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The POWER Interview: Cleaning Up a Radiologically Contaminated Site

October 3, 2020

The post The POWER Interview: Cleaning Up a Radiologically Contaminated Site appeared first on POWER Magazine.

In the 1940s, the Oak Ridge Gaseous Diffusion Plant was built in unprecedented secrecy as part of the Manhattan Project. Its purpose was to provide enriched uranium for the world’s first atomic bomb, and it expanded operations during the Cold War, producing enriched uranium for defense and commercial purposes.

Uranium enrichment operations were halted at the site in 1985, and the plant was officially closed in 1987. UCOR, an Amentum-led partnership with Jacobs, has been the prime cleanup contractor at the site since 2011. POWER interviewed Kenneth Rueter, president and CEO of UCOR, to learn more about the work that has taken place at the site and how lessons learned could apply to nuclear power plant decommissioning projects.

POWER: The project was obviously extensive. Did the cleanup effort begin immediately and continue nonstop? If so, what were the most time-consuming aspects of the job?…

Cyber Risks Are Top of Mind Throughout the Power Sector

September 19, 2020

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The electric power sector in the United States has a long history of facing threats to our infrastructure—whether they are natural or man‐made. While cyberthreats are indeed much more complex, particularly when you consider that some of our cyber adversaries are nation states, the industry has a strong foundation of preparedness, resilience, and response. Though much progress has been made, we recognize that the capability of cyber adversaries continues to evolve at a rapid pace and that requires a more strategic approach to this threat.

The electric power sector established the CEO‐led Electricity Subsector Coordinating Council (ESCC) to tackle strategic, policy, and operational/tactical efforts to prepare for and respond to all threats facing the sector. The ESCC includes representation from utilities of all sizes and accomplishes its objectives of collective defense, collective response, and preparedness and resilience through close coordination at senior levels within the federal government, such as the U.S.…

GE, CTCI Score 6.5-GW Gas Power Contract Win in Taiwan

September 7, 2020

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General Electric International Inc. (GE) and consortium partner Taiwanese engineering services firm CTCI have bagged a multi-billion-dollar engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contract for five combined cycle gas-fired power units in Taiwan.

The consortium will build three new units at the 3.9-GW Hsinta Power Plant and two new units at the 2.6-GW Taichung Power Plant. The two plants owned by state-owned utility Taiwan Power Co. (Taipower) are slated to come online in phases, starting in 2024.

Power Plants Based on HA Technology

As part of the project scope, GE Gas Power will deploy 10 7HA.03 gas turbines—the newest model in its 2014-launched high-efficiency air-cooled (HA) gas turbine line—as well as five steam turbine, 15 generators, and 10 heat recovery steam generators. CTCI will provide engineering and construction of civil work and erection for the generating units, as well as the balance of plant. …

Georgia Power: New Vogtle Unit Still Set for 2021 Startup

September 5, 2020

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The post Georgia Power: New Vogtle Unit Still Set for 2021 Startup appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The target in-service dates for two new reactors at the Vogtle nuclear power plant site in Georgia remain November 2021 and November 2022, respectively, Georgia Power said in a filing this week with the state’s Public Utility Commission.

The utility on Aug. 31, in its “Twenty-third Semi-annual Vogtle Construction Monitoring Report,” said work on the two-unit expansion at the site in Waynesboro, Georgia, is progressing on pace despite the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The latest report, also known as the VCM (Vogtle Construction Monitoring), said cold hydro testing of Unit 3 (Figure 1) is set for this month, with hot functional testing planned to occur during the fourth quarter of this year.

Fuel loading of Unit 3 also is planned by year-end. The utility said that under an “aggressive work site plan,” Unit 3 could enter commercial operation as soon as May 2021, though the regulatory-approved date remains six months later.…

The POWER Interview: Managing Operations in a Pandemic World

August 10, 2020

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Power generation companies, like other businesses, have altered operations due to COVID-19. And it’s more than just having employees work remotely, wear masks, and social distance.

Managing data and documents with new protocols in place is critical to any asset-intensive industry, and electricity providers are no different. The Kinsmen Group, an engineering and information management firm, cites a recent report noting how the global digital asset management market reached a value of $ 3.4 billion in 2019, and how that market is expected to grow to $ 8.5 billion by 2025.

The group says this growth is caused by two major factors: the continued trend toward digitization, and increasing adoption of cloud-based services.

*Edwin Elmendorp is leading information architect with Kinsmen Group. He has more than 15 years’ experience in engineering data management.*

The Kinsmen Group told POWER its team has seen problems arise for businesses due to the pandemic, as companies alter their traditional way of doing things.…

[VIDEO] POWER Insights: Developing Reliable, and Efficient, Energy Solutions

August 7, 2020

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The post [VIDEO] POWER Insights: Developing Reliable, and Efficient, Energy Solutions appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Ameresco has a 20-year history of providing energy efficiency and renewable energy solutions for its customers across North America and the UK. The company works on upgrades of facility infrastructure, and develops, builds, and operates renewable energy plants.

The company also works with customers on tailored financial solutions to bring projects to fruition. Ameresco’s business engages with clients on both sides of the meter, with an eye toward reducing operating expenses, upgrading and maintaining facilities, stabilizing energy costs, and increasing energy reliability.

Ameresco was founded in 2000 by George Sakellaris, a pioneer in the energy service business. Much of the company’s recent work centers around microgrids, as Ameresco works to provide more reliable and resilient power both in support of the grid, and for installations off the grid. Among its projects is a comprehensive energy solution for the U.S. Marine Corps Recruit Depot at Parris Island in South Carolina (Figure 1), and a microgrid at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Maine.…