Power News UPdate: January 10, 2013

January 10, 2013

SENATORS CALL FOR PROBE ON COAL EXPORT ROYALTIES
Leaders of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee on Friday called on the Department of the Interior to investigate whether coal companies are understating the value of coal mined on federal and tribal lands to avoid paying full royalties. Read More »

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EPA RULES, ECONOMY, NATURAL GAS PRICES PROMPT GEORGIA POWER TO RETIRE 2 GW OF COAL, OIL POWER
Georgia Power on Monday said it was seeking state regulatory permission to decertify and retire 15 coal- and oil-fired generating units—a total capacity of 2,061 MW—citing several factors, including costs to comply with existing and future environmental regulations, economic conditions, and lower natural gas prices. Read More »

TRANSFORMER FIRE SHUTS SOUTH TEXAS REACTOR
A fire in the main transformer of the South Texas Project (STP) Electric Generating Station's Unit 2 on Tuesday evening automatically tripped the reactor in Bay City, Texas, and powered on emergency diesel generators. Read More »

DOE, EPA NAB 25TH SETTLEMENT FOR EMISSION CONTROL UNDER CLEAN AIR ACT NEW SOURCE REVIEW
A settlement reached with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Justice to resolve alleged violations of the Clean Air Act will require Wisconsin Public Service (WPS) to invest about $300 million in pollution control technology, pay a civil penalty of $1.2 million, and spend $6 million on environmental mitigation projects. Read More »

WORLD'S LARGEST BIOMASS CFB PLANT GOES ONLINE
A 200-MW biomass power plant in Polaniec, Poland, that is owned by GDF Suez and began operations in November is being billed as the largest in the world to use a circulating fluidized bed (CFB) boiler. Read More »

RESTART ELUSIVE FOR FORT CALHOUN, CRYSTAL RIVER NUCLEAR REACTORS
Two U.S. nuclear reactors that have long been idled—one for roughly two years and the other for three—may see even longer periods of shutdown, new reports suggest. Federal regulators said significant work remains before the Fort Calhoun nuclear power plant in Nebraska can be restarted, while Progress Energy Florida on Monday told the Florida Public Service Commission (PSC) that it was a week away from submitting a draft report evaluating repair options for its Crystal River reactor. Read More »

NEW YEAR PROMPTS ADMINISTRATIVE, CONGRESSIONAL SHIFTS
The announced resignation of Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lisa Jackson may as soon as this week be followed by one from Energy Secretary Steven Chu. Last week, meanwhile, Senate Republicans announced new committee assignments. Read More »

Emerging Technologies Enable “No Regrets” Energy Strategy
Achieving a balance between affordable and sustainable electricity while improving reliability is a challenge unlike any the electricity sector has faced since its inception. Technology innovations in key areas such as energy efficiency, smart grid, renewable energy resources, hardened transmission systems, and long-term operation of the existing nuclear and fossil fleets are essential to shaping the future of electricity supplies. More »

My Top 10 Predictions for 2013
Looking back over the past year’s predictions, I graded myself a “strong B,” slightly down from the past two years (a detailed discussion of my individual scores is available as an online supplement to this issue). Like coal, I’m expecting a comeback in 2013. More »

Grading My 2012 Industry Projections
It’s that time of year again. At the end of each year I am forced to revisit predictions I made a year ago in my “Speaking of Power” editorial and accept your kudos for my stellar soothsaying or blame shift when my guesswork falls short. More »

From POWER's sister publications:
Outage Management with an Owner’s Engineer
Jan./Feb. 2013| MANAGING POWER
Hiring an owner's engineer may add some upfront expense to your O&M budget, but over the long term, it can reap big savings in successfully navigating planned and unplanned outages. More »

EPRI: Generation Sector Research Update
Nov./Dec. 2012| COAL POWER
This synopsis of today’s most interesting research related to power generation gives you a glimpse of what’s possibly coming to your plant in the not-so-distance future. Research under way today will surely determine how power plants are designed, operated, and maintained for many years to come. More »

What the Gas Power Industry Sees for the Future
January 2013| GAS POWER
With gas supplies looking strong and a variety of factors exerting negative pressure on other generation resources, 2013 looks to be a solid year for gas-fired power...More »