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CAISO Plan Calls for $30.5 Billion for Transmission—and More Renewable Energy

February 4, 2022

California’s power grid continues to evolve and will look much different by 2040, according to a 20-year draft transmission plan released by the California Independent System Operator (CAISO). The plan calls for significant additional renewable energy resources, along with a $ 30.5-billion build-out of the transmission grid.

The outlook, developed by the grid operator along with the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) and the California Energy Commission (CEC), provides details about how the state will meet increased demand for electricity. The plan said the state will need about 120 GW of new power generation resources added to the CAISO system by 2040, including energy storage, utility-scale solar, offshore wind, and imports of clean energy from other states.

“There is a critical need for more proactive, long-term transmission planning and coordination,” said Elliot Mainzer, CAISO president and CEO, in a statement released Feb. 1. “In developing the 20-year Outlook, we have worked closely with the California Energy Commission (CEC), California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) and a diverse group of stakeholders to begin delineating the long-term architecture of the California grid and better align power and transmission planning, resource procurement and interconnection queuing.…

Vistra Adding More Storage to Moss Landing, World’s Largest BESS

January 24, 2022

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The Moss Landing Energy Storage Facility in California, already the largest utility-scale battery storage development in the world, is adding more capacity. Vistra, the Texas-based energy company that lists Luminant, TXU Energy, and Dynegy among its subsidiaries, on Jan. 24 said it would further expand Moss Landing, adding a new 350-MW/1,400-MWh battery energy storage system (BESS) at the site.

The additional storage will complement the existing 400-MW/1,600-MWh of storage already at Moss Landing. Vistra on Monday said it has entered into a 15-year resource adequacy agreement with Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) for the new capacity. Vistra in a Jan. 21 filing asked the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to approve the contract.

“Through this partnership with PG&E, Vistra is bringing its capabilities and expertise to lead the clean energy transition and provide much-needed electricity to the people of California,” said Curt Morgan, Vistra CEO. “These innovative battery energy storage systems are necessary to maintain electric grid reliability as increasing levels of intermittent renewable power are integrated into the electric grid.”…

More Than 20 Coal-Fired Plants Will Close in Wake of Wastewater Rule

November 29, 2021

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A new wastewater rule authorized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) earlier this year is leading several coal-fired plants to announce closure plans, according to an analysis of state regulatory filings by the Sierra Club.

The group said at least 26 plants in 14 states have said they will stop burning coal, with 21 facilities closing and another five switching to natural gas-fired generation, according to a report published Nov. 22 by the Associated Press. The EPA has said it expects the rule would impact about 75 coal-fired plants across the country.

The EPA in July announced it would reinstate Obama-era regulations on wastewater that were rolled back by the Trump administration. The new wastewater rule requires power plants to clean coal ash and toxic heavy metals such as mercury, arsenic, and selenium from plant wastewater before it is discharged into streams and rivers.

Coal-fired power plants had an October deadline to tell their state regulators how they planned to comply with the rule.…

Southern Will Close More than Half of Coal Fleet

November 9, 2021

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Southern Company, the third-largest power utility in the U.S., said it will close more than half its coal-fired power generation fleet over the next few years as the group moves toward a goal of net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.

Southern on Nov. 5 said the closures include units at the two largest U.S. coal plants, along with the previously announced retirement of Plant Daniel in Mississippi. Georgia Power, a Southern subsidiary, expects to retire about 3 GW of coal-fired generation in that state, including two of the four units at the 3,450-MW Plant Bowen and one at the 3,500-MW Plant Scherer, the nation’s largest coal plant.

The utility also said a closure would occur at the 1,840-MW Plant Wansley in Georgia.

Southern CEO Tom Fanning in a call Friday with Wall Street analysts said the latest cuts mean the company will have reduced its coal-fired generation capacity by 80% since 2007. Atlanta, Georgia-based Southern at one time operated 66 coal-fired generating units, with capacity of nearly 20,500 MW across the U.S.…

Data Breaches Cost More Than $4 Million Per Incident, Power Industry at High Risk

July 28, 2021

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The post Data Breaches Cost More Than $ 4 Million Per Incident, Power Industry at High Risk appeared first on POWER Magazine.

IBM Security reported on July 28 that the average cost of recent data breaches was $ 4.24 million per incident, the highest cost ever recorded by the company in 17 years of tracking the metric. Notably, data breaches in the U.S. were by far the costliest, exceeding $ 9 million per incident on average.

The findings were among several insights exposed through a global study of data breaches conducted by the independent Ponemon Institute, a analysis group known for its empirical studies. Researchers reviewed data breaches experienced by 537 organizations between May 2020 and March 2021. The incidents occurred in 17 countries and across various industries.

“We see the number, in general, tick up across the years—some years a little bit higher, some years a little lower—but in general, the trend has been the numbers increase over time,” IBM Cyber Threat Intelligence Expert Charles DeBeck told POWER during an exclusive interview.…