeted for projects in Tennessee and Michigan.

  • Getting the Grid and Charging Infrastructure Ready for Heavy-Duty Electric Trucks

    The dawn of electric semitrucks and other medium- and heavy-duty commercial vehicles has arrived, and if the technology is going to be widely adopted, we have to come to grips with what this means for our electrical infrastructure.

  • Data Centers and the Grid: Key Insights from POWER’s Inaugural Data Center POWER eXchange Summit

    POWER breaks down the top insights from Data Center POWER eXchange, its unique one-day summit curated by POWER’s editorial team and convened to examine the collision between accelerating data center load and tightening grid constraints.  The rise of artificial intelligence is poised to create the fastest, largest, and most concentrated surge of electricity demand in […]

  • Emerson Addresses Power Industry’s AI-Driven Demand Surge

    The power industry is experiencing unprecedented demand growth, driven largely by data centers and artificial intelligence (AI) applications. This surge is creating both opportunities and challenges for utilities, equipment manufacturers, and the broader power generation ecosystem. As a guest on The POWER Podcast, Seth Harris, growth director for Emerson’s Power business in North America, discussed […]

  • China’s Molten Salt Reactor Reaches Thorium-Uranium Conversion Milestone

    China’s Shanghai Institute of Applied Physics (SINAP) in November reported it had achieved thorium-to-uranium fuel conversion inside an operating molten salt reactor (MSR). The milestone provides the first

  • Flamanville 3: Europe’s Hard-Won Nuclear Milestone

    Flamanville 3 synchronized to the French grid in December 2024 after a prolonged, hard-fought build—an achievement that reflects years of technical recovery, regulatory rigor, and lessons now shaping

  • Shimane 2 Highlights Progress in Japan’s Nuclear Restart Program

    The Unit 2 reactor at the Shimane nuclear power station resumed operation in January 2025, more than a decade after it, and all other reactors in Japan, were taken offline. Japanese officials want restarted nuclear units to help supply needed power and lower the cost of energy across the country.

  • Delivering Nuclear Energy: Promise vs. Regulatory Reality

    In the race to decarbonize and secure America’s energy future, nuclear power is once again in the spotlight. From advanced reactors to fusion breakthroughs, the promise of nuclear energy is clear.

  • The POWER Interview: Negotiating the Details of Power Project Contracts

    Negotiating contracts is a process that requires preparation and communication, as all parties work toward a mutually beneficial relationship. It’s particularly true for electric utilities, groups with multiple stakeholders in their projects. That includes the utilities themselves, their shareholders or other investors, and of course their customers.

  • Winter Reliability Concerns Spur Fresh DOE Intervention for PJM, MISO

    The Department of Energy (DOE) extended its run of federal grid interventions into winter over the past week, issuing a Section 202(c) emergency order on Nov. 18 for Consumers Energy’s 1,420-MW J.H. Campbell coal plant in Michigan and another on Nov. 25 for Constellation’s 760-MW Eddystone Units 3 and 4 in southeastern Pennsylvania in a […]

  • NERC: Winter Grid Reliability at Risk Amid Soaring Demand, Fuel Supply Gaps

    In its recently released Winter Reliability Assessment, the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) found that while resources are adequate for normal winter peak demand, large swaths of North America face an elevated risk of electricity shortfalls during prolonged, wide-area cold snaps. Noting that four severe Arctic storms have swept across much of the continent since […]

  • UK Confirms Wylfa as Launch Site for First Nuclear SMR Fleet

    The UK has confirmed that Wylfa on the island of Anglesey, North Wales, will host three Rolls-Royce small modular reactors (SMRs) that could deliver first power in the mid-2030s—launching a state-backed, fleet-based nuclear deployment through publicly owned entity Great British Energy–Nuclear (GBE-N). The UK government has framed the SMR project, which is underpinned by more […]