Courtesy Georgia Power Unite 4 concrete mat will serve as the foundation for all of the nuclear island structures, including the containment vessel and the shield building. Related Links: Vogtle Nuke Plant Builders Face Rising Cost Pressures Vogtle Suppliers Continue to Miss the Mark for Quality Control Workers at the Plant Vogtle nuclear expansion project on Nov. 21 completed placement of basemat structural concrete for the nuclear island at Unit 4, according to plant owner/operator Georgia Power. The utility called the placement "a significant accomplishment in the construction of the project."Georgia Power, which owns 45.7% of the two planned 1,117-MW

Related Links: Weak Pipeline Capacity Adds to Shale Gas Growing Pains: B&V DOE Approves Fourth LNG Export Facility Most of the new oil and natural-gas pipelines that get financed and built over the next few years will be short-haul projects that address regional constraints, not the much longer projects that helped drive the sector in the past, says Peter Abt, Black & Veatch managing director in charge of the firm's oil and gas strategy practice.Abt, who oversaw B&V's "2013 Strategic Direction in the North American Natural Gas Industry" report, also believes that only a few of the more than 20

Related Links: People News: Edwards Elevated to Lead Black & Veatch as COO The U.S. natural-gas sector will continue to grow, but market and regulatory forces are putting a damper on the prospects for big-dollar gas pipelines and liquefied natural gas export facilities, Black & Veatch says in a new report.According to B&V’s “2013 Strategic Direction in the North American Natural Gas Industry,” the gas industry—boosted immeasurably by shale gas discoveries and by technology improvements in extracting gas from shale—is “in the midst of significant growing pains.”The report, released October 31, says more than 95% of those surveyed for the

Photo Courtesy of Verengo Solar installation companies are forming alliances with electricity retailers. Related Links: Solar Sees Growth But Clouds Loom California Plant To Double U.S. Solar Thermal Power Production Two years after a boom in multi-megawatt, utility-scale solar photovoltaic projects in the U.S., utilities, solar developers and contractors are gearing up for new sector growth. This time, they have their eyes on smaller but mass-volume rooftop solar installations for residential, commercial, industrial and institutional buildings.While some commercial, industrial and institutional rooftop projects are relatively large—ranging from 50 kW to 5 MW in capacity—the real volume part of the business

Following a probe into a fatal gantry-crane accident on March 31 at the Arkansas Nuclear One station, the U.S. Occupational Safety & Health Administration is pointing a finger at several firms involved in the lift.OSHA has cited Entergy Operations, Siemens Power Generation, Bigge Crane and Rigging Co. and Precision Surveillance Corp.—parties representing the owner or subcontractors—for 26 safety violations and total fines of $175,000, the agency revealed on Sept. 27.OSHA says Precision Surveillance is being cited for one serious violation for failing to provide an effective communication system to alert the operator or signalman through an emergency stop signal. That

Photo by AP/Wideworld Protestors dropped coffins outside the Texas state capitol this summer to remember construction workers killed on the job. Lapses in jobsite safety, low pay, "wage-stiffing" and employer-employee language barriers are spurring the creation and expansion of worker centers—non-profit organizations that serve as advocates for immigrant, minority, non-union and other construction workers.Backed by foundations and other sources, worker centers have been scoring successes in providing Latino, African-American and other workers occupational safety training and information about their rights in an increasing number of U.S. metropolitan areas. The centers also are pressing local governments, developers and owners, such as

Bigge Crane & Rigging Co. and a company engineer, Claus Frederiksen, are the targets of a lawsuit, filed by both Entergy Arkansas and Entergy Operations, that claims the heavy-lift contracting giant failed to perform a load test prior to a fatal crane collapse at the two-unit Arkansas Nuclear One station on March 31.The lawsuit, filed on July 12 in Pope County Circuit Court, accuses Bigge, one of the largest in its sector in the U.S., of "gross negligence."Through a spokesman, Bigge declined to comment.Entergy Arkansas and Entergy Operations—owner and operator, respectively, of the Arkansas Nuclear One (ANO) station—demand a jury

Photo by AP/Wide World New CO2 regulations from the EPA could bring about a new wave of coal-plant closures. Related Links: Presidential Memorandum on Power Sector CO2 Standards DOE Fact Sheet on Draft Advanced Fossil Energy Solicitation The climate-change action plan laid out by President Obama on June 25 provided a broad outline of how the administration plans to address greenhouse-gas emissions for the remainder of his term. While the plan lacked many specifics, Obama and administration officials already have started filling in the details.As a first step, the president on the same day signed a memorandum directing the Environmental

Rendering Courtesy of TxDOT Burying downtown portion of I-35 would reunite downtown, East Austin. Related Links: Ambitious Plans Call for Toll Roads Texas Style Austin Mobility Elected officials in Austin are pressing the Texas Dept. of Transportation to explore a cut-and-cap plan for a portion of Interstate 35 that adjoins the city's downtown core.On June 20, the Austin City Council unanimously endorsed a resolution to urge TxDOT to include the plan as an option in a required National Environmental Policy Act study as an initial step toward addressing I-35 congestion.The City Council also directed Austin's city manager to hire an

Photo Courtesy of Sheehan Pipeline Construction Road ahead for pipeline outfits looks good, with ample demand from the utility and chemical sectors and stable costs for materials and labor Related Links: Pipeline Specialists Profit From Safety, Not Shale Boom Rerouted Keystone Pipeline Path Back for Another Round PG&E Faces Harsh Aftermath Of San Bruno Gas Blast These are good days for pipeline engineering and construction firms. There is a steady flow of work, thanks to booming natural-gas and oil production from U.S. shale plays, increased use of gas for power generation and other factors. The activity is driving a major