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Energy Post

The best thinkers on energy

Non-Wires Alternatives for grid expansion: what the U.S. can teach Europe

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Grid expansion usually means more power stations and wires. Far from simple, and very expensive. Non-Wires Alternatives (NWA) solve the problem differently by reducing net demand. Modern methods of energy efficiency, demand response, storage, and distributed generation are coordinated and used instead, under the banner of Distributed Energy Resources (DER). Crucially, it can cast utility firms in the role of market makers, not just generators and … [Read more...]

Developing world urbanisation: a great opportunity for smartgrids, buildings efficiency

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Rapid urbanisation in the developing world means millions of new buildings are going up. Now is the time to make sure they are energy efficient from the start, avoiding the major “rich world” headache of retrofitting. Given most of the developing world exists in hotter climates, cooling – unchecked - could account for as much as 40% of final electricity demand in some countries by 2050. To keep a cap on that, efficient buildings and air … [Read more...]

The rapid growth of solar integration into grids: learn from Germany

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With the rapid electrification of Europe’s energy system, the network operators are facing a challenge. The integration of more and varied electricity generation is putting a strain on the growth of grids. Erik Rakhou and Chris Collins contrast the struggles the Netherlands is experiencing with the smoother ride navigated by Germany where in the 12 years to 2015 solar PV capacity rose around 100-fold from 0.44 GW to 39.7 GW. Greater investment, … [Read more...]

Virtual power plants: a story of market rules and smartgrids

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Access to the grid-balancing market is competitive and carefully regulated. Green electricity from distributed and behind-the-meter renewable assets is already being traded on wholesale and balancing markets. The assets come in all shapes and sizes: roof-top solar, farmyard biofuel installations, EV and home battery systems, community energy projects, wind installations and heat pumps to name but a few. When they are pooled, by aggregators, they … [Read more...]

Cyberattacks: the military considers micro grids as the answer

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European power grids have long been considered as potential targets for major cyberattacks given the enormous damage they could inflict. Successful cyberattacks against power grids could not only cause societal and economic disruptions, but also put a dent in the military readiness of European countries. In the event of a blackout, the lights could go out in town halls and military facilities alike. Lukas Trakimavičius explains how micro grids … [Read more...]

Renewables for remote mines power supply in Africa gaining momentum

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In the last few years, more and more mining companies have adopted wind and solar systems to reduce their energy costs at remote off-grid mines. In this first phase, the initial focus was on the integration capabilities as miners were afraid that adding intermittent renewables such as solar and wind could affect the reliability of power supply and even lead to production losses. In various microgrid applications, renewables combined with … [Read more...]

Online condition monitoring: making sense of sensors in the age of the Smart Grid

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Grid operators across Europe are experiencing higher maintenance and reinforcement costs than ever before and, without significant increases in funding, are realising that they must fundamentally change the way that their assets are operated, maintained and replaced. This means running assets closer to their operational limits, performing predictive rather than corrective maintenance and replacing assets as close to the end of their useful life … [Read more...]

Digitalisation is changing the energy landscape

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The energy sector is already using data in sophisticated ways to meet a wide range of challenges, from fault prediction in grid networks to the delivery of personalised energy to households. As more data becomes “big data” and smart devices proliferate along the value chain, Matt Brown and Ravi Mahendra of Pöyry Management Consulting make their predictions for more digitalisation in the coming year. … [Read more...]

Solar farms getting smaller, cheaper and smarter to overcome grid hurdles

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The technical challenges and fast-changing regulatory requirements associated with installing and integrating variable RES capacity are inevitably holding up the transition to clean energy all around the globe. So the announcement of a new smart solar farm in Australia that seems to have overcome these hurdles is really good news. The situation has been neatly captured across a number of recent reports (summarised here) by Giles Parkinson of … [Read more...]

The fight over power networks in the EU: will national TSOs become subordinate to regional organisations?

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The EU is discussing how far and how fast it can take regional cooperation among Transmission System Operators (TSOs). The European Commission and Parliament want to give entities for regional cooperation more independence and power, while Member States and TSOs want ultimate power to remain at national level. An upcoming conference on 16 October led by ENTSO-E (representing European TSOs) and Coreso (a regional entity) – and supported by Energy … [Read more...]

Replacing copper with negawatts—how the UK’s RIIO-2 could revolutionise network regulation

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Ofgem’s recent framework decision on improving its performance-based regulation scheme, RIIO, indicates that it may be ready to take a much-needed step toward levelling the playing field between supply-side and customer-side resources. However, it is not yet clear what the details will look like. According to Jan Rosenow of the Regulatory Assistance Project, a global group of regulatory experts, Ofgem should put a network regulation scheme in … [Read more...]

The next-generation Huawei universal transport solution for smart grid creates value for power companies

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PROMOTED CONTENT Power companies are building new networks that must support diversified services yet remain highly secure. Huawei offers a one-stop ICT solution for the electric power sector, writes Chen Chun-Yi. The company’s fully-connected grid solution has served 13 of the world’s top 20 power companies, including Eon in Germany and Enel in Italy. Another recent customer is SAK, the largest power company in Eastern Switzerland. … [Read more...]

How power companies can increase revenues by building FTTx networks

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PROMOTED CONTENT Utility companies can use their power networks to facilitate the construction of FTTx optical fiber networks. In this way they can gain additional revenue. Chen Guan-Hong of Huawei Technologies explains the various options that are available. … [Read more...]

German electricity market in 2017: records for battery storage and redispatch

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Renewable energy generation is still on the rise in Germany, though at a much lower pace than in the years around 2010, writes Marius Buchmann of Jacobs University in a detailed overview of the German electricity market in 2017. Costs of the feed-in tariff are stagnating, notes Buchmann, but redispatch costs which grid operators incur to keep the system stable, reached a new record far above €1 billion. Courtesy of Buchmann’s blog Enerquire. … [Read more...]