The Quad Report

The Trump administration’s controversial nominee to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, energy lawyer Bernard McNamee, took a conventional, mainline approach to his potential role at FERC during his Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee confirmation hearing today. McNamee took care to distance himself from the administration’s failed proposal at FERC to upset competitive markets in … More FERC nominee walks a careful, middle path at Senate confirmation hearing

The never-ending end game for South Carolina’s abandoned V.C. Summer nuclear project is getting more complicated. Charleston’s Post and Courier newspaper reports that troubled SCANA Corp., one of the two corporate parents of the failed $9 billion, two-unit, 2,000-MW construction project is drawing attention from federal law enforcement. The newspaper says that when SCANA CEO … More The convoluted V.C. Summer nuclear fiasco twists and turns

When it comes to claims of electrification in India, there appears to be a classic case of governmental smoke and mirrors, aimed at political goals. The government’s pronouncements consist of heavy doses of hyperbole and back-slapping, while many millions of Indians in the country of 1.3 billion people have no access to electricity or only … More India electrification: Far less than government claims?

I’ve just returned from two weeks in Madagascar, focused mostly on flora and fauna (including the many endemic bird species and, of course, lemurs). It’s a beautiful country, and little known to the rest of the world. But what struck me the most about this vast island nation (the fourth largest island in the world, … More Madagascar’s extreme energy poverty

With Chairman Kevin McIntyre still ill, absent, and not voting, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission today adopted a new reliability standards to get a handle on cyber security risks associated with supply chains that supply the U.S. bulk electric system. The new FERC final rule largely follows a notice of proposed rulemaking issued in January. … More FERC adopts supply chain cyber security rule

What do the large, experienced, and sophisticated nuclear power programs of the U.S. and France have in common? Answer: they can’t seem to be able to build new generations of nuclear plants. At least that’s the case for new units in western democratic countries. Two U.S. utilities have been unable to complete four Westinghouse AP1000 … More France echoes U.S. on nuclear woes

The White House Wednesday said President Trump intends to nominate conservative energy lawyer Bernard L. McNamee to the vacant Republican seat at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. He replaces Republican Robert Powelson. McNamee is currently head of the Department of Energy’s policy shop. McNamee is expected to push FERC toward administration efforts to boost the … More Trump to name Bernard McNamee to FERC

Born of great promise, an advanced nuclear power effort, severely damaged by initial overpromises, has crashed and burned. Transatomic Power has shut down operations, after MIT’s Technology Review reported that the principals, two recent MIT PhD nuclear engineering graduates, decided they did not “see a viable path to bringing its molten salt reactor to scale.” … More Transatomic Power, once a high-flyer, crash lands

Vogtle lives. After investor-owned Georgia Power and cooperative Oglethorpe Power Corp. spent hours eye-ball-to-eyeball over Oglethorpe’s push for a cost cap on the $27 billion, two unit nuclear project, Georgia Power blinked. The owners of the project agreed Wednesday afternoon to a new cost-containment deal, which would spread the impact of future cost increases, after … More Oglethorpe, Georgia Power reach a Vogtle compromise

The troubled Vogtle nuclear power construction project in Georgia, facing massive cost overruns and years behind schedule, may have survived another existential threat. But it may not. The outcome is still in doubt. Today, one major public power partner unanimously agreed to continue with the staggering nuclear project, but another major public power player offered … More Oglethorpe throws a curve ball at the Vogtle nukes