Kentucky lawmakers advance bill to keep coal on the power grid, cite reliability concerns FEBRUARY 28, 2023 Kentucky lawmakers are advancing a bill to try to keep coal-fired power plants on the state’s electric grid “for the foreseeable future,” pointing to concerns over rolling blackouts that some utilities implemented when…
EPA undoes Trump-era power plant rollback
EPA undoes Trump-era power plant rollback 02/17/2023 A quixotic and clamorous regulatory saga perhaps unmatched in Clean Air Act history has ended — at least for now. In a final rule unveiled Friday, EPA restored the legal underpinnings of a 2012 set of regulations for emissions of mercury, a neurotoxin…
Duke Energy plans gas plants as it moves away from coal, but critics see higher cost and emissions
Duke Energy plans gas plants as it moves away from coal, but critics see higher cost and emissions February 14, 2023 Three years ago, Duke Energy opened its newest natural gas-fired power plant in Asheville, on the site of an old coal-fired plant. Duke wants to build more gas plants…
Renewables and nuclear set to cover global growth in electricity demand, IEA says
Renewables and nuclear set to cover global growth in electricity demand, IEA says Energize Weekly, February 15, 2023 New renewable and nuclear generation is set to meet 90 percent of the growing demand for electricity globally during the next three years, while increasing extreme weather will test grid resilience, according…
More than half of new U.S. electric-generating capacity in 2023 will be solar
More than half of new U.S. electric-generating capacity in 2023 will be solar FEBRUARY 6, 2023 Developers plan to add 54.5 gigawatts (GW) of new utility-scale electric-generating capacity to the U.S. power grid in 2023, according to our Preliminary Monthly Electric Generator Inventory. More than half of this capacity will…
The United States Is Facing Electricity Famine
The United States Is Facing Electricity Famine Feb. 7, 2023 There are signs that we are heading towards an electricity famine; a life-threatening energy Holodomor throughout many areas of the United States caused by political decisions. The system is being set up to fail. This problem this time is not…
Renewable tax credits and changes on the grid are making most coal-fired plants uneconomical
Renewable tax credits and changes on the grid are making most coal-fired plants uneconomical Energize Weekly, February 8, 2023 A combination of new federal incentives for renewable generation and a shift in the way electric grids are managed has led to a point where it is more expensive to operate…
Natural gas-fired power replacing coal-fired electricity in Pennsylvania
Natural gas-fired power replacing coal-fired electricity in Pennsylvania JANUARY 30, 2023 According to a new report by the U.S. Energy Information Administration, natural gas-fired power plants have replaced coal-fired power plants in Pennsylvania over the last two decades. In 2001, natural gas accounted for 2 percent of the electricity produced…
Senators explore power supply failure — especially natural gas — during Christmas storm
Senators explore power supply failure – especially natural gas – during Christmas storm January 26, 2023 The winter storm of Dec. 23-25 produced an unexpectedly high demand for electricity. Despite the surprise, PJM, the 13-state power grid organization — thought it had plenty of reserve on hand. But the power…
CPS Energy will phase out coal, close Spruce plant
CPS Energy will phase out coal, close Spruce plant January 24, 2023 Before the end of the decade, the electricity powering San Antonio’s homes and businesses won’t rely on a polluting coal plant. But CPS Energy isn’t committing to all renewables just yet. The city-owned utility’s board voted 4-1 yesterday…
Electricity generation global demand for fossil fuels is about to peak, RMI says
Electricity generation global demand for fossil fuels is about to peak, RMI says Energize Weekly, January 25, 2023 The world has reached – or is close to reaching – peak demand for fossil fuels for generating electricity as the installation of cheaper renewable generation continues to grow, according to an…
Japan’s ‘clean coal’ power experiment is starting to bear fruit
Japan’s ‘clean coal’ power experiment is starting to bear fruit January 16, 2023 On a small island in western Japan’s Hiroshima prefecture, reachable only by a 30-minute ferry ride from the mainland, a decadelong attempt to prove coal can be made “clean” is drawing to an end — though its…
Puerto Rico to privatize power generation amid outages
Puerto Rico to privatize power generation amid outages January 15, 2023 Puerto Rico announced Sunday that it plans to privatize electricity generation, a first for a U.S. territory facing chronic power outages as it struggles to rebuild a crumbling electric grid. The move marks the beginning of the end for…
Winter Storm Elliott stressed regional electric grids across the U.S. in different ways
Winter Storm Elliott stressed regional electric grids across the U.S. in different ways Energize Weekly, January 18, 2023 Winter Storm Elliott, the bomb cyclone with freezing temperatures and blizzard conditions that swept across the U.S. east of the Rockies, sparked a wave of outages with its impacts varying from regional…
India expects utilities’ annual coal demand to surge about 8% after renewables shortfall
India expects utilities’ annual coal demand to surge about 8% after renewables shortfall January 10, 2023 India expects its power plants to burn about 8% more coal in the fiscal year ending March 2024, according to a senior government official and a power ministry presentation, after the country missed its…
Colorado co-ops say Xcel Energy mismanaged natural gas supplies during 2021 storm
Colorado co-ops say Xcel Energy mismanaged natural gas supplies during 2021 storm Energize Weekly, January 11, 2023 The fallout from the soaring natural gas prices created by Winter Storm Uri in 2021 continues as four rural Colorado electric cooperatives have filed a complaint with federal regulators saying they were overcharged…
Sweden turns to France as it looks to buy two new nuclear reactors
Sweden turns to France as it looks to buy two new nuclear reactors January 3, 2023 Sweden and France could be set to join forces to build new nuclear power stations in the Nordic nation, to boost domestic power production and guarantee security of supply. Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson…
Pleasants Power Purchase Under Consideration in West Virginia PSC Order
Pleasants Power Purchase Under Consideration in West Virginia PSC Order JAN 3, 2023 An order from the West Virginia Public Service Commission last week approving rate increases for two power companies also included a provision for those companies to evaluate the possible purchase of the Pleasants Power plant. In an…
Energy efficiency investments jump in 2022 spurred by energy security concerns
Energy efficiency investments jump in 2022 spurred by energy security concerns Energize Weekly, December 28, 2022 Global investment in energy efficiency – from building renovations to public transport to electric vehicle infrastructure – increased 16 percent in 2022, reaching $560 billion as efficiency gains grew fourfold, according to the International…
Global coal use is on course to hit all-time high this year, IEA says
Global coal use is on course to hit all-time high this year, IEA says DEC 19 2022 Global coal use is on course to increase by 1.2% to hit a record high this year, according to a report from the International Energy Agency. It comes at a time of significant…
DTE Energy retires two coal plants as part of its vision to generate carbon-free power for the grid of the future
DTE Energy retires two coal plants as part of its vision to generate carbon-free power for the grid of the future December 08, 2022 DTE Energy (NYSE:DTE), Michigan’s largest producer of clean energy, today announced the retirement of two coal-fired power plants, bringing Southeast Michigan closer to a carbon-free future…
Renewables to overtake coal and become world’s biggest source of electricity generation by 2025, IEA says
Renewables to overtake coal and become world’s biggest source of electricity generation by 2025, IEA says DEC 6 2022 Renewables are on course to overtake coal and become the planet’s biggest source of electricity generation by the middle of this decade, according to the International Energy Agency. The IEA’s Renewables…
Utility recommends natural gas plant despite objections
Utility recommends natural gas plant despite objections Dec 2, 2022 The nation’s largest public utility on Friday recommended replacing an aging coal burning power plant with natural gas, ignoring calls for the Tennessee Valley Authority to speed its transition to renewable energy. TVA announced the completion of its environmental impact…
Entergy Texas gets approval to build Orange County plant capable of powering more than 230K homes
Entergy Texas gets approval to build Orange County plant capable of powering more than 230K homes November 28, 2022 An upcoming Entergy Texas facility is set to create more than $1 billion in economic activity in Southeast Texas and bring thousands of jobs to the area. The Public Utility Commission…
U.S. grid faces “unprecedented” risk of electricity shortfalls this winter, NERC warns
U.S. grid faces “unprecedented” risk of electricity shortfalls this winter, NERC warns Energize Weekly, November 23, 2022 A large swatch of the U.S. electricity grid – in Texas, the Midwest, Southeast and New England – is at risk of being unable to provide adequate power in the face of extreme…
NET Power Natural Gas Generating Plant Captures Its Own Emissions
NET Power Natural Gas Generating Plant Captures Its Own Emissions Nov. 14, 2022 NET Power, based in Durham, North Carolina, has developed a new way to make electricity by burning natural gas that it says is cheaper than conventional gas generation. That’s good news, sort of, but the real benefit…
Big Utilities See Inflation Reduction Act Helping Reduce Customers’ Energy Bills
Big Utilities See Inflation Reduction Act Helping Reduce Customers’ Energy Bills November 14, 2022 Utility giants planning to spend billions of dollars to move away from fossil fuels see the Inflation Reduction Act helping to reduce the cost of that transition as its customers grapple with high energy bills. Executives…
Spurred by high commodity prices, energy production revenues on federal lands surge
Spurred by high commodity prices, energy production revenues on federal lands surge Energize Weekly, November 16, 2022 Energy production on federal lands and offshore areas in 2022 generated $22 billion for the federal and state governments – the highest in revenues since 2008 and second highest in 39 years, according…
DTE looks to close Monroe Power Plant in 2028, ahead of earlier planned date of 2040
DTE looks to close Monroe Power Plant in 2028, ahead of earlier planned date of 2040 Nov. 7, 2022 DTE Energy unveiled a new 20-year plan that includes increasing solar and wind energy while reducing reliance on coal, which translates into closing the Monroe Power Plant by 2028. According to…
PNM customers continue to pay for San Juan coal plant that’s no longer operating
PNM customers continue to pay for San Juan coal plant that’s no longer operating Nov 7, 2022 In the two months since the San Juan Generating Station shut down in New Mexico, the region’s customers have been paying the same rate for a facility that’s no longer giving them energy.…
Xcel to exit coal nationwide by 2030
Xcel to exit coal nationwide by 2030 October 31, 2022 Xcel Energy plans to stop using coal nationwide by the end of 2030 after announcing Monday that it will speed up retirement of coal-fired units at its Tolk Generating Station in Texas. Xcel said it now plans to retire the…
War in Ukraine is speeding a global energy transition, hobbling Russian exports, IEA says
War in Ukraine is speeding a global energy transition, hobbling Russian exports, IEA says Energize Weekly, November 2, 2022 Global fossil fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions are slowing with oil, coal and natural gas either peaking or reaching a plateau by 2030, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).…
Inside EPA’s climate strategy for power plants
Inside EPA’s climate strategy for power plants 10/24/2022 EPA’s game plan to comprehensively attack pollution from the coal-fired power industry began to take shape almost immediately following President Joe Biden’s inauguration, recently released records show. In early February 2021, senior EPA appointees briefed White House officials on a strategy that…
Global carbon capture capacity set to grow sixfold by 2030, BloombergNEF says
Global carbon capture capacity set to grow sixfold by 2030, BloombergNEF says Energize Weekly, October 26, 2022 Global carbon capture capacity, with more than $3 billion invested in the technology this year, is set to increase sixfold from current levels by 2030, according to an analysis by energy research firm…
An Alaska Air Base Wants to Build a Micro Nuclear Plant for Backup Power
Alaska Air Base Wants to Build a Micro Nuclear Plant for Backup Power October 17, 2022 Last month, the Air Force issued a request for proposals to construct a 2.5-megawatt micro-reactor at Eielson to supplement its current 20-MW coal-fired heat and power plant that delivers power across the installation on…
Louisiana project highlights unknowns of carbon capture
Louisiana project highlights unknowns of carbon capture October 17, 2022 A carbon capture project proposed for a central Louisiana power plant has been dubbed “Project Diamond Vault” by its owner, Louisiana utility Cleco. The utility says the project will have “precious value” to the company, customers and state. Yet less…
Xcel Energy-Colorado positioned to lead clean energy transition, new president says
Xcel Energy-Colorado positioned to lead clean energy transition, new president says October 16, 2022 Robert Kenney took over as President of Xcel Energy-Colorado as the utility sought approval from state regulators for rate increases, a new clean energy plan and a proposal to reduce emissions from its natural gas system.…
Ontario’s electricity sector will need more natural gas generation: report
Ontario’s electricity sector will need more natural gas generation: report October 11, 2022 Ontario plans to secure more natural gas generation in order to fuel an expected surge in demand for electricity, the energy minister said Friday, the latest announcement in what critics describe as a scramble in the face…
PG&E Lays Out Plan to Sell Stake in Generation Capacity
PG&E Lays Out Plan to Sell Stake in Generation Capacity Sept. 29, 2022 PG&E Corp. executives have sketched out a plan to house the company’s non-nuclear generation assets in a new subsidiary, stakes in which could be sold to fund future safety and reliability investments. Representatives of the company’s Pacific…
NYPA, GE Successfully Pilot Hydrogen Retrofit at Aeroderivative Gas Turbine
NYPA, GE Successfully Pilot Hydrogen Retrofit at Aeroderivative Gas Turbine September 26, 2022 A pioneering GE aeroderivative gas turbine project to demonstrate hydrogen combustion as part of a retrofit at an existing U.S. natural gas power plant has successfully utilized blends of 5% to 44% hydrogen with natural gas—some of…
Global coal-fired generation spikes in 2021, even as wind and solar reach new highs
Global coal-fired generation spikes in 2021, even as wind and solar reach new highs Energize Weekly, September 28, 2022 The world recorded an unprecedent spike in coal-fired generation in 2021 – even as wind and solar generation also reached record levels, according to a report by Bloomberg NEF and Bloomberg…
Gas, a ‘bridge fuel,’ dominates U.S. power at any price
Gas, a ‘bridge fuel,’ dominates U.S. power at any price 09/20/2022 Surging natural gas prices normally result in booming coal generation. But 2022 isn’t normal. Power companies are shrugging off the highest gas prices in over a decade as they ramp up electricity generation at U.S. gas plants, which are…
Old coal-fired power plants could gain a second life as sites for nuclear units, DOE says
Old coal-fired power plants could gain a second life as sites for nuclear units, DOE says Energize Weekly, September 21, 2022 Old coal-fired power plants could have an economical, second life as sites for a new generation of nuclear power projects, according to a study by the U.S. Department of…
Could the Nation’s Coal Plant Sites Help Drive a Clean Energy Transition?
Could the Nation’s Coal Plant Sites Help Drive a Clean Energy Transition? SEPTEMBER 13, 2022 The nation’s coal power plant sites that helped build the U.S. economy during the country’s electrification could play a huge role once again in helping the nation transition to clean energy. A new U.S. Department…
Colorado’s Drake Power Plant to Shut for Good After 100 Years: ‘Milestone’
Colorado’s Drake Power Plant to Shut for Good After 100 Years: ‘Milestone’ 9/1/22 A Colorado power station that has operated for almost 100 years shut down for good on Thursday as part of a clean energy transition. The coal-fired Drake Power Station, located in the city of Colorado Springs, has…
Diablo Canyon: Newsom signs bill to keep reactors running at CA’s last operating nuclear power plant
Diablo Canyon: Newsom signs bill to keep reactors running at CA’s last operating nuclear power plant September 3, 2022 Gov. Gavin Newsom signed legislation Friday intended to open the way for California’s last operating nuclear power plant to run an additional five years, a move that he said was needed…
War and pandemic are leading to a surge in government support for fossil fuels, study says
War and pandemic are leading to a surge in government support for fossil fuels, study says Energize Weekly, September 7, 2022 The combination of the COVID pandemic and the war in Ukraine has spurred an almost doubling in government support for fossil fuel production among major economies, according to an…
Duke Energy and Siemens gas power plant achieves Guinness World Record
Duke Energy and Siemens gas power plant achieves Guinness World Record August 26, 2022 Duke Energy’s Lincoln Combustion Turbine Station has been certified by Guinness World Records for having the “most powerful simple-cycle gas power plant.” The facility is powered by Siemens Energy’s SGT6-9000HL (60Hz) turbine. This record-setting turbine has…
Texas grid avoids summer blackouts with $1 billion in extra spending
Texas grid avoids summer blackouts with $1 billion in extra spending August 25, 2022 Texas’ electric grid operator has powered through record demand this summer by paying more to keep higher reserves and rewarding industrial consumers to cut usage, a combination that has added more than $1 billion to power…
Ameren may turn to natural gas to make up for shuttering Rush Island coal plant
Ameren may turn to natural gas to make up for shuttering Rush Island coal plant AUGUST 17, 2022 Ameren Missouri may restart natural gas burners to offset the court-ordered shuttering of a coal-fired power plant that violated federal law, the company told state regulators Wednesday. The St. Louis-based electric utility…
