The Electric Power Research Institute, Institute of Nuclear Power Operations and the Nuclear Energy Institute announced a joint organization to coordinate the U.S. nuclear industry’s study and response to the March 11 disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant in Japan. In a June 9 press conference, the three agencies said the coordination of the groups would ensure that all groups understand and implement “lessons” learned from the event. In addition to improving response capabilities and communication plans, the group will focus on technical areas including studying total loss of on-site and off-site AC power; the accident guidelines already in

A European Union environmental regulation is prompting big changes and some uncertainty about the future at the Tilbury B Power Station, located on the Thames River, 25 miles east of London. Work is under way to convert the former 1,050-MW coal-fired powerplant, closed in March, to what would be the world’s largest biomass plant, generating 750 MW. But thanks to the regulation  that prompted the plant's conversion, Tilbury’s future beyond 2015 is not yet certain, says its owner, RWE npower. Photo courtesy of RWE npower Tilbury is switching from burning coal to wood pellets as its fuel source. RWE, which

In response to Japan’s Fukushima disaster, the European Commission on June 1 began stress tests on143 nuclear powerplants operated within the 23 member states of the European Union. The EC expects tests to be complete by year’s end. Later this month, the commission will invite neighboring countries, including Russia, Ukraine and Turkey, to follow suit. For the most part, stress testing is a desktop exercise to review safety factors and is already a part of the licensing procedure for nuclear plants, says Andrej Stitar, chairman of the European Nuclear Safety Regulators Group, which helped devise the methodology. “All the natural

The Bonneville Power Administration, a federal agency that markets electric power from the Columbia River’s Bonneville Dam in the Pacific Northwest, is saving millions of dollars on construction of its latest transmission line and expects to save more in the future, thanks to new tower design and analysis software developed by one of its own engineers. Photo:Courtesy Bonneville Power Administration A new high-voltage transmission tower is tested at a facility in India. Force is applied via dozens of cables at various angles to see if the tower will hold up in extreme conditions. div id="articleExtrasA" div id="articleExtrasB" div id="articleExtras" Portland,

Swedish home-furnishings giant IKEA officially powered up its Brooklyn, N.Y., store’s rooftop solar system this spring after several delays, including a mid-construction switch of its main contractor. Photo: By Esther D'amico Store-top installation enables four different types of photovoltaic panels to be evaluated. The store is one of four worldwide participating in a $11.7-million pilot program IKEA established in 2009 with Loughborough University, Leicestershire, U.K., and the now-defunct contractor Perpetual Energy Ltd., Knutsford, U.K., to monitor and evaluate performance of photovoltaic systems. While the systems at each of the four sites are operational, their monitoring capabilities are as yet limited

In May, the U.S. Energy Dept. approved plans by Cheniere Energy Partners, Houston, to expand its Sabine Pass Liquefied Natural Gas terminal to export domestically produced LNG to any country in which trade is permissible. Cheniere is planning to spend about $2 billion to expand the terminal. The owner will add equipment to clean up the gas from domestic pipelines and cool it to 260ºF. The company has scheduled construction to begin next year and selected San Francisco-based Bechtel as contractor. DOE will allow Cheniere to export up to 800 billion cu ft a year.

This month in the Pacific Northwest, when runoff from a heavy snowpack coincided with extremely windy conditions, the federal Bonneville Power Administration system suddenly had an abundance of alternative energy feeding its system. BPA chose to limit wind-driven power in favor of hydroelectrity during peak water and wind events. The operational policy is likely to chill construction of new wind farms in the Pacific Northwest, according to the American Wind Energy Association. Iberdrola Renewables Iberdrola's Big Horn wind farm, in Washington state, is subject to shutdown when the Columbia River is running high through federal hydro dams. Related Links: Old

Two U.S. steel fabricators and a German pipe manufacturer have announced the formation of a joint venture to produce components for the 130-turbine Cape Wind farm in development off Nantucket Sound and other offshore wind farms emerging along the East Coast. EEW Group Monopile foundations at at EEW's Rostock, Germany facility, similar to the facility that will be built in Massachusetts to serve nascent offshore wind industry off the U.S. Atlantic coast. Related Links: Building Cape Wind Wont Be a Breeze Offshore Support for Onshore Wind “The announcement signals the beginning of a domestic supply chain that will create new

Without solid commitments from potential customers and the emergence of North American shale gas as a price-competitive energy source, the proposed $35-billion Denali pipeline in Alaska, owned by subsidiaries of BP and ConocoPhillips, has called it quits. Backers abandoned Denali, but TransCanada line's backers say they'll push forward. “As far as Denali is concerned, we are finished,” says Scott Jepsen, vice president of business services for Denali – The Alaska Gas Pipeline LLC. “The focus of Denali has always been to move natural gas from the North Slope. Our work here is over."Denali will also withdraw its Federal Energy Regulatory

Carbon-free power is getting a double boost in Europe. France is about to procure an estimated $14 billion of offshore wind farms. Across the Channel, the U.K. is setting itself tough greenhouse gas targets, increasing its reliance on renewable and nuclear energy. Installations planned off north coast of France would lead toward goal of 6,000 MW from offshore power by 2020. Three of France’s biggest engineering companies formed an alliance to bid this month or in June for a slice of 3,000 MW of offshore wind power the government plans to have in operation by 2015. Another 3,000 MW is