Calendar of Events

May 29, 2013 to May 30, 2013 | Chicago, IL
Jun 09, 2013 to Jun 12, 2013 | San Francisco, CA
Jun 10, 2013 to Jun 12, 2013 | Boston, MA

Keywords

Public Utilities Reports

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GE

Digest

Abengoa and BrightSource Energy agreed to jointly develop, build, and operate what the companies say will be the world’s two largest solar power towers. GE began operating a prototype of what it calls the world’s most efficient high-output wind turbine. Hawaiian Electric Co. dedicated the new 5-MW Kalaeloa solar farm in West Oahu, Hawaii. And more...

Build to Order

Engineers and constructors adapt to serve an industry in transition.

Michael T. Burr

From gas pipelines to PV arrays, the nation’s contractors are seeing growth in utility infrastructure. Fortnightly talks with executives at engineering and construction firms to learn what kinds of projects are moving forward, where they’re located, and what lies over the horizon.

Digest

Duke installed a 36-MW energy storage facility at the Notrees wind farm; Ameren Illinois plans to deploy a Landis+Gyr mesh network; GE and Toshiba formed a strategic alliance to develop combined-cycle power projects; Alberta Newsprint contracted Caterpillar to supply gensets totaling 65 MW; Duke Energy plans to retire two coal-fired stations; EDF started operations at a 150-MW wind project; Sempra completed the first 150-MW phase of the Mesquite solar complex; Atlantic Wind selected Bechtel to build an offshore HVDC transmission line; Alstom Grid and Capgemini allied to offer smart grid solutions; plus contracts and announcements from Itron, Qualcomm, Echelon, Siemens, Portland General Electric, Pattern Energy, Juhl Energy, Honda, and others.

SCE and GE to Upgrade UC-Irvine Campus Grid

Southern California Edison (SCE) and GE are collaborating to put the smart grid to work by upgrading and modernizing the utility’s infrastructure. The project will include electric-distribution infrastructure, substations, residential homes, cyber security systems, battery energy storage, and EV charging stations at the University of California-Irvine, and other products that affect the reliability of a modernized grid.

GE and Toshiba form a global strategic alliance

GE and Toshiba signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to form a global strategic alliance, under which the two companies would jointly develop select combined-cycle power generation projects around the world. The two companies will explore the formation of a strategic joint venture for the development of next-generation combined-cycle power projects with higher levels of thermal efficiency.

GE to install WindControl software for First Wind projects

GE will install WindControl advanced software to help maximize energy output at two First Wind projects in Maine. The two wind farms are located in Rollins and Stetson. The Rollins site has 40 GE 1.5-77 turbines while Stetson contains 55 turbines. The WindControl software automatically controls the output of each wind turbine in the wind farm, versus an approach that depends on starting and stopping units to match changes in power demand. 

Vendor Neutral

Calpine signs PPA with Public Service Company of Oklahoma; TransCanada and Ontario PowerAuthority agree to develop 900-MW gas-fired power plant; Panda selects Siemens to build combined-cycle plant; Progress Energy retires coal plants dating from 1923; Southern Company and Turner acquire 30-MW PV project; PSO begins smart meter pilot rollout; Southern California Edison contracts with Corix to install smart meters; Iberdrola USA hires Burns and McDonnell to review grid infrastructure. Plus contracts and announcements from Itron, eMeter, Echelon, Quanta Services, DNV, Metadigm, Landis+Gyr, and others.

Vendor Neutral

(June 2012) South Carolina Electric & Gas gave Shaw Group and Westinghouse full notice to proceed on their contract for two new Westinghouse AP1000 nuclear power units and related facilities at the V.C. Summer nuclear station near Jenkinsville, S.C. Progress Energy awarded a contract to Westinghouse for underwater laser beam welding (ULBW) at the Robinson nuclear plant in Hartsville, S.C. Southern California Edison (SCE) completed additional inspections of the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS) Unit 2 steam generators, based on Unit 3 findings. And others...

Vendor Neutral

(May 2012) Entergy Louisiana starts construction on gas-fired power project; Virginia Commonwealth University and Dominion partner on a test site for efficient energy technologies; Burlington Electric Department selects Siemens for meter data management platform; IKEA commissions four Blink electric vehicle charging stations; Edison Mission Energy, TIAA-CREF and Cook Inlet Region Inc. form partnership, and others.

Energy Storage Solutions

Barriers and breakthroughs to a smarter grid.

Bradford P. Roberts

Technology is quickly making energy storage more economical and effective than ever before. But companies that wish to invest in storage capacity face a journey through a frustrating regulatory no-man’s land. Opening the gateway for storage to deliver smart grid benefits will require a more streamlined and coherent approach to regulating storage as utility infrastructure.

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