Smart Grid: On the Money
How much will a smart grid cost? It’s a question that has gained importance in light of massive cost overruns for one highly touted U.S. project.
Archive: Smart Grid
The Value of a Knowledge-Based Culture Grows in Lean Times
Given delays and cancellations of new generating capacity, pushing the existing power generation fleet is more important than ever. At ELECTRIC POWER 2009, multiple presentations explored the premise that an active knowledge management strategy — requiring a blend of digital and human elements unique to each power plant — will help you extract the most productivity from your assets.
California to Implement Ice-Based Utility-Scale Distributed Energy Storage
The Southern California Public Power Authority (SCPPA), which represents 11 municipal utilities, today announced it would undertake what it called the “nation’s first cost-effective, utility-scale distributed energy storage project.” The 53-MW project will use several rooftop ice-storage units from Ice Energy to reduce the state’s peak electrical demand by shifting as much as 64 GWh of on-peak electrical consumption to off-peak periods every year.
Carbon-Cutting Solution: Dynamic Demand Technology
Once upon a time, climate change felt like a distant threat on the horizon. Now it is happening in front of our very eyes. Across the world, global warming is sparking more intense heat waves, more flooding, and more droughts. If climate change continues at its current pace, the social, environmental, and economic costs don’t […]
The Smart Grid Has a Growth Spurt
Which country has the smartest grid? Which U.S. state has the most smart meters? What’s Google got to do with the grid? Answers to these questions and more can be found in our web exclusives. Here’s a taste of what you’ll find online.
A New Foundation for Future Growth
As the economy begins to grow again, the banking industry continues to stabilize, and lawmakers work on finalizing climate change legislation, the decisions made in 2010 will lay the foundation for the power industry for decades to come.
A New Regulatory and Environmental Milieu
There will be no shortage of important issues to keep utility executives and their staffs busy throughout 2010. Few of these will be surprises, although a number will emerge quickly and assume larger-than-life significance. The confluence of the great recession and the sturm und drang of environmental legislation will create the liveliest of the debates, but more subtle trends will drive additional stressors. The results of Black & Veatch’s 2009 fourth annual industry strategic directions survey can offer guidance as to how these issues will affect the industry in the coming year.
My Top 10 Predictions for 2010
David Letterman has entertained us with his "Late Show" Top Ten list since 1985. In keeping with this issue’s theme of forecasting the future of the power industry, I’m going to step out with my top 10 list of what to expect in the next 12 months. 10. New Nuclear Will Progress Slowly. I don’t […]
Which Country’s Grid Is the Smartest?
The U.S. isn’t the only country evaluating and implementing elements of smart grid technology. In fact, it could be argued that other nations are much farther along the path to a comprehensive, technically advanced system for integrating renewables, managing load, and creating a more flexible power grid.
What Do Customers Expect from the Smart Grid?
Xcel Energy’s SmartGridCity enterprise in Boulder, Colo., is one of the most talked-about smart grid projects. Here’s what some Boulder utility customers are saying about it.
