RMEL eNews

Industry Information

Aging Coal Plants are Increasingly Unreliable Due to Cycling Increases and Deferred Maintenance: NERC

Forced-outage metrics at wind generating facilities also “remain at historically high levels, exceeding rates for all years prior to 2021,” according to the North American Electric Reliability Corp.

Visit https://www.utilitydive.com/news/coal-plant-forced-outages-rise-increasingly-unreliable-NERC/719488/ to view the full article online.

Growth in Commercial Electricity Demand Linked to States with High Data Center Growth

While consumption of electricity has returned to pre-pandemic levels, the growth in commercial demand for electricity is concentrated in a handful of states experiencing rapid development of large-scale computing facilities such as data centers, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA).

Visit https://www.power-eng.com/policy-regulation/growth-in-commercial-electricity-demand-linked-to-states-with-high-data-center-growth/ to view the full article online.

What it Means for the Supreme Court to Block Enforcement of the EPA’s ‘Good Neighbor’ Pollution Rule

he Environmental Protection Agency will not be able to enforce a key rule limiting air pollution in nearly a dozen states while separate legal challenges proceed around the country, under a Supreme Court decision.

Visit https://power-eng.com/policy-regulation/what-it-means-for-the-supreme-court-to-block-enforcement-of-the-epas-good-neighbor-pollution-rule/ to view the full article online.

The Importance of Distributed Energy Resources to Affordable Clean Power

Household energy use is transforming, placing utilities at the center of two important trends: decarbonization and customer affordability. Individual purchases of smart home appliances, solar and storage systems, and electric vehicles (EV) are exponentially increasing the number of distributed energy resources (DER) that can generate, store, or flexibly draw energy from the grid.

Visit https://www.tdworld.com/distributed-energy-resources/article/55091345/the-importance-of-distributed-energy-resources-to-affordable-clean-power to view the full article online.

DOE Issues $2.7B RFP for Low-Enriched Uranium in Bid to Grow Domestic Nuclear Supply Chain

“Strengthening our domestic nuclear fuel supply chain will be critical as we continue to move from an energy system reliant on foreign suppliers and fossil fuels to one that embraces cleaner sources of power and domestic manufacturing,” Assistant to the President and National Climate Advisor Ali Zaidi said in a statement.

Visit https://www.utilitydive.com/news/DOE-RFP-27-billion-low-enriched-uranium/720276/ to view the full article online.

Here Comes the Boom: Wood Mackenzie Forecasts Massive Solar, Wind, and Storage Growth

The firm’s latest analysis predicts developers will put more than 5.4 terawatts (TWac) of new solar and wind capacity online over the next decade, increasing the cumulative global total to 8 TWac. Energy storage capacity (excluding pumped hydro) will grow by more than 600%, Wood Mackenzie predicts, as nearly 1 TW of new capacity is expected to come online from 2024-2033.

Visit https://www.renewableenergyworld.com/solar/here-comes-the-boom-wood-mackenzie-forecasts-massive-solar-wind-and-storage-growth/ to view the full article online.

Energy, Other Critical Infrastructure Providers Press for Limits on Cyber Incident Reporting Rules

The Cyber Incident Reporting for Critical Infrastructure Act, or CIRCIA, which will go into effect next year, requires covered critical infrastructure providers to report major security breaches or attacks within 72 hours. Those entities will also have to report ransomware payments within 24 hours.

Visit https://www.utilitydive.com/news/energy-provider-critical-infrastructure-changes-circia-cyber-incident-reporting/720838/ to view the full article online.

Report: Transparency, Standards Needed for U.S. Clean Hydrogen to Take Off

In order to make clean hydrogen viable for the U.S. energy mix, greater clarity on tax credits and a commitment to rules and standards on certification are needed, according to a new industry report from U.S. law firm Troutman Pepper.

Visit https://www.renewableenergyworld.com/hydrogen/report-transparency-standards-needed-for-u-s-clean-hydrogen-to-take-off/ to view the full article online.

Member Announcements

CPS Energy Increases Power Generation: Adds 84 MW of Renewable Energy from Texas Wind Farm

CPS Energy announced the extension and expansion of a previous 15-year Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) that will more than double its share from the Avangrid’s Peñascal wind farm in Kenedy County, Texas, South of Baffin Bay. The revised PPA will increase the utility’s wind offtake from Peñascal from 77 megawatts (MW) to 161 MW, enough energy to power about 41,000 Texas homes on a hot summer day.

Visit https://newsroom.cpsenergy.com/cps-energy-increases-power-generation-adds-84-mw-of-renewable-energy-from-texas-wind-farm/ to view the full article online.

Entergy and Nextera Energy Resources Announce Agreement to Develop up to 4.5 GW of New Solar and Energy Storage Projects

Entergy (NYSE: ETR) and NextEra Energy Resources LLC, a subsidiary of NextEra Energy Inc. (NYSE: NEE), announced a joint development agreement that will accelerate the development of up to 4.5 gigawatts (GW) of new solar generation and energy storage projects. The agreement represents significant progress toward Entergy's growing portfolio of renewable generation.

Visit https://newsroom.nexteraenergy.com/2024-06-07-Entergy-and-NextEra-Energy-Resources-announce-agreement-to-develop-up-to-4-5-GW-of-new-solar-and-energy-storage-projects?l=12 to view the full article online.

Origis Energy and Tri-State Announce Commercial Operation of Escalante Solar

Origis Energy and Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association announced Escalante Solar has reached commercial operation. Built on the site of the former 253-MWac, coal-fired Escalante Station near Grants, N.M, which was retired in 2020, the solar project began generating carbon-free electricity on June 1, 2024.

Visit https://tristate.coop/origis-energy-and-tri-state-announce-commercial-operation-escalante-solar to view the full article online.

Two New Batteries on SRP’s Grid will Advance Reliable and Sustainable Power for SRP Customers

Salt River Project (SRP) and Plus Power LLC celebrated two new grid-charged battery storage systems, Sierra Estrella Energy Storage and Superstition Energy Storage. Together, these facilities will add 340 megawatts (MW) / 1,360 megawatt-hours (MWh) of additional battery storage capacity to SRP’s system - enough to power 76,000 residential homes for a four-hour period.

Visit https://media.srpnet.com/two-new-batteries-on-srps-grid-will-advance-reliable-and-sustainable-power-for-srp-customers/ to view the full article online.

PacifiCorp Honored with Emergency Response Award by Edison Electric Institute

During the 2023 event, PacifiCorp enacted an emergency de-energization of roughly 14,000 customers in Crescent City, California, and surrounding areas. Electricity was quickly restored to customers on a temporary basis using large generators to power substations that serve the communities, while the company continued to monitor the fires, which burned through its transmission corridor. Power was eventually permanently restored to all customers after crews performed necessary repairs.

Visit https://www.pacificorp.com/about/newsroom/news-releases/pacificorp-receives-emergency-response-award.html to view the full article online.

Xcel Energy Proposes Major Investments to Help Colorado Prevent Wildfires

Xcel Energy submitted its 2025-2027 Wildfire Mitigation Plan to the Colorado Public Utilities Commission. As the threat of wildfire increases in Colorado, Xcel Energy is expanding its work and programs to minimize risk associated with wildfires that could be caused by electric equipment. The plan proposes investments and improvements to existing measures while integrating industry experience, incorporating evolving risk assessment methodologies and sophisticated modeling tools, and adding new technology.

Visit https://corporate.my.xcelenergy.com/s/about/newsroom/press-release/xcel-energy-proposes-major-investments-to-help-colorado-prevent-wildfires-MC7SP6IJFWPVCDLFN64UDMRZIYCA to view the full article online.

Cooper Nuclear Station Celebrates 50 Years of Reliability

Nebraska’s longest and only current operating nuclear power plant, located near Brownville, has a capacity of roughly 800 Megawatts, and over the past five decades, Cooper Nuclear Station has generated approximately 275 million Megawatt-hours of carbon-free electricity. Throughout the past two years, NPPD has provided Nebraska customers with approximately 56% carbon-free energy, with 42% of the carbon-free generation coming from Cooper.

Visit https://www.nppd.com/press-releases/cooper-nuclear-station-celebrates-50-years-of-reliability to view the full article online.

White Paper

AI Approach Elevates Plasma Performance and Stability Across Fusion Devices

Achieving a sustained fusion reaction is a delicate balancing act, requiring a sea of moving parts to come together to maintain a high-performing plasma: one that is dense enough, hot enough, and confined for long enough for fusion to take place.

Visit https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/06/240605162441.htm to view the full article online.

New Catalyst Unveils the Hidden Power of Water for Green Hydrogen Generation

A team of scientists reports a new milestone for the sustainable production of green hydrogen through water electrolysis. Their new catalyst design harnesses so far unexplored properties of water to achieve, for the first time, an alternative to critical raw materials for water electrolysis at industrial-relevant conditions.

Visit https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/06/240620151411.htm to view the full article online.

A Breakthrough in Inexpensive, Clean, Fast-Charging Batteries

Scientists have created an anode-free sodium solid-state battery. This brings the reality of inexpensive, fast-charging, high-capacity batteries for electric vehicles and grid storage closer than ever.

Visit https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/07/240703131808.htm to view the full article online.

Rocky Mountain Electrical League