Capture and storage tech developments secure coal’s future.
Capture and sequestration will help ensure the future of coal-fired power plants. Demonstration projects are allowing utilities to kick the tires on the latest technologies, and to learn how CCS will affect operations and economics at state-of-the-art plants.
Consensus building is an imperative and educational art form.
With public opposition rising against almost any kind of utility project or investment, collaboration among stakeholders with widely divergent points of view never has been more critical. Three recent utility cases demonstrate how a formal stakeholder collaboration process can build support for otherwise contentious decisions.
Who will oversee the industry’s cyber standards?
Who will oversee the industry’s cyber standards? Effective security calls for a single organization to set standards that will protect the smart grid. The industry is struggling to reach consensus over authority, scope and funding for its new security apparatus.
Dominion named Paul E. Ruppert as senior v.p.-Dominion Transmission. ITC Holdings Corp. appointed Edward M. Rahill to president of ITC Grid Development. Ameren Corp. promoted Karen Foss to senior v.p., communications and brand management, from v.p., public relations at Missouri subsidiary, AmerenUE.
NV Energy appointed Punam Mathur as v.p. of human resources.
Subsidies might not be the best solution for interconnecting renewables.
Supporters of renewable energy are seeking to socialize the cost of a new interstate highway system for transporting green power. But utilities and transmission owners will build or finance new transmission systems to serve economic demands. Policy makers shouldn’t pre-ordain the direction of industry progress.
Unconventional sources brighten the U.S. supply outlook.
The future of natural gas supplies in the United States looks promising due to rising projections of recoverable resources, including unconventional production. A strong supply outlook bodes well for using natural gas as a low-emission transportation fuel.
Plug-in hybrids usher a new era for wind power.
Plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs) open a new intersection between wind power and transportation.
With new plants pending, cooling requires serious thought.
Cooling water shortages might force nuclear project developers to get creative.
Utilities consider imposing a retail surcharge to fund clean-tech R&D.
Utility CEOs debate the merits of a retail surcharge to fund clean-tech R&D.