Electrical Generation

Electrical Generation | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Trumbull County

Utica-Fired Lordstown Energy Center Wins POWER Mag Top Plant Award
October 1, 2019October 1, 2019

Lordstown Energy Center (click for larger version)

For more than four decades, POWER magazine has honored the top performers in the electricity-generating industry with annual power plant awards. Plants that have distinguished themselves by innovative design or engineering upgrades, producing power more reliably or economically than comparable plants, or demonstrating a new generation or environmental controls technology are considered. The Utica-fired Lordstown Energy Center, which went online last October, has just received POWER magazine’s prestigious “Top Plant” award in 2019.
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Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Electrical Generation | Industrywide Issues | New York | Orange County

A Few Old Hippies Protest Orange Co NatGas Plant on Youth Day
September 30, 2019April 20, 2022

Last October Competitive Power Ventures’ 680-megawatt CPV Valley Energy Center in Wawayanda (Orange County), NY fired up and began producing, using Marcellus gas, enough electricity to power 600,000 liberal NY homes (see CPV Marcellus-Fired Elec Plant in Orange County Now Online!). New York Gov. Cuomo tried his best to block the plant from going online, but failed. It’s been operating safely ever since. But that doesn’t stop a few dedicated protesters from showing up when there’s an excuse to do so, just to keep their desire to shut it down alive in local media.
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Electrical Generation | Industrywide Issues | Statewide WV | West Virginia

WVU Engineer Gets $2.5M Grant to Study NatGas Power Plant Boilers
September 30, 2019September 30, 2019

Debangsu Bhattacharyya, WVU

Quick question: What is the “heart” of an electric power generating plant? The turbines that spin and make the electricity, right? Actually, no! The “heart” of a powergen plant is, according to West Virginia University engineering professor Debangsu Bhattacharyya…the boiler. Say what?! That’s right. The boiler produces the steam to turn the turbine and if you can improve the efficiency of the boiler (prevent it from breaking down), you increase the efficiency of the whole plant. Dr. Bhattacharyya has just received a $2.5 million grant from the U.S. Dept. of Energy to study the use of AI (artificial intelligence) to monitor and improve the performance of boilers in natgas (and coal) power plants.
Read More “WVU Engineer Gets $2.5M Grant to Study NatGas Power Plant Boilers”
Air Quality | Electrical Generation | Industrywide Issues

Private Sector has Already Solved the “Climate Change” Issue
September 26, 2019September 26, 2019

We spotted a great article in the Washington Examiner which points out that new technology from several private-sector companies can now capture and use carbon dioxide to create energy. One of those companies is one we previously highlighted, NET Power (see NET Power Pioneers “Zero-Carbon” Gas-Fired Electric Plants). But there are others too. The main point of the Examiner story is that we in the U.S. don’t need the heavy hand of government to “solve” the so-called issue of man-made global warming, which “environmentalists” claim comes from burning fossil fuels that release CO2 into the atmosphere. Why don’t we need government? Because the private sector has already figured out how to do and IS doing it!
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Electrical Generation | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Statewide PA

PA Gov. Wolf Threatens to Issue Order on Power Plants
September 23, 2019September 23, 2019

PA Gov. Wolf

In April, Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf, along with a number of Senate and House Democrats (and a few Philadelphia RINOs), announced updated changes to the state’s so-called “climate” plan–changes that will doom the state economically (see PA Gov. Wolf, Dem Legislators Release Even Worse “Climate” Plan). Among other things, Wolf plans to implement a cap-and-trade plan to control every aspect of Pennsylvanian’s lives by controlling how much and where they get energy from. And now Wolf is saying if the PA legislature won’t help him do it, he’ll just seize power and do it via Executive Order.
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Electrical Generation | Energy Services | FirstEnergy | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Statewide OH

Ohio Newspapers Call Out Pro-Nuke/Anti-Referendum Ads as Lies
September 17, 2019September 17, 2019

Not even Ohio’s left-leaning news organizations can go along with the phony commercials being run by First Energy in a desperate attempt to block a referendum to overturn House Bill (HB) 6 (see FirstEnergy Runs Attack Ad, Claims China Controls OH NatGas Plants). HB 6 was recently passed to prop up two FirstEnergy bankrupt nuclear power plants and several coal-fired plants (see Ohio Nuke Bailout Law Means Fewer Natgas-Fired Electric Plants).
Read More “Ohio Newspapers Call Out Pro-Nuke/Anti-Referendum Ads as Lies”
Electrical Generation | Industrywide Issues | Monongalia County | West Virginia

1200 MW Gas-Fired Power Plant Files to Build in Mon County, WV
September 16, 2019September 16, 2019

Artists rendering of Longview Power Clean Energy Center (click for larger version)

Last Thursday Longview Power filed an application with the West Virginia Public Service Commission to build and operate a Marcellus gas-fired electric generating facility in Monongalia County, WV, near Maidsville. The Longview Power Clean Energy Center, as it’s called, will include a 1,200 megawatt combined cycle power plant AND a 70 megawatt solar farm–both built next to Longview’s existing state-of-the-art 710 megawatt coal-fired power plant. A real “all of the above” type of facility.
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Electrical Generation | Industrywide Issues | Lackawanna County | Pennsylvania

EmberClear Drops Plan to Build Gas-Fired Elec Plant Near Scranton
September 16, 2019September 16, 2019

Pennsylvania’s largest natural gas-fired electric plant, Invenergy’s 1,480 megawatt, $1 billion project called the Lackawanna Energy Center, has been completely done and fully online since earlier this year (see Huge Marcellus-Fired Power Plant Near Scranton Now 100% Complete). In 2016 EmberClear announced it wanted to build Lackawanna County’s second Marcellus-fired electric plant project, going so far as to get a required air permit. Plans for EmberClear’s Lackawanna project are now dead.
Read More “EmberClear Drops Plan to Build Gas-Fired Elec Plant Near Scranton”
Electrical Generation | Energy Services | FirstEnergy | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Ohio | Statewide OH

FirstEnergy Asks OH Supreme Court to Block Bailout Referendum
September 6, 2019September 6, 2019

FirstEnergy continues its desperate attempt to prevent a referendum measure from hitting the fall ballot in Ohio that would overturn a recently passed (very bad) law that bails out FirstEnergy’s failing nuclear power plants in the state to the tune of $1.5 billion. Earlier this week we told you FirstEnergy is running tinfoil hat commercials claiming China would soon control Ohio’s electric grid if the bailout bill is overturned (see FirstEnergy Runs Attack Ad, Claims China Controls OH NatGas Plants). Now FirstEnergy is asking the Ohio Supreme Court to block the ballot measure, denying voters the opportunity to vote.
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Electrical Generation | Industrywide Issues | Regulation | Statewide VA | Virginia

Virginia Approves Marcellus-Fired Power Plant Project Near Richmond
September 6, 2019September 6, 2019

MDN first told you about plans to build the Chickahominy Power Station, a 1,650 megawatt state-of-the-art natural gas-fired power plant, in June 2018 (see Huge New Marcellus-Fired Power Plant Coming Near Richmond, VA). We’d not heard or read anything about the project since March of this year (see Marcellus-Fired Power Plant Project Near Richmond, VA Advances). However, there has been an important new development.
Read More “Virginia Approves Marcellus-Fired Power Plant Project Near Richmond”
Economic Impact | Electrical Generation | Industrywide Issues | Jobs | Michigan

Delayed Michigan Gas-Fired Plant Finally Begins Construction
September 5, 2019September 5, 2019

click for larger version

Nearly 20 years ago Indeck Energy floated a plan to build a an electric generating plant (powered by natural gas) in Niles, Michigan, not far from Chicago. In 2016 those plans got serious (see $1B Electric Plant Planned Near Chicago, M-U Connection?). In February 2018, Indeck said construction would begin in summer 2018–which never happened. Yesterday, Indeck finally held an official groundbreaking ceremony. The plant is now officially under construction.
Read More “Delayed Michigan Gas-Fired Plant Finally Begins Construction”
Economic Impact | Electrical Generation | Guernsey County | Industrywide Issues | Jobs | Ohio

Country’s Biggest NatGas Power Plant Beginning Construction in OH
September 3, 2019September 3, 2019

Artist rendering of Guernsey Power Plant (click for larger version)

Construction on what we believe to be the country’s largest natural gas-fired electric plant, the Guernsey Power Station (being built in Guernsey County, Ohio), is set to begin “immediately” according to the company hired to do the engineering, procurement and construction activities (EPC). Last week Caithness Energy, the project developer, announced it has closed on $1.6 billion worth of financing for the project and has given the green light to Gemma Power Systems to begin construction of the plant.
Read More “Country’s Biggest NatGas Power Plant Beginning Construction in OH”
Electrical Generation | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Research | Statewide PA

PA Gas-Fired Electric Going from 30% to 45% of Capacity Next 3 Yrs
September 3, 2019September 3, 2019

click for larger version

Believe it or not, dry and sterile reports from government agencies, like the “Electric Power Outlook for Pennsylvania” issued by the state Public Utility Commission, can be exciting! The latest edition of the EPO report predicts natural gas-fired electric generation in PA will go from a current 30% of all electricity produced in the state today, to 45% of all electricity produced in just three years–by 2023. That represents an enormous opportunity for drillers (and landowners) to sell locally produced gas to new, local customers.
Read More “PA Gas-Fired Electric Going from 30% to 45% of Capacity Next 3 Yrs”
Electrical Generation | Energy Services | FirstEnergy | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Regulation | Statewide OH

FirstEnergy Runs Attack Ad, Claims China Controls OH NatGas Plants
September 3, 2019April 20, 2022

“Bizarre” is the only word that comes to mind to describe a despicable, lowest-of-the-low, lying attack ad being run in Ohio by a front group for FirstEnergy meant to defend and preserve a horrible corporate welfare bailout law passed to prop up FirstEnergy’s economically dying nuclear (and coal) power plants. The $1 million ad campaign claims if the new law is repealed (a good chance of that happening), that somehow China will be in charge of the electric grid in Ohio. It is totally wackadoodle and an outright lie.
Read More “FirstEnergy Runs Attack Ad, Claims China Controls OH NatGas Plants”
Economic Impact | Electrical Generation | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Regulation | Statewide OH | Trumbull County

1st Casualty of OH Save Nukes Law – $1.1B Lordstown NatGas Plant
August 21, 2019August 21, 2019

The boneheaded new law passed by the Ohio legislature known as House Bill (HB) 6, meant to save a couple of failing nuclear plants along with a few coal-fired electric plants, has just claimed its first casualty. And it’s major. Clean Energy Future Inc. which has already built two natural gas-fired power plants in Lordstown (Trumbull County, OH) announced it is canceling a project to build a third Lordstown power plant–costing the state $1.1 billion of investment. What a disaster.
Read More “1st Casualty of OH Save Nukes Law – $1.1B Lordstown NatGas Plant”
Allegheny County | Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Electrical Generation | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Westmoreland County

Public Mtg Planned to Gin Up Opposition to SWPA Gas-Fired Plant
August 15, 2019August 15, 2019

Elizabeth Twp

In January 2016, Invenergy announced their intention to build a natgas-powered electric plant in Elizabeth Township, in Allegheny County (see Invenergy Eyes SWPA for Second Marcellus-Powered Electric Plant). It took a few years, a lawsuit and a new location, but eventually Elizabeth commissioners approved Invenergy’s plan in December 2018 (see Elizabeth Twp in Allegheny Co. OKs Invenergy Gas-Fired Plant).
Read More “Public Mtg Planned to Gin Up Opposition to SWPA Gas-Fired Plant”