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As it readies for a leadership shuffle, the Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Office of Nuclear Energy (NE) has rolled out an ambitious “blueprint” that urges continued technology innovation for existing nuclear, advanced nuclear, nuclear waste, and fuel cycles by the incoming Biden administration.  At its core, the NE’s “Strategic Vision” released on Jan. 8 posits […]

Turkey’s first nuclear power plant reached a milestone with delivery of the first steam turbine module for the project, four months ahead of schedule. GE Steam Power, which is supplying all the major equipment for the plant’s four turbine islands, on Jan. 12 announced it had delivered the module to Atomenergomash, an engineering company and […]

NuScale Power, Fluor Corp., and Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems (UAMPS) have executed a series of major agreements to prepare for licensing of the Carbon Free Power Project (CFPP) at Idaho National Laboratory (INL) in Idaho Falls, effectively driving forward the nation’s first small modular reactor (SMR) plant.  Fluor Corp., the majority investor in NuScale […]

POWER Magazine   Jobs   White Papers  Webinars   Events   Store   January 11, 2021 Governments Look to Expand Nuclear Power Through SMRs Advancements in small modular reactor (SMR) technology are being supported by government investment within several countries, including the U.S. and the UK, as SMRs are increasingly seen as a way to […]

Global upheaval in energy markets has been exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic, and by ever-changing political winds, with energy investors at times torn between finding the best returns while also considering the impact of climate change. Many economies depend on fossil fuels, so moves away from coal-fired power and other forms of thermal generation can […]

POWER Magazine   Jobs   White Papers  Webinars   Events   Store   January 7, 2021 South Korea Lenders Will End Support for Coal Affiliates of one of South Korea's largest business conglomerates announced they no longer will provide financial support for coal projects, putting in jeopardy plans to finish a 2,100-MW coal-fired power… Natural […]

Wrapping up an eventful year for advanced nuclear, the Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Office of Nuclear Energy announced $20 million in awards for the third of three pathways under its Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program (ARDP).  The ARDP program, which the DOE officially launched on May 14, will leverage Congressionally appropriated funding to enable actual construction of […]

Enterprise asset management (EAM) involves a combination of software, systems, and services that are used to maintain and control operational assets and equipment. The aim is to optimize the quality and utilization of assets throughout their lifecycle, increase uptime, and reduce costs. EAM involves work management; asset maintenance; planning and scheduling; supply chain management; and […]

The energy industry in Africa is staging a comeback after the pandemic’s significant economic impact over 2020. In 2021 and beyond, according to the Africa Energy Chamber (AEC), the revival will focus heavily on gas for power. While much progress has been achieved in the region’s vast and diverse power space, Africa’s power sector continues […]

Lawmakers in Massachusetts have passed a bill that eyes net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions statewide by 2050, setting interim GHG reduction targets to achieve reductions of least 85% below 1990 levels within the next 30 years. On Jan. 4, both chambers of legislature passed S.2995, “An Act Creating a Next-Generation Roadmap for Massachusetts Climate Policy,” […]

As we get closer to the presidential inauguration, and with President-elect Biden’s announcement of his Cabinet picks for the Department of Energy (DOE), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the Department of the Interior (Interior), we begin the inevitable hypothesizing about which “Day 1 actions” will be taken, which actions will be among the administration’s “100 […]

Affiliates of one of South Korea’s largest business conglomerates announced they no longer will provide financial support for coal projects, putting in jeopardy plans to finish a 2,100-MW coal-fired power plant project that has been expected to come online in 2024. The six financial affiliates of the Hanwha Group, during a video conference on Jan. […]

2020 was a transformative year for the power sector, underlining both new challenges and potential opportunities. We not only saw how severe weather event threats, such as the wildfires and public safety power shutoffs in California, continued to illustrate the fragility of our existing centralized electric distribution system, but we simultaneously experienced the struggle of […]

An official with Iran’s Thermal Power Plants Holding Co. (TPPH) said the country’s first government-owned F-class power plant has entered operation, part of Iran’s continuing plan to add more natural gas-fired power generation. The plant is located in Iran’s southern Hormozgan Province, which is across the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman from Oman and […]

With COVID-19 filling the news throughout 2020, it’s very likely you missed some of the most important developments that occurred in the power sector this year. Here’s a look at some of the highlights and big stories covered by the POWER staff this year. MOX Nuclear Fuel Loaded In January, Russian engineers announced the loading […]

Italy’s Enel is decommissioning one of its coal-fired power plants in Chile two years sooner than originally planned, with the unit’s closure coming two days after the Chile-based unit of a U.S. utility announced it would accelerate the closure of a pair of coal-fired power plants in the country. Enel on Dec. 31 is closing […]

POWER Magazine   Jobs   White Papers  Webinars   Events   Store   December 31, 2020 12 Big Power Stories You May Have Missed in 2020 With COVID-19 filling the news throughout 2020, it’s very likely you missed some of the most important developments that occurred in the power sector this year. Here's a look […]

Over the past year, power generators that depend on wholesale electricity markets for the bulk of their revenues endured remarkable pressure stemming from the pandemic, changing company business priorities, and environmentally driven policy shifts. But customer-centric efforts, founded on principles of healthy competition, have helped them persevere, said the Electric Power Supply Association (EPSA).  The […]

Innovation in the design of onshore wind turbines continues, with GE Renewable Energy announcing Dec. 28 that it will supply eight of the company’s 3 MW-137 turbines as part of the Phuoc Minh Wind Farm in Vietnam. Monday’s announcement comes just days after Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy (SGRE) announced the largest deal ever for its […]

The Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) was selected by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to lead three advanced energy storage projects. The projects will study innovative, non-battery-based bulk energy storage solutions integrated with fossil assets. “Investing in research and development to improve energy storage is critical at this moment in time,” Neva Espinoza, vice […]

Nuclear power capacity continues to grow worldwide, as larger reactors are added to the grid while smaller units are retired. Furthermore, uprates to some existing reactors have also added to the world’s nuclear power capacity. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) reports the total net installed capacity is about 393 GW today. Nuclear reactor additions […]

POWER Magazine   Jobs   White Papers  Webinars   Events   Store   December 28, 2020 New Generator Technology Cuts Emissions, Embraces Sustainability The search for more efficient methods of power generation at a time when climate change is top of mind continues to foster innovation. A U.S. company is among the latest…   China […]

Russia’s state-owned nuclear power company Rosatom has signed an agreement confirming its participation in construction of a small modular nuclear reactor project in the Russian Republic of Sakha. Officials from Sakha—an area also known as Yakutia—on Dec. 23 signed a deal with Rosatom outlining the formation of “electric power tariff principles” for an SMR power […]

The U.S. bulk electric system consists of more than 360,000 miles of transmission lines, including approximately 180,000 miles of high-voltage lines, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. That means power companies have a lot on their plates when it comes to inspecting and maintaining those assets. Furthermore, the stakes are high. As wildfires in […]

Provinces across China are reportedly grappling with crippling power shortages prompted by a surge in power demand from a stunning ramp up in industrial activity, an especially harsh winter, and tight coal supplies, which may be exacerbated by a ban on Australian coal.  Power shortages have been reported in Zhejiang province, an economic powerhouse in […]

POWER Magazine   Jobs   White Papers  Webinars   Events   Store   December 24, 2020 Nuclear, Carbon Capture, and Energy Storage Advocates Happy; Co-ops Disappointed by Stimulus Package Although provisions in the $900 billion stimulus package agreed to by Congress on Dec. 21 that will extend the solar investment tax credit (ITC) and the […]

The shift from energy consumers to prosumers is fundamentally changing the relationship between utilities and their customers. Behind-the-meter distributed energy resources (DERs) transform the ways households consume, generate, and store power. In the U.S., there are now about 15 million smart thermostats, 2 million solar installations, and 1.5 million electric vehicles (EVs) on the road. And […]

Although provisions in the $900 billion stimulus package agreed to by Congress on Dec. 21 that will extend the solar investment tax credit (ITC) and the wind production tax credit (PTC) received the greatest publicity, lawmakers also authorized about $35 billion for clean energy research and development (R&D) programs focused on solar technology, advanced nuclear […]

Congress agreed on legislation that would extend the investment tax credit (ITC) for solar projects for two years and the production tax credit (PTC) for wind projects for one year. The full legislative package combines a $900 billion COVID-19 relief package and an omnibus spending bill for 2021 with tax extenders and energy policy changes. […]

The past week has marked several significant developments in the offshore wind segment. GE Renewable Energy snagged a key agreement for the third 1.2-GW phase of the 3.6-GW Dogger Bank wind farm in the UK, saying the project will use an “upscaled” 14-MW version of its Haliade-X wind turbine. In a potential win for Siemens […]