Adani Group's Carmichael coal deposits project in Queensland state is facing regulatory hurdles May 21, 2019

SYDNEY: A surprise election victory for Australia's pro-coal ruling coalition may bode well for the Adani Group's long-delayed mega coal mine project, with the Group's country head saying the defeat of Labor Party in Queensland, where the project is based, is a clear message to get the project done.  The opposition Labor Party leader Bill Shorten who took a firm stand against coal and mining has a...

I oversaw the U.S. nuclear power industry. Now I think it should be banned. May 20,

Nuclear power was supposed to save the planet. The plants that used this technology could produce enormous amounts of electricity without the pollution caused by burning coal, oil or natural gas, which would help slow the catastrophic changes humans have forced on the Earth’s climate. As a physicist who studied esoteric properties of subatomic particles, I admired the science and...

Coal supplies: CERC order unlocks Rs 17,000 crore for power firms May 18, 2019

The Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC) has allowed power companies to claim compensation for the additional cost of coal procured from alternative sources due to Coal India’s failure to meet supply obligations. While such compensation facility was available for the FY14-FY17 period under a modified coal distribution policy, it has since ceased to be in operation. The industry estimates accumula...

CERC allows compensation to power plants for coal imports in times of domestic coal shortage May 17, 2019,

NEW DELHI: Power regulator Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC) has allowed compensation to GMR Group for running its power plant on imported coal in the event of coal shortage.  The order issued late on Thursday evening will have significant impact on the power generation industry that is grappling with stressed assets. Power plants w...

India’s Growing Solar Power Programme Could Leave Behind a Trail of Waste Wed, May 15,

Solar power may promise a bright future for India’s energy requirements, but behind the sheen is a growing mountain of waste. While the national government is pushing an ambitious solar power programme for India, it has, so far, failed to put in a mechanism to address the problem of waste, including environmentally hazardous materials, from solar photovoltaic panels that can be hazardous to the...

India's power demand soars to a new high on May 8

KOLKATA: India’s power demand soared to a record high on May 8, around four months before consumption is usually the highest in a year. Hot weather, better access to electricity and smoother supply during the ongoing elections led to an increase in maximum demand to an estimated 178.25 GW, higher than 177.02 GW recorded on September 18 last year. But supply during the day was...

Union Secy reviews latest power restoration situation in Odisha MAY 13

Restoration of power connection in cyclone-ravaged areas in Puri, Khordha, Nayagarh, Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapara and Cuttack has been expedited following coordinated work between the Centre and the State. Union Secretary of Energy and Telecommunications Ajoy Kumar Bhalla had a review meeting today with Chief Secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi at the State Secretariat where a decision was taken to expedi...

Bhalla's comment is at odds with the near-unanimous view that state distribution companies are responsible for their financial mess. May 13, 2019,

New Delhi: Union power secretary Ajay Bhalla has said state distribution companies cannot be blamed for rising debt and dues. These discoms have improved their operational efficiency, but state regulators in some cases have not allowed electricity tariffs to keep pace with inputs costs, he told ET in an interview. Bhalla’s comment is at odds with...

50 US coal power plants shut under Trump May 10, 2019

Washington: Fifty coal-fired power plants have shut in the United States since President Donald Trump came to office two years ago, an environmental organization said Thursday. The Sierra Club counted 50 closures, along with 51 announcements of closure, since Trump was sworn into office in January 2017.  The numbers are distinct because it sometimes takes years betwe...

OPINION: Back to the broken future in electricity There is clear lack of political will to arrest runway revenue leakage in distribution across states May 09, 2019

New Delhi: Credit rating agency Crisil has projected that total debt overhang of state power distribution utilities would rise to Rs 2.6 lakh crore soon. The debts of the distribution companies (discoms) have soared despite the much-heralded scheme to turn utility finances around, the Ujwal Discom Assurance Yojana, UDAY, which evidently has come a cropper.  There is ...