THE BIG PICTURE: The Nuclear Fuel Cycle
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Category: Industry News
Global Developments Giving CHP a Much-Needed Boost
According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), global power production from combined-heat-and-power (CHP) technologies has stagnated since 2000, lagging far behind growth in conventional power technologies and commercial heat generation. Despite having an average efficiency of 59%, CHP’s share of global generation in 2013 stood at just 9% (Figure 1), the bulk of it at industrial sites in the chemicals, metal, oil refining, pulp and paper, and food processing sectors (see this issue’s cover stories).
1. Co-generation trends. Source: International Energy Agency (2016), Tracking Clean Energy Progress 2016, OECD/IEA, ParisThat may be poised to change, however: Along with the Paris agreement and a renewed drive for increased energy efficiency, a number of countries have of late implemented policy initiatives that could spur growth for CHP.
U.S. In the U.S., where CHP has a long history in the industrial sector, several market drivers are emerging, the Department of Energy noted in an April 2016 report. These include lower energy operating costs, environmental regulations, resiliency initiatives, utility support, and project replicability (for more, see “CHP Update: Policies, Partnerships, and Challenges” in POWER’s February 2016 issue).…
Struggling to Compete with Natural Gas, Pennsylvania Coal Plant Files for Bankruptcy
Homer City Generation, operator of a three-unit, 1,884-MW coal-fired generating station about 45 miles northeast of Pittsburgh, Pa., has initiated a voluntary, pre-packaged Chapter 11 case in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.
The financial restructuring process is expected to eliminate more than $ 600 million in existing secured debt from Homer City’s balance sheet and provide for an orderly transition of ownership, according to the company. The plant expects to continue operating, and to meet its ordinary obligations, as the case proceeds.
Filing a pre-packaged Chapter 11 case means the company has already arranged the necessary approvals for its proposed plan of reorganization. By doing so, the company is able to expedite the process, while eliminating some of the uncertainty.
Homer City has been struggling due to depressed power market prices, resulting from the low cost of natural gas. Located virtually in the center of the Marcellus Formation, Homer City’s finances have been doomed by the abundance of natural gas, combined with higher environmental compliance costs.…
17 U.S. Nuclear Units Have Components Forged at Site Under Investigation
Although AREVA recently disclosed that 17 U.S. nuclear power plant units have installed components that were forged at the Le Creusot facility in France—a forge that has been under scrutiny due to questionable quality assurance documentation and carbon segregation irregularities in some parts manufactured at the site—the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) does not consider the situation an immediate safety concern.
“We are confident at this time that there are no safety concerns for U.S. nuclear power plants raised by the investigations in France,” David McIntyre, public affairs officer for the NRC, wrote in a blog post about the revelation.
“Our confidence is based on the U.S. material qualification process, preliminary structural evaluations of reactor components under scrutiny in France, U.S. material aging-management programs, our participation in a multinational inspection of Creusot Forge, and information supplied by AREVA about the documentation anomalies. Also, the components supplied to U.S. plants have performed well and inspections during their operating life have revealed no safety issues,” he continued.…
Experts: If Clean Power Plan Perishes, GHG Regulation Almost Certain Under NAAQS Program
If the Clean Power Plan is scrapped or weakened, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) may be forced to regulate greenhouse gases (GHGs) emitted by existing power plant with wider repercussions under its National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) program, experts have warned.
While President-Elect Donald Trump promised to “scrap” the Clean Power Plan during his presidential campaign, the power sector has grappled with regulatory uncertainty since the Supreme Court issued a stay of the rule that establishes the first federal GHG limits for existing fossil fuel–fired power plants in February 2016. The rule, finalized in 2015 under Section 111 (d) of the Clean Air Act, has deeply divided the nation and U.S. power sector.
Eighteen states (plus the District of Columbia) supported the rule in the merits litigation: California, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Virginia, Vermont, and Washington. A number of power companies are also participating as intervenors, including Calpine, Pacific Gas & Electric, NextEra, and Southern California Edison Co.…
U.S. LNG Exports Surge in 2016—But Not Where They Were Expected
The U.S. took a big step toward becoming a major exporter of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in 2016 as Cheniere Energy’s Sabine Pass export terminal in Louisiana came online early last year and upgrades to the Panama Canal that opened in June made shipments to the Pacific region considerably easier. Data from the Department of Energy (DOE) through December 2016 show the U.S. exported 109 billion cubic feet (Bcf) of LNG through December 16, an average of about 0.3 Bcf/d for the year as a whole.
But the predominant destinations were not what most experts had predicted. Despite signs that U.S. LNG would seek out high-priced markets in east Asia and lower-priced-but-still-attractive markets in Europe, the majority of exports went somewhere else entirely: Latin America.
DOE data show that only two shipments went to Europe (one to Spain and the other to Portugal) while only a single one went to China, for a total of just 9.7 Bcf. Four shipments went to India, totaling 13.8 Bcf.…