Hitachi ABB Power Grids’ battery storage to be used at 214MW industrial microgrid in Thailand
Battery energy storage system (BESS) and controls technology will be provided to a “smart industrial park” project in Thailand by Hitachi ABB Power Grids.
Articles tagged with: Distributed Energy Resources
LS Power buys distributed energy infrastructure group GI Energy and its New York battery projects
US power and energy infrastructure developer, investor and operator LS Power has bought up GI Energy, a provider of clean energy solutions for commercial and industrial (C&I) customers with projects spanning the east and west coasts.
Supermarket chain in offtake deal for Convergent’s New York community solar-plus-storage portfolio
Energy storage developer Convergent Energy + Power has signed a long-term agreement with grocery store chain Tops Friendly Market for three large-scale community solar-plus-storage facilities in upstate New York.
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Editor's blog
From customers’ homes to utility portfolios: Inside Swell Energy’s new virtual power plant reality
In the first part of this interview with Swell Energy CEO Suleman Khan we heard about how Swell Energy has been working to ‘productise’ the virtual power plant proposition: making it attractive to utilities and to their end-customers and then wrapping that into a long-term agreement. This time out, we speak to Suleman about some of the finer details of the VPP proposition and where he thinks the market is heading.
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Editor's blog
Time to take virtual power plants seriously: Swell Energy creates asset class from customer assets
As society moves away from centralised fossil fuel generators to increasing shares of distributed renewable energy resources, the idea that customers’ homes could become host to virtual power plants (VPPs), joining the dots between electricity supply and demand across the grid, has gradually gathered traction. Andy Colthorpe speaks with Suleman Khan CEO of Swell Energy, which has raised nearly half a billion dollars in financing for solar-plus-storage VPPs in 14,000 homes across California, New York and Hawaii.
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Guest blog
Energy security in climate disasters: From Texas’ unheeded lessons to customer-sited reserves
How do electric grids that were state-of-the-art in the 19th Century remain stable and resilient through 21st Century climate disasters and other problems? They don't, says Catherine Von Burg, CEO and co-founder of distributed battery energy storage company SimpliPhi Power - but giving people the power to be independent can be a solution fit for the future.
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Editor's blog
Texas blackouts and the role energy storage can play in a more resilient future
Texas’ grid and the idiosyncrasies of its electricity planning system regime made global headlines in February following a harsh winter storm and subsequent blackouts that affected millions of people and businesses for almost an entire week. It may be a unique market with unique characteristics, but what wider role can batteries — and other energy storage technologies — play in assisting the grid to remain stable and prevent a situation like this from happening again?
California amends grid mapping process to make it easier to site distributed energy resources
The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) has amended aspects of its grid transparency tool to make it easier to deploy energy storage solutions in the state, following a motion from the Interstate Renewable Energy Council (IREC).
University microgrid simulators fitted out with equipment from Hitachi ABB Power Grids and AEG
Microgrid simulation facilities at universities in Germany and Australia are being supplied with technical solutions by major global power equipment and systems providers AEG Power Solutions and Hitachi ABB Power Grids.
Eaton teams up with EV charging specialist to create virtual power plant offering
Distributed energy storage systems made by power management company Eaton will be able to participate in grid balancing markets through integration with a virtual power plant (VPP) platform developed by electric vehicle (EV) charging equipment provider Virta.
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Guest blog
Understanding interconnection of distributed energy resources (DERs)
DERs interconnected with the grid position a utility to better manage peak demand, avoid transmission overloads and keep electricity flowing, but interconnection of battery, solar and other DERs is not without its challenges. Jason Allnutt from IEEE Standards Association discusses a standard that has become an "essential resource" for stakeholders.
Home batteries given chance to trade electricity services by Australian Energy Market Operator
A new three-year project allowing residential solar and batteries to trade electricity and grid services in Victoria, Australia, is aimed at creating a replicable model marketplace that could be widely expanded across the country.
US solar and storage event hears of financing hurdles, call for standalone ITC
Barriers to financing for energy storage could hold back the growth of solar in the US, while an Investment Tax Credit (ITC) for standalone energy storage should be introduced, the audience heard as our publisher Solar Media hosted the Solar and Storage Finance USA event last week.
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Editor's blog
Lessons in energy storage from the grid edge: Maxine Ghavi, Hitachi ABB Power Grids
Maxine Ghavi, head of grid edge solutions at Hitachi ABB Power Grids speaks to Energy-Storage.news about the role of battery storage in the global energy transition.
Siemens, Macquarie team up for new US distributed energy joint venture
Siemens and Macquarie Group have created a new joint venture that will develop distributed energy resources such as solar and battery storage for US corporations and institutions.
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Guest blog
Raising standards for interconnecting renewables across the US: Utility Commissions Q&A with IEEE
Within the US, different jurisdictions are at different points of DER adoption and interconnection: Ravi Subramaniam at IEEE asks commissioners from across the country about the different drivers and dynamics they see.
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Guest blog
The long-awaited IEEE standard that paves the way for more energy storage on a smarter grid
A newly released standard creates nationally applicable guidance for DER manufacturers on how grid support functions in their products will be tested. Brian Lydic, chief regulatory engineer at the Interstate Renewable Energy Council (IREC), talks about what this means for enabling the grid modernisation that will be needed to support high levels of renewable energy and energy storage.
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Interviews
Kiwi Power: Now’s the time to take ‘decarbonisation-enabling’ VPP platform into North America
Bringing a proven, flexible, virtual power plant (VPP) platform into North America is a step towards “unleashing the potential” of distributed energy, the chief commercial officer of UK-headquartered solutions provider Kiwi Power says.
‘Flexibility over power’: First move into US for Kiwi Power, UK distributed energy platform provider
UK-headquartered distributed energy services provider Kiwi Power has made its first official expansion into the US, operating in the ERCOT market of Texas and planning a further step into the PJM Interconnection service area.
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Guest blog
Optimising DERs: Artificial intelligence and the modern grid
The optimal integration of distributed energy resources such as solar, battery storage and smart thermostats becomes an ever-more complex and pressing question. Rahul Kar, general manager and VP for New Energy at AutoGrid Systems looks at the role artificial intelligence can play in smarter energy networks.
QCELLS invests in Australian DER software company SwitchDin
QCELLS has invested AU$5 million (US$3.45 million) in SwitchDin, an Australian distributed energy resources (DERs) software company that offers capabilities including virtual power plant aggregation and microgrid-forming.
IREC publishes guide for assessing economic and environment benefits of distribution grid upgrades
A new guide has been published in the US to “help stakeholders assure prudent use of funds by electric utilities” when it comes to upgrading the distribution grid.
Microgrids for EV charging are a ‘low carbon, resilient, economically viable opportunity’
Moving from today’s gas stations to their electrified equivalent can present a challenge so “dramatic” that in some cases, microgrids may be the only viable solution, a representative of Schneider Electric has said.
European grid operators launch blockchain-based flexibility platform
Three European Transmission System Operators (TSO) have collaborated to launch a new, blockchain-based flexibility platform, Equigy.
‘Interconnection rules for energy storage are a work in progress’, even in the US’ leading states
Even the US states leading in energy storage market development still have work to do when it comes to adopting the best and lowest-cost grid interconnection procedures, an expert in regulatory affairs at the Interstate Renewable Energy Council (IREC), has said.
California deserves better than ‘draconian’ wildfire shutoffs, SimpliPhi CEO says
Power shut-offs affecting millions in California, enacted by utilities Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) and Southern California Edison to prevent wildfires and their spreading, are a “draconian” measure and don’t address the real problems, SimpliPhi Power CEO Catherine Von Burg has said.
Grid-planning needs to incorporate, not accommodate, distributed energy resources
Energy-Storage.news spoke with Samir Succar, a director and DER analyst at consultancy group ICF, shortly after he spoke on a panel at Solar Power International / Energy Storage International in Utah.
Almost 4GW of virtual power plants are in operation worldwide, Navigant says
Navigant Research has created a definition for virtual power plants (VPPs) in the course of creating a market report which finds that nearly 4GW of such projects are already in operation, with rapid growth forecasted over the next decade.
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Editor's blog
Australia’s solar states defying the government coal train
Make no mistake - headlines in the mainstream press this week around Australia, climate change and energy are not positive. But enthusiasm at state level, where arguably politicians have closer relationships with their constituents, appears to run counter to apathy or even obstructionism from the top.
Blackrock buys 80% stake in GE’s distributed solar and storage business
The new business will design, build, own and operate distributed solar and storage solutions for industrial, commercial and public-service customers.