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Who Is Purposely Sabotaging Power Plants All Over America?

December 12, 2022

Who Is Purposely Sabotaging Power Plants All Over America?


Someone has been attacking power plants all over the country, and federal authorities are trying to determine who it is.  In recent days, we have seen significant sabotage on both the east and west coasts, and so it can’t just be one individual that is responsible.  During the first eight months of this year, there were a total of 106 attacks on the electrical grid in the United States, and that represents the highest number ever recorded in a single year.  Hopefully authorities will be able to get to the bottom of this mystery, because winter will soon officially begin.  If power goes out in your neck of the woods for an extended period of time during the months ahead, what will you do?

Nobody is trying to claim that the string of attacks that we have been witnessing is “accidental”, and ABC News is reporting that “federal authorities are investigating” this very disturbing trend…

Federal authorities are investigating a number of recent reported acts of sabotage on utility companies, a senior law enforcement source told ABC News.

The move comes in the wake of substations being riddled with bullets in North Carolina, leaving tens of thousands without power for days.

After the incident, the utility companies reached out to federal authorities in recent days to investigate, the source said.

The recent incident in North Carolina was particularly alarming.

At approximately 7 PM on Saturday night, gunfire erupted at two electrical substations in Moore County.  Officials are calling this “an intentional and coordinated attack”…

…click on the above link to read the rest…

Germany’s Uniper Warns Of Possible “Irregular Operation” At Major Power Plant As Rhine River Runs Dry

August 4, 2022

Germany’s Uniper Warns Of Possible “Irregular Operation” At Major Power Plant As Rhine River Runs Dry

Germany’s Uniper SE, the country’s largest utility (recently bailed out by state-owned lender KfW), warned Thursday that plunging water levels on the Rhine River have reduced barge shipments of coal to a key power plant, exacerbating an energy crunch as power prices soar to record highs, reported Bloomberg.

The river at Kaub, Germany, is around 21.6 inches (55 centimeters) on Thursday and is expected to drop to 18.5 inches (47 centimeters) by Saturday, according to the German Federal Waterways and Shipping Administration. Currently, Europe’s most crucial waterway is 5.9 inches (15 centimeters) from being impassible, the threshold where barge traffic is 15.7 inches (40 centimeters).

Uniper said the low water levels could force “irregular operation” at its 510-megawatt Staudinger-5 coal-fired power plant through the first half of September because fewer and fewer barges have been able to deliver coal as stockpiles dwindle. Rhine water levels below 40 centimeters at Kaub would halt shipments via inland waterways to the power plant, forcing shipments by land.

On Wednesday, Riverlake, a vessel broker, said, “fewer and fewer barges can pass through Kaub.”

Uniper’s warning about low water levels impacting operations at a coal-fired power plant is more evidence Rhine troubles are exacerbating Germany’s worst energy-supply crunch in decades as Russia reduces natural gas flows via Nord Stream 1 to just 20% capacity.

Meanwhile, German power for next year soared to a record intraday high of 410.57 euros per megawatt-hour on the European Energy Exchange on Thursday on the prospects of a worsening energy crisis.

Besides Uniper, here’s what other German companies are saying about low water levels on the Rhine and how they seek alternatives for transporting goods (list courtesy of Bloomberg):

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Texas Inspects Power Plants Ahead Of Freeze Warning

December 31, 2021

Texas Inspects Power Plants Ahead Of Freeze Warning

A cold snap is headed for Texas after New Year’s Eve. The state’s grid operator conducted inspections of mandatory winterization efforts at power plants to avoid repeating last winter’s devastating blackouts.

The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) completed inspections at 300 electric generation units, representing 85% of the megawatt-hours lost during last winter’s storm and 22 transmission station facilities.

ERCOT is “confident that its electric generation fleet and the grid are winterized and ready to provide power,” said Woody Rickerson, Vice President of Grid Planning and Weatherization.

“New regulations require all electric generation and transmission owners to make significant winterization improvements and our inspections confirm they are prepared,” Rickerson said.

The announcement comes as new weather models via Bloomberg show average temperatures across Texas are expected to slide beginning this weekend.

In some cases, the minimum temperature will dive below freezing and could strain ERCOT’s power grid as energy demand would increase.

In terms of heating degree days, energy demand will skyrocket through the first half of January.

ERCOT has already sent out a “freeze warning” email to customers, warning them about the upcoming cold blast.

As you are aware, there is a freeze predicted in this area. We ask that you take the following precautions to help reduce the potential for damage to property as well as personal injury. -ERCOT

For the Lower US 48, meteorologists at private weather forecasting firm BAMWX continue to predict colder weather is set to trend for January.

If colder weather is ahead, natural gas prices could get a lift. Futures linked to Henry Hub show an ascending diagonal support line where support could form.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Naomi Klein: Obama Is Beginning to Sound Like a Climate Leader, When Will He Act Like One?

August 5, 2015

Naomi Klein: Obama Is Beginning to Sound Like a Climate Leader, When Will He Act Like One?

As scientists warn 2015 is on pace to become the Earth’s hottest year on record, President Obama has unveiled his long-awaited plan to slash carbon emissions from U.S. power plants. Under new Environmental Protection Agency regulations, U.S. power plants will be required to cut emissions by 32 percent from 2005 levels by 2030. In addition, new power plants will be required to be far cleaner, which could effectively prevent any new coal plants from opening. But does the plan go far enough? We speak to Naomi Klein, author of the best-selling book, “This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. the Climate,” which is out in paperback today.

 

 

EPA’s Clean Power Plan Tougher Than Expected

August 4, 2015

EPA’s Clean Power Plan Tougher Than Expected

The Obama administration unveiled a much-anticipated, controversial rule on the regulation of greenhouse gases from power plants on August 3.

The first-of-their-kind limits on carbon pollution from existing power plants will actually require slightly tougher cuts than the original proposal. The EPA is calling for a 32 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from power plants below 2005 levels by 2030. That is up from the 30 percent target as part of last year’s proposal.

However, the EPA did throw the industry, and its opponents in Congress, a bone.

In the final rule, the Obama administration will allow for two extra years for utilities to hit their interim targets of achieving a 25 percent reduction in greenhouse gases, with a deadline of 2022 instead of 2020. The EPA also offered up a “reliability safety valve,” which would allow states more leniency with deadlines in the event that the reliability of the electric grid came into question.

Under the final rule, the administration also decided to give new nuclear power plants credit towards the federal emissions target, as nuclear generates electricity without carbon emissions. That probably won’t be an avenue that many states pursue outside of a handful of nuclear power plants under construction in Georgia, Tennessee, and South Carolina.

Related: Top 6 Myths Driving Oil Prices Down

The EPA estimates that the so-called “Clean Power Plan” will cost $8.4 billion annually by 2030 when implemented, but yield public-health and other benefits of $34 to $54 billion, including avoiding thousands of premature deaths each year.

The plan will accelerate a trend towards cleaner sources of electricity. The plan expects renewable energy to more than double its share of the electricity market, jumping from 13 percent in 2014 to 28 percent by 2030.

 

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

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