distributed generation
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Commentary
Why Smarter Interconnection Must Power the Next Phase of Solar Growth
The demand for distributed generation (DG) solar has never been higher, yet many projects are getting stuck before they even break ground. The problem is utility interconnection. For community or net metered solar systems in the 1 MW to 5 MW range, in particular, the utility’s review of whether the grid can handle new power […]
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Distributed Energy
Central Theme for Energy’s Future: Decentralizing Power Generation
The use of distributed energy resources (DERs) will continue to grow as utilities, businesses, and residential neighborhoods look for ways to balance the power grid and support more reliable and resilient
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Interview
The POWER Interview: Driving the Development of Distributed Generation
The use of distributed energy resources (DERs), which can include solar panels, wind turbines, batteries, fuel cells, and more, is increasing as the power generation sector becomes more decentralized. The future of the distributed energy generation market is promising, as more commercial and industrial customers, along with residential electricity users, look for cleaner sources of […]
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Energy Security
Cuba Hit by Nationwide Blackout, Restoration Achieved in 24 Hours
Cuba suffered another massive blackout on Wednesday, Dec. 4—the latest in a series of devastating grid disruptions that have plagued the island in recent years. While authorities reported swift restoration—completed just after midnight on Dec. 5—the event has further underscored the growing strain on the island’s fragile energy system. Since 2020, Cuba has endured more […]
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Renewables
A Refined Approach to Onsite Power Generation
The Pine Bend refinery in Minnesota added a 45-MW solar power array to support the facility’s supply of electricity, reaping the benefits of reduced costs, lower emissions, and more. Owners of commercial and
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Interview
The POWER Interview: Innovation, Data-Driven Solar Solutions Key to Grid Stability
Growth in the solar power sector is being driven not only by ever-larger utility-scale farms, but also by growth in distributed generation. This smaller-scale use of solar energy is being supported as more homeowners and commercial and industrial (C&I) businesses install solar panels on rooftops, carports, parking garages and more. Distributed solar power generation is […]
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Solar
The POWER Interview: Tech-Enabled Financing Supports Solar Sector
More and more businesses are looking to use renewable energy as they set decarbonization goals, with public companies often pushed by shareholders to adopt environmental, social, and governance (ESG) initiatives. The same is true of private enterprise, as business owners look to take advantage of tax credits, rebates, and more to pursue cleaner sources of […]
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Top Plant
Pairing Solar with Linear Generators Yields a Revolutionary C&I Energy Solution
A unique hybrid energy solution that ties in a rooftop solar array and a novel linear generator technology produces all power consumed at a Lineage Logistics cold warehousing facility in Colton, California
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Energy Security
Thermal Power Plants in Cuba Struggle to Meet Demand
Since 2021, Cuba has been going through a complex situation in its national electrical system. Blackouts have been increasing, with higher incidence in recent months. Although projections predicted an
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International
Distributed Generation in Cuba: Present and Future
Distributed generation stands out in the Cuban power system, where there are hundreds of units dispersed throughout the country. In times of contingency, and as usually happens when a hurricane hits the country, distributed generation ensures the vitality of electrical service through interconnected systems in the form of “islands.” Of the slightly more than 6,000 […]
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Hybrid Power
Hybrids Combine Technologies to Enhance Electricity Production
Solar + wind, solar + storage, wind + storage—even fossil fuels combined with renewable energy—are supporting the growth of hybrid power plants that are breaking the norms of traditional power generation
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Commentary
Homeowners Learned a Lot in 2021; Here’s What They’re Looking For in 2022
The events of the past year and a half have irrevocably changed the way we live, especially at home. Pandemic-related restrictions and lifestyle changes have greatly increased the amount of time Americans spend at home—at one point, more than 50% of the population spent more than 18 hours in their homes. Rising energy costs and […]
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Interview
EY Research Highlights New Opportunities for Utilities
Demand for electricity from the residential sector rose during the first several months of the global coronavirus pandemic, as workers stayed home and students studied remotely. Researchers, using data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), said the second quarter of 2020 saw a 10% rise in residential electricity usage compared to the same months […]
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Distributed Generation
Electrification of Everything—Digital Circuit Breakers Support DER Adoption
The continued push toward electrification creates a need for technologies that provide a way to integrate distributed energy resources (DERs) into the power grid, certainly at the residential level where
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Distributed Generation
A Brave New World of Reliability: ELCC, EIMs, and DERs
Market forces and government policy are driving clean energy deployment across the U.S. at a level that could impact reliability if not carefully implemented. State regulators, independent system operators
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Commentary
Illuminating the Dark Side of the Smart Grid
The benefits of smart grid technologies and data-driven management are well understood. Using open protocols to control energy resources, extract information, and optimize responses can enable enormous productivity and stimulate new services. Similarly, the accumulation of data can inform better planning for a more resilient grid. But, as explained in “The Dark Side of the […]
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Microgrid
‘Smart Microgrid Community’ Takes Shape in Canada
Many areas across the globe are looking at providing non-traditional power to residential neighborhoods, part of a push to make a community’s electricity supply more reliable and resilient. A development in Canada is one model of what is known as a “smart microgrid community.” Elexicon Energy, the fourth largest municipally-owned electricity distributor in Ontario, along […]
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Connected Plant
A Virtual Solution to a Real Energy Problem
The need for demand response programs, particularly those that help stabilize the grid, is evident as electricity customers seek a more reliable power supply. Enter virtual power plants (VPPs), a way for
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Microgrid
Why Microgrids Are the Key to Our Carbon-Neutral Future
As we continue to work toward a more sustainable future globally, demand for renewable energy integration is increasing. This requires more flexibility in grid infrastructure and the ability to add more types
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Press Releases
Uptick in Distributed Generation Project Development Trends Continue
Business Unit Builds Momentum into Q2, 2021 HOUSTON, TX, June 28, 2021. EDPR NA Distributed Generation LLC (EDPR NA DG), the distributed business unit of EDP Renewables, kept momentum through the months of April to early June, outpacing distributed generation pipeline development and project acquisition expectations. The 11 projects which were developed and put into […]
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Microgrid
How Commercial and Industrial Facilities Benefit from On-Site Power
Commercial and industrial companies can reap many rewards by taking a more hands-on approach in sourcing power. Incorporating solar, wind, and other forms of on-site generation—including combined heat and
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Interview
The POWER Interview: Spotlight on the Solar Wave
Growth in the solar power sector is coming from many angles, with utilities building ever-larger solar arrays, and more homeowners and building owners putting panels on their rooftops. Many utilities and other companies also are expanding offerings of community solar, a way for electricity customers to get the benefits of solar power without having to […]
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Microgrid
Greenhouses and Microgrids Should Grow Together
As consumer preferences continue to shift toward purchasing locally sourced and organic produce, demand is growing for commercial greenhouses, or controlled environment agriculture (CEA), as the industry is labeled. This shift in preference to locally grown food is changing the way supermarkets and restaurants source their fruits and vegetables. COMMENTARY Many restaurants throughout the country […]
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Distributed Energy
Gearing Up for Grid Integration
The growing adoption of distributed energy resources presents another challenge for utilities and grid operators as they design and plan for how electricity is produced and delivered. The past few years have
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Interview
The POWER Interview: Utilities Find Opportunities in Distributed Energy
The growth in renewable energy, along with new forms of power generation not dependent on transmission via the traditional grid, has created new business opportunities for both legacy generators and start-up power producers. BOND, a Massachusetts-based company founded in 1907, is today a fifth-generation construction management and civil and utility general contracting firm, providing services […]
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Commentary
2020 – A New Energy Era Begins, and Storage is Key
This last year of the decade proved to be a pivotal year for energy storage technology, as major developments underscored why it is so vital for energy markets. Events such as widespread power outages and transmission issues on a global scale have led to the precipitous rise in energy storage deployments. The energy industry has […]
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Distributed Power
Ritter’s Message: Market Forces Drive Growth in Distributed Generation
Market forces are playing as much if not more of a role than regulatory policy in the transition from fossil-fueled power generation to renewables, as utilities in the U.S. and worldwide establish decarbonization goals. That was the message from Bill Ritter Jr., former governor of Colorado, during his keynote address at POWER’s Distributed Energy Conference […]
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Distributed Energy
Signal Energy Creates Subsidiary To Serve The Distributed Generation Energy Market
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn., Sept. 26, 2019 /PRNewswire/ — Signal Energy, the Chattanooga-based leading engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) firm in the renewable energy industry, has created a new subsidiary called Signal Energy DG to serve the distributed generation energy market. Distributed generation power is generated by energy sources like solar panels or wind turbines to create electricity […]
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History
A Brief History of GE Gas Turbines
July marks two important milestones that set gas-fired generation on its course to becoming a dominant form of power generation: commercial operation of the world’s first industrial gas turbine in Neuchâtel, Switzerland, in 1939, and commercial operation of the first gas turbine in the U.S. used to generate electric power—a 3.5-MW General Electric (GE) unit […]
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Connected Plant
GE Launches New Analytics Technologies to Boost Grid Efficiency
General Electric (GE) has rolled out a new portfolio of predictive analytics that could allow utilities to use data from transmission and distribution networks to achieve better operational efficiency as more distributed assets are introduced to the grid. The company on June 11 unveiled three new grid analytics—for storm readiness, network connectivity, and effective inertia—that […]