POWERnews

  • Building ChatGPT for the Power Industry: EPRI Leads the Way

    More than 100 of the world’s largest energy companies are betting that artificial intelligence (AI) will revolutionize how electricity gets made, moved, and managed. But they’re not waiting for Silicon Valley to build it for them—they’ve taken matters into their own hands through an EPRI-led consortium. That initiative is the Open Power AI Consortium, which […]

  • Arevon Brings $2-Billion California Solar-Plus-Storage Project Online

    An Arizona-based energy developer, owner, and operator of power generation projects said one of its major solar-plus-storage facilities has entered full commercial operation in California. Arevon Energy on August 7 held a ceremony to celebrate completion of the second phase of the Eland Solar-plus-Storage Project, located near Mojave in Kern County. The two-phase Eland installation […]

  • DOE Approves Fifth Loan Disbursement to Holtec for Historic Restart of Palisades Nuclear Plant

    The U.S. Department of Energy released an $83.2 million loan disbursement to Holtec International on Thursday, bringing total federal funding to $335.1 million as the company moves toward completing America’s first commercial nuclear reactor restart. The fifth installment under DOE’s $1.52 billion loan guarantee follows key Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)  approvals that authorized Holtec to […]

  • Caterpillar Among Groups Working on Massive Utah Data Center Campus

    Three groups active in the industrial infrastructure space have announced a collaboration that would create the largest data center campus in Utah and provide gigawatts of new power generation capacity to the state. Infrastructure company Joule Capital Partners, along with Caterpillar Inc., and Wheeler Machinery Co. on August 7 said they have an agreement to […]

  • Trump Administration to Overhaul Drone Rules, Fast-Track Nuclear Reactor Deployment on the Moon

    The Trump administration has proposed new drone regulations that will eliminate case-by-case approval processes for beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS)  operations, while Acting NASA Administrator Sean Duffy confirmed accelerated plans to deploy a nuclear reactor on the moon by 2030. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Department of Transportation (DOT), Transportation Security Administration (TSA), and […]

  • LRE Starts Construction of 152 MW of Solar Power in Oklahoma

    A Texas-headquartered renewable energy group said it has started construction of two solar power projects in southern Oklahoma, expanding the company’s solar portfolio in the state. Leeward Renewable Energy (LRE) recently announced it has broken ground for the Twelvemile Solar 1 & 2 projects, a combined 152-MW solar facility. The company in late July said […]

  • Lightstar Announces Agrivoltaics Project at New York Farm

    An agricultural farm in New York will add solar power at the site in a project designed to benefit both farmers and the solar energy community. Lightstar Renewables LLC on August 4 announced the launch of the Plains Road Agrivoltaics project, which integrates solar energy with agriculture on the DiMartino Farm in Montgomery, New York. […]

  • Google, I&M Strike Landmark Deal to Share Clean Capacity and Flex AI Load

    American Electric Power (AEP) subsidiary Indiana Michigan Power (I&M) has filed a special customer-specific contract with technology giant Google that could create a dual-purpose arrangement to address power capacity constraints in one of the fastest-growing digital infrastructure regions in the U.S. AEP on Aug. 4 announced that the two companies filed a petition to the […]

  • Arevon Starts Construction of $600-Million California Energy Storage Project

    Arizona-headquartered Arevon Energy said it has started construction of the Nighthawk Energy Storage Project in Poway, California. The company on July 31 provided more details of the 300-MW/1,200-MWh installation that represents a $600-million investment. Arevon will own and operate Nighthawk. The company in 2021 signed a long-term contract under which the energy storage facility will […]

  • POWERnews—July 31, 2025

    POWER Magazine   Jobs   White Papers  Webinars   Events   Store   July 31, 2025 DOE’s Fifth Emergency Order—for PJM—Caps Summer of Escalating Grid Risk The Department of Energy (DOE) has issued its fifth 202(c) emergency order this year, directing PJM Interconnection to override environmental limits and dispatch an oil-fired power generating unit in […]

  • DOE’s Fifth Emergency Order—for PJM—Caps Summer of Escalating Grid Risk

    The Department of Energy (DOE) has issued its fifth 202(c) emergency order this year, directing PJM Interconnection to override environmental limits and dispatch an oil-fired power generating unit in Maryland strictly as needed to avert possible blackouts in the Baltimore region. The July 28 order, issued under Section 202(c) of the Federal Power Act, authorizes […]

  • EPRI Announces Distribution System Operator Certification Program

    The electric power industry is undergoing a transformative shift, driven by increasing grid complexity and the integration of renewable energy sources, while still providing reliable, affordable energy. At the heart of this evolution is the role of the distribution system operator (DSO), a position critical to managing the modern distribution grid. Historically, the DSO role […]

  • PJM’s Record-High Capacity Prices Spark Sector Reckoning as Market Signals, Policy Battles Intensify

    Capacity prices in PJM Interconnection’s latest auction spiked to the market’s price ceiling, hitting $329.17/MW-day across the board for the 2026/2027 delivery year—the maximum allowed under new Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) rules. The regional transmission organization’s (RTO’s) competitive Base Residual Auction (BRA), conducted on July 9, 2025, and released on July 22, secured 134,311 […]

  • SSE Moving Forward With Major Scottish Offshore Wind Farm

    Scottish energy giant SSE said it has government approval to develop an offshore wind farm that at present would be the largest such installation in the world.

  • Power Grid Security in the AI Era: Why Energy Dominance and Cybersecurity Can’t Be Separated

    In a special edition of The POWER Podcast, released in collaboration with the McCrary Institute’s Cyber Focus podcast, POWER’s executive editor, Aaron Larson, and Frank Cilluffo, director of the McCrary Institute for Cyber and Critical Infrastructure Security and Professor of Practice at Auburn University, discuss the evolving power grid and cybersecurity challenges. Specifically, they highlight […]

  • Apex Clean Energy Adds 625 MW as Four Wind and Storage Projects Now Online

    A Virginia-based renewable energy group has expanded its operating and construction portfolio to more than 3 GW of generation capacity. Charlottesville-headquartered Apex Clean Energy on July 29 announced that four utility-scale wind and storage projects, with more than 625 MW of capacity in total, have entered commercial operation in Illinois, Maine, and Texas. Apex on […]

  • Beyond Co-Location: The Emerging Opportunity for Vertically Integrated Utilities in the Data Center Boom

    The explosive growth of hyperscale data centers is reshaping the power sector at unprecedented speed. In just a few short years, load requests from data center operators have gone from occasional filings to a full-on wave of gigawatt-scale development across North America. While much attention has been paid to the trend of co-locating data centers […]

  • Pavegen Chosen for Cyberport 5 Smart City Expansion in Hong Kong

    Pavegen, a UK-based clean technology company pioneering energy and data generation, on July 29 announced it has been selected to deliver a flagship installation at Cyberport 5, part of the HK$3.7 billion ($472 million) expansion of Cyberport, Hong Kong’s government-owned Innovation & Technology (I&T) hub. Installation is scheduled for September, ahead of the site’s full […]

  • Smart Strategies for Energy Suppliers in the Data Center Boom

    Data center demands are shifting rapidly in today’s energy landscape. A customer that signed on for 10 MW just months ago may now be requesting 40. For energy suppliers across the country, scenarios like this are becoming the new normal as artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure accelerates load growth and turns predictable load patterns into risky […]

  • Enhancing Grid Resilience and EV Charging Efficiency Through Advanced Technology

    XCharge North America (XCharge NA) is a provider of high-power electric vehicle (EV) charging and battery-integrated solutions designed to strengthen the North American electrical grid. Since its inception in 2022, XCharge NA has developed a suite of products designed to enhance the efficiency and accessibility of EV charging, most recently launching its GridLink product in […]

  • Making Battery Degradation Measurable: Why Cost-Aware Operation Is Essential

    As renewable energy becomes the foundation of electricity systems around the world, the importance of stationary battery storage is no longer in question. Lithium-ion batteries are being deployed at unprecedented rates to support grid reliability, integrate variable generation, defer infrastructure upgrades, and provide flexible capacity across multiple electricity markets. These systems are now considered critical […]

  • At a Time of Accelerating Change, Utilities Need to Build Flexibility into Their Strategy for Load Growth

    The past few years have brought decades worth of change to electric utilities. An increasing fraction of supply is coming from intermittent sources like solar and wind. Energy storage technology has become economically viable and has seen widespread deployment. And the industry as a whole is grappling with what seems like insatiable new demand from […]

  • When AI-First Becomes Practice, Your Energy Grid Better Be Ready

    From healthcare to aviation, artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly being used to close operational gaps and garner efficiencies in key industries. Indeed, 78% of respondents in McKinsey’s State of AI Survey for 2025 indicated that their organization is using AI for at least one business function. This year and beyond, the question of AI adoption […]

  • Energy Storage Group Closes Financing for Texas BESS Project

    A global developer of grid-scale energy storage projects said it has closed project financing and completed a 10-year offtake agreement for a battery energy storage system (BESS) installation in Texas. Energy Vault, with headquarters in California and offices in Virginia, Switzerland, and Australia, on July 24 said the $18-million project financing for the Cross Trails […]

  • EPA Extends Coal Ash Compliance Deadlines, Citing Utility, Contractor Strain

    Citing a mounting compliance crunch in America’s coal-fired power sector, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has finalized new rules extending key deadlines for coal ash cleanup and management, while floating the prospect of a further 12-month delay. The changes address calls from utilities, engineering contractors, and state regulators for more realistic timeframes to assess, […]

  • Oracle, Bloom Energy Have Deal to Power Data Centers

    California-based power solutions provider Bloom Energy said it will deploy its fuel cell technology at select Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) data centers in the U.S. The company on July 24 said it will deliver on-site power for an entire data center within 90 days. “We continue to see strong global demand for OCI services across […]

  • Nuclear Developer Oklo Advances Dual Alliances Targeting Data Center and Industrial Power Needs

    Advanced nuclear technology company Oklo entered into two separate high-profile collaborative agreements this week that seek to supply integrated energy solutions to data centers and large load industrial operations. The alliances—one with Liberty Energy, an energy services and technologies firm, and another with critical digital infrastructure provider Vertiv—mark the newest notch in the growing market […]

  • Watch a Preview of the Microgrid Demonstration Featured at RE+ 2025

    EMerge Alliance, along with its industry partners, each year builds an operating microgrid that is displayed at the RE+ renewable energy conference. This year’s show is scheduled Sept. 8-11 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The microgrid demonstration is part of the Grid Edge Theater at RE+. Each year, different technologies are used in the microgrid, and […]

  • China Breaks Ground for World’s Largest Hydropower Station

    China has started construction of what would be the world’s largest hydropower dam. Chinese Premier Li Qiang on July 19 led a ceremony marking groundbreaking for the Motuo Hydropower Station, a project with an estimated cost of $167 billion that could generate as much as three times the electricity of the 22.5-GW Three Gorges project. […]

  • Mirion Technologies Launches Vital Platform for Nuclear Industry

    Mirion Technologies, a leading provider of advanced radiation safety solutions, has announced the launch of the Vital Platform. This software offers a single, unified system for accessing data across nuclear power sites to work more efficiently, enhance worker safety, and solve operational challenges faster. The launch includes the platform’s first application, Vital Supervision, designed to […]