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Optimism Is Warranted in the Power Industry in 2022 and Beyond

January 4, 2022

While some sectors of the power industry are struggling to stay relevant, there are many more segments that are thriving. As new technologies are developed and perfected, there is more reason than ever for people in the power industry to be optimistic about the future.

Opportunities are everywhere in the power industry these days. Not only are wind and solar energy seeing explosive growth, but also several other technologies are showing real signs of promise. Battery energy storage systems and microgrids have become mainstream grid components. Advanced nuclear power designs and hydrogen-based energy schemes have progressed beyond concepts and into real brick-and-mortar projects. The worldwide focus on climate change has developers of carbon capture and storage (CCS) technologies licking their chops, with serious deployment of CCS systems almost assured if the world is to meet goals aligned with the Paris Agreement.

The movement to electrify everything also provides opportunity for power companies having the proper vision to capitalize on the trend.…

What History Tells Us About the Future of Cyber Vulnerabilities in the Power Industry

December 27, 2021

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The power and energy sector is one of the most critical areas of our country’s infrastructure, making it a prime target for cybercriminals increasingly looking for ways to infiltrate and disrupt the sector and ultimately the national grid. In fact, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report in early 2021 that found the grid, and subsequently its distribution systems that carry electricity from transmission systems to end-users, to be growing targets for large-scale, strategic state-sponsored cyber war operations.

This heightened interest and motivation can be attributed to hackers looking for larger ransomware payouts as well as nation states who consider the sector key to crippling the U.S. economy. High-profile attacks like the Colonial Pipeline have given threat actors more motivation to go after critical infrastructure. These groups continue to mature and adopt sophisticated tactics, techniques, and procedures, while industry leaders look to safeguard their critical systems and essential services.

If recent history is any indication of what we can expect in 2022 and beyond, the power and energy sector must prepare for the worst and prioritize their industrial cybersecurity programs accordingly.…

How Microreactors Could Change the Nuclear Power Industry (and the World)

December 21, 2021

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What is a microreactor and why would you want one? The definition could be debated, but nuclear reactors in the 1 MW to 20 MW range generally fit the bill, and there are countless possible applications for the technology.

“This could be used for disaster relief. This could be used for mines, remote communities—on a 24/7 basis. It can be used for data centers, industrial plants—anyone that wants to be off the grid, even though maybe they’re on the grid now, but they want to be off the grid—so, military bases. The opportunities here are just endless,” David Durham, president of Energy Systems with Westinghouse Electric Co., said as a guest on The POWER Podcast.

Westinghouse is developing a microreactor called eVinci. It’s a next-generation, small nuclear energy generator intended for decentralized generation markets. The eVinci design is very different from commercial light water reactor plants currently in service around the world. “The differences are substantial. There’s no water.…

Could Fusion Energy Transform the Power Industry By 2035?

November 27, 2021

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Fusion occurs when two atoms slam together to form a heavier atom, such as when two hydrogen atoms fuse to form one helium atom. A tremendous amount of energy is released in the process.

This is the same process that powers the sun. In the sun’s core, where temperatures reach 15,000,000C, hydrogen atoms are in a constant state of agitation. As they collide at very high speeds, the natural electrostatic repulsion that exists between the positive charges of their nuclei is overcome and the atoms fuse. Without fusion, there would be no life on Earth.

Significant research has been done to better understand the fusion process since the concept was first theorized in the 1920s. Scientists have answered most of the key physics questions behind fusion. Today, in southern France, 35 nations are collaborating to build the world’s largest tokamak—a magnetic fusion device designed to prove the feasibility of fusion as a large-scale and carbon-free source of energy.

The ITER project (Figure 1), as it is known, is expected to be the first fusion device to produce “net energy,” which is the term used when the total power produced during a fusion plasma pulse surpasses the thermal power injected to heat the plasma.…

NERC Issues Grim Outlook for Bulk Power System Winter Reliability

November 21, 2021

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The North American Electric Reliability Corp. (NERC) is warning that much of the central U.S.—a region that stretches from the Great Lakes into southern Texas—may face critical power deficiencies during extreme winter weather conditions over the next three months. Natural gas supply disruptions and low hydropower conditions could also imperil power reliability in New England and the West, it said.

In its Nov. 18–issued 2021–2022 Winter Reliability Assessment, the nation’s designated Electric Reliability Organization (ERO) urged generators across the U.S. to take proactive steps to prepare for an eventful winter and keep communications open with grid operators.

NERC also called on grid operators to prepare and implement cold weather operating plans, conduct drills, and poll generators for fuel and availability status. Load-serving entities should review critical loads to prevent disruptions, and regulators should support requested environmental waivers, it said.

A Cold, Hard Outlook

The ERO’s dire report echoes its May-issued summer assessment, when it warned of “elevated risks” for energy emergencies in Texas, New England, in the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) territory, and parts of the West.…

DTE Energy Will Close Belle River Coal Power Plant Two Years Early

October 15, 2021

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Detroit-based DTE Energy said it will cease all coal use at its Belle River Power Plant no later than December 2028, at least two years earlier than the facility’s previously scheduled 2030 end date.

The Belle River Power Plant comprises two electric generating units, each with a maximum gross design generating output of 697 MW. The 2,200-acre site on which it’s located is in China and East China Townships in St. Clair County, Michigan, and is shared with several other units including a few gas-fired peaking combustion turbines and the coal-fired St. Clair Power Plant. The Belle River units were brought online in 1984 and 1985, respectively.

DTE, which serves about 2.2 million electric customers in southeast Michigan, said retiring the facility by 2028 will enable the company to achieve its 50% carbon emissions reduction goal faster than planned and move the company closer to its ultimate goal of achieving net zero carbon emissions. DTE has already retired four of its coal-fired facilities—Marysville, Harbor Beach, Conners Creek, and River Rouge—and plans to retire its Trenton Channel and St.…