business
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Legal & Regulatory
Trump Administration Backs $1.52B Loan for Palisades Nuclear Restart
The Trump administration has released a second loan disbursement of $56.8 million to Holtec International as part of an up to $1.52 billion loan guarantee for the restart of the 800-MW Palisades Nuclear Plant in Michigan. The funding, a key step in reviving the shuttered facility, reinforces a loan guarantee initially issued under the Biden […]
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Commentary
Demonstrating Electricity Value: Customer Satisfaction as a Utility Business Strategy
Like many other household goods, the average monthly residential electric bill in the U.S. continues to increase. In 2024, bills hit an average of $182, an 8% increase over the past two years. Though the causes of the increases are well documented—inflation, the hottest summer ever recorded and an increased need to harden infrastructure due […]
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Trends
Texas A&M Launches SMR ‘Energy Proving Ground’ with Selection of Four Nuclear Firms
Texas A&M University System has unveiled four nuclear developers with which it plans to explore building and operating small modular reactor plants (SMRs) at its Texas A&M-RELLIS campus near College Station. The project—dubbed “The Energy Proving Ground”—is part of a state-supported initiative to deploy operational advanced reactors in Texas within the next five to seven […]
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Legal & Regulatory
Zeldin Takes the Helm at Trump’s EPA Amid Industry Pressure for Regulatory Rollbacks
Lee Zeldin has been sworn in as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) 17th administrator, inheriting an agency that the power industry sees as increasingly central to the future of U.S. energy policy, grid reliability, and regulatory uncertainty. At his confirmation hearing on Jan. 16, Zeldin, a former congressman from New York’s First District with […]
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Legal & Regulatory
PJM, Facing Capacity Shortage as Early as 2026/2027 Delivery Year, Agrees to Lower Auction Price Cap
PJM Interconnection and Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro have settled a lawsuit over PJM’s capacity market pricing, agreeing to lower the grid operator’s auction price cap from over $500/MW-day to $325/MW-day. The move comes as PJM acknowledges a capacity shortage could affect its system as early as the 2026/2027 delivery year. The agreement announced on Jan. […]
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Trends
NextEra Eyes Restart of Shuttered Nuclear Plant, Partners with GE Vernova on Gas Power Expansion
Facing a projected surge in power demand across the country, NextEra Energy is taking steps to potentially restart its shuttered 615-MW Duane Arnold nuclear plant in Iowa as early as 2028, while also signing a new partnership with GE Vernova to develop natural gas generation projects that could be paired with renewable energy and storage. […]
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Nuclear
TVA Taps Bechtel, Sargent & Lundy, and GE Hitachi for Clinch River SMR Nuclear Project
The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) has selected Bechtel, Sargent & Lundy, and GE Hitachi to spearhead the initial planning and design phases for a potential BWRX-300 small modular reactor (SMR) at its Clinch River Nuclear site in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. The collaboration, announced on Jan. 23, will leverage an innovative contracting model designed to streamline […]
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Electrification
Nuclear-Gas Synergy: Oklo and RPower Unveil Phased Model to Address Data Center Power Demands
Advanced nuclear technology firm Oklo is partnering with Texas-based prime and backup solutions company RPower to roll out an innovative “phased energy model” that will combine natural gas and nuclear to offer a scalable and sustainable turnkey solution for data centers. The companies on Jan. 17 said they signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to […]
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Nuclear
Another Big Data Center Win for Nuclear: Oklo and Switch Sign Historic 12 GW Deal
Advanced nuclear firm Oklo has partnered with Switch, a Las Vegas-based data center designer, builder, and operator, to deploy 12 GW of Aurora powerhouses through 2044 in a historic deal hailed as “one of the largest corporate clean power agreements ever signed.” The two companies announced a groundbreaking Master Power Agreement on Dec. 18 to […]
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Trends
Can Nuclear’s Big Recent Wins Propel a True Global Revival?
While the past year has marked stunning triumphs for nuclear energy, experts caution that high costs, regulatory bottlenecks, and the need for market alignment remain major hurdles on the path to a true
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News and Notes
Dominion Sells 50% Stake in $10B Offshore Wind Project
Dominion Energy has sold a 50% noncontrolling interest in its 2.6-GW Coastal Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) commercial project to infrastructure investment group Stonepeak. The Richmond, Virginia–headquartered utility in an Oct. 25 financial filing said it received proceeds of $2.6 billion for the sale. The amount represents “reimbursement of approximately 50% of project-to-date capital investment.” […]
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Commentary
How Energy Services Businesses Can Adapt and Win in a Changing Market
Energy services businesses are poised to benefit from an unprecedented amount of government support for energy infrastructure. However, choppy waters lie ahead as business models and market conditions evolve
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Legal & Regulatory
South Africa Extends Koeberg Unit 1’s Lifespan, Stands Firm on Nuclear Expansion Plans
South African state-owned utility Eskom has garnered the National Nuclear Regulator’s (NNR’s) approval to continue operating Unit 1 of the 1,860-MW Koeberg Nuclear Power Station for another 20 years, until July 21, 2044. The nuclear regulator’s approval effectively extends the lifetime of the 930-MW unit to 60 years. The unit’s current 40-year license was set […]
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Nuclear
Congress Approves Ban on Imports of Enriched Uranium From Russia
The U.S. Senate on April 30 passed—by unanimous consent—a bill to ban imports of unirradiated low-enriched uranium (LEU) produced in Russia. The bill now heads to the president’s desk for signature into law. The Senate passed the Prohibiting Russian Uranium Imports Act (H.R. 1042), which the House of Representatives passed (also by unanimous consent) by […]
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Energy Security
Dependable Backup Power System Provides Peace of Mind for Cheese Business
Cheese Merchants uses close collaboration with Charles Equipment to power its mission to deliver fresh, premium cheese products to vendors across the U.S. Volvo Penta’s D16 engine serves as a key ingredient for standby power systems designed to drive quality and customer service. Cheese Merchants has come a long way since Pasquale Greco founded the […]
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Interview
ACWA Power: Crossroads for Exponential Growth in Power and Water
In 2002, the government of Saudi Arabia moved to step up the private sector’s role in the kingdom’s economy by opening the production of power and desalinated water. Saudi firms Abunayyan Trading Co., Abdulkadir Al Muhaidib & Sons Co., and MADA Group for Industrial and Commercial Development sensed a tremendous opportunity, forming ACWA Power Projects […]
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Trends
A Bold Beginning: GE Vernova Charts Course for Electrification and Decarbonization in Market Debut
Marking the completion of its spin-off from GE, GE Vernova began trading on the New York Stock Exchange on April 2 as an independent company “singularly focused” on accelerating the energy transition. The measure, approved by GE’s Board on Feb. 29, effectively establishes GE Vernova as a giant purpose-built firm that will leverage its technology […]
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News
MISO Warns ‘Immediate and Serious’ Challenges Are Threatening Reliability
The Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) is warning reliability challenges have grown urgent as the nation’s power system grapples with a “hyper-complex risk environment.” The grid operator that serves 15 U.S. states and the Canadian province of Manitoba, in its updated Reliability Imperative report released on Feb. 22, flagged several critical challenges that the region […]
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Hydrogen
Pioneering GE F-Class Hydrogen-Capable Gas Power Plant Begins Operations in Australia
EnergyAustralia has begun operations at the 320-MW Tallawarra B gas-fired power station in New South Wales (NSW)—Australia’s first peaking power plant capable of operating on a natural gas and hydrogen fuel blend. The project’s start on Feb. 19 also marks GE Vernova’s first deployment of a hydrogen-capable dual-fuel 9F gas turbine. The $300 million ($196 […]
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Trends
Prodigy and Westinghouse Targeting Launch of eVinci Floating Nuclear Plant in Canada by 2030
Westinghouse has revealed it is designing a transportable nuclear power plant (TNPP) featuring an eVinci microreactor with Canadian firm Prodigy Clean Energy, aiming to deliver a first project in Canada by 2030. The project will potentially integrate a single or multiple 5-MWe eVinci microreactors within a Prodigy Microreactor Power Station—a purpose-designed floating facility that will […]
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Hydrogen
DOE Selects Consortium to Bolster Demand for Regional Hydrogen Hubs
The Department of Energy (DOE) has selected a consortium that will work to foster demand for commercial clean hydrogen at seven regional hydrogen hubs (H2Hubs), which the agency in October 2023 selected to receive $7 billion in federal funding. The Hydrogen Demand Initiative (H2DI) consortium will be tasked with designing and implementing demand-side support mechanisms, […]
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Trends
A Multi-Dimensional Crisis: Six Global Power Sector Trends to Watch
Fifty years after the first global oil shock in 1973, the world’s energy sector is again facing high geopolitical tensions and uncertainty—though this time around, “pressures are coming from multiple
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Nuclear
Siemens Energy Poised to Partner with Oklo on Aurora Nuclear Reactor
Siemens Energy may be poised to become a crucial equipment and consulting partner for Oklo’s Aurora powerhouse, a liquid metal-cooled fast nuclear reactor. A memorandum of understanding (MOU) Oklo unveiled on Dec. 19 designates Siemens Energy to become Oklo’s potentially preferred supplier for the rotating equipment in the conventional island of the Aurora powerhouse, including […]
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Workforce
25 Differences Between Private Sector and Government Managers
You often hear it said that government should be run more like a business. But a senior industry executive with cabinet-level experience in the Reagan and Bush II administrations explains why it’s not that simple.
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Hydrogen
Pioneering Hydrogen-Powered Gas Peaking: Inside Duke Energy’s DeBary Project
In late 2024, a first-of-a-kind, fully functional project spearheaded by Duke Energy, GE Vernova, and Sargent and Lundy could begin demonstrating the commercial peaking capabilities of an integrated hydrogen power-to-power system at Duke Energy’s DeBary power plant in Florida. In an exclusive interview, project partners revealed details of the potentially trailblazing installation, which is slated […]
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History
National Grid’s Evolution: Branching Out from Deep Roots
Rooted in the birth of the UK’s energy industry, National Grid’s operations have traversed critical periods of the energy industry’s tumultuous history. While it is today one of the world’s largest
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International
EU Power Markets Show Improvements After Bucking Reliance on Russian Gas
European Union (EU) electricity markets appear to be successfully bucking their reliance on Russian gas. Several recent reports point to improved market fundamentals in the region, suggesting the region is on
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Hydrogen
ACES Delta’s Hydrogen Electrolyzers Arrive in Big Boost for Hub’s Progress
The much-watched Advanced Clean Energy Storage Hub (ACES Delta)—a project shaping up to be the largest renewable hydrogen energy hub in the U.S.—has received its first shipment of large-scale hydrogen electrolyzers and gas separators. The shipment, unveiled on Oct. 25, marks the first equipment delivery for the Delta, Utah, project’s integrated Hydaptive package. Hydaptive is […]
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Hydrogen
Constellation Planning Significant Nuclear-Powered Hydrogen Facility at LaSalle
Constellation Energy will use a portion of newly announced federal funding for the Midwest Hydrogen Hub (MachH2) to build “the world’s largest nuclear-powered clean hydrogen facility” at its 2.3-GW LaSalle Clean Energy Center in Illinois. The company on Oct. 16 said it plans to leverage a $1 billion award announced by the Department of Energy (DOE) last […]
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Hydrogen
U.S. Unveils Seven Regional Hydrogen Hubs, Awards $7B to Kickstart National Hydrogen Network
Seven regional hydrogen hubs spanning Appalachia, California, the Midwest, the Gulf Coast, the American heartland, the Mid-Atlantic, and the Pacific Northwest are poised to receive $7 billion in Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) funding under the Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Regional Clean Hydrogen Hubs Program (H2Hubs). The selections, unveiled by the Biden administration on […]