POWER Magazine

As part of its ongoing drive to exit competitive power markets, FirstEnergy Corp. said on January 23 that it has agreed to sell four natural gas–fired power plants in Pennsylvania and its competitive share of a pumped-storage hydroelectric plant in Virginia to private equity firm LS Power Equity Partners III. FirstEnergy announced last year that […]The post FirstEnergy Unloading Five Plants in Virginia and Pennsylvania appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The Trump administration will scrap executive actions to curb U.S. carbon pollution from power plants and other climate measures outlined in the Obama administration’s landmark Climate Action Plan, according to an “energy plan” published by President Donald Trump’s White House minutes after he was inaugurated January 20. Under the White House’s plan, the Trump administration […]The post Trump Moves on Plans to Scrap Climate Initiatives appeared first on POWER Magazine.

While admitting no wrongdoing or liability, Duke Energy reached an agreement with the U.S. government to resolve a lawsuit related to its acquisition of a Florida gas-fired power plant. The plant in question—Osprey Energy Center (Figure 1)—is a 537-MW two-unit combined cycle facility located in Auburndale, Fla., that Duke Energy purchased from Calpine Construction Finance […]The post Duke Energy Settles Florida Power Plant Lawsuit appeared first on POWER Magazine.

China’s National Energy Administration (NEA) has ordered the cessation or postponement of 104 coal-fired power projects in 13 provinces scattered around the country. The body responsible for formulating and implementing energy development plans and industrial policies issued the order on January 16 to achieve goals to cap national installed coal capacity at 1,100 GW as […]The post China to Halt or Cancel More Than 100 Coal-Fired Projects appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Amazon’s latest wind farm in coastal North Carolina has completed construction and is weeks from beginning operations—and state legislators have just asked the incoming Trump administration to shut it down. The $400 million, 208-MW, 104-turbine project, built by Apex Renewables near Elizabeth City and backed by financing from Iberdrola Renewables, is supposed to power Amazon’s […]The post State Opposition to Wind Power Spikes as Trump Prepares to Take Office appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Homer City Generation, operator of a three-unit, 1,884-MW coal-fired generating station about 45 miles northeast of Pittsburgh, Pa., has initiated a voluntary, pre-packaged Chapter 11 case in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. The financial restructuring process is expected to eliminate more than $600 million in existing secured debt from Homer City’s […]The post Struggling to Compete with Natural Gas, Pennsylvania Coal Plant Files for Bankruptcy appeared first on POWER Magazine.

A bill to protect U.S. power grid from cyber-attacks reintroduced by members of the U.S. Senate Intelligence Committee urges a “retro” approach to cybersecurity, including replacing computer-connected operating systems with analog and human-operated systems. U.S. Senators Jim Risch (R-Idaho) and Angus King (I-Maine) on January 10 renewed their support of the Securing Energy Infrastructure Act, […]The post UPDATED: Senators Renew Push for Return to Analog in Grid Cybersecurity Bill appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Although AREVA recently disclosed that 17 U.S. nuclear power plant units have installed components that were forged at the Le Creusot facility in France—a forge that has been under scrutiny due to questionable quality assurance documentation and carbon segregation irregularities in some parts manufactured at the site—the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) does not consider the […]The post 17 U.S. Nuclear Units Have Components Forged at Site Under Investigation appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Non-utility generators urge FERC to overturn state actions in New York and Illinois that the generators claim distort FERC’s wholesale electricity markets.The post Non-Utility Power Generators Push FERC on State Nuclear Subsidies appeared first on POWER Magazine.

NuScale will submit the nation’s first application for design certification of a small modular reactor (SMR) to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) on Thursday. The Corvallis, Ore.–based company, which is majority owned by the Fluor Corp., has been developing its light-water reactor nuclear technology for more than 15 years. Development of the NuScale power module […]The post NuScale Poised to Submit Nation’s First-Ever SMR Design Certification Application to NRC appeared first on POWER Magazine.

An incident at J.M. Stuart Station—a 2,318-MW coal and diesel generating facility operated by Dayton Power and Light Co. (DP&L)—resulted in six people being treated for non-life-threatening injuries. Several media outlets referred to the event as an explosion, citing nearby residents’ accounts of the incident. At least a few people said they heard and felt […]The post Six People Injured by Explosion at Ohio Coal Power Plant appeared first on POWER Magazine.

For the third straight year, renewable generation accounted for the majority of new utility-scale capacity additions in the U.S. during 2016, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) said on January 10. The EIA estimated that the U.S. added 24 GW of new utility-scale generation in 2016, of which 63% was renewables, almost all of it wind […]The post Renewables Again Lead Capacity Additions in 2016 as Coal Production Continues to Fall appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Petra Nova—a commercial-scale post-combustion carbon capture project designed to remove more than 90% of the carbon dioxide (CO2) from a 240-MW slipstream of flue gas off of the W.A. Parish generating station in Fort Bend County, Texas—has been completed, according to project partners NRG Energy Inc. and JX Nippon Oil & Gas Exploration Corp. The […]The post World’s Largest Post-Combustion Carbon Capture Project Completed appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Beyond major reliability events that have prompted regional blackouts in the past, the U.S. grid faces “imminent danger from cyber attacks,” warns the second installation of the Obama administration’s Quadrennial Energy Review (QER). Here are other key trends outlined in the comprehensive study of the nation’s electricity system. The QER, available on the DOE web site, identifies the threats, […]The post DOE’s Quadrennial Review: 8 Trends That Are Shaping the U.S. Electric System appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The U.S. took a big step toward becoming a major exporter of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in 2016 as Cheniere Energy’s Sabine Pass export terminal in Louisiana came online early last year and upgrades to the Panama Canal that opened in June made shipments to the Pacific region considerably easier. Data from the Department of […]The post U.S. LNG Exports Surge in 2016—But Not Where They Were Expected [Updated] appeared first on POWER Magazine.

If the Clean Power Plan is scrapped or weakened, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) may be forced to regulate greenhouse gases (GHGs) emitted by existing power plant with wider repercussions under its National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) program, experts have warned. While President-Elect Donald Trump promised to “scrap” the Clean Power Plan during his […]The post Experts: If Clean Power Plan Perishes, GHG Regulation Almost Certain Under NAAQS Program appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The 2,250-MW Navajo Generating Station near Page, Ariz., and the associated Kayenta coal mine may close in 2017.The post Coal-Fired Navajo Station Could Close This Year appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The Department of Energy (DOE) has dropped its support of a 24-MW offshore wind demonstration project proposed by Fishermen’s Energy off the coast of Atlantic City, N.J. “Under the Energy Department’s award, Fishermen’s Energy must have secured a power offtake agreement by December 31st to be eligible for another round of funding,” a DOE spokesperson […]The post DOE Ditches Another Offshore Wind Demonstration Project appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Ontario Power Generation (OPG) has submitted documents that suggest its plan to permanently store low-level and intermediate-level nuclear waste close to its Bruce Nuclear Generating Station in Kincardine, at an underground site near the eastern shore of Lake Huron, is the best option for disposal. Responding to a February 2016 request for information by the […]The post OPG: Kincardine Nuclear Waste Deep Geologic Repository Is Best Alternative appeared first on POWER Magazine.

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Difficult market conditions have accelerated the much-hyped closures of a string of coal-fired power units in the U.S., but the phenomenon is extending overseas, gripping plants in Australia and Germany. In the wake of the Paris agreement in December 2015, a number of governments have moved to phase out coal-fired generation. This October, France, which […]The post Market Conditions Force Coal Unit Closures in Australia, Germany appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The U.S. may be getting its first overhead 600-kV high-voltage direct-current (HVDC) line in more than 20 years. Developers are advancing the Plains and Eastern Clean Line, a 720-mile (1,150-kilometer [km]) project that could deliver 4 GW of renewable power from the Oklahoma Panhandle region to states in the Southeast. The project is spearheaded by […]The post Readying for New HVDC Line, U.S. Lags Behind Rest of World appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Barely a year after Mexico launched a wholesale market with retail competition as part of a wide-scale reform of its power sector, the country has managed to implement a transparent system that is attracting investment. Mexico has also expanded its grid and deployed notable amounts of renewables that are producing power at unprecedented low prices, […]The post Mexico Makes Rapid Progress on Energy Reform appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Just a few months ago, New England’s biggest and most controversial pipeline proposal, Algonquin Gas Transmission’s Access Northeast project (see “Securing Pipeline Infrastructure for Gas-Fired Generation in New England” in the July 2016 issue), was poised for regulatory scrutiny. Access Northeast distinguished itself by its partnership with electric distribution companies (EDCs), namely National Grid and […]The post New England’s Controversial Pipeline Proposal Suffers Severe Setbacks appeared first on POWER Magazine.

China has officially begun construction of its first offshore nuclear power plant, a demonstration project that will employ the domestically developed ACPR50S small modular reactor (SMR). China General Nuclear Power Corp. (CGN) on November 4 told reporters at a press conference that the project (Figure 6) is a “top priority” that will further the country’s […]The post China Starts Building SMR-Based Floating Nuclear Plant appeared first on POWER Magazine.

As our January 2017 cover image of a dynamic Rubik’s Cube suggests, the power industry, especially in the U.S., is dealing with something akin to solving a 3-D puzzle whose pieces are being added and subtracted as the game is being played. Although shares of traditional, regulated electric utilities remain some of the most predictable […]The post The Power Industry’s Moving Pieces in 2017 appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The U.S. market for electricity is trifurcated. More than half the country is served by competitive generators bidding against each other in wholesale markets. Almost half is served by conventional state-regulated, vertically integrated utilities controlling generation and transmission. The rest, a much smaller portion, consists of government-owned and customer-owned utilities, some of which are generators […]The post U.S. Electric Markets in Transition appeared first on POWER Magazine.

If broad policy commitments announced by various countries are implemented, coal will not only lose its rank as the dominant fuel for power generation to renewables by 2040, but the world’s coal fleet will be significantly transformed by technology advances, the International Energy Agency’s (IEA’s) newly released World Energy Outlook (WEO-2016) forecasts. Under a baseline […]The post IEA: Coal Boom Is Over appeared first on POWER Magazine.

A tumultuous election year that was marked by market turmoil, the events of 2016 clearly showed that big change is afoot for the power sector. Many of POWER‘s bold predictions for 2016, such as that the near-simultaneous surge in U.S. natural gas production and recent enactment of environmental rules would reshape the U.S. power sector, […]The post A Look Back at 2016: The Year of Transition appeared first on POWER Magazine.

POWER‘s monthly infographic sheds light on power sector trends globally, and in 2016, it highlighted water issues, future coal fleet technologies, U.S. power plant retirements, energy storage technologies, China’s power glut, global emissions limits, and more. January 2016: Future Coal Fleet What the world’s future coal fleet will look like by technology. February 2016: GHG […]The post THE BIG PICTURE 2016: The Year in Power Sector Infographics appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Some of the U.S. coal market’s own product wound up in its stocking this Christmas season. Despite hope from the election of Donald Trump and a potential shift toward more coal-friendly energy policies, coal plant owners across the country continued the trend toward shutdowns and reduced operations that have marked the past few years. Coal […]The post U.S. Coal Fleet Continues Contractions Despite Looming Changes in Policy appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Toshiba Corp.—the parent of Westinghouse Electric Co.—said it might book huge losses as a result of Westinghouse’s acquisition of the nuclear construction and integrated services business CB&I Stone & Webster Inc. (S&W). Westinghouse closed on its agreement with CB&I in December 2015. When the deal was made, Toshiba estimated that the amount of “goodwill” resulting […]The post Westinghouse’s Losses from Nuclear Business Deal Mount appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Oregon State University’s Northwest National Marine Renewable Energy Center was awarded up to $40 million by the DOE to create a wave energy test facility in Newport.The post Oregon Wave Energy Center Gets $40 Million for Test Facility appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) first loan guarantee under an $8 billion solicitation for advanced fossil energy projects may go to a methanol production facility in Lake Charles, La., that will employ carbon capture technology for enhanced oil recovery. The DOE said in a statement on December 21 that it offered a conditional commitment to […]The post DOE’s First Advanced Fossil Fuel Loan Guarantee Commitment Awarded to Methanol Plant with Carbon Capture appeared first on POWER Magazine.

After a 10-month competitive bid process, Southern California Edison (SCE) has selected a joint venture of AECOM and EnergySolutions as the general contractor for the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS) decommissioning. “We are pleased to announce the selection of the AECOM/EnergySolutions team, a global joint venture with extensive commercial and government decommissioning experience around […]The post AECOM, EnergySolutions Joint Venture to Decommission San Onofre Nuclear Plant appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) said on Dec. 21 that it has issued combined construction-and-operating licenses (COLs) for Duke Energy’s proposed two-unit William States Lee III nuclear plant in Gaffney, S.C. The project, named for long-time Duke executive Bill Lee, would use Westinghouse’s AP1000 design and be located adjacent to the abandoned Cherokee nuclear plant […]The post NRC Issues License for Duke’s Lee Nuclear Project, but Future Uncertain appeared first on POWER Magazine.

In a joint statement on December 20, the leaders of the United States and Canada announced that they had developed a new partnership that effectively bans additional licenses for oil and gas drilling in the Arctic and parts of the Atlantic Ocean.The post Obama and Trudeau Ban Oil & Gas Leasing in Arctic, Parts of Atlantic appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has abandoned an interagency review of draft model carbon trading rules that were issued alongside the final Clean Power Plan to make associated documents public before the Trump administration takes the reins at the agency. The agency proposed the model trading rules as components of state implementation plans that it […]The post EPA Drops Proposed Model Carbon Trading Rules Ahead of Trump Takeover appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Fermi 2, a 1,170-MW boiling water reactor owned by DTE Electric on the western shore of Lake Erie, in Monroe County, Mich., has garnered the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s (NRC’s) green light to operate until March 2045. DTE Electric submitted an application to the NRC to renew the 29-year-old reactor’s operating license in April 2014. The […]The post DTE Energy’s Fermi 2 Nuclear Reactor Gets License to Operate for 20 More Years appeared first on POWER Magazine.

A joint strategy released by the governments of the U.S. and Canada to thwart the growing threat of cyberattacks on the electric grid sets three priorities that the countries said would be critical to preserving energy and national security. The “Joint United States-Canada Electric Grid Security and Resilience Strategy,” released on December 15, outlines three […]The post U.S. and Canada Join Forces to Battle Cyberattacks on Electric Grid appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) on December 15 proposed reforms to its large generator (20 MW or more) interconnection processes. The notice of proposed rulemaking (or NOPR in FERC-speak) would revise FERC’s 2003 pro-forma large generator interconnection procedures and agreement. At the FERC meeting approving the proposed rule, FERC Chairman Norman Bay said, “Much […]The post FERC Proposes Rule Changes on Interconnect, Fast Start appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) on December 14 finalized the latest version of its rule governing permitted levels of eagle deaths at wind turbine farms. The rule, first issued in 2009, governs the FWS’s administration of the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act, which makes it a criminal offense to kill or injure […]The post U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Finalizes Rule on Wind Turbine Eagle Deaths appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Although optimistic about the future of the coal industry under the Trump administration, Robert Murray, CEO of Murray Energy Corp., the largest underground coal mining company in the U.S., does not expect the president-elect to bring back coal mining jobs or spur new coal-fired power plant construction. “I’ve asked President-elect Trump to temper his comments […]The post Coal Magnate Tells Trump to Lower His Expectations appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The tumultuous Trump transition took another turn late Tuesday, as reports from many media outlets said he has picked Rep. Ryan Zinke (R-Mont.), a freshman who won a second House term in November’s election, to be Secretary of Interior. Many of the same media sources late last week said Trump would pick Washington Rep. Cathy […]The post Reports Say Trump Picks Montana Rep. Ryan Zinke for Interior appeared first on POWER Magazine.

As one of its last official acts, the Obama administration Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) backed away from making a definitive statement on the impacts of hydraulic fracturing, saying it lacked sufficient data to quantify their severity and frequency. The 1,200-page final report issued December 13, “Hydraulic Fracturing for Oil and Gas: Impacts from the Hydraulic […]The post EPA Punts Fracking Impact Question to Trump Administration appeared first on POWER Magazine.

President-elect Donald Trump has picked former Texas governor Rick Perry to be his energy secretaryThe post Trump’s Pick for Energy Department: Rick Perry appeared first on POWER Magazine.