POWERnews

  • Best of POWER—November 28, 2022

    POWER Magazine   Jobs   White Papers  Webinars   Events   Store   November 28, 2022 NERC Warns of Tight Generation Resources, Fuel Supply Issues This Winter Power shortfalls could be rife over the next three months across a large portion of the North American bulk power system (BPS), particularly during extreme and prolonged cold […]

  • Chinese Groups Unveil World’s Largest Offshore Wind Turbine

    Two Chinese companies announced production of the largest offshore wind turbine built to date, a 16-MW unit developed by China Three Gorges (CTG) and Goldwind. The groups on Nov. 24 showed off the turbine at a factory in Fujian province. The turbine has a 252-meter rotor diameter, with a 50,000-meter sweep area. The hub height […]

  • POWERnews—Nov. 23, 2022

    POWER Magazine   Jobs   White Papers  Webinars   Events   Store   November 23, 2022 DOE Grants First-Round Civil Nuclear Credit Award—$1.1B—to Diablo Canyon  The Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) first round of funding from its $6 billion Civil Nuclear Credit (CNC) Program is poised to go to Diablo Canyon Power Plant, California’s only operational… […]

  • Labor Department Shuns Trump-Era ‘Anti-ESG’ Measures

    The Biden administration has reversed a controversial Trump-era rule that barred plan fiduciaries from considering climate change and other environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors when choosing retirement investments and exercising shareholder rights, such as proxy voting.  A final rule issued by the Department of Labor (DOL) on Nov. 22 removes restrictions issued in two […]

  • How Does Uranium Price Increase Affect Nuclear Power Plant Profitability?

    Uranium has been one of the best-performing asset classes in 2022, according to data supplied by HANetf’s Sprott Uranium Miners UCITS ETF (URNM). In fact, the uranium spot price has increased 24.12% during the year through Oct. 31, according to the fund. October was a particularly strong month for uranium oxide (U3O8), which is used […]

  • DOE Grants First-Round Civil Nuclear Credit Award—$1.1B—to Diablo Canyon 

    The Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) first round of funding from its $6 billion Civil Nuclear Credit (CNC) Program is poised to go to Diablo Canyon Power Plant, California’s only operational nuclear plant. Pacific Gas & Electric  (PG&E), Diablo Canyon’s owner, could receive up to $1.1 billion in credits to extend the 2.2-GW plant’s operation for […]

  • The POWER Interview: Energy Storage for Commercial, Residential Electrification

    Energy storage systems (ESS) are expanding far beyond the batteries being deployed at power plants, at substations, in microgrids, or at locations along the power grid to support the electricity transmission and distribution network. Systems for commercial and industrial enterprises, and increasingly by homeowners for residential use, are helping lead the expansion of energy storage. […]

  • The Next Step for Utilities in Workforce Transformation

    Hurricane Ian, which struck Florida in late September last year, was a devastating storm and a harsh reminder of the impact of Mother Nature’s wrath. Unfortunately, extreme weather events are becoming more frequent and powerful, and our aging grid is struggling to keep up. COMMENTARY Sanibel Island on Florida’s west coast, for example, lost power […]

  • NRC Begins Construction Permit Review for Pioneering Nuclear Molten Salt Research Reactor 

    The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has accepted Abilene Christian University’s (ACU’s) construction permit application for a 1-MWth nuclear non-power Molten Salt Research Reactor (MSRR) facility planned for the university’s campus in Abilene, north-central Texas. The acceptance—which essentially marks the NRC “docketing” of the application—formally kicks off the regulatory agency’s review of ACU’s proposed Nuclear Energy […]

  • Russia Says Construction of Egypt’s First Nuclear Plant Ahead of Schedule

    Officials from Russia and Egypt marked another milestone in construction of the latter’s first nuclear power plant, with a ceremony Nov. 19 to announce pouring of the “first concrete” for Unit 2 of the El-Dabaa Nuclear Power Plant (NPP). Saturday’s event came three weeks after a construction permit was issued for that unit by the Egyptian […]

  • POWERnews—Nov. 17, 2022

    POWER Magazine   Jobs   White Papers  Webinars   Events   Store   November 17, 2022 NERC’s Warns of Tight Generation Resources, Fuel Supply Issues This Winter Power shortfalls could be rife over the next three months across a large portion of the North American bulk power system (BPS), particularly during extreme and prolonged cold […]

  • NERC Warns of Tight Generation Resources, Fuel Supply Issues This Winter

    Power shortfalls could be rife over the next three months across a large portion of the North American bulk power system (BPS), particularly during extreme and prolonged cold conditions, the North American Electric Reliability Corp. (NERC) has warned. The nation’s designated Electric Reliability Organization (ERO) in its latest Winter Reliability Assessment, issued on Nov. 17, said […]

  • How NRIC Is Helping Advance Technology for the Nuclear Power Industry

    The National Reactor Innovation Center (NRIC) is a national Department of Energy (DOE) program led by the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) that allows collaborators to harness the world-class capabilities of the U.S. National Laboratory System. NRIC supports the construction and demonstration of advanced reactor systems through a suite of services and capabilities. “Our vision is […]

  • Siemens Energy Seals Deal for Hydrogen-Ready Coal-to-Gas Switch

    European energy giant EnBW will pilot switching a 114-year-old coal-fired waste incineration and district heating power plant in Stuttgart-Münster, Germany, to gas-fired technology while ensuring the regionally significant plant will be ready to combust hydrogen “as quickly and completely” as possible. Siemens Energy on Nov. 17 sealed an agreement with the utility for an overall […]

  • Four Large-Scale Solar Projects Fined $1.34M for Alleged Clean Water Act Violations

    The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) have settled to resolve alleged violations of the Clean Water Act with four separate large-scale solar farm owners in Alabama, Idaho, and Illinois. The solar farm owners—all subsidiaries of large international finance and investment companies—used a common construction contractor for their farms. The federal […]

  • Fish Friendly Hydro: Natel Energy Is Proving It’s Possible

    Hydropower projects frequently face resistance from environmental groups for a variety of reasons. One of the more common objections to hydro is the high turbine-induced mortality of fish. The passage of fish through hydroelectric turbines can quickly prove fatal—a danger that increases with the size of the fish. Furthermore, if several hydropower plants are located […]

  • ‘Largest’ Floating Offshore Wind Farm Comes Online in North Sea

    An installation that at present is considered the world’s largest floating offshore wind farm has produced its first power, providing electricity for oil and gas exploration operations in the North Sea. Hywind Tampen on Nov. 13 began powering Equinor’s drilling at the Gullfaks oil and gas field. The wind farm is located about 87 miles […]

  • U.S., Others Tout $20 Billion Plan to Move Indonesia Away from Coal, Toward Renewables

    The U.S. and other countries have announced a $20 billion financing plan to help Indonesia more quickly shutter the country’s coal-fired power plants and decarbonize its power generation sector. “We’ve built a platform for cooperation that can truly transform Indonesia’s power sector from coal to renewables and support significant economic growth,” U.S. Special Envoy on […]

  • Best of POWER—November 14, 2022

    POWER Magazine   Jobs   White Papers  Webinars   Events   Store   November 14, 2022 China Approves Commissioning of Thorium-Powered Reactor China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment gave Shanghai Institute of Applied Physics (SINAP) the green light to commission the experimental 2-MWth thorium-based molten salt reactor (TMSR-LF1) at… U.S. Spent Nuclear Fuel Reprocessing May […]

  • New Gas-Fired Plant Will Nearly Double Guyana’s Power Generation

    Government officials in the small South American country of Guyana have given the go-ahead for construction of a 300-MW natural gas-fired power plant, a facility that would represent a major expansion of the nation’s power generation capacity. Cabinet members on Nov. 10 approved the project, which President Dr. Irfaan Ali has said will help reduce […]

  • Group Readies for Construction of Europe’s Largest Solar Farm

    An independent power producer (IPP) formed earlier this year and backed by a leading global renewable energy investment firm announced it will build what is expected to be the largest solar photovoltaic power plant in Europe. Rezolv Energy on Nov. 4 said it had acquired the rights to build and operate a 1,044-MW solar PV […]

  • POWERnews—Nov. 10, 2022

    POWER Magazine   Jobs   White Papers  Webinars   Events   Store   November 10, 2022 Enel Gas-Fired Plant Will Use Rock-Based Energy Storage System Two groups involved in innovation for power generation, including Italy’s largest utility, have teamed to build a rock-based energy storage system to capture excess power at a natural gas-fired power… […]

  • TVA Will Explore Building Utility-Scale Solar on Closed Coal Ash Sites

    The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) will pursue a first-of-its-kind pilot program at the Shawnee Fossil Plant in West Paducah, Kentucky, to determine if closed coal ash sites are suitable for utility-scale solar projects. The self-funded U.S. corporate agency’s board on Nov. 10 unanimously approved a $216 million pilot project to explore repurposing the 1,071-MW coal-fired power […]

  • New Study Finds Electrification Reduces Emissions and Improves Air Quality

    A group of researchers found that “Adopting electric end-use technologies instead of fossil-fueled alternatives, known as electrification, is an important economy-wide decarbonization strategy that also reduces criteria pollutant emissions and improves air quality.” Findings from the study conducted by nine researchers—four from EPRI, four from Ramboll, and one from the Oak Ridge National Laboratory—were published […]

  • Waste Heat-to-Power Capture Pilot Launched in Ontario

    Hamilton, a city in Ontario, Canada, will host a pilot project to demonstrate a new technology designed to capture excess hydrothermal energy from its district heating and cooling plant and convert it into grid-quality power. The pilot hosted by Hamilton Community Enterprises (HCE)—the city’s utility solutions arm— will use Extract Energy’s “Heat Engine,” whose core […]

  • The POWER Interview: A Renewed Shift in Energy Investing

    Companies involved in energy production continually look to maximize their investments, and today are tasked with navigating increasingly volatile energy markets. These companies must choose where and how to compete as the world transitions to a low-carbon future. Where are the best opportunities for investment? How important is seeking out positions that reduce exposure to […]

  • NET Power’s First Allam Cycle 300-MW Gas-Fired Project Will Be Built in Texas

    NET Power, developer of the novel Allam-Fetvedt supercritical carbon dioxide (sCO2) power cycle, will build its first 300-MW natural gas–fired power plant at an Occidental-hosted site near Odessa, Texas. The “serial number one” project will demonstrate—at utility scale—NET Power’s potentially revolutionary technology, which promises to provide low-cost gas-fired power generation, no atmospheric emissions, no water […]

  • Using Technology to Improve Management of Utilities’ Fleets

    Utility fleet managers faced their share of challenges in recent years. They needed to respond quickly and effectively to emergency situations and rising customer expectations while keeping drivers feeling safe and supported. They also needed to maximize the utilization of vehicles while extending lifecycles and complying with regulations—even as they evolve faster than ever. Like […]

  • U.S. Coal Plant Closures Continue, While China Rapidly Builds More

    A wave of retirements for U.S. coal-fired power plants continues, with the Energy Information Administration (EIA) reporting almost a quarter of the nation’s remaining facilities could be shuttered by the end of 2029. The EIA in its preliminary monthly electric generator inventory report released Nov. 7 said that 23% of the nearly 201 GW of […]

  • Enel Gas-Fired Plant Will Use Rock-Based Energy Storage System

    Two groups involved in innovation for power generation, including Italy’s largest utility, have teamed to build a rock-based energy storage system to capture excess power at a natural gas-fired power plant in Tuscany. Italy’s Enel, along with Israel’s Brenmiller Energy, have said the project aligns with their efforts to test new technologies to increase flexibility […]