POWER Magazine

The Department of Interior (DOI) has approved the 485-MW Blythe Mesa Solar project, a photovoltaic (PV) project that will be built in Riverside County, Calif. RRG Renewables’ project will be built on 3,587 acres of private land—”primarily lands that have already been disturbed by agricultural use,” the agency pointed out—under the jurisdiction of Riverside County [...]The post 
 DOI OKs 485-MW California Solar PV Project appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The U.S. and China on Tuesday finalized a memorandum of understanding that will allow them to jointly advance carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) and other clean coal technologies for commercial use. The agreement between the Department of Energy (DOE) and China’s National Energy Administration (NEA) was set up on Aug. 26 during the U.S.–China [...]The post U.S. and China Advance Clean Coal Agreement appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Kyushu Electric Power Co.’s restart of Sendai 1—the first Japanese reactor to begin operation under new safety standards after the Fukushima disaster—hit a technical hiccup last week, prompting the company to halt ramp up of power output. The utility said on Aug. 21 that it had suspended increasing output at the unit after an alarm [...]The post Sendai Nuclear Unit Restart Suspended Amid Equipment Trouble appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The final hurdle for Exelon Corp.’s purchase of Pepco Holdings Inc. (PHI) became the ultimate stumbling block, as the Public Service Commission of the District of Columbia (DCPSC) could not be persuaded that the merger was in the public interest. The DCPSC—an independent agency established by Congress to regulate electric, natural gas, and telecommunications companies [...]The post D.C. Public Service Commission Denies Exelon-Pepco Merger appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The U.S. Court of International Trade has upheld a determination by the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) that imports of crystalline silicon photovoltaic (PV) cells and modules from China materially injured domestic solar companies. The decision dated Aug. 7 (but made public on Aug. 21) rejects claims by Chinese firms Trina Solar, Wuxi Suntech Power, [...]The post 
Solar Cells From China Injured U.S. Manufacturers, International Trade Court Rules appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Exelon’s embattled nuclear fleet got more bad—though far from unexpected—news on Aug. 21 as the Oyster Creek, Quad Cities, and Three Mile Island nuclear power plants failed to clear in the 2018–19 PJM capacity auction. This means that the three plants will not receive capacity payments during that delivery year. This was despite a big [...]The post Three of Exelon’s Nuke Plants Fail to Clear PJM Auction Despite Jump in Payments appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Southern Co. and AGL Resources—the largest natural gas–only distribution company in the U.S.—have agreed to merge in a deal that will make AGL Resources a wholly-owned subsidiary of the giant electric company. The transaction announced on Aug. 24 has an enterprise value of about $12 billion, including a total equity value of approximately $8 billion. [...]The post Southern Co. to Acquire Natural Gas Distribution Leader appeared first on POWER Magazine.

It may not be powering its ships using the sun, but the U.S. Navy will soon be using solar power to keep at least some of the lights on at 14 of its installations in California. The Department of the Navy (DON) recently signed an agreement with Western Area Power Administration and Sempra U.S. Gas [...]The post Coming Soon: The Solar-Powered Navy appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) announced on August 17 that it will dole out a total of almost $17 million to research new CO2 storage technologies through DOE’s Carbon Storage Program and to research coal conversion and utilization through NETL’s University Coal Research Program. Nine projects will receive funding [...]The post DOE Funds Coal Research and Carbon Storage Projects appeared first on POWER Magazine.

With all 40 remaining construction milestones for V.C. Summer Nuclear Station Units 2 and 3 behind schedule (33 by more than 18 months) as of June 30, South Carolina Electric & Gas Co. (SCE&G) awaits approval of the petition it filed with the Public Service Commission of South Carolina (SCPSC) to update its construction and [...]The post Costs and Deadlines Continue to Challenge V.C. Summer Nuclear Plant Project appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Making good on earlier warnings, ScottishPower said on Aug. 18 that it has no choice but to retire the 2,400-MW Longannet power plant in March 2016 because high transmission charges and carbon taxes make fossil generation uneconomic in Scotland. As with generators in the U.S., coal plants in the UK have been challenged by an [...]The post Longannet, UK’s Second-Largest Coal Plant, to Close appeared first on POWER Magazine.

This week brought announcements from India and the state of Wisconsin regarding the repurposing of sites previously associated with coal-fired power generation for future solar power generation. In India’s capital of Delhi, the 240-MW coal-fired Indraprastha Power Station, which was closed in 2010, will be the site of a new 5-MW solar photovoltaic installation. As [...]The post Sites Shift from Coal Power to Solar Power appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The Electricity Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) on August 10 set a record for electricity demand, topping 69,000 MW twice during the afternoon. The peak came as the Energy Information Administration (EIA) noted that Texas also set a record for gas power burn—natural gas usage in its power sector—reaching an average 4.5 Bcf/d through August [...]The post Texas Sets Record for Gas Power Burn, Still Barely Enough appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The bulk of newly announced federal funding for research and development of carbon capture technologies will be committed to post-combustion capture, pre-combustion capture, and biological carbon dioxide (CO2) use. The Energy Department on Aug. 13 outlined 16 projects that it chose to receive funding through the National Energy Technology Laboratory’s (NETL’s) Carbon Capture Program. The [...]The post Carbon Capture Projects Receive Federal Funds appeared first on POWER Magazine.

U.S. wind power is becoming more widespread and costs are generally on the decline, but the sector is troubled by policy uncertainties, a new report from the Energy Department says. After a lackluster year in 2013, wind power capacity additions in the U.S. rebounded nearly 8% in 2014, driven by recent improvements in the [...]The post DOE Report Highlights Triumph, Trouble for Wind Power Sector appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The attorneys general of 17 states are suing the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for invalidating agency-approved state implementation plans (SIPs) governing emissions from power plant startup, shutdown, and malfunction (SSM) operations. The states have asked a federal court to review the EPA’s June-issued final rule, which deems SIP provisions concerning SSM operations in 36 states [...]The post Seventeen States Sue EPA for Mandating SIP Startup, Shutdown, Malfunction Changes appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will issue revised Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS) and legally required cost-benefit analyses by April 15, 2016, court documents show. In an Aug. 10 motion filed with the D.C. Circuit for White Stallion Energy Center v. EPA (12-1100), the EPA said it intends to seek remand without vacatur (which would [...]The post Committed to “Ambitious Schedule,” EPA Wants to Reissue MATS Rule by April 2016 appeared first on POWER Magazine.

On August 3, 2015, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released a much-anticipated suite of regulations, featuring the final Clean Power Plan’s guidelines for carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from existing power plants under Clean Air Act section 111(d). This package has sparked great interest, and early reactions run the gamut from enthusiastic support to entrenched opposition. [...]The post The Clean Power Plan Is Final: Time to Find the Candles? appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Nearly two years after Japan’s last nuclear power plant was shut down for safety checks, Kyushu Electric Power Co. has started up the 890-MW Sendai-1. The event marks a significant milestone for the country’s nuclear sector, which was crippled by the Fukushima disaster in 2011. Kyushu started up Sendai-1 at 10:30 a.m. local time and [...]The post Sendai-1 Reactor Restart Marks Japan’s Nuclear Rebirth appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Though most power generators and states might have preferred to not deal at all with a new rule regulating greenhouse gas emissions, the final Clean Power Plan (CPP), released August 3, gives most of the power industry most of what it asked for in terms of revisions to the 2014 proposed plan. In any regulatory [...]The post Power Industry Wins with Final Clean Power Plan appeared first on POWER Magazine.

According to data compiled and reported by Fraunhofer-Institut für Solare Energiesysteme ISE—a German-based solar energy research institute—from July 1 through August 5, solar and wind energy produced 6.24 TWh and 7.09 TWh of electricity respectively, compared to 5.94 TWh of nuclear power generation in Germany. Although it’s not the first time wind production has exceeded [...]The post Solar and Wind Power Each Surpass Nuclear Generation in Germany Since Mid-Year appeared first on POWER Magazine.

In a deal said to be the largest ever involving electric cooperatives, a group of 12 cooperatives completed the purchase of Alliant Energy’s electric service territory in southern Minnesota, which serves more than 43,000 customers. The agreement was signed in September 2013 between Interstate Power and Light Co. (IPL)—Alliant’s Iowa utility—and Southern Minnesota Energy Cooperative [...]The post Alliant Energy Sells Minnesota Electric Service Territory to 12 Cooperatives appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Furthering efforts to encourage clean energy innovation, the Energy Department released a funding opportunity announcement (FOA) to support the research, development, and demonstration of advanced reactor concepts. The announcement represents an early step in increasing investment in nuclear advanced reactor technologies, which have the potential to provide substantially enhanced operational performance, safety, security, economics, and [...]The post Energy Department to Invest in Advanced Reactor Concept Development appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Reaction from utilities, environmental groups, and governmental leaders following the August 3 release of the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) final Clean Power Plan rule was mixed. Some, such as Duke Energy CEO Lynn Good, pointed to the progress that has already been made in recent years to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, noting that the [...]The post Reactions to Clean Power Plan: From Excitement to Anger appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Editor’s note (Aug. 3): Adds compliance cost details, key changes The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) final Clean Power Plan will seek to tamp down the nation’s carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from the power sector by 32% from 2005 levels by 2030—about 9% more ambitious than its original proposal. The first-ever final national standards to limit [...]The post [UPDATED] EPA Issues More Ambitious But Flexible Final Clean Power Plan appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The post THE BIG PICTURE: Targeting Renewables appeared first on POWER Magazine.

It’s not often that a power plant upgrade improves both the environment and the bottom line. Needing to come up with a new source of cooling water for Polk Power Station, and faced with mostly expensive, environmentally questionable options, Tampa Electric came up with a solution that both secured the plant’s water supply for the [...]The post Tampa Electric Co.’s Polk Power Station Reclaimed Water Project appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Two of the most important elements in any construction or upgrade project are safety and speed of completion. While one way to increase safety is to eliminate hot work whenever possible, the reality is that welding is necessary for many tasks around a power plant. However, one area where welding may not always be required [...]The post Grooved Mechanical Piping Offers a Versatile Pipe-Joining Alternative appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Looking to ensure reliable power for a critical facility—as well as move the needle on microgrid technology—Texas’s largest transmission company went all-in on a state-of-the-art demonstration project that sets a new standard for future smart grid deployments. Having a 100% uninterruptible power supply for a commercial facility is far from a unique requirement. Traditionally, meeting [...]The post Oncor’s System Operating Services Facility, Lancaster, Texas appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Courtesy: Colorado Energy Nations, GDF SUEZ Energy NA, and Behrent Engineering POWER’s 2015 Reinvention Award (formerly known as the Marmaduke Award) goes to an industrial cogeneration plant that reinvented its largest unit for greater fuel and operating flexibility. This project is exemplary for the owner’s foresight, maximizing local engineering resources, a stellar safety record, and [...]The post Colorado Energy Nations Boiler 5 Upgrade Project appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Despite wind power’s going “mainstream,” original equipment manufacturers and end users struggle to pin down quality standards for ever-evolving wind turbine component technologies. As more utilities embrace wind power, the U.S. wind turbine market has expanded tremendously over the years. It has proliferated into numerous facilities that specialize in the roughly 8,000 component parts that [...]The post The Wind Sector’s Elusive Quest for Quality appeared first on POWER Magazine.

I’ve got some good news and some bad news. The good news is that, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the number of occupational fatalities resulting from exposure to electricity has decreased steadily during the past 10 years (Figure 1). The bad news is that 141 people died on the job in the [...]The post Electrical Arc Flash Protection Solutions appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Standards and regulations may change, but the danger associated with arc flash hazards remains. Analyzing potential incident energy correctly and understanding what personal protection equipment is required can help workers stay safe and avoid painful, or even life-threatening, injuries. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) have both [...]The post Making Sense of New Arc Flash Protection Rules appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Courtesy: SaskPower There was no debate among our editorial team when it came to selecting the most interesting and worthy project worldwide for this year’s top award. Boundary Dam Power Station Unit 3 is the world’s first operating coal-fired power plant to implement a full-scale post-combustion carbon capture and storage system. It did so more [...]The post SaskPower’s Boundary Dam Carbon Capture Project Wins POWER’s Highest Award appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Exelon’s Quad Cities nuclear plant in Illinois will not be economically viable despite changes in the PJM capacity market, and the company has to make a decision on closing it before the Illinois legislature can act on possible measures to save it, CEO Chris Crane said in Exelon’s second-quarter earnings call on July 29. Along [...]The post Quad Cities Nuclear Plant May Be Retired appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Broad, bipartisan energy legislation that would allocate federal funding to grid technology research and demonstration along with a number of other initiatives, including cybersecurity and the energy-water nexus, has cleared the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee with an 18–4 vote. The committee’s chair, Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), and Ranking Member Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) [...]The post Broad Energy Policy Modernization Bill Clears Senate ENR Committee appeared first on POWER Magazine.

France’s state-owned utility EDF will snap up between 51% and 75% of troubled nuclear giant AREVA’s reactor business in a possible $2.96 billion deal. While the French government owns about 87% of AREVA and 85% of EDF, the utility that operates the nation’s aging 58-reactor fleet, it has pledged to look at all options to [...]The post EDF Moves to Rescue AREVA, Will Buy Majority of Nuclear Reactor Business appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Though the U.S. Senate voted 64–29 this week to renew the charter of the Export-Import Bank of the United States (Ex-Im), the House may adjourn for its summer break without taking action on the issue. Congress let the Ex-Im bank’s charter lapse for the first time in its 81 years of continuous operation on June [...]The post Ex-Im Bank Reauthorization Stalled, Even as House Prepares to Adjourn appeared first on POWER Magazine.

With the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) expected to issue its final rule on power plant greenhouse gas emissions under the administration’s Clean Power Plan (CPP) early next week, reports strongly suggest the revisions will extend compliance deadlines in response to power sector complaints about a too-aggressive schedule in the proposed rule. A July 28 report [...]The post Power Sector Braces for Final Clean Power Plan Rule appeared first on POWER Magazine.

As part of a remedy package to appease the European Commission, Alstom will accept $331 million less than the original $13.63 billion purchase price offered by General Electric (GE) to close the deal. The much-anticipated deal has come under close scrutiny by the European Commission, which opened a full-scale antitrust investigation into the deal on [...]The post Alstom Offers Discount to Seal GE Acquisition Deal appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) inspectors reported that the Tennessee Valley Authority’s performance during a recent assessment conducted at Watts Bar Unit 2 indicated that the plant is ready to startup and conduct power operations. The news was conveyed at a public meeting hosted by the NRC on July 27 in Athens, Tenn., to review results [...]The post New U.S. Nuclear Plant, Watts Bar Unit 2 Is One Step Closer to Startup appeared first on POWER Magazine.

NextEra Energy’s $4.3 billion bid to buy Hawaiian Electric Industries faces big, perhaps insurmountable, obstacles before the Hawaii Public Utilities Commission, which opened the record on the deal last week. The commission published the public filings in the case, which were overwhelmingly negative. Hawaii’s governor, David Ige, panned the deal in a press conference on [...]The post Hawaiian Electric, NextEra Merger Faces MajorTroubles appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The U.S. House of Representatives on July 23 passed by a 258–166 vote a coal ash bill that industry and states say is much-needed, but which the White House has threatened to veto. The Improving Coal Combustion Residuals Regulation Act of 2015 (H.R. 1734) sponsored by Rep. David McKinley (R-W.Va.) seeks to implement standards finalized [...]The post Coal Ash Bill Clears U.S. House appeared first on POWER Magazine.

When a large electromagnetic pulse (EMP) or geomagnetic disturbance (GMD) event occurs—which, according to Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), there is “100% certainty” will happen at some time in the future—as many as 9 out of 10 people in the U.S. could die. Johnson, chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs, [...]The post Expert: 90% of U.S. Population Could Die if a Pulse Event Hits the Power Grid appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The Obama Administration on July 21 threatened to veto a coal ash bill that is currently pending in the House and Senate, saying it would undermine protections in the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) recently finalized rule on disposal of coal combustion residuals (CCR). The EPA rule, issued in December 2014, drew mixed reactions from the [...]The post Obama Administration Threatens Veto of House Coal Ash Bill appeared first on POWER Magazine.

AES has begun construction of what will be the largest energy storage project in Europe when it comes online later this year in Carrickfergus, Northern Ireland. The 10-MW/40-MWh Kilroot Advancion Energy Storage Array is being added to the AES UK & Ireland Kilroot Power Station in County Antrim along the country’s east coast. The grid-connected [...]The post Europe’s Largest Energy Storage Project Begins Construction appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Renewables giant SunEdison will acquire emerging distributed energy firm Vivint Solar’s 523-MW rooftop solar portfolio in a $2.2 billion acquisition deal that signals momentum for the business model that has challenged the bottom lines of traditional utilities. SunEdison and Vivint Solar signed a definitive merger agreement on July 20. It will involve the acquisition of Vivint [...]The post SunEdison to Acquire Vivint Solar’s 523-MW Rooftop Solar Portfolio appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Senators John Hoeven (R-N.D.) and Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) have introduced a much-awaited coal ash bill in the Senate that they say will provide more certainty than will the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) final rule alone. The bill introduced on July 17 is companion legislation to a measure introduced by Reps. John Shimkus (R-Ill.) and David McKinley [...]The post New Coal Ash Bill Unveiled in the Senate appeared first on POWER Magazine.