Cuttyhunk witnessed New England’s whale oil industry give way to kerosene and incandescent light bulbs. Now the tiny island is deep in another energy revolution -- reducing diesel use by way of a solar plus storage microgrid. With a $2.1 million microgrid in operation since the early spring, the fishing mecca offers good argument for pursuing … [Read more...]
The term ‘non-transmission alternative’ may sound wonky to some. But to companies that work with microgrids, distributed energy, energy efficiency and the like, it sounds like opportunity. The term refers to installing smaller, local energy technology instead of new transmission infrastracture to alleviate congestion. Several states see … [Read more...]
We hear a lot about the need for microgrids in India where remote villages lack access to the central grid. But it appears that microgrids could help out India’s central grid as well. The U.S. Energy Information Administration reported last week that India has among the world’s highest electricity line losses – the disappearance of electricity … [Read more...]
America is good at making enough electricity to serve its increasingly plugged-in economy. Ample juice is flowing. Problem is, there is no place to plug in. We are becoming a nation beset by socket insecurity. Watch the weary traveler in almost any airport, on the hunt for a charging kiosk to save his cell phone before its final tweet. … [Read more...]
An electrical socket is probably the most disinteresting technology in any home. But place a charging system in a city parking lot for the first time -- one meant for an electric vehicle -- and you’ll inevitably find people standing around marveling. And for good reason. EVs promise to radically change transportation. Creating efficient and … [Read more...]
A microgrid case study: The Annobon Island Microgrid, a reliable and cost-effective island microgrid. Annobon Province, an island off Equatorial Guinea in west central Africa, has a population of approximately 5,000 residents. The residents only have reliable electricity for up to five hours per day and spend an average of 15-20 percent of their … [Read more...]
Revolutions seem to take forever, and then happen overnight. The electric grid revolution is still in the forever stage. But California and New York covered some big ground over the last couple of weeks. The two states are moving toward a decentralized, more democratic, less monopolized electric grid, one where energy markets are open to the … [Read more...]
California's water worries prompted the state to require utilities to acquire unprecedented amounts of energy storage. Similar worries could prompt other states to support solar and storage to help ease drought problems. And that will help boost the storage and microgrid markets, says Darren Hammell, co-founder and chief strategy officer for … [Read more...]
The power flickered off four times in the 2 ½ hours that Darren Hammell waited at Cuba’s Santa Clara airport for his return flight to the United States last month. This departing experience underscored what he had learned on his trip: There is work for U.S. energy companies in the Caribbean's largest island. But how quickly that work … [Read more...]
With energy storage advancing quickly in the electric power industry, policy finds itself chasing markets. The rules of the road have yet to be sorted out, yet energy storage already is racing ahead. Energy storage companies are announcing deals, partnerships, financing, innovations and new customers almost daily. “Since 2013, the market had … [Read more...]
Peter Asmus describes findings from a new report by Navigant Research that shows market opportunity for microgrids in every region of the world. Asia Pacific is the top market, especially for remote microgrid systems.
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