Norway

  • VIDEO: Trump Says U.S. Could Re-Enter Paris Agreement, Praises Norway’s Hydropower

    In a press briefing held with Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg on January 10, President Donald Trump said that U.S. could “conceivably” re-enter into global climate change mitigation efforts under the Paris accord. While he has “no problem” with the accord itself, he felt the agreement negotiated by the Obama administration treated the U.S. unfairly, […]

  • POWER Digest [December 2017]

    Construction Set to Begin on First Nuclear Plant in Turkey. Berat Albayrak, Turkey’s Energy and Natural Resources Minister, in mid-October said construction of the country’s first nuclear power plant would

  • As Gas Power Generation Jumps in the EU, Bloc Guards Against Supply Disruptions

    Banking on natural gas as it moves away from coal, the European Union (EU) in September adopted new rules that require member states to help neighbors affected by supply disruptions.  The new rules adopted by

  • POWER Digest (September 2017)

    Canadian Solar Expands Solar Power in Japan. Canadian Solar in July started commercial operation of its latest group of photovoltaic solar power plants in Japan as it continues to build its solar presence in

  • Europe Tackles Cybersecurity

    Several European countries have moved to adopt distinct cybersecurity measures as a result of the increased interconnectivity within Europe’s energy system along with a changing paradigm that includes decentralized power sources, the integration of electric vehicles, new digital infrastructure, and connected operational technology. According to a 2016 survey by the European Commission, at least 80% […]

  • Voith has been awarded a prestigious automation contract for two Norwegian hydropower plants with Norway’s largest among them

    Sira-Kvina kraftselskap DA awarded main contract for upgrading control systems at Tonstad and Solhom to Voith Hydro AS The two power plants meet the energy demand of roughly 230,000 households Project completion is expected in 2022 Heidenheim/Oslo. Norwegian energy supplier Sira-Kvina kraftselskap DA awarded the main contract for the upgrade of the control systems at […]

  • District Energy Systems Improve Efficiency and Reduce Carbon Emissions

    Although it’s not widely publicized, a majority of the energy used to generate electricity is wasted in the form of heat discharged to the environment. For better or worse, that’s just the way a typical thermal power plant works. Fuel, such as coal, biomass, natural gas, or uranium (in the case of nuclear plants), is […]

  • POWER Digest

    Ghana Starts Up Key Gas-Fired Power Unit. Ghana has inaugurated the first of two 180-MW units of a natural gas–fired power plant that it is banking on to boost the West African country’s electric reliability. President John Dramani Mahama inaugurated the first unit of the Sonon-Asogli project at Kpone, near the capital Accra, on April […]

  • POWER Digest

    WTO Rules Against India in Solar Power Dispute. A mandate that certain types of solar cells and modules used for India’s ambitious state-backed solar initiative must be domestically manufactured violate

  • Statkraft Shelves Wind Projects in Norway, Cites Unprofitability

    Lower power and electricity certificate prices in the Nordic region have made two wind power projects in Central Norway—with a combined capacity of 1 GW—unprofitable, Statkraft said in June as it announced it would scrap them. Norway produces the bulk of its power from hydropower (Figure 3), but the country’s government has encouraged wind farm […]

  • Nordlink HVDC Project Awards Construction Contract

    Europe—and especially Germany—has been struggling with how best to integrate large amounts of renewable generation while maintaining grid stability. While considerable attention has been devoted to expanding national transmission systems, new links between those national grids are growing in importance. The biggest project so far took a step forward when, on March 19, the consortium […]

  • POWER Digest

    NRC Advances Design Certification of Westinghouse SMR, South Korea’s APR1400. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) on Feb. 27 approved Westinghouse Electric Co.’s testing approach for its small modular reactor (SMR) design—a “significant” step that the Toshiba Corp. company said will reduce the time ultimately needed to obtain design certification. By granting a safety evaluation report […]

  • Norway Terminates Full-Scale CCS Project at Mongstad

    Norway’s government on Friday terminated a full-scale project to capture carbon dioxide at the Mongstad refinery on the country’s western coast, citing high risks connected to the facility. It will be replaced with a carbon capture and storage (CCS) program that is designed to “realize” other full-scale CCS projects in the country. Norwegian energy firm […]

  • Thorium Fuel Test Begins at Research Reactor in Norway

    Norwegian company Thor Energy began a five-year-long irradiation test of thorium fuel at the Institute for Energy Technology’s research reactor in Halden, Norway, marking the most recent investigation into