Chattanooga Electrical Engineering News Blog
Topics Related to Electronics and Electrical Engineering
UtilityDive.com by Diana DiGangi:
Power companies are accelerating their planned power projects for connecting renewable energies to the grid to benefit from the swift dissolving ‘Inflation Reduction Act tax credits.’
Several power utilities, such as “Xcel Energy, WEC Energy Group, CMS Energy, and Ameren are planning to accelerate projects originally slated for 2030–31 into 2027–28.”
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TVA announced it was “the first utility in the U.S. to submit a construction permit application (CPA) for the GE Vernova Hitachi Nuclear Energy (GVH) small modular reactor (SMR) BWRX-300 technology to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission – the agency that issues licenses for constructing, operating and decommissioning nuclear power plants.
This CPA is TVA’s next step in pursuing an SMR at its Clinch River site, near Oak Ridge, Tennessee, and establishing America’s energy dominance to power artificial intelligence, quantum computing and advanced manufacturing.
TVA.com: Scott Fiedler, Jennifer Thelen
TVA recently announced “that it has added 500 additional megawatts of electricity to their power grid – enough energy to power almost 300,000 homes.
With the completion of the 10 new aeroderivative gas turbines at Johnsonville Combustion Turbine Plant, west of Nashville, the Johnsonville site can now provide more than 1,200 megawatts to TVA’s grid, which provides electricity to more than 10 million people across seven states.”
FoxNews.com: Kurt Knutsson, CyberGuy Report
Google recently signed its first ever energy power contract for nuclear fusion technology with Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS) in taking the next step forward in renewable clean energy. “CFS is an MIT spin-out working to build one of the world’s first commercial fusion reactors. This Google fusion deal marks a pivotal moment for the tech giant as it looks to secure reliable, carbon-free power for its growing AI operations.”
Google plans to purchase up to “200 megawatts of power from CFS’s planned ARC fusion power plant in Chesterfield County, Virginia, which will help power Google’s expanding network of AI data centers.”
EnergyCentral.com: Jason Huang & T&DWorld.com: Gene Wolf
Since aluminum conductor steel reinforced (ACSR) technology took over nearly all of power utilities’ transmission lines and overhead distribution lines, there has not been many advancements in newer and more feasible power delivery conductors. The ACSR technology has been around for over a century, but a new conductor technology is shaping up as an optimal replacement.
“AECC (Aluminum Encapsulated Carbon Core) technology represents a natural evolution that combines advanced conductor performance with traditional conductor safety and reliability. The design uses a pre-tensioned carbon fiber core protected by a seamless aluminum encapsulation layer, paired with annealed aluminum trapezoidal outer strands.”
“Advanced conductor technologies are gaining acceptance with utilities and grid operators. Reconductoring with advanced conductors can put a huge dent in the transmission capacity shortage”