Sunday, May 19, 2024
Daily Energy Insider
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National Renewable Energy Lab uses robots to aid wind turbine blade manufacturing
Looking to cut down on the difficult nature of the work for humans and improve consistency of the outcome, the United States Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has turned to robots to help manufacture wind turbine blades. The work was detailed in Toolpath Generat... Read More »
Program that offers tax credits for wind and solar in low-income communities to launch soon
A program that provides a 10 or 20-percentage point boost to the investment tax credit for qualified solar or wind facilities in low-income communities will soon begin taking applications. Applications for the federal Low-Income Communities Bonus Credit Program, established by the Inflation Redu... Read More »
Long-awaited FERC transmission planning rule tackles interregional planning
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approved in a 2-1 vote the first transmission policy update in more than a decade. Order No. 1920 directly addresses interstate transmission development with specific requirements for transmission providers, with the goal to expand capacity on the grid... Read More »LATEST NEWS
Switch to LED streetlights could save Sylvania, Ohio nearly $77,000 annually
Toledo Edison this month began a massive streetlight conversion project through Sylvania, Ohio, installing the first of 1,650 LED replacements. While the project came with a sticker price of $342,000, the FirstEnergy Corp. electric company said the move will eventually save the city nearly $77,000 in electricity costs each year. That’s because LEDs are about 50 percent more efficient than the high-pressure sodium lights that traditionally lit the streets. In fact, the city estimates it will... Read More »
Peter Sena III
Southern Nuclear names new CEO and chairman
Peter Sena III has been named the new chairman and CEO of Southern Nuclear, a subsidiary of the Southern Company. Sena, who is currently president of Southern Nuclear, will succeed Stephen Kuczynski as chairman and CEO of Southern Nuclear after Kuczynski retires on June 28. When Sena assumes the additional roles of chairman and CEO, he will oversee the operation of over 8,400 MW of nuclear power across Plant Farley in Alabama, as well as Plants Hatch and Vogtle Units 1-4 in Georgia. "Pe... Read More »
Argonne National Lab to build R&D facility to test large-scale fuel cell systems
The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) is con structing a research and development (R&D) facility to develop and test large-scale fuel cell systems. Specifically, the Argonne facility, located in Lamont, Ill., will test fuel cell systems to be used in transportation applications including trucks, railroad locomotives, marine vessels, aircraft, and vehicles used in the agriculture, construction and mining industries. The DOE’s Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Tech... Read More »
Business Council for Sustainable Energy voices support for crackdown on critical mineral supply chains
As the House considers numerous ways to lock China out of the U.S. market, the Business Council for Sustainable Energy (BCSE) recently wrote to the chamber in support of moves to secure domestic supply chains for critical minerals, components, and materials. “The December 2023 Select Committee report, “Reset, Prevent, Build: A Strategy to Win America’s Economic Competition with the Chinese Communist Party,” identifies numerous bipartisan policy findings and recommendations,” the BCS... Read More »
Ameren 2024 sustainability report unveils new 20-year plan for Missouri energy needs, energy assistance
In its latest annual sustainability report, Ameren Corporation discussed a new 20-year plan meant to help it meet Missouri customers’ energy needs, while also expanding energy assistance and further developing its workforce. For its 2.4 million electric customers and more than 900,000 natural gas customers, 2023 kept in sight a plan to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2045. In order to achieve this, the company reported plans to retire more than 2,500 MW of fossil-fired generation by 203... Read More »
DOI grants West Virginia, North Dakota $54.2M to plug orphaned gas wells
The states of West Virginia and North Dakota were awarded $54.2 million by the U.S. Department of the Interior to plug orphaned oil and gas wells. North Dakota will use its $25 million award to plug approximately 46 orphaned oil and gas wells, reclaim 116 well sites and remediate over 270 contaminated sites. West Virginia received an award of $29.2 million to plug approximately 200 orphaned oil and gas wells. These investments will help protect public health and the environment from harmf... Read More »
Consumers Energy to install nearly 3,000 line sensors, other smart technology this year
In a bid to improve electric reliability in Michigan, Consumers Energy recently announced plans to invest nearly $24 million to deploy nearly 3,000 line sensors and more than 100 automatic transfer reclosers (ATRs) in 2024. "Consumers Energy has made a commitment with our Reliability Roadmap to ultimately restore power in 24 hours or less,” Chris Laird, Consumers Energy's vice president of electric operations, said. “New technology like this is an important tool as we make the grid more ... Read More »
PJM Interconnection, MISO to collaborate on interregional study
PJM Interconnection and the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) will collaborate on an informational interregional transfer capability study. The study, set to be performed during the second half of 2024, the study will identify potential opportunities for near-term transmission enhancements along the seam shared by PJM and MISO. PJM Interconnection coordinates and directs the operation of the region's transmission grid, which includes 88,115 miles of transmission lines. It ser... Read More »
Duke Energy CEO lays out accomplishments at shareholder meeting
Duke Energy CEO Lynn Good laid out the company’s major achievements and milestones last year at the annual shareholders meeting last week. Good cited several strategic milestones that the company hit in 2023, including repositioning its portfolio. “We sold our commercial renewables business and became a fully regulated company. This strategic move allows us to focus on the significant investment opportunities within our regulated businesses,” Good said. The company also added 195... Read More »
