POWERnews

This has been the year from hell for coal-fired power and the coal industry. If current projections hold, coal generation in 2020 will be 21% lower than last year and 62% lower than the 2007 peak. The coal share of the generating mix, which for decades hovered around 50%, will finish the year at 20%, […]

The growth of energy storage, along with deployment of new technologies, is at the heart of the future of distributed power generation. That’s according to industry executives participating in POWER’s Distributed Energy Experience. Woody Rubin, president of AES Distributed Energy, provided a keynote address on Oct. 20, talking about the rise of solar-plus-storage applications and […]

The benefits of offshore wind power have become indisputable. While it takes significant investment to bring these sources of power about, we can see that where offshore wind is being introduced, jobs are being created and clean, sustainable energy is being generated. Despite these clear and appealing benefits, however, only a handful of countries have […]

AECOM has announced the closing of the sale of its Power construction business to affiliates of CriticalPoint Capital LLC. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The Los Angeles, California-based infrastructure consulting firm, which this month announced a restructuring plan, earlier this year closed on the $2.4 billion sale of its Maryland-based Management Services business—which […]

EnTech Solutions, a sister company of Faith Technologies, was created to provide renewable, resilient energy solutions that enable its partners to control energy costs and reliability and minimize their environmental impact. EnTech utilizes microgrids that leverage proprietary power control hardware, energy management software, energy storage and other distributed energy resources (DERs) to consistently deliver high-value, […]

POWER Magazine   Jobs   White Papers  Webinars   Events   Store   October 15, 2020 Natrium, Xe-100 Are DOE's Picks for Advanced Nuclear Reactor Demonstrations TerraPower and X-energy will each receive $80 million in initial federal funding under the Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program (ARDP) to build their two distinct advanced […]

Doubling down on its net-zero efforts, Duke Energy will retire all coal-only units in the Carolinas, multiply its renewable portfolio, and cease emitting methane in its natural gas business by 2030.  The company made the announcements on Oct. 12 at its first environmental, social and governance (ESG) day, a virtual event geared toward its investors. […]

The Orlando Utilities Commission (OUC) said it plans to eliminate the group’s use of coal for power generation no later than 2027, including converting two coal-fired units at its Stanton Energy Center to run on natural gas. The Florida utility’s management on Oct. 14 made the recommendation as part of its Electric Integrated Resource Plan […]

Tax credits and incentives, also known as C&I, have long been important to support the growth of energy technologies, from oil and gas exploration to solar and wind power. Federal tax credits have lifted the U.S. renewable energy industry over the past decade, leading to rapid growth in the sector. Laurence Sotsky is the CEO […]

Heat exchangers are at the heart of many critical industrial systems. From power plants to industrial chemical plants and everything in between, the heat exchanger in all its forms is a critical aspect of heat management systems. Therefore, organizations must take heat exchanger maintenance extremely seriously. A heat exchanger failure can be a potentially deadly […]

TerraPower and X-energy will each receive $80 million in initial federal funding under the Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program (ARDP) to build their two distinct advanced nuclear reactors and begin operating them within seven years.  Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette made the much-awaited announcement about the first ARDP awards in a brief Twitter […]

Long Ridge Energy Terminal will transition a 485-MW combined cycle power plant that is under construction within its sprawling multimodal facility on the Ohio and West Virginia border with the capacity to run on a hydrogen blend when it begins operation in 2021, and eventually transition to 100% green hydrogen within a decade. Long Ridge, […]

A developer has shelved a 920-MW natural gas-fired power plant planned for Brooke County, West Virginia, citing “changing conditions in the energy and financial markets” and alleged coal industry interference.  Energy Solutions Consortium (ESC), a single purpose entity engaged in developing natural gas-fired power plants in West Virginia and Pennsylvania that has been active since […]

POWER Magazine   Jobs   White Papers  Webinars   Events   Store   October 12, 2020 DOE Has Chosen Advanced Nuclear Reactor Demonstration Winners The Department of Energy (DOE) notified Congress that it has chosen recipients for its Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program (ARDP) and will make its…   It's Fair to Say – New Plant […]

A Chinese company announced it has brought the world’s second-largest solar farm into commercial operation. Sungrow, which supplies inverters for renewable energy projects, and the state-owned utility Huanghe Hydropower Development on Oct. 9 said a 2.2-GW capacity solar park in the northwest province of Qinghai is now online. The Qinghai project trails only the 2.3-GW […]

Electric-power and gas companies are especially vulnerable to cyberattacks, but a structured approach that applies communication, organizational, and process frameworks can significantly reduce cyber-related risks. In our experience working with utility companies, we have observed three characteristics that make the sector especially vulnerable to contemporary cyberthreats. First is an increased number of threats and actors […]

POWER Magazine   Jobs   White Papers  Webinars   Events   Store   October 8, 2020 DOE Supports CCUS Retrofit for San Juan Coal Plant The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has released a report that says retrofitting the coal-fired San Juan Generating Station (SJGS) in New Mexico with carbon capture technology would bring more… […]

The Department of Energy (DOE) on Oct. 7 notified Congress that it has chosen recipients for its Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program (ARDP) and will make its selections public “next week.” The ARDP program, which the DOE officially launched on May 14, will essentially focus DOE and non-federal resources (through cost-shared agreements with industry) to enable […]

Although the first lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery was conceived more than 50 years ago, the technology continues to be refined and improved today. Scientists and engineers are constantly modifying and testing electrolytes, anodes, and cathodes in an effort to make Li-ion batteries more energy-efficient, cost-effective, and safer. Chicago, Illinois-based NanoGraf Technologies is one company working to […]

Ontario Power Generation (OPG) took another step to bolster plans to deploy small modular reactors (SMRs) in Ontario, announcing it is advancing engineering and design work with three major advanced nuclear reactor developers: GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy (GEH), Terrestrial Energy, and X-energy. The announcement on Oct. 6 stems from a “due diligence” process OPG held […]

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has released a report that says retrofitting the coal-fired San Juan Generating Station (SJGS) in New Mexico with carbon capture technology would bring more jobs and tax revenue to the region than replacing the power plant with renewable energy. Deputy Secretary of Energy Mark Menezes presented the report’s findings […]

The Department of Energy (DOE) will issue a notice of proposed rule-making (NOPR) to implement President Trump’s broad bulk power system (BPS) security executive order (EO) “later this fall,” a DOE official confirmed to POWER on Oct. 5. Though the NOPR is delayed beyond the 150-day timeframe set by the EO, various BPS stakeholders are […]

Distributed energy systems are transforming the way power is produced and distributed. The decentralized model of power generation, where energy is produced closer to where it will be used, rather than at a large plant elsewhere and sent through the traditional grid, has several advantages, including reducing transmission losses and lowering carbon emissions. An Oct. […]

Most new utility-scale renewable energy projects, such as installations of solar and wind generation, are now including battery storage.  The growing trend of integrating storage is making such projects more financially attractive, as it enhances the generation profile of the installation. Storage helps smooth the power supply, enabling electricity to flow from a project even […]

Increasing the reliability and resiliency of the electricity supply is a focus of today’s power generation industry. In concert with that, more and more utilities, companies, and institutions are establishing internal clean energy goals, wanting to reduce their carbon footprint while ensuring a consistent supply of power for their operations. An (date) session of Experience […]

As many as 179 million Americans are at risk of losing utility services as the country heads toward winter, and electric and gas utility companies are looking at $24.3 billion in unpaid bills, according to an analysis released Oct. 1 by the National Energy Assistance Directors’ Association (NEADA). Many utilities at the start of the […]

POWER Magazine   Jobs   White Papers  Webinars   Events   Store   October 1, 2020 Vistra Shuttering More Coal, Adding Solar and Storage Vistra has announced seven new renewable energy projects that will add about 1,000 MW of solar and energy storage to the company’s generation fleet. The company also said it would… Despite […]

President Trump’s action to ban oil and gas drilling off the East Coast and through much of the Gulf of Mexico also eliminates leases for offshore wind farms, according to the U.S. Department of the Interior. Trump earlier this month issued two memos withdrawing the potential to lease land for oil and gas extraction on […]

Developing a power plant safety culture takes time and constant effort, but the payoff is priceless, safety leaders at three major power companies said during a morning session at the Experience POWER virtual event on Sept. 30.  Jeffrey Mullins, safety and health consultant for the 2.6-GW coal-fired Gavin Power Plant owned by Lightstone Generation, kicked […]

Distributed energy resources (DERs) are physical and virtual assets that are deployed across the power distribution grid. They are typically close to load, and though they initially began as behind-the-meter assets, today may be as likely to be deployed in front of the meter. DERs include renewable energy, and are the key component in microgrids, […]