Aging Transmission Grids are a Major Bottleneck for Renewable Energy Expansion

Brian McCowan, Zondits staff, 5/9/2023 CNBC’s fourth installment in their series on the U.S. power grid reports that renewable energy projects are waiting in lines longer than those for a Taylor Swift concert. According to the article, wind and solar project wait lines are often years long as power grid infrastructures struggle to accommodate the … Read more

Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Launches New Grid Initiative

Mark D’Antonio, Zondits staff, 2/7/22. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law passed in 2021 authorizes substantial funding for transmission line improvements to facilitate the clean energy transition in the U.S. Enabled by this law, the Department of Energy (DOE) recently announced a new initiative called Building a Better Grid that commences a process to assess and upgrade … Read more

Texas Sea Turtles Cold-Stunned Alongside Grid Integrity

Taylor Patterson, ERS, 3/5/21. The energy crisis in Texas left thousands of people stranded without power, food, and resources, exemplifying how reliable energy sources and a resilient grid are necessary to withstand natural disasters. However, a new story out of Texas showcases grid resiliency as not only essential for humans, but for animals as well. … Read more

Virtual Power Plant on the Horizon for PGE Customers

This article was published on energycentral.com on July 1, 2020. Portland General Electric Company (NYSE: POR) is set to launch a pilot program that will incentivize installation and connection of 525 residential energy storage batteries that PGE will dispatch, contributing up to four megawatts of energy to PGE’s grid. The distributed assets will create a … Read more

Flexibility Services Could Introduce New Players to Energy Sector

Originally published on greentechmedia.com on June 24, 2020. A collaboration between Vodafone and Energy Web is evidence that an emerging flexibility services opportunity is luring new players to the energy sector, insiders believe. The mobile giant and the energy blockchain leader last month announced a partnership to use subscriber identification module (SIM) technology as a … Read more

Ask the Expert: What is a Virtual Power Plant, or VPP? (Part 1)

Written by Jeff Perkins, ERS In this two-part series, Zondits will explore virtual power plants as an emerging technology that serves as a dynamic and boundless collection of resources. Part 1 will focus on defining what exactly a VPP is and how it is unique from the common microgrid concept. Part 2, brought to us … Read more

Maximizing Grid Energy Storage in Nantucket

This article was originally published on PNNL on Oct. 9, 2019. NANTUCKET, Mass. –  With the simple cutting of a ribbon this week, residents of Nantucket Island, joined by state and local officials and representatives from National Grid, the U.S Department of Energy’s Office of Electricity (OE), and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), ushered in … Read more

DERs Boost Grid Efficiency

This article was originally published on utilitydive.com on 9/23/19. The power system’s growing need for flexible load and customers’ rising demand for backup power are driving new partnerships between utilities and providers of customer-sited resources across the Northeast. Vermont’s Green Mountain Power (GMP) is leading this transition toward distributed energy resources (DER) as grid assets. But others are … Read more

Renewables and the Grid: What Happens Beyond 40%?

renewables

German electricity transmission CEO: ‘80% renewables is no problem’ Euractiv, June 8, 2016 When it comes to Germany’s switch to renewables, the speed at which it is happening is often said to be too fast. Is that right? We see ourselves as the Energiewende‘s guinea pigs. Our network in the north-east covers about a third … Read more