It is no secret to anyone in the utility industry that developments in technology and changing markets are transforming the traditional way of doing business and paving the way toward the dawn of the utility microgrid. There are several trends occurring in the industry that point specifically to the need for utilities to utilize generation assets from their customer base. A disruption such as this provides both opportunity and uncertainty, as well as the need for investment to keep pace with these trends.
Some of the most significant trends within the last decade include the installation of distributed solar. Solar installations bring the benefits of clean energy, lower fuel, reduced maintenance costs and new assets to the grid. This new DER penetration creates more complexity – more products that produce and consume energy in ways that, when aggregated, can have a materially adverse impact on grid reliability and service quality.
Over the next few decades, we will see new fossil fuels reduced as these DERs help utilities transition toward a goal of 100 percent clean energy. As it stands today, many states have Renewable Portfolio Standards (RPS) moving them in that direction:
Download the new white paper from Siemens and learn more about how today’s utilities are beginning to prepare by entering discussions around grid modernization, the utility microgrid, DER compensation, and business model transformation, by sharply enhancing core utility priorities, such as reliability, resiliency, and efficiency.