POWERnews

The Tenaska Westmoreland Generating Station began commercial operation on Dec. 21, the latest natural gas-fired facility to enter the PJM market. The 940-MW Tenaska plant, located near Smithton in South Huntingdon Township in Westmoreland County in southwest Pennsylvania, was built in just more than two years, though its planning and permitting process took several years […]

A bipartisan bill to modernize regulation of the nation’s nuclear power fleet passed in the U.S. Senate on Dec. 20 and the House on Dec. 21 without much opposition. It now heads to President Trump.   S.512, better known as the Nuclear Energy Innovation and Modernization Act (NEIMA), seeks to provide a program to develop […]

NV Energy plans to retire a 254-MW coal-fired unit in a power-constrained region of Nevada at the end of 2021, four years ahead of schedule. The company will instead purchase 1,001 MW from new solar photovoltaic projects equipped with 100 MW of long-term battery storage, effectively doubling its total renewable generation from 14% in 2017 […]

Another nuclear power project has been delayed, as the Fennovoima consortium and Russia’s state-run nuclear company Rosatom said the Hanhikivi 1 power plant’s projected start-up date has been pushed to 2028, four years behind the original schedule and eight years later than the proposed start when Finland’s government supported the project in 2010. The announcement […]

Unit 4 of the Tianwan Nuclear Power Plant in China entered commercial operation this past weekend after completing commissioning. It began supplying power to the country’s national grid on Dec. 22. Tianwan NPP is the largest facility built with a Russian-Chinese framework of economic cooperation, with Units 1 through 4 based on the VVER-1000 reactor […]

The accelerated retirement of coal-fired and nuclear generation by 2022 could adversely affect reliability in four regions, including in the East and over parts of the central U.S., the North American Electric Reliability Corp. (NERC) warned as it released findings from a “stress-test” scenario.  But the entity tasked with ensuring reliability and security of the […]

There’s never a dull moment in the power industry, and like most years, 2018 was filled with many interesting developments. As it has been for more than 135 years, POWER was there to break the news. The following 10 articles were the most-read online stories of the year. #10: New York Denies Air Permit for […]

Conferences and exhibitions are a valuable way for power professionals to share ideas and network, gain up-to-date training, further education, understand regulatory or policy changes, and access the latest products and technologies. POWER‘s editors compiled this helpful list of events in 2019 that cater to the power industry.  FEBRUARY ARC Industry Forum February 4-7 Orlando, […]

Dominion Energy’s bid to purchase SCANA Corp. and its South Carolina Electric & Gas (SCE&G) utility, approved by South Carolina regulators on Dec. 14, could bring some stability to SCANA. Shareholders hope that’s the case; they’re excited about swapping their devalued SCANA shares for more valuable Dominion stock. Workers, though, remain uncertain about their futures, […]

Hitachi Ltd. and ABB on December 17 announced that Hitachi will acquire 80.1% of ABB’s Power Grids unit in an $11 billion deal. Reports of the possible acquisition surfaced December 16, with several media outlets including POWER  discussing the agreement, citing sources familiar with the deal who asked not to be identified. Hitachi plans to […]

Unit 1 of the Taishan Nuclear Power Plant completed its final regulatory test of continuous operation and full power for 168 hours on Dec. 13, marking the final milestone toward achievement of commercial operation, China General Nuclear Power Group (CGN) and EDF announced at a joint press conference held in Beijing, China, on Dec. 14. […]

Hitachi Ltd. and ABB could announce an $11 billion deal as soon as December 17 in which Hitachi will acquire 80% of ABB’s power grids unit. Reports of the possible deal surfaced December 16, with Bloomberg and others citing sources familiar with the agreement who asked not to be identified. Neither ABB nor Hitachi commented […]

December 13, 2018 Amid Broad Legal Challenges, EPA Proposes Narrower Definition of WOTUS In a move widely applauded by the power industry, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Department of the Army proposed a new definition of “waters of the U.S.” (WOTUS) that… Read More Sponsored Content GE's H-class turbines are spinning the industry forward […]

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has significantly relaxed requirements needed to build new coal-fired power units in the U.S.  The revisions proposed on December 6 for performance standards governing carbon dioxide emissions from new, reconstructed, and modified coal power units respond to the Trump Administration’s Executive Order on Promoting Energy Independence and Economic Growth, which […]

In a move widely applauded by the power industry, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Department of the Army proposed a new definition of “waters of the U.S.” (WOTUS) that could exempt groundwater and ditches from regulation under the Clean Water Act (CWA).  The measures follow other recent significant regulatory actions by the agency. On […]

Siemens on December 11 said it would lay off about 200 workers at a gas turbines parts and components service center in Houston, Texas, sometime in late 2019 or early 2020. A company spokesperson made the announcement Tuesday, saying the cuts are due to weak global demand for the company’s turbines. Siemens in a statement […]

The South Korean government has pledged 4 billion Korean won (about $3.5 million) to support a blockchain-enabled virtual power plant (VPP) in Busan, the country’s second-most-populous city after Seoul. Busan officials said they have selected a project to build a VPP on a “citizens-shared” blockchain. Technology Aggregates Resources, Standardizes Transactions A VPP is a cloud-based […]

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC, the Commission) took several actions in November to address impacts from the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the Tax Act). FERC had previously issued a Notice of Inquiry seeking comments on how to address the impact of the Tax Act’s reduction in the corporate federal income tax (FIT) rate […]

A novel floating power plant that combines a 145-MW gas-fired combined cycle power plant and a battery energy storage system could begin operating in the Dominican Republic by early 2021.  Siemens and the marine arm of Singapore-based ST Engineering on December 3 said they jointly received an order for a SeaFloat barge-mounted power plant from […]

The U.S. Senate on a 50-49 party-line vote December 6 confirmed Bernard McNamee to a seat on the five-member Federal Energy and Regulatory Commission (FERC), despite questions about his independence from the Trump administration and his previous comments in support of a bailout of coal and nuclear U.S. power plants at the expense of renewable […]

December 6, 2018 Plagued by Grim Challenges, Vogtle Nuclear Expansion Lags Behind Schedule, Says Oversight Consultant The two-unit Vogtle expansion in Georgia faces major challenges that are poised to derail its schedule and ramp up costs—and the project is already behind schedule, a consulting firm tasked… Read More Sponsored Content GE's H-class turbines are spinning […]

The two-unit Vogtle expansion in Georgia faces major challenges that are poised to derail its schedule and ramp up costs—and the project is already behind schedule, a consulting firm tasked with construction oversight of the project told regulators. In revealing testimony filed with the Georgia Public Service Commission’s (PSC’s) public interest advocacy staff on November […]

Fifteen notable industry groups have urged Congressional leaders to act on the federal used nuclear fuel program, noting no progress on the Yucca Mountain repository license application and consolidated interim storage is “untenable.” The broad coalition of labor unions, state public service commissioners, clean energy organizations, and energy trade associations told U.S. House and Senate […]

POWER-GEN International kicked off on December 4 with a keynote presentation focused on evolving power generation schemes and changing business models. Gregory Lee, commission president with Orlando Utilities Commission (OUC), the municipally owned public utility that provides water and electric service to Orlando, Florida, and portions of other nearby areas, opened the conference by providing […]

Xcel Energy has announced its plan to move to 100% carbon-free power generation by 2050, with the utility also saying it will reduce carbon emissions by 80% by 2030, from 2005 levels. Xcel, headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, serves customers in eight states and over the past two years has announced a significant number of renewable […]

The real estate developer who has tried for more than two years to buy the assets of the canceled Bellefonte nuclear power plant project in Alabama has sued the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) after TVA last week pulled out of the deal to sell the plant. Attorneys for Franklin Haney, whose Nuclear Development LLC (NDLLC) […]

November 29, 2018 Eight Power Sector Takeaways from the Climate Report Despite increased resilience actions, extreme weather events due to climate change are projected to increasingly threaten the nation’s energy infrastructure, and create fuel availability and demand imbalances, the Trump administration’s… Read More Sponsored Content GE's H-class turbines are spinning the industry forward The world […]

France will shut down 14 of its 58 nuclear reactors by 2035 as well its remaining four coal power plants by 2022, French President Emmanuel Macron said November 27 in a lengthy speech that sought to clarify the country’s future energy direction. According to the World Nuclear Association, France’s nuclear power share has steadily expanded […]

Optimizing power plant control systems can be challenging, but new tools are available to simplify and improve the process. On this episode of The POWER Podcast, Executive Editor Aaron Larson spoke with Jon Towslee, digital engagement leader for ABB Inc.’s Industrial Automation Power Generation & Water business. Towslee explained how ABB Ability is focused on […]

Analysis based on testing mostly conducted by energy companies shows that water near all but two coal plants in Illinois is contaminated with toxic waste. The Chicago Tribune on November 28 reported that a compilation of industry-supplied data from 24 Illinois coal plants shows harmful levels of arsenic, chromium, lead, and other heavy metals in […]