POWER Magazine

The Department of Interior (DOI) has approved the first three solar energy projects from its Western Solar Plan. The projects total 440 MW and will be built on public lands in Clark County, Nev. Under the Western Solar Plan, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has designated 19 solar energy zones covering roughly 298,000 acres [...]The post First Projects Under Western Solar Plan Get DOI’s OK appeared first on POWER Magazine.

China’s State Nuclear Power Technology Corp. (SNPTC)—general contractor of the first four AP1000 units being built in China—and China Power Investment Corp. officially announced a merger in a move to reinforce the country’s plans to eventually export reactors. The new company, State Power Investment Corp., will own assets worth more than $112.94 billion. SNPTC was [...]The post China’s Nuclear Power Companies Merge To Strengthen Export Ambitions appeared first on POWER Magazine.

In contrast to the bitter partisanship that has paralyzed Congress for the past few years—especially with respect to energy policy—the Obama administration’s first Quadrennial Energy Review (QER) received a mostly warm welcome from House GOP members, who echoed its concerns with the state of the nation’s energy infrastructure during a hearing on June 2. “Many [...]The post QER Gets Warm Reception from House GOP appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The long-awaited restart of the Sendai nuclear power plant, the first of Japan’s nuclear facilities to be re-licensed for operations after the nation’s entire fleet was shutdown in 2011 following the Fukushima earthquake and tsunami, will be pushed back to at least mid-August, plant owner Kyushu Electric Power said on June 2. Restart of Sendai [...]The post Restart of Sendai Nuclear Plant Delayed to August appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) will soon issue DTE Electric a combined license (COL) to build and operate an Economic Simplified Boiling Water Reactor (ESBWR) at its existing Fermi 2 site in Michigan. The federal regulator announced on April 30 that it found the staff’s review adequate to make the necessary regulatory safety and environmental [...]The post DTE Electric to Get NRC Combined License (COL) for Proposed Nuclear Reactor appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The Obama administration’s first installment in the Quadrennial Energy Review (QER) drew a variety of responses in its first public hearing before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee on April 28. Chairman Lisa A. Murkowski (R-Alaska) opened the hearing with a nod to the still-in-limbo Keystone XL pipeline. She noted that though the QER [...]The post QER Draws Praise, Fire in Senate Hearing appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Golden Valley Electric Association in Healy, Alaska, has fired up a refurbished 50-MW coal plant that has been idle for the past 16 years. Crews from the rural electric cooperative started the boiler at Healy Plant 2 (joining 25-MW Healy Plant 1) last Thursday as the unit arose from the ashes of a failed government-supported [...]The post Alaska Gets a (Sort-of) New Coal Plant appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Nearly everyone in the power sector has a co-worker or colleague who served in the armed forces, or themselves served in the military. While this has been the case for decades, specific efforts to hire veterans into the generation industry have gained steam and are being better recognized in recent years. To highlight efforts that [...]The post Faraday Awards Honor Efforts in Hiring Veterans appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Don’t wait until after an incident to make improvements and correct problems in coal handling systems: That was the message delivered to attendees at the best practices workshop during the Powder River Basin Coal Users’ Group (PRBCUG) Annual Meeting, which began on April 20. The event—being held in Rosemont, Ill., in conjunction with the 17th [...]The post Famous Last Words: “It’s Never Happened to Us!” appeared first on POWER Magazine.

What happens in Washington, D.C., seldom stays in Washington, D.C., so on April 21 at the 17th annual ELECTRIC POWER Conference & Exhibition, the Powder River Basin (PRB) Coal Users’ Group took a look at what is headed their way from the nation’s capital. The first item was, surprise, a success story, according to Rick [...]The post PRB Coal Users’ Group: Power Industry Regulatory Updates from Washington appeared first on POWER Magazine.

This interview with Dr. Fatih Birol, Chief Economist, Director of Global Energy Economics and Executive Director (starting September 2015), International Energy Agency (IEA) was conducted by Global Business Reports in May 2015. It has been edited for style and length and is a web-only supplement to the sponsored report “Power in Turkey” appearing in the [...]The post Dr. Fatih Birol on Global Energy Markets and His Goals for the IEA appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The Japanese Nuclear Regulatory Authority (NRA) approved Kyushu Electric Power Co.’s operational safety programs for Sendai Nuclear Power Station Units 1 and 2 on May 27. The approval is the last of three needed by the company to verify that the plant complies with new regulatory requirements implemented as a result of the Fukushima disaster. [...]The post Only Pre-Service Inspections Remain Before First Nuclear Plant Restarts in Japan appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a state implementation plan (SIP) call action to 36 states directing them to correct specific startup, shutdown, and malfunction provisions in their SIPs to ensure they are fully consistent with the Clean Air Act (CAA). The action comes in response to a petition for rulemaking filed by the [...]The post EPA Takes Action to Eliminate Startup, Shutdown, and Malfunction Emissions Exemptions appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) proposed Clean Power Plan (CPP) will cut power sector CO2 emissions to levels not seen since the 1980s in addition to giving a big boost to renewables at the expense of coal, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) said this week. In its “Analysis of the Impacts of the Clean Power [...]The post Clean Power Plan Will Cut CO Emissions to 1980s Levels, Says EIA appeared first on POWER Magazine.

South Mississippi Electric (SME), an electric cooperative that has been Mississippi Power Co.’s (MPC’s) long-time backer in the development of the Kemper energy facility, has pulled out of the project, citing delays in project schedule and increased participation costs as reasons for its withdrawal. The cooperative that generates and transmits electricity for 11 member cooperatives [...]The post Kemper Project Loses Key Power Buyer Due to Delays, High Costs appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz lauded the wind industry’s immense growth since 2008 at the American Wind Energy Association’s (AWEA’s) WINDPOWER 2015 Conference and Exhibition in Orlando, Fla., but he cautioned that more was needed for a long-term low-carbon future. “Wind generation has more than tripled in the U.S. in just six years, exceeding 4.5% of [...]The post Carbon Challenge Will Require More Than Just Renewable Boost, Moniz Says appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Taller wind turbines and longer blades could increase the technical potential for wind deployment in the U.S. by 54%, Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz said today as he unveiled a new report from the Department of Energy (DOE). The report, “Enabling Wind Power Nationwide,” essentially posits that if advanced turbine concepts with hub heights of 110 [...]The post Energy Dept.: Taller Wind Turbines, Longer Blades Will Make Wind Power Ubiquitous in the U.S. appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Duke Energy announced on May 19 that it will construct a new 650-MW natural gas–fired combined cycle power plant (CCPP) and retire its 375-MW Asheville coal power plant by early 2020. The plan also includes the addition of solar generation at the site as well as construction of a new substation and 40-mile transmission line [...]The post Duke Announces Plan to Retire Asheville Coal Plant, Replace with CCPP appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) on May 14 announced $60 million in funding for 23 new projects to foster new technologies in dry cooling and fusion power. The Advanced Research In Dry cooling (ARID) initiative, one of ARPA-E’s newest projects, will provide $30 million to support 14 project teams developing [...]The post ARPA-E Announces $60 Million in New Funding appeared first on POWER Magazine.

A group of Illinois state lawmakers are proposing legislation to discourage the import of Powder River Basin (PRB) coal into the state, making locally mined coal more appealing to power plants. The coal competitiveness plan being proposed would modify regulations that allow electric utilities to pass through the cost of transportation to customers. According to [...]The post Lawmakers Work to Make PRB Coal Less Attractive in Illinois appeared first on POWER Magazine.

At Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), repeated generation transitions have marked the giant public power utility’s long history, from hydro, to coal, to nuclear. The latest resource plan points to natural gas, along with renewables and energy efficiency, as the basis for the agency’s generating future. At the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), generation transitions are nothing [...]The post Public Power “Big Dog” TVA Takes Fresh Approach to Resource Planning appeared first on POWER Magazine.

“You can’t take a clean source of energy off the table.” That was the conclusion that a panel of four experts came to as they discussed the role that nuclear power should play in the battle to fight climate change. The panelists met on May 14 as part of the 62nd Annual Industry Conference and [...]The post Experts: More Nuclear Power Is Needed appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) and the Eastern Interconnection States Planning Council have released a resource guide to help states overcome institutional barriers and coordinate on Clean Power Plan compliance. The Multistate Coordination Resources for Clean Power Plan Compliance guide—which was funded by the Energy Department—includes a multi-state planning checklist, a legislative [...]The post NARUC Promotes State Coordination for Clean Power Plan Compliance appeared first on POWER Magazine.

GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy (GEH), the manufacturer of more than 60 of the world’s 81 existing boiling water reactors (BWRs), is making a foray into the pressurized water reactor (PWR) services field. The Wilmington, N.C.–based company announced on May 12 that it has begun offering refueling services to PWR operators. Under a recent agreement, its [...]The post GE Hitachi Enters Pressurized Water Reactor Services Market appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Michigan utility Consumers Energy formally announced on May 11 that it was closing seven of its oldest coal-fired units, which together represent 32% of its coal capacity. The units, representing about 950 MW of total generation, will be shut down by April 2016. Consumers—the state’s largest utility—blamed impending federal air quality regulations in its 2015 [...]The post Consumers Energy Shuttering a Third of Its Coal Fleet appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Siemens AG has completed a company reorganization to respond to the “persistently difficult environment” in the global power generation market. The global technology company, which had around 357,000 employees in 2014, said it would cut 4,500 jobs worldwide as part of efforts to streamline administrative functions. Siemens announced 7,800 jobs cuts earlier this year. Along with [...]The post Siemens Restructures to Bolster Troubled Power and Gas Division appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Biomass combustion should not be an approved compliance method under the Clean Power Plant because burning trees is not carbon neutral, both senators from Massachusetts told the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Friday. In a letter to EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy, Sens. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass) said that treating bioenergy as having [...]The post U.S. Senators: Biomass Should Not Be Compliance Method for Clean Power Plan appeared first on POWER Magazine.

A fire in one of the Indian Point nuclear plant main electrical transformers resulted in the forced shutdown of Unit 3 at the facility on May 9. The fire started at 5:50 p.m. local time on Saturday and it was quickly extinguished by an automated sprinkler system, along with the action of trained onsite personnel. [...]The post Fire in Main Transformer Forces Shutdown of Indian Point 3 Nuclear Plant appeared first on POWER Magazine.

A Canadian joint review panel issued an environmental assessment report on May 6 for a deep geologic repository (DGR) for long-term management of low- and intermediate-level radioactive waste (L&ILW), concluding that the project is “not likely to cause significant adverse environmental effects.” Ontario Power Generation (OPG) proposed the DGR, intending to locate the facility at [...]The post DGR Is Preferred Nuclear Waste Solution for Canada, Scary for U.S. appeared first on POWER Magazine.

In the opening move of what is certain to be a long and contentious process, Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources (ENR) Committee, introduced a suite of bills covering a broad range of energy issues, from infrastructure to regulatory reform to civil enforcement. Along with several others introduced by [...]The post Murkowski Introduces Array of Energy Bills appeared first on POWER Magazine.

In his May 6 appearance on Comedy Central’s Daily Show, Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz addressed both the military and civilian energy issues that the Department of Energy is responsible for. His discussion with host Jon Stewart ranged from the recent negotiations with Iran over that nation’s capability to enrich fissile material to domestic energy [...]The post Sec. Moniz Covers Full Range of Energy Department Work in Daily Show Appearance appeared first on POWER Magazine.

In his May 6 appearance on Comedy Central’s Daily Show, Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz addressed both the military and civilian energy issues that the Department of Energy is responsible for. His discussion with host Jon Stewart ranged from the recent negotiations with Iran over that nation’s capability to enrich fissile material to domestic energy [...]The post Sec. Moniz Covers Full Range of Energy Dept. Work in Daily Show Appearance appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Attorneys general from three states—Oklahoma, Texas, and West Virginia—stepped forward on May 5 to present their objections to the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) proposed Clean Power Plan. During testimony before the Senate Environmental and Public Works Subcommittee on Clean Air and Nuclear Safety, West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey presented three specific problems he sees [...]The post Legal Challenges to Clean Power Plan Begin to Take Shape appeared first on POWER Magazine.

California will seek to reduce its greenhouse gases (GHG) by 40% below 1990 levels by 2030, a new executive action by Gov. Edmund Brown Jr. orders. Executive order B-30-15 issued on April 29 comes ahead of the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Paris later this year. California is one of 20 U.S. states (plus the District of [...]The post California Adopts Ambitious 40% by 2030 GHG Reduction Target appeared first on POWER Magazine.

A new bill unveiled on May 6 by Sen. Angus King (I-Maine) champions a general right to neutrality of the interconnection of distributed energy resources (DER) and seeks to establish a set of national parameters for how DERs are governed. The Free Market Energy Act of 2015 would amend the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act [...]The post Sen. King Introduces Bill to Promote Distributed Energy Interconnection Neutrality appeared first on POWER Magazine.

An interdisciplinary study led by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Energy Initiative concludes, among other things, that “state renewable portfolio standard (RPS) requirements should be replaced by a uniform nationwide program.” The report—released on May 5—focuses on the future of solar energy, suggesting that a massive expansion in solar capacity to “multi-terawatt scale” is [...]The post MIT Report: Uniform Nationwide RPS Program Needed appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The post THE BIG PICTURE: World Industrial Power Prices appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Ending several months of speculation, electric vehicle firm Tesla Motors officially moved into the energy storage market on April 30 with the announcement that it would begin marketing two new battery products, the home-based Powerwall and the larger, utility-scale Powerpack. Tesla CEO Elon Musk unveiled the two batteries at a flashy ceremony at the Tesla [...]The post Tesla Takes Aim at the Grid appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Sometimes overlooked and underappreciated, a power plant condenser can make or break your efficiency and power delivery goals. Understanding how important a role your condenser plays is a good step toward greater heat rate awareness. As part of a university class on power generation systems that I teach, I show my students a Sankey diagram [...]The post Best Practices for Maximizing Condenser Efficiency appeared first on POWER Magazine.

When many older plants were built, steel and cast iron piping were common materials used underground. Although these materials have proven to have long, useful lives, improvements in plastics offer additional alternatives today. An understanding of best practices for inspecting and servicing buried piping will help you keep systems operating as designed. Most, if not [...]The post Underground Piping: Out of Sight, Out of Mind, Until It Leaks appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Advocates for the continued reliance on coal for baseload electricity cheered late last year when North America’s largest power-related carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) facility was commissioned. Since then, that pool of advocates is evaporating as prominent electricity industry decision-makers publicly distance themselves from coal and champion alternatives for a low- or no-carbon future. If [...]The post CCS Development, the Key to Coal Power’s Future, Is Slow appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Given the costs and other concerns about currently available technologies for capturing and storing carbon dioxide from fossil-fueled power plants, interest in new technologies remains high. Here’s a look at some potentially promising approaches that are advancing the technology frontier. Frontiers represent the boundary between the known and the unknown. As researchers attempt to push [...]The post The Carbon Capture and Storage R&D Frontier appeared first on POWER Magazine.

How to give electricity customers who can’t take advantage of rooftop solar access to the sun? Community solar—a shared resource—is a fast-growing segment of the renewable energy market, making solar photovoltaic power more accessible while offering another approach to distributed generation. Mention “solar energy” and the image that probably comes to mind is an array [...]The post Solar Gardens: A Fast-Growing Approach to Photovoltaic Power appeared first on POWER Magazine.