Renewables

Digest (December 2014)

NRG Energy and MGM Resorts International completed installation of the world's largest rooftop solar array on a convention center;

Southern California Edison on November 5 announced the largest purchase of grid-connected energy storage in U.S. history. NRG Energy acquired Pure Energies Group; Duke Energy Progress filed with FERC for approval to purchase $1.2 billion in generating assets;

The U.S. Department of Energy authorized Bechtel to resume engineering work at a facility that will treat some of the nation's liquid radioactive waste; Burns & McDonnell plans to develop a grid stability awareness system;

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced the launch of New York's first energy management network operations center. And others...

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Digest (Oct 2014)

Vattenfall awards Siemens Energy contract for wind turbines; Minnesota Power to build solar energy array at Minnesota National Guard Camp Ripley; Echelon agrees to sell grid operations to S&T AG; DTE Energy teams with Ford Motor Company to build Michigan’s largest solar array.
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A Greener Standard Offer

A new model to help restructured states add renewables to the default service portfolio.

By taking the intermittent supply of the renewable generator out of the generator’s compensation, the developer (and lenders) receive the stability they crave while supply customers avoid products they do not need.
Byline: 

Michael R. Strong

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Fueling America's Economic Engine

New energy economy also relies on some old fossil friends.

It has not been public investments in sustainable fuels and modern tools that have led to the re-awakening of the U.S. economy. Rather, it’s been mostly private investment in shale gas development that has led to new capital formation, infrastructure development and jobs galore.
Byline: 

 Ken Silverstein

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Digest (Sept 2014)

Duke Energy Progress agreed to purchase $1.2 billion in generating assets from North Carolina Eastern Municipal Power Agency; ABB won a $400 million order that would create the first electricity link between Newfoundland and the North American power grid; Siemens Energy secured an order for a total capacity of 36 MW in Germany; NextEra Energy Partners’ Bluewater Wind Energy Center in Ontario began commercial operation; the Department of Energy took the first step toward issuing a $150 million loan guarantee to support construction of the Cape Wind offshore wind project; and others ...
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Digest (August 2014)

Florida Power & Light Company partners with PetroQuest Energy to develop natural gas production wells in southeastern Oklahoma; First Solar receives financing approval to build a 141-MW solar power plant in Chile; DTE Energy will deploy Tollgrade’s LightHouse MV smart grid sensors and predictive grid analytics platform within its distribution network in Detroit; US DOE chooses Abengoa, together with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and the Colorado School of Mines, to develop a new solar storage technology for thermoelectric plants.
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The End of an Age

Survival in the new market requires embracing new technologies and practices.

New technologies are opening the utility domain to innovation and competition. Traditional utilities will shrink as outsourcing providers and competitors grow. Survival in this new market requires embracing new technologies and practices.
Byline: 

Charles E. Bayless

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Toward a 21st Century Grid

Producing value with advanced distribution management systems.

Changing demands from regulators, customers, and shareholders are driving utilities toward better operational technologies to manage an increasingly complex grid. Advanced distribution management systems (ADMS) promise nearly real-time operational insight for maintaining reliability, safety, and security.
Byline: 

Nicholas Abi-Samra, et al.

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Customer First

Is the current regulatory compact in anyone’s best interests?

Serving customers’ needs should be a top priority for power companies, irrespective of the regulatory construct and business model. Transformation doesn’t change this basic fact, but how do we break the model without breaking the system?
Byline: 

Charles Dickerson, Darren Brady, and Jamie Wimberly

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Reinventing the Grid

How to find a future that works.

The traditional central-station grid is evolving toward a more distributed architecture, accommodating a variety of resources spread out across the network. An open and thoughtful planning approach will allow an orderly transition to an integrated system – while fostering innovation among a wider range of industry players.
Byline: 

Michael T. Burr

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