Affordable, reliable electricity is fundamental to modern life. It provides clean, safe light around the clock, cools our homes in summer and heats many in winter, and powers the digital world we rely on through our smartphones and computers. Although hundreds of millions of Americans use electricity every day, most of us don’t think twice …
News Tag: Electricity
Winter storm tests US electric grid as outages spread
A severe winter storm pushed the U.S. power grid to its limits as outages spread and demand surged. During peak conditions, natural gas, nuclear, and coal supplied nearly 90% of PJM’s electricity, while wind contributed less than 5%. The event highlighted the grid’s continued reliance on dependable, dispatchable power during extreme weather. …
Reusing coal mine transformers for resilient rural power
Today’s rural grid reliability is looking toward legacy equipment. Utilising repurposed coal mine transformers unlocks tremendous economic value and pays respect to the mining industry’s foundational contributions. Adapting these mighty systems for cleaner purposes demonstrates innovative adaptation and and carves a path toward reliable electricity generation. …
Higher Electricity Costs and Coal Retirements
PJM, the largest electric grid operator in the nation,conducts an auction annually to ensure that its 13-state region has sufficient electricgenerating capacity − roughly speaking, enough power plants − to meet its future electricitydemand. The purpose of the recent auction was to procure generating capacity for 2025/26.The most striking thing about the auction was the …
Two-minute descent: Enlow Fork Mine tour offers rare glimpse into ‘underground city’
At the start of their shift, the coal miners working on Enlow Fork Mine’s H-3 longwall section step into a black steel elevator and descend 800 feet underground, where they walk out through a heavy airlock door and into a part of the earth that few people ever see. It’s a two-minute trip to the …