energy infrastructure
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Nuclear
X-energy, Doosan Lock In 16-Unit Xe-100 Component Reservation as Doosan Commits to New SMR Factory
Small modular reactor (SMR) developer X-energy has secured a binding reservation agreement with South Korean power-generation equipment giant Doosan Enerbility to manufacture main power system steel components for 16 Xe-100 SMRs. As part of the decisive move to industrialize the supply chain for advanced nuclear energy, Doosan has also committed to building a new dedicated SMR […]
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Legal & Regulatory
Permitting the AI Boom: A New NEPA Landscape for Energy Infrastructure Projects
In the push for more efficient and streamlined permitting processes, recent changes from Congress, the U.S. Supreme Court, and the executive branch have reshaped the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) landscape.
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Finance
Investor-Owned Utilities to Spend $1.1T in Grid Boost as Power Demand Spirals
America’s investor-owned electric companies are poised to deploy record-setting investment to launch one of the most aggressive infrastructure modernization campaigns in industry history in a bid to confront unprecedented electricity demand growth and prepare for a fundamentally transformed energy landscape. In total, over the next five years, the industry is poised to invest more than […]
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gas turbines
“We’re Writing a New Chapter”: Mitsubishi Power CEO Bill Newsom on AI, Gas Turbines, and the Path to Decarbonization
The U.S. power sector seems to be increasingly pulled in two directions. While trundling toward rapid electrification, it is seeking to hold its ground on recent decarbonization triumphs. And while utilities and power companies are racing to add generation capacity, their prospects are limited by aging infrastructure and upended by supply chain constraints that have […]
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Trends
Vistra to Acquire 2.6 GW Gas Fleet for $1.9B, Citing Surging U.S. Power Demand
Vistra Corp. has agreed to acquire seven natural gas power plants totaling 2,557 MW from Lotus Infrastructure Partners for $1.9 billion, as part of a strategy to meet surging U.S. electricity demand and expand its competitive generation portfolio. The deal, announced on May 15, is valued at approximately $743 per kilowatt and includes five combined […]
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Legal & Regulatory
Nation’s Power Operators Warn Congress of a Coming Reliability Shortfall
Seven major U.S. grid operators have raised a unified alarm about an impending capacity crunch, warning that the pace and scale of explosive demand—including from data centers, manufacturing, and electrification—pose a precarious misalignment with accelerating generator retirements and transmission constraints. At a March 25 hearing before the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Energy, the […]
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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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Data Centers
The SMR Gamble: Betting on Nuclear to Fuel the Data Center Boom
Data center power demand is accelerating, pushing the grid to its limits and prompting tech giants to bet on next-generation nuclear reactors. But given steep costs, regulatory hurdles, and uncertain
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International
China’s Belt and Road Initiative Is Reshaping Global Power Infrastructure
Since 2013, when China launched its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), interest in the measure has been sharply divided. Proponents in Beijing and across the Global South view the BRI as a transformational
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Power
The POWER Interview: Terrestrial Energy’s Push to Commercialize Molten Salt Reactors for Industrial and Grid Applications
Nuclear technology firm Terrestrial Energy has quietly been making progress on its Integral Molten Salt Reactor (IMSR) technology, laying the crucial groundwork for a commercial fleet by the early 2030s. Terrestrial Energy Simon Irish answered key questions about the company’s deployment timeline, market positioning, and competitive edge, offering an inside look at the company’s strategy […]
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Legal & Regulatory
NRC Proposes Deep Fee Cuts for Advanced Nuclear
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has proposed to sharply reduce its hourly service fees—by more than 50%—for advanced nuclear reactor applicants and pre-applicants in a move designed to incentivize innovation and accelerate the deployment of next-generation nuclear technologies. In a proposed rule published in the Federal Register on Feb. 19, the regulatory body moved to […]
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Nuclear
Last Energy Secures UK Nuclear Licensing Milestone for South Wales SMR Project
Last Energy has formally launched the UK’s nuclear site licensing (NSL) process for plans to develop four 20-MWe microreactors in South Wales, becoming the first small modular reactor (SMR) developer to make the move. The UK Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) on Feb. 17 confirmed the U.S.-based nuclear technology firm’s entry into the critical licensing […]
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O&M
The Evolving State of Power Plant O&M
As power plants confront aging infrastructure, surging demand, and the sweeping changes of rapid electrification, operations and maintenance (O&M) are being redefined to tackle unprecedented challenges and
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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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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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Energy Security
Cuba Hit by Nationwide Blackout, Restoration Achieved in 24 Hours
Cuba suffered another massive blackout on Wednesday, Dec. 4—the latest in a series of devastating grid disruptions that have plagued the island in recent years. While authorities reported swift restoration—completed just after midnight on Dec. 5—the event has further underscored the growing strain on the island’s fragile energy system. Since 2020, Cuba has endured more […]
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Energy Security
A Breakdown of Cuba’s Grid Collapse and Recovery Efforts
Cuba is in the throes of a severe energy crisis, driven by fuel supply disruptions and compounded by obstacles in securing vital technologies and supplies needed to modernize and operate its aging power plants. The situation, exacerbated by U.S. sanctions, has left the nation’s energy system teetering. At the same time, the island nation is […]
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News and Notes
POWER Digest [October 2024]
China Completes World’s Largest Pumped Storage Facility. China has completed the 3.6-GW Fengning Pumped Storage Power Station, in Hebei province. Operated by the State Grid Corp. of China (SGCC), the
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Hydro
Demonstration to Convert Kentucky Coal Mine to Pumped Hydro Secures Federal Funding
A project that will demonstrate the conversion of a former coal mine in Bell County, Kentucky, into a utility-scale 287-MW pumped storage hydroelectric facility has garnered federal backing from the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations (OCED). Rye Development, a pumped storage hydropower developer, on Sept. 25 secured $12.1 million—the first tranche […]
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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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Energy Security
Texas Moves Forward with $5.38B in Loans for 10 GW of New Dispatchable Power Projects
The Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT) has shortlisted 17 gas-fired “dispatchable” generation projects—a combined 9,781 MW—that will advance to receive $5.38 billion in loaned funds under the Texas Energy Fund (TEF) In-ERCOT Loan Program. The 17 proposed new projects in the PUCT’s loan portfolio, chosen from 72 applications, now proceed to a “due diligence” […]
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Energy Security
Ontario Green Lights Nuclear Refurbishment of Pickering CANDU Units
Ontario Power Generation (OPG) will refurbish four units at the Pickering Nuclear Generating Station, Canada’s first major commercial generation plant— marking a major turnaround for the 3.1-GW plant slated to close by 2025. Officials from Ontario’s government and OPG on Jan. 30 announced plans to refurbish Units 5–8 at the massive power plant east of […]
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Nuclear
UK Lays Out Fourfold Nuclear Power Expansion in Comprehensive Roadmap
A roadmap released by the UK government on Jan. 11 aimed at quadrupling the country’s nuclear power capacity by 2050 sets out a series of goals and actions that could enable the delivery of 3 GW to 7 GW every five years from 2030 to 2044. In its 78-page Civil Nuclear Roadmap, the UK lays […]
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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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Nuclear
Major Engineering Services Contract Launches Poland’s First Nuclear Power Project
Polskie Elektrownie Jądrowe (PEJ), Poland’s designated entity tasked with developing the country’s first nuclear plant in Pomerania, has signed an engineering services contract with a Westinghouse-Bechtel consortium, allowing site-specific work to begin on the AP1000 power plant. The companies announced the “historic” contract on Sept. 27, one week after nuclear technology giant Westinghouse and global […]
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Energy Security
Dispute Brews About Wind Farm’s Role in Kenya’s Nationwide Blackout
Kenya’s government is pinning a nationwide blackout on Aug. 25 to the loss of 270 MW from the 310-MW Lake Turkana Wind Power Plant (LTWP), though the wind generator has denied it was the cause. The blackout, which lasted more than 20 hours, began at about 9:45 p.m. on Friday, plunging the East African country’s […]
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Trends
Integration of Hydropower and Hydrogen Gains Momentum
In May, U.S. national laboratories Idaho National Laboratory (INL) and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) partnered with regulated utility Idaho Power to determine the viability of integrating
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Press Releases
LineVision Expands Advisory Board with Former and Current National Grid, FERC, PG&E and Wood MacKenzie Executives
New board members bring deep and diverse experience within energy, finance, technology and policy BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS , UNITED STATES, October 7, 2020 / — – LineVision, a provider of solutions to monitor, optimize, and protect the world’s critical energy delivery infrastructure, announced that it has added five energy sector leaders to its advisory board. Spanning […]
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Legal & Regulatory
Energy Infrastructure on Tenuous Winning Streak in the Courts
Federal courts have been pretty kind to energy infrastructure in recent weeks, particularly in cases involving the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). For starters, this month, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit removed one of the hurdles to construction of the Keystone XL pipeline. The court decided that a new presidential permit—issued […]