INTERSTATE RENEWABLE ENERGY COUNCIL (IREC)
In recent years, new technologies have emerged on the customer side of the electric system, including distributed energy resources (DER) such as distributed generation, energy efficiency, electric vehicles, energy storage and demand response technologies, among others. These technologies are allowing growing numbers of energy consumers to decrease their electricity demand, act as energy producers and otherwise manage their energy usage…Together, these compounding factors have driven the movement toward a more modern grid that enables significant increases in the amount of clean energy produced; universal consumer access and facilitation of consumer choice, including the adoption of DER; integrated resource planning; two-way flow of energy and information; and increased reliability, security and resiliency.
Archive for the ‘Energy’ Category
Easing the Transition to a More Distributed Electricity System
Friday, March 6th, 2015Iowa Infrastructure: ASCE 2015 Report Card
Tuesday, March 3rd, 2015
AMERICAN SOCIETY OF CIVIL ENGINEERS
IOWA SECTION
The 2015 Report Card for Iowa’s Infrastructure has been prepared to acquaint Iowans with the extent, condition and importance of the capital assets that support modern life. It is hoped that this information, along with the grades, will encourage awareness of and concern for these often under-appreciated facilities. Iowa’s ASCE members hope that the grades will alert citizens, media agencies, business leaders, and elected officials to the needs of the infrastructure and induce a commitment to giving it proper care and upkeep.
Wind Energy Helps Build a More Reliable and Balanced Electricity Portfolio
Wednesday, February 25th, 2015
AMERICAN WIND ENERGY ASSOCIATION
Some of the most common questions about wind energy focus on how wind can be reliably integrated into the power system. A key source of confusion is that, contrary to most people’s intuitive experience that winds are variable and electricity demand and supply is stable, the opposite is actually true at the grid operator scale. The following report answers 15 of the most frequently asked questions with lessons learned from grid operators’ experiences reliably integrating large amounts of wind. Concise answers to these questions are provided here in the executive summary, while citations and explanations of the supporting data and analysis for those answers can be found by following the hyperlinks to the relevant sections of the full report below.
Fuel Cell Buses in U.S. Transit Fleets
Thursday, February 19th, 2015
NATIONAL RENEWABLE ENERGY LABORATORY
This report, published annually, summarizes the progress of fuel cell electric bus (FCEB) development in the United States and discusses the achievements and challenges of introducing fuel cell propulsion in transit.
EPA’s Clean Power Plan and Reliability
Monday, February 16th, 2015
THE BRATTLE GROUP
The United States (“U.S.”) power system is undergoing a fundamental transformation, largely driven by advances in technology and low natural gas prices. This transformation is putting significant pressure on existing coal-fired and even nuclear generation, increasingly leads to renewable energy resources being cost-competitive with fossil-fired generation, and results in myriad choices for consumers that promise to permanently alter the role of demand in the power system. As a consequence, the fuel mix and associated emissions of the U.S. power system are changing rapidly, as are the actions taken by system operators to manage the quickly evolving electric system.
Cabazon, CA: Nestlé Sets Up a Wind Turbine
Tuesday, February 10th, 2015
Nestlé Waters North America’s contribution to the CSV Film Festival Season 2
Category: Environmental Performance
2015 Strategic Directions: Smart Utility Report
Monday, February 2nd, 2015
BLACK & VEATCH
Now more than ever, the increasing use of technology offers utility operators greater understanding of their networks and how customers consume power, water, natural gas and data. Forecasting historically required large teams to examine past operations and create an operations snapshot, often long in the past. Now, predictive analytics, or Adaptive Planning, is redefining how complex systems can be managed through rapid analysis of real-time information.
Boston: Methane Emissions from Natural Gas Infrastructure
Thursday, January 29th, 2015
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA (PNAS)
Most recent analyses of the environmental impact of natural gas have focused on production, with very sparse information on emissions from distribution and end use. This study quantifies the full seasonal cycle of methane emissions and the fractional contribution of natural gas for the urbanized region centered on Boston. Emissions from natural gas are found to be two to three times larger than predicted by existing inventory methodologies and industry reports. Our findings suggest that natural-gas–consuming regions may be larger sources of methane to the atmosphere than is currently estimated and represent areas of significant resource loss.
Going Solar in America: Ranking Solar Value to Consumers
Monday, January 26th, 2015
Most Americans are unaware of the true financial value of solar today. Seen by many as a technological luxury, solar energy is not seriously considered as an option by most homeowners in the U.S. However, our analysis shows that, in 46 of America’s 50 largest cities, a fully-financed, typically-sized solar PV system is a better investment than the stock market, and in 42 of these cities, the same system already costs less than energy from a residential customer’s local utility…So why aren’t more Americans investing in solar? There is a clear information gap, and with this report, we intend to open the eyes of average homeowners by showing that solar can generate both significant monthly savings and long-term investment value, and not infrequently, cost less than energy from some of America’s largest electric utilities.
View this complete post...Wind Energy Saves Consumers Money
Monday, January 12th, 2015
AMERICAN WIND ENERGY ASSOCIATION
Wind energy’s consumer benefits stem from wind energy’s fuel price stability. Wind is one of the few energy sources that offers perfect fuel price stability that can be locked in up front, as wind’s fuel cost will always be zero. For all other major conventional sources of electricity, fuel prices cannot be locked in for the long term and are often set by the spot market. The costs of these fuel price increases and risk are passed directly on to consumers through their electric bills. In contrast, wind energy is more like a fixed-rate mortgage, locking in the fuel price for the life of the power plant.
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