US government funds pilot project for heated sand energy storage
The US Department of Energy is funding a pilot project to demonstrate the commercial viability of storing energy in heated sand, which is capable of producing 135 MW of power for five days.
Amazon Web Services helps Duke Energy complete power flow studies in hours, not months
Adding residential solar or commercial-scale electric vehicle chargers on a utility’s distribution feeder may require the utility to conduct power flow calculations. Duke Energy can now complete those studies in hours, an Amazon executive said at a policy forum held by ACORE.
Puerto Rico distributed solar rises to 680 MW, residential storage to 1.6 GWh
While distributed solar and storage are advancing quickly in Puerto Rico, utility-scale solar and storage procurements ordered by regulators in 2020 have made little progress.
Native American tribes to back 1-3 GW of renewables to replace hydro dams
Four Native American tribes, two US states and the US government have agreed to work together to replace the energy now produced by hydroelectric dams.
Lobbyists call for more front-of-meter solar in California
California should put front-of-the-meter distributed solar on an equal footing with transmission-connected utility-scale solar and behind-the-meter solar, say several US advocacy groups.
Reconductor existing transmission to ‘unlock’ renewables, says UC Berkeley study
Large-scale reconductoring of existing transmission lines could cost-effectively double transmission capacity within existing rights-of-way, a study says. Renewable energy projects near reconductored transmission lines could more easily interconnect.
California to use flexible appliances for renewable energy integration
California plans to shift 3 GW of load from dirtier, more expensive times of day to cleaner, less expensive times by setting flexible demand standards for many types of electric appliances. Global interest in California’s work is high, according to a state agency commissioner.
Grid-forming inverters can enable grids with renewables
As renewable energy generation grows, demand is rising for grid-forming inverters to deliver the same functions as traditional rotating synchronous generators. The UNIFI Consortium is now taking the lead in advancing the development of this new inverter technology.
Solar industry should focus on virtual power plants, says US official
Solar industry veteran Jigar Shah, the director of the US Department of Energy’s (DoE) Loan Programs Office, says that virtual power plants are the path to success, as solar net metering now faces an uncertain future.
US green hydrogen production can be profitable
Green hydrogen projects can be profitable in “wide swaths” of the United States, supported by new federal tax credits for clean hydrogen, according to a financial modeling analysis by the policy consultancy Energy Innovation.
