Exec Calls for Action on New Texas Gas-Fired Plants

June 16, 2021
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The post Exec Calls for Action on New Texas Gas-Fired Plants appeared first on POWER Magazine.

The chief executive of a Connecticut-based energy investment firm has called for action on his group’s proposal to build as many as 11 new natural gas-fired power plants in Texas.

Himanshu Saxena, CEO of Starwood Energy Group, in a June 14 interview said, “We would like to see significant steps in countering, negotiating and material tangible actions on our proposal.”

Saxena’s comments, published by Reuters, came the same day the state’s grid operator, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), asked Texans to reduce their electricity use “as much as possible” this week. ERCOT said that power plants accounting for as much as 11 GW of generation capacity were offline due to what it called “forced outages,” at a time when temperatures have soared into the upper 90s in the state. ERCOT in an email to POWER wrote that “forced outages are unscheduled and result from the failure of a power plant to function as designed.”…

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Open-Source Technology Benefits Transmission and Distribution Operators

June 14, 2021
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The post Open-Source Technology Benefits Transmission and Distribution Operators appeared first on POWER Magazine.

digital-technology-connected-plant

The term “open source” is well-recognized in the technology world, but may not be as widely understood in other sectors. What open source means is that the software code is publicly available so that anyone can contribute to the code base and create add-on extensions. This enables the growth of a market of providers that can offer hosting and add-on functionalities that can be utilized by all users.

In the energy sector, LF Energy has taken a leading role in facilitating the development of open-source technology. LF Energy is part of The Linux Foundation, which is the umbrella organization for more than 425 open-source projects. Among LF Energy’s projects are platforms that help automate demand response; assist electricity, water, and other utility operators in managing systems; monitor and control microgrids and other distribution assets; and perform dynamic power flow simulations, among other things.

Arjan Stam, director of System Operations with Alliander (a distribution system operator [DSO] in the Netherlands), and Lucian Balea, research and development program director and open-source manager with RTE (a transmission system operator [TSO] in France), were guests on The POWER Podcast and explained how open-source technology is being used by their companies.…

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In Major Reversal, EPA, Army Will Revise Definition of ‘WOTUS’

June 12, 2021
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The post In Major Reversal, EPA, Army Will Revise Definition of ‘WOTUS’ appeared first on POWER Magazine.

In yet another dramatic turn for federal policy governing the “waters of the U.S.” (WOTUS), the Biden administration has announced its intent to revise the definition of WOTUS, citing “destructive impacts” to critical water bodies under a Trump-era rule.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of the Army on June 9 issued a declaration requesting remand of the 2020 Navigable Waters Protection Rule, which the Trump administration made effective a year ago to replace a 2015 Obama-era rule. The Department of Justice, meanwhile, has reportedly acted to file a motion requesting remand of the rule.

The agencies said they intend to initiate a new rulemaking process that restores “the protections in place prior to the 2015 WOTUS implementation.” They also anticipate “developing a new rule that defines WOTUS and is informed by a robust engagement process as well as the experience of implementing the pre-2015 rule, the Obama-era Clean Water Rule, and the Trump-era Navigable Waters Protection Rule.”…

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