E2S Power and SNC-Lavalin signed the non-binding memorandum to collaborate on the rapidly growing energy storage market as a potential option for retiring power plants. Research firm Wood Mackenzie has forecast that global energy storage deployments will triple year over year and reached 21 GW before this year is done.

“New energy storage technology is revolutionizing the energy system, and this collaboration is driven by our common desire to improve reliability and sustainability of our clients’ energy systems well into the future,” said Nick Johnson, Vice-President, Power, Grid & Industrial Solutions, SNC-Lavalin. “Combining E2S’ solutions that extend the life cycle of current infrastructure and our global engineering expertise, we’ll introduce new technologies to deliver carbon-free, sustainable utilities solutions.” 

E2S Power CEO Sasha Savic noted that more than 200 GW of coal-fired North American capacity is expected to be decommissioned in the coming years. E2S Power is a joint venture between SS&A Power Developer and WIKA Group.

E2S Power and SNC-Lavalin will work with utilities and power generators in North America to evaluate and offer optimized integrated thermal energy solutions for their existing plants and facilities being phased out. The goal is retrofitting and repurposing the existing coal-fired power plant sites.

SNC-Lavalin historically has worked with power generators, including Canadian utilities Bruce Power and Ontario Power Generation at their respective nuclear power plant facilities. Nuclear energy does not emit greenhouse gases.

German utility E.ON is partnering with Italian utility Enel and Spanish energy company Iberdrola to create a hydrogen production and distribution network in the Ruhr region in Germany.

E.ON plans to produce 80,000 metric tons of hydrogen per year as part of the H2.Ruhr hydrogen program.

The initiative aims to produce hydrogen and green ammonia to meet the growing demand from municipalities, as well as medium-sized and industrial companies.

The demand for hydrogen in the Ruhr region will grow from 17TWh annually today to 150TWh in 2050, according to E.ON. The increase in demand is due to efforts by companies and government agencies to decarbonize operations.

Enel will export green electricity to Germany for the production of green hydrogen and ammonia as part of the project.

E.ON will develop a 20MW electrolyzer by 2025, which will be powered using renewable energy from Enel, and a network by 2032 to distribute hydrogen between Duisburg and Dortmund. The hydrogen will also be fed directly into the main grid.

With Iberdrola, E.ON will produce green ammonia and hydrogen using renewables and then transport the energy by ship to meet demand in Germany. The project is expected to start importing to Germany in 2024.

Leonhard Birnbaum, the CEO of E.ON, said: “Green hydrogen is the only truly sustainable option for decarbonizing industrial processes. For this, we will require much more hydrogen in Germany long term, than we can produce ourselves.

“What we need are strong pan-European partnerships and efficient supply chains, which must be established now.”

Katherina Reiche, the CEO of Westenergie AG, added that green hydrogen is the only way large corporations and medium-sized companies can achieve climate goals.

She said the development of a green hydrogen network and economy will support thousands of green jobs in Germany. She reiterated that the sooner companies in the Ruhr region switch to green hydrogen the faster the energy transition in Germany will be.

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Hydrogen: What’s New, What’s Next is one of the content session tracks happening at POWERGEN International. POWERGEN and DISTRIBUTECH will be co-located live Jan. 26-28 in Dallas with more than 100 content sessions on all facets of power generation, transmission, smart grid and energy transition. Registration is now open.

Solar was not so much of a priority for the company until now. Soon, MidAmerican Energy will flip the switch on its first utility-scale solar photovoltaic project and then quickly add others to the PV mix.

 The 3-MW Waterloo solar farm will be comprised of nearly 10,000 panels and located north of Cedar Rapids. The array at capacity will serve electricity to the equivalent of nearly 650 Iowa homes.

Waterloo’s solar farm will go online in mid-November. MidAmerican Energy plans to add 61 MW of solar capacity through larger projects currently in the works, including the 4-MW Neal solar farm, the 24-MW Arbor Hill and 20-MW Holiday Creek project.

“As we place more solar projects online over the next few months and years, they will boost the amount of clean, renewable energy we can provide to our customers. And we’re doing it while also keeping our rates here in Iowa affordable – currently the 11^th lowest in the nation,” Mike Fehr, senior vice president of renewable generation and compliance at MidAmerican, said.

MidAmerican already has more than 7,000 MW of wind capacity via 3,300 turbines spread across Iowa. The utility offers its customers a GreenAdvantage program to claim renewable energy at no additional charge.

MidAmerican’s efforts to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions, Fehr noted, include adding renewable generation, investigating additional non-carbon generation technologies such as increasing nuclear generation, advancing transmission infrastructure to expand non-carbon resource generation and access, and exploring energy storage opportunities.

Record gas prices across Europe saw coal and lignite make up a greater share of Europe’s fuel mix than gas in the third quarter of 2021.

That was one of the key standouts from the latest report from energy market data analyst EnAppSys, European Electricity Generation Summary Q3-2021.

European coal and lignite plants produced 110TWh during the quarter compared with 92TWh generated by gas-fired plants.

Gas-fired generation output was 21TWh (18%) down on the previous quarter and 55TWh (37%) lower than in the same quarter last year. Meanwhile, coal generation in Q3 2021 was 21TWh (24%) greater than the previous quarter and 19TWh (21%) up on the same quarter last year.

Jean-Paul Harreman, director of EnAppSys BV, said: “The sustained trend of increasing gas prices across Europe was driven by several factors, including the need to replenish low levels of storage resulting from a long cold winter last year, high levels of global LNG demand and limited flows of Russian gas into Europe as Russia reportedly sought to replenish its own storage stocks.

“The high price levels flipped the economics of coal/lignite versus gas-fired generation, despite the high price of EU Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) allowances resulting from the increased demand caused by such fuel-switching.”

The third quarter of 2021 saw electricity demand reach 653TWh, slightly below levels in most previous years although 2% higher than in the COVID lockdown-affected Q3 last year.

Renewable output contributed more than 40% of total generation in Q3, as increasing levels of installed wind capacity offset the impact of reduced wind speeds throughout the period. After low levels of output in Q3 last year, nuclear output of 184TWh returned to levels more typically seen in the same period in previous years. 

The EnAppSys report, GB Electricity Market Summary Q3-2021, shows that in the United Kingdom, record-breaking power prices were seen in the third quarter as margins of generation over demand were squeezed due to very low wind output. 

System prices, day-ahead prices and within-day off-peak prices all increased dramatically from the previous quarters – and hit record highs towards the end of the quarter.

EnAppSys said the record prices were due to several factors, including lower wind generation, low nuclear utilisation and unfavourable conditions for solar, higher imports and low European gas storage levels following a long winter last year, which led to extreme gas prices.

Paul Verrill, director of EnAppSys, said: “High wholesale electricity prices throughout the quarter were driven by gas prices, which were already high at the start of the quarter at £31.37/MWh and continued to rise further as the quarter progressed. The price passed £50.00/MWh on September 13 and closed the quarter at £72.01/MWh, showing no signs of easing. A major contributor to this is the global gas shortage, with total European stored gas reserves not yet replenished after a long winter and being around 25% lower than the same period last year. Indeed, these reserves were lower than in any Q3 since 2015.

“Carbon allowance prices were also at an all-time high, rising consistently from August onwards and peaking at £75.57/te on the penultimate day of the quarter. This also fed into the high level of wholesale electricity prices seen throughout the quarter.Sign up for our newsletter and stay informed

“The break-even cost of gas generation increased to such a degree that by mid-September, at times it became cheaper to generate using the least efficient coal units than the most efficient gas units.

“The record prices were also driven by lower wind output, which was 28% down on levels seen in the same period last year, while low nuclear utilisation and unfavourable conditions for solar further reduced supply margins.

“Looking ahead to Q4, if levels of renewable generation remain low, trends of high prices are likely to continue into the winter.”

Due to the low levels of renewables and nuclear, interconnectors from the continent saw record level import volumes, although a fire at the IFA interconnector in September reduced capacity in the last two weeks of the quarter.

Gas and coal made up the majority of the generation (42.5%), while renewables accounted for 29.1%. Imports (12.4%) and nuclear 16.1%) made up the rest of Britain’s power mix during the quarter.

Paul Verrill continued: “Average APX prices reached £128.59/MWh, a 78.1% increase from Q2. System prices peaked at a record £4,037.80/MWh on September 9. This was the highest imbalance price seen since the £5,003.33/MWh in June 2001, shortly after NETA Go-Live, breaking the next highest for this year that had been set on January 8 2021 at £4,000.00/MWh at 19:00 and 19:30.

“The average system price was £126.14/MWh, the highest of any quarter back to the start of our dataset in Q4 2011, with the next highest being an average of £74.85/MWh in the previous quarter.

“Auctions for the UK Emissions Trading Scheme allowances launched in May 2021, with clearing prices initially higher than those for the EU scheme that it replaced, amounting to £48.01/te for GB compared with £42.37/te for EU. They had converged to within around £2.00/te from June until September, but then diverged with GB prices peaking at £75.57/te on September 29, while EU remained under £55.00/te.”

The third quarter of 2021 also saw ten energy suppliers cease trading amid the surge in wholesale gas prices, most notably Avro, Green and People’s Energy. In total, more than 1,840,000 customers were affected.

All reports are available online.

Developer Broad Reach Power has contracted Consolidated Asset Management Services (CAMS) to oversee O&M at the two 100-MW energy storage sites. Those include Bat Cave Energy Storage in Mason County and North Fork Energy Storage in Williamson County.

“As our Broad Reach portfolio of standalone energy storage assets continues to grow in megawatt scale, we look forward to furthering our relationship with CAMS to support the operational performance, reliability and safety of our critical infrastructure,” said Doug Moorehead, Managing Partner & Chief Technology Officer of Broad Reach Power.

Broad Reach began construction on the projects last year. The projects, totaling more than $100 million worth of investment, are operating alongside the company’s portfolio of utility-scale battery storage plants elsewhere in Texas.

This summer, Broad Reach entered into an agreement with Sungrow Power Supply Co. for 1,000 MW of power electronics for energy storage technology. Houston-based Broad Reach owns 13 GW of utility-scale solar and storage projects in Montana, California, Wyoming, Utah and Texas.

Backed by investors EnCap Investments L.P., Yorktown Partners and Mercuria Energy, Broad Reach Power company owns a 13-gigawatt portfolio of utility-scale solar and energy storage power projects in Montana, California, Wyoming, Utah and Texas.

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Energy storage breakthroughs will be front and center in December’s online POWERGEN+ series. Registration is free and sessions available on demand. This month’s POWERGEN+ happens tomorrow and is focused on Gas-fired Power’s Role in the Energy Transition. Presenters include experts from Duke Energy, Long Ridge Generation, Black & Veatch, Seminole Electric Cooperative, Riken Keiki and Capital Power. Click here to register.

The utility originally had hoped to make Unit 3 commercial operational by this year, but numerous cost overruns and construction problems have caused more delays. Now, Southern Co.-owned Georgia Power says Unit 3 may not start operations until July and maybe as late as September 2022, while Unit 4 will not come online until the second quarter of 2023.

“The primary drivers of the change in schedule for Unit 3 include continued identification of additional remediation work, construction productivity related to completion of remaining electrical installations and remediation work, and the subsequent resulting pace of system turnovers,” reads the company press release. “The primary drivers of the change in schedule for Unit 4 include productivity challenges and some craft and support resources being diverted temporarily to support construction efforts on Unit 3.

“The achievability of these projected in-service dates is subject to current and future challenges, including construction productivity, the volume of construction remediation work, the pace of system and area turnovers, and the progression of startup and other testing. Any further delays could result in later in-service dates.”

This summer, Georgia Power reported that both the projected starting dates would be pushed back and costs would rise by billions. Recent estimates put the overall tab of the project at close to $28 billion.

Work on Vogtle units 3 and 4 began in 2015. Two years later, the original contractor Westinghouse filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization, so Bechtel was brought in to lead construction efforts to the finish line. Southern Nuclear took oversight duties from Westinghouse.

Both Vogtle units will have Westinghouse AP1000 reactors at the center. Each of the units are designed to generate about 1,000 MW at capacity and together will power close to 500,000 customers.

Unit 3 direct construction is now 99 percent complete, with the entire project at about 93 percent complete. The construction site now has close to 7,000 workers, with about 800 permanent jobs planned once the units begin operating.

Earlier this year, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission revealed it was launching a special inspection into remediation work on Unit 3 related to the electrical cable raceway system.

If and when they go into service, Vogtle units 3 and 4 would be the first new U.S. nuclear generation reactors since Watts Bar 2 entered operation six years ago.

Georgia Power’s lead partners on the project include the Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia (MEAG), Dalton Power and Oglethorpe Power. Southern Co. is the parent of Georgia Power.

CEO Kevin Fletcher will step down from the position effective Feb. 1, 2022, and serve as a senior adviser until his retirement in June. Fletcher will be succeeded by current Chief Operating Officer Scott Lauber.

Onetime CEO and now Executive Chairman Gale Klappa will continue in that role until May 2024. Incoming CEO Lauber will report to Klappa.

“On behalf of the board, I want to thank Kevin for guiding the operations of the company and extending our track record of world-class performance,” said Klappa.  “Over the past several years, Kevin and I have worked hand in hand to build and strengthen our leadership team.  The depth and commitment of our officer group is a testament to that effort.”

Lauber has spent the past six years with the WEC Energy Group since it was formed in 2015. He was named COO in 2020.

Fletcher worked at Southern Co. for 34 years before joining WEC company We Energies. He was named CEO of WEC in February 2019.

WEC Energy Group is comprised of We Energies, Wisconsin Public Service, Peoples Gas, North Shore Gas, Michigan Gas Utilities, Minnesota Energy Resources and Upper Michigan Energy Resources. Another major subsidiary, We Power, designs, builds and owns electric generating plants. In addition, WEC Infrastructure LLC owns a growing fleet of renewable generation facilities in the Midwest.

Northam said Siemens Gamesa’s blade finishing facility will represent a $200 million investment and will create 300 new jobs.

U.S. Dept. of Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm and Dominion Energy CEO Robert Blue joined Northam in making the announcement at the Port of Virginia.

“It’s not just that 300 people are going to be working here. This is symbolic for the entire nation,” Granholm said. “Offshore wind energy is going to create ripples of job creation spreading from Virginia across the country.”

In August, Dominion Energy reached an agreement with the Port of Virginia for staging and assembly of its 2,600-megawatt offshore wind project — the U.S.’s largest commercial offshore wind project in development.

Dominion Energy will lease 72 acres at the Portsmouth Marine Terminal for staging and pre-assembly of foundations and turbines to be installed 27 miles off the coast of Virginia Beach. Once completed, the Virginia offshore wind project will produce enough renewable energy to power up to 660,000 homes.

“This location at the Port of Virginia is second to none,” Dominion’s Blue said in August. “It has deep water access, no overhead restrictions, a strong, experienced maritime workforce, and sufficient space for these large wind infrastructure components. It is perfectly situated to serve the Virginia offshore wind project and grow the domestic supply chain needed to complete other offshore wind projects in the United States.”

The lease term of 10 years is valued at nearly $4.4 million annually, according to the governor’s office, and includes an option for two, five-year renewals. Dominion Energy’s two-turbine pilot program is currently operating off Virginia Beach.

The Biden administration set a goal of deploying 30 gigawatts of offshore wind by 2030, a goal industry experts will be difficult to achieve given supply chain challenges and the immaturity of the U.S. offshore wind market. Last year, Northam signed into law the Virginia Clean Economy Act, which sets a goal of producing at least 5,200 megawatts of offshore wind energy by 2034. The law set a target of 2045 for the commonwealth to achieve 100% carbon-free energy production.

“This announcement is yet another milestone toward making Virginia the national leader in offshore wind power,” Northam said. “The Commonwealth and Dominion Energy are standing together to promote clean energy, reduce carbon emissions, create jobs, and build a new American industry on the East Coast of the United States.”

Renewable Energy World will continue to update this story.

The deal will enable El Paso Electric to achieve its goal of producing 80% of total electricity from clean resources by 2035 first.

El Paso will leverage the deal and associated projects to decarbonize its generation plants and move away from conventional energy resources, a development that will enable the utility to align operations with the Bidden-Harris climate sustainability agenda.

The energy company says increasing the use of clean energy resources will enable the provision of affordable energy to consumers and in the process will enhance customer services.

The deal will also help El Paso to achieve the energy transition in a cost-effective manner, as well as enhance the company’s grid resiliency.

Mitsubishi Power will help El Paso Electric to develop and implement a hydrogen deployment roadmap. El Paso Electric seeks to convert its Newman Power Station from natural gas only to 30% hydrogen and 70% natural gas and then by 2045 to 100% hydrogen. The roadmap will also include the development of storage and transportation infrastructure.

Kelly A Tomblin, CEO of El Paso said the deal with Mitsubishi Power is part of efforts by the utility to use innovative technologies to decarbonise its operations. Sge said the move is part of efforts to lead other utilities in Texas on sustainability. This comes after El Paso became the first utility in Texas and New Mexico to eliminate coal generation from its energy mix in 2016, according to a statement.

In addition to ensuring sustainability goals are met, the deal is also expected to help revive the economy in Texas with the creation of new jobs, according to Tomblin.

This is not the first time Mitsubishi Power and El Paso have collaborated on energy decarbonization. A deal signed by the two in January 2021 will enable El Paso Electric to triple its portfolio of renewable energy. El Paso Electric’s use of a 228MW gas turbine from Mitsubishi Power will allow quick responses to renewables intermittency with the rapid dispatch of capacity, according to a statement.Sign up for our newsletter and stay informed

Paul Browning, the CEO, Mitsubishi Power Americas, added, “We have 25 years to decarbonise electric power, which makes us all part of ‘The Power Generation.’ We believe that during the energy transition, utilities will need total decarbonisation solutions that leverage multiple technologies.”

McDermott’s CB&I Storage Solutions has joined with Shell International Exploration and Production, NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, GenH2 and the University of Houston for the project. DOE’s Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Office has selected the group and awarded $6 million to finance the project, while CB&I and Shell will provide an additional $3 million each.

The project will try to demonstrate that a large-scale LH₂ tank, with a capacity ranging from 20,000 to 100,000 cubic meters, is both feasible and cost competitive at import and export terminals. If successful, it could enable large-scale LH2 storage for international trade applications.

“McDermott is leveraging the 60 years of LH₂ storage technology expertise of our CB&I Storage Solutions business to exponentially scale up safe capacity thresholds to meet growing demands,” said Samik Mukherjee, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, McDermott International. “This consortium will accelerate that momentum as we work together to advance the next generation of sustainable energy.”

The consortium will collaborate to develop a technically innovative and economically viable concept design for the large scale LH₂ storage tank. Additionally, the group will engineer and construct a scaled-down demonstration tank that will be tested to validate the feasibility of the design and the thermal model for commercial-scale design.

Hydrogen itself does not emit carbon when burned. To be truly “green” hydrogen, it would need to be created by electrolysis powered with zero-carbon resources such as wind or solar. Hydrogen could also be created through more carbon intensive steam refactoring of methane while added carbon capture technologies can lower emissions.

Shell will lead the project and provide guidance on hydrogen supply chain and safety. CB&I Storage Solutions will provide engineering, design and LH₂ construction storage expertise. GenH2 will design and manufacture one of the world’s most advanced thermal testing devices, known as Cryostat-900. NASA will work closely with GenH2 on novel testing development. The University of Houston will focus their efforts on the creation of detailed thermal models of the proposed insulation systems.

“A cost-effective, long-range hydrogen supply chain can have a transformative impact in shaping a sustainable future for energy,” said Yuri Sebregts, Chief Technology Officer for Shell. “Our consortium recognizes that this project can become a cornerstone in making that future possible. It’s a sizable engineering challenge—but we have the right people, partners and outlook to deliver this first-of-its-kind LH₂ storage technology.”

This public, private and academic endeavor will support the goals of the DOE H2@Scale and Hydrogen Shot initiatives, bringing stakeholders together in an effort to reduce the cost of clean hydrogen and advance its role in the energy transition.

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Hydrogen: What’s New, What’s Next is one of the content tracks being offered when POWERGEN International happens live Jan. 26-28 in Dallas. POWERGEN also will feature content on digitalization, decarbonation, gas turbine technologies, energy storage and power plant operations and maintenance. Registration is now open.