The North American Power industry had a "roller-coaster" year in 2011, driven by an "onslaught" of new regulations from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) (Washington, D.C), according to Brock Ramey, Industrial Info's manager of North American Power. But the industry's project spending rose in 2011 to about $76 billion, and further gains are expected in 2012 and beyond as big-ticket items like the Vogtle and Summer nuclear expansion projects are scheduled to begin construction.