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Report: 10% of U.S. Coal Mined in 1H2018 Went to Plants Scheduled to Retire

September 8, 2018

More than 10% of the coal mined from eight U.S. regions in the first half of 2018 was sent to coal plants scheduled for retirement between this year and 2032, according to a report from S&P Global Market Intelligence. The trend is another troubling sign for the struggling coal industry.

The analysis released September 7 comes two weeks after the Trump administration announced changes to emissions regulations in an effort to allow coal-fired plants to run longer. The administration has made helping the coal industry a priority, citing coal generation’s importance to national security.

The report also said that more than 6% of the coal mined in the United States in 2017 was delivered to power plants that are scheduled for closure over the next decade. The information comes from an S&P Global Market Intelligence analysis of coal production and fuel delivery data.

S&P said just more than 330 million tons of coal was produced by U.S. basins in the first six months of this year, and at least 33.6 million tons went to plants that are scheduled to be shuttered by 2032.…

MHPS Marks Third Major U.S. Gas-Turbine Milestone in Recent Months

August 31, 2018

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NTE Energy on August 28 formally began operations of its 475-MW Kings Mountain Energy Center (KMEC) natural gas–fired plant in Cleveland County, North Carolina, marking the third major milestone in recent months for gas-turbine giant Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems (MHPS) Americas.

The $ 500 million KMEC facility features MHPS G-Series advanced-class gas turbine technology. Owned and operated by NTE Carolinas LLC, KMEC began operations three months after NTE Energy opened its 525-MW Middletown Energy Center in Butler County, Ohio, which also features MHPS G-Series technology. That plant is powered by a M501GAC gas turbine and technology in a combined cycle alignment.

On August 23, MHPS also announced successful first fire for Dominion Energy’s 1,558-MW Greensville County Power Station located in Emporia, Virginia. That plant operates three M501J gas turbines supplied by Mitsubishi. The three J-Series turbines, which MHPS said “are the cornerstone of the largest and cleanest gas-fired power block ever operated inside the U.S,” are the first to come online in the U.S.…

Nuclear Construction Update: New Progress Made in Russia, UAE, and U.S.

August 9, 2018

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Several milestones have been reached at nuclear power plant construction sites around the world including on the Leningrad II-2, Novovoronezh II-2, Barakah, and Plant Vogtle projects.

Russian Progress

At the Leningrad site, Rosatom—the Russian state atomic energy corporation—reported on August 7 that the main turbine equipment installation for Phase II Unit 2 was completed. The company said that the stator, separators, superheaters, deaerator, turbine condensers, high- and low-pressure heaters, and heat exchangers have all been installed. Work will now begin on insulation, low-current and electrical installation, and the laying of external and internal engineering networks.

Leningrad Phase I has four RBMK-1000 units, which were connected to the power grid between 1973 and 1981. Phase II will have four VVER-1200 units, two of which are currently under construction. Unit 1 was connected to the grid on March 9 and is currently in the final stages of commissioning. It was the second VVER-1200 unit to be grid connected. Novovoronezh 6 (also known as Novovoronezh Nuclear Power Plant [NPP] 2 Unit 1) was the first VVER-1200 to enter service.…

More U.S. Coal Units Closing Despite Possible Market Pricing Change

November 22, 2017

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U.S. utilities continue to announce closures of financially troubled and older coal-fired power plants even as government officials work on a bailout plan to keep them operating.

Owners of a coal plant in Montana that has only been online since 2006 informed the state’s Public Service Commission (PSC) last week of plans to shutter the facility early next year if they can’t find a buyer. The news comes at the same time Louisville Gas & Electric and Kentucky Utilities (LG&E-KU) said it would close two long-running coal-fired units at the E.W. Brown Generating Station near Harrodsburg, Kentucky, in February 2019.

The announcements are the latest in a series of closures announced in recent months, including three large coal-fired plants in Texas—two operated by Vistra Energy and another by Luminant, a Vistra subsidiary—that generate about 4.2 GW of electricity, or about 12% of the state’s coal-fired generation capacity. Another large Texas plant, CPS Energy’s 840-MW Deely station in San Antonio, is scheduled to close in 2018.…

ITC: Imported PV Cells Hurting U.S. Solar Industry

September 24, 2017

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In a unanimous decision, the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) on September 22 found that photovoltaic (PV) solar cells being imported into the U.S. are causing “serious injury, or threat of serious injury, to the domestic industry.”

The decision comes in a highly contested case filed by bankrupt solar panel manufacturer, Suniva, and SolarWorld. The two petitioners argue that imports of foreign-made solar panels and modules have made it impossible for them to compete in the domestic market. To alleviate this burden, the companies have proposed that tariffs be placed on all imported modules.

“On behalf of the entire solar cell and panel manufacturing industry, we welcome this important step toward securing relief from a surge of imports that has idled and shuttered dozens of factories, leaving thousands of workers without jobs,” Juergen Stein, CEO and president of SolarWorld Americas, said in a release following the announcement of the decision.

Two Against All

The rest of the solar cell and panel manufacturing industry, however, does not seem to want SolarWorld speaking on their behalf.…

Wind and Solar Cross 10% U.S. Generation Share as Prices for Solar Keep Falling

June 19, 2017

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Marking a significant milestone, power generation from the combined utility-scale and small-scale wind and solar installations in the U.S. surpassed 10% of the nation’s total power generation in March, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA).

The news comes on the heels of an announcement last week by the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) that installed system prices for solar systems have fallen across all market segments. Also for the first time, fixed-tilt utility-scale systems dipped under the $ 1/W barrier, SEIA said.

Breaking the Barrier—on a Gigawatt-Watt Level

The EIA said on June 14 that generation from wind and solar has grown steadily since 2007. On an annual basis, wind and solar generation made up 7% of total U.S. power generation in 2016.

The EIA noted that wind and solar follow seasonal patterns. Wind patterns vary based on geography. Wind generators in Texas and Oklahoma, for example, have their highest output in spring, while California generators see a boost in output in the summer.…