GAS TURBINE DESIGN 54 The T-Point Plant: The Ultimate Validation Test Automakers have long used test facilities and remote test tracks to work the bugs out of new models before they hit showrooms for sale to customers. For turbine makers, " real-world " testing is rather more complicated thanks to the greater size, cost, and complexity of the product involved. Mitsubishi Heavy Industries' (MHI's) solution has been to develop " house plants " that serve as pre-launch test facilities. MHI shared details of its latest turbine tests with POWER. COMBUSTION TURBINES 54 56 Selecting Your Next Combustion Turbine Gas turbines are winning most valuable player awards around the globe. But before you leap into the purchase of a new combustion turbine, take a look at this article to be sure you've considered all your options and have compiled a comprehensive list of questions for potential vendors. The answers should help you choose the best equipment for your needs. PLANT ECONOMICS 62 A More Accurate Way to Calculate the Cost of Electricity You might think that economic equations are more or less eternal, but that's not the case-at least, not when it comes to calculating the true cost of generating electricity in this day and age. A new approach will give you a more accurate picture of today's operating environment. DEPARTMENTS SPEAKING OF POWER 6 Turning Gold into Lead GLOBAL MONITOR 56 8 Seven Charged in Siberian Hydropower Plant Accident 8 Recovery Efforts Continue at Fukushima Daiichi 9 Germany Considers Accelerated Nuclear Exit on Fukushima Worries 10 Countries Abandon Subsidies for Renewables en Masse 12 Battery That Extracts Energy from Water Salinity Difference 14 POWER Digest FOCUS ON O&M 16 NERC CIP Update 16 Air Preheater Uses New Adaptive Brush-Sealing Design 20 Twin Pac Controls Upgraded LEGAL & REGULATORY 22 Reliability Challenges Cause Texas-Size Headache By Angela Neville, JD 66 NEW PRODUCTS COMMENTARY 9 2 72 U.S. Nuclear Operations in a Post-Fukushima World By Kathryn M. Sutton and Stephen J. Burdick, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP www.powermag.com POWER | June 2011http://www.powermag.com