For Utilities, Electric Vehicles are the New Air Conditioners

May 5, 2017 By 3 Comments
managed charging

Electric vehicles are quickly becoming one of the largest flexible loads on the grid in some areas, and the growth parallels the increase in numbers of air conditioners years ago, says a new study from the Smart Electric Power Alliance. However, the popularity of electric vehicles poses problems for utilities, which are finding that time-of-use … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Demand Response, Distributed Energy, Economics, Electric Vehicles, Google News Feed, North America, Reliability, Renewables, San Diego Gas & Electric, Storage, x ~ Sub Features Tagged With: , ,

Green & Distributed Energy Solicitations in Ontario, Hawaii, California

April 6, 2016 By Leave a Comment

Hawaii, Ontario and California have green and distributed energy solicitations in various stages of planning or action, some directly tied to microgrid and smart grid efforts. Hawaii Hawaiian Electric Companies recently laid out a near-term path toward its 30-year goal to achieve 100 percent renewable energy. Called the Power Supply … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Google News Feed, Infrastructure, Markets, Microgrids, Military, News, North America, Players, Regions, Renewables, Resources, RFPs, San Diego Gas & Electric, Storage, Utility Tagged With: , , ,

The Electric Vehicle as a Power Plant: A California Utility Shows How it’s Done

February 25, 2015 By 9 Comments

For years we’ve heard about a future where our cars become sort of like mini-power plants. And now San Diego Gas & Electric is showing how it’s done. The California utility has begun bidding resources from a group of electric vehicles and energy storage systems into the state’s wholesale power market. The pilot program, one of the first … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Google News Feed, Infrastructure, Markets, North America, Players, Regions, San Diego Gas & Electric, Storage, Uncategorized, Wholesale, x ~ Sub Features Tagged With: , , ,

Microgrids, SDG&E and NRG Demonstrate the Future

February 20, 2015 By Leave a Comment
microgrid

Jill Feblowitz, of IDC Energy Insights, explains why utilities might want to "lift the hood" to see the workings of the Borrego Springs Microgrid. Momentum is building for alternative utility business models, and California is once again a leading state. The California Energy Commission (CEC) just awarded San Diego Gas & Electric a grant of … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Google News Feed, Industry Perspectives, Resources Tagged With: ,

So What is a Microgrid, Exactly?

May 29, 2014 By 15 Comments

So what is a microgrid, exactly? The term has been used for years, yet those who attend microgrid conferences joke that much of the event is spent in debate over the definition. As is often the case with a popular technology, many would like to package their products as microgrids. Hence, we see the term’s meaning broadening in the … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Demand Response, Solar Plus Storage, Thermal Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,