Perspective

“NARUC recognized the need to establish separate rules for small generators that don’t require the same level of engineering analysis to ensure they will maintain grid safety and reliability.”

“The utility sector has managed this hyper-growth environment since 2020 with strong tailwinds creating impetus. However, a range of headwinds could derail this continuing trajectory as more uncontrollable factors emerge, and continuing dynamics create new impacts.”

“While VPPs, utility DERMS, and grid-edge DER orchestration platforms arose as related but distinct, they are converging. This article explores how and why the lines separating these solutions are disappearing, what a future steady state might look like, and what this means for utility investments in load flexibility.”

Conversation on the role of geothermal as a round-the-clock renewable and heating/cooling solution.

“Clean capital efficiency, which is leveraging technology to drive higher efficiency and utilization of existing and new system assets, is a valuable part of the picture and an important way to help alleviate rate pressure.”

“Being the first to blend hydrogen at this level on an advanced-class turbine is a major innovation. The most significant outcome is that we proved it can be done and we did so while maintaining rigorous safety standards and operational reliability.”

“The idea is simple: rather than turning a plant down during off-peak hours, it keeps operating efficiently, and the excess heat from that unit is stored in the concrete to be utilized later when peaking power is needed on the grid.”

“SMUD is providing a model for other public utilities to follow, showing that decarbonization can be done in a way that benefits everyone and is economically feasible with grants and partnerships.”

“Using LiDAR and satellite imagery for vegetation management isn’t new. What’s new is combining that with all available outage history, tree coverage and microclimate data so we can align crews and dollars where they’ll have the most impact.”

“What was noteworthy was building a process, but also the supporting tools that I could get the field to adopt readily within a matter of days, overcoming the organizational change management hurdle normally faced in BlueSky conditions.”