Power Engineering E-Newsletter 6/12

Power Engineering |View online| June 12, 2015|Forward to a Friend Welcome! Register for POWER-GEN Natural Gas! Join some of the top names in the energy industry to discuss the issues surrounding technology, operation, construction and maintenance of gas-fired power and production of unconventional hydrocarbon resources. Power-Gen Natural Gas is Aug. 18 - 20 at the Greater Columbus Convention Center in Columbus, Ohio. Read More Share: Video Highlights D.C. Circuit Court denies suits challenging EPA’s proposed emissions rule Fueled by residential growth, US installs 1.3 GW of PV in Q1 2015 DOE, EEI initiative to encourage veterans to enter utility industry job market Nuclear must be part of U.S. energy future View Now Share: Top Stories Siemens signs extension contracts for two Pennsylvania power plants Talen Energy Corp. has awarded Siemens two long-term service contract extensions for the 623-MW Lower Mount Bethel and 705-MW Ironwood combined-cycle gas power plants in Pennsylvania. Read More Share: NREL, Clemson University collaborate on wind energy testing facilities The Department of Energy’s (DOE) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and Clemson University have joined forces to improve the performance of wind turbine drivetrains and better understand how turbines can integrate more effectively with the electrical grid. Read More Share: Global Nuclear Fuel receives $100Mn contract extension Entergy has extended a contract — worth more than $100 million — with Global Nuclear Fuel (GNF) to refuel the utility’s fleet of boiling water reactors through 2021 at the utility’s FitzPatrick, Grand Gulf, Pilgrim and River Bend power plants. Read More Share: GE awarded long-term service agreement for new combined-cycle power plant in Russia GE Power Generation Services has been awarded a 16-year contractual service agreement (CSA) by the Russian energy company OJSC for the new Kazanskaya CHP-2 combined-cycle gas power plant in Kazan (Russia’s Tatarstan region). GE was chosen for the contract in order to ensure the long-term availability of the power plant’s GE-supplied gas turbines, which will help the new facility meet the industrialized area’s strong energy demands. Read More Share: From our Sponsor Better Signal-to-Noise Ratio Means Better Level Control. Guided wave radar represents the standard for accurate, reliable level measurement, but not all GWR transmitters are equal. Signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) is a critical performance indicator -- and the Eclipse® Model 706 has a SNR nearly 3 times higher than competitors. The Week's Most Read Articles EPA finalizes controversial SSM rule Last week, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a final rule directing 36 states to stop providing exemptions for emission violations during the startup, shutdown or malfunction (SSM) of a power plant. Read More Share: Top 5 U.S. coal plant heat rates Peabody Energy recently ranked the top 5 cleanest burning coal-fired power plants in the U.S. under three categories: SO2 emissions, NOx emissions and best heat rate. Read More Share: Video: Duke Energy implodes coal units at retired Cape Fear power plant Duke Energy’s contractor imploded Cape Fear's two coal-fired units — which began operating in 1956 and 1958 — on June 4. The Moncure, N.C. plant began operating in 1923. Read More Share: Nuclear must be part of U.S. energy future Nuclear energy must continue to be an essential part of the future U.S. energy mix, but building new nuclear power plants is not a feat that can be undertaken by anyone, one industry leader said. Read More Share: More Headlines • Incoming ANS president says group must inform public, policy makers • USDA grants totaling $6.7M encourage efficiency, renewables • Senate OKs LePage nominee to Public Utilities Commission • House Republicans would cut EPA spending 9 percent • Siemens delivers first oil-free steam turbine to Vattenfall • Ergon Energy, SaskPower awarded International Edison Award • Siemens to deliver industrial turbines with Centrax • Peter Davidson, LPO Exec. Director, announces resignation • GE’s Distributed Power business introduces next-generation myPlant* platform powered by Predix* • D.C. Circuit Court denies suits challenging EPA’s proposed emissions rule • Tampa Electric receives 2015 Edison Award • DOE, EEI initiative to encourage veterans to enter utility industry job market • Operators shut down Unit 2 at Prairie Island nuclear power plant • B&W Board of Directors approves Power Generation business spin-off • Fueled by residential growth, US installs 1.3 GW of PV in Q1 2015 • K2 Wind Power Project enters operations in Ontario Industry Trends Henry Hub Average Natural Gas Spot Prices The Henry Hub is the pricing point for natural gas futures contracts. Here's a look at how prices have changed up to May 27, 2015. Read More Share: Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas' Economic Indicators The Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas offers a glimpse into how the markets are doing domestically and internationally. Read More Share: EIA’s weekly coal production report The U.S. Energy Information Administration has released its coal production report for the week ending May 30. Read More Share: Join In Send UNLIMITED delegates (employees) for one flat rate! Does your company generate electricity? Is your company a utility, muni, co-op, public power provider, on-site power producer or IPP? Does your company generate at least 1 MW of energy? If you answered YES to any of these questions then your company qualifies for the Power Generators Discount Program!* Read More Share: Add your hero to our Wall of Honor! The Wall of Honor pays tribute to military personnel around the world. It is on display at all of PennWell's North American conferences. Click to add a name or sponsor the wall. Read More Share: Power Generation Week 2014 Post-Show Report It was another successful year at Power Generation Week 2014! As the world's largest power generation event, the week was spent focusing on the industry's latest innovations, technical trends, and business strategies. The event boasted over 22,000 attendees from 115 countries, and 1,400+ exhibitors. Click here to learn more about Power Generation Week and what happened in 2014! Read More Share: From GenerationHub NRC commissioners sign off on plan to ‘right size’ nuclear agency The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has accepted several recommendations included in the staff’s Project Aim 2020 report for reducing staff levels and reorganizing NRC regulatory efforts. Read More Share: Amazon teams with Community Energy on 80-MW solar project in Virginia Amazon Web Services Inc. (AWS), an Amazon.com company, announced June 10 that it has teamed with Community Energy Inc. to support the construction and operation of an 80-MW solar farm in Accomack County, Virginia, called Amazon Solar Farm US East. Read More Share: Power Engineering Slideshow U.S. Coal Plants with the Lowest NOx Emission Rates The Top 5 U.S. coal-fired power plants were rated on the lowest NOx emissions. Read More Share: Progress at Plant Vogtle - May 2015: Progress photos for Vogtle Electric Generating Plant during May 2015. Read More Share: POWER ENGINEERING SPONSORED EVENTS POWER-GEN Europe Amsterdam Jun 9, 2015 - Jun 11, 2015 Click here for details POWER-GEN Africa Cape Town South Africa Jul 15, 2015 - Jul 17, 2015 Click here for details POWER-GEN Natural Gas Greater Columbus Convention Center, Columbus, Ohio Aug 18, 2015 - Aug 20, 2015 Click here for details POWER-GEN Asia Bangkok Thailand Sep 1, 2015 - Sep 3, 2015 Click here for details POWER-GEN Middle East Abu Dhabi, U.A.E. Oct 4, 2015 - Oct 6, 2015 Click here for details