Advanced Energy Perspectives

This guest post is provided by Navigant Research.

For those in the know, energy storage price points have been a big topic of discussion. As more batteries energy storage systems (BESSs) are installed and continue to operate, concerns about whether batteries can safely and reliably perform in grid-connected energy storage applications are eliminated. But, while it is true that BESS costs continue to come down, this is just one piece of the energy storage market development puzzle.

This post was originally published on Energized, CPS Energy's blog, and is reposted here with permission.

“Architecture specific, vendor neutral.”

That was the key message from Raiford Smith, CPS Energy’s vice-president of corporate development and planning, to more than two dozen companies, ranging from Fortune 500 firms like Microsoft, Siemens, AT&T, Verizon and Rackspace, to fast-growing, new-energy economy companies like Omnetric, EnerNOC, OPower and Nest Labs, which gathered in San Antonio recently to discuss potential partnerships.

A Guest Post from Clean Edge.

As the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) prepares for July 29-Aug 1 listening sessions on its Clean Power Plan for existing power plants, a new report from Ceres and Clean Edge ranks the nation’s largest electric utilities and their local subsidiaries on their renewable energy sales and energy efficiency savings. The report finds that an increasing number of utilities are deploying lower carbon fuel sources, and that state policies can be a key driver in that performance.

This guest post is provided by Navigant Research. The author, Mackinnon Lawrence, is a research director leading Navigant Research’s Smart Energy program.

The power sector is undergoing a fundamental transformation, from a centralized hub-and-spoke grid architecture, based on large centralized generation assets like coal-fired power plants, toward an increasingly decentralized electrical grid that makes use of renewable, distributed energy resources (DER). This shift away from traditional power plants encompasses a diverse suite of technologies that go beyond DER. Energy storage, energy efficiency, demand response, and the advanced software and enabling hardware that enable greater interoperability across heterogeneous grid elements are all key components of the emerging energy cloud. 

This guest post is provided by AEE Member company Recargo, which hosted an AEE webinar on policies for advancing plug-in car technology.

Electric vehicles have zero tailpipe emissions, are more energy efficient, and deliver a better driving experience than gasoline-fueled vehicles. But the value of an electric vehicle goes well beyond the parking lot or freeway: the battery packs that enable an electric vehicle’s range can also be a huge resource for our electricity grid.