California Energy Grid Demand Response

I read an interesting article on the eMeter site about how California utilities instituted a series demand response programs to reduce the load on the grid one day this week.  This was in response to extreme heat across the state which of course meant more demand as everyone fires up the AC.  The programs seemed to have the desired effect in reducing demand..a good thing.
One of the programs they have in place is dynamic pricing for large customers.  The cost of electricity goes up as demand goes up.  This does entice those customers to look for ways to cut back, reducing demand as a result.  It proved to be effective.  I'm sure the utilities are looking at ways to expand this program.  I'm not necessarily against that but the problem I see is that the next place to go is to the residential consumers.  Once smart meters are in place at a residence there's nothing stopping them from implementing dynamic pricing.
This model can be a good thing and will  help them from having to build more power plants.  However in order to be fair to consumers they must give them more information, in real time.  I would be upset if I found my bill say doubled in a particular month because I ran my AC during high cost times without even knowing it.  Since  I wasn't aware there was an issue I didn't turn down my AC..which achieved no reduction in peak demand.
So by providing much more useful feedback to the consumer...things like text messages, emails or power portals to alert a consumer of an event... the utilities can both cut power use during peaks and have happy customers...what a concept.

Check out the article here:
http://bit.ly/cE6MM8

Grid Alternatives Install

I have been volunteering with a great organization, Grid Alternatives.  They put solar power on low income housing.  The goal is to help people lower their monthly utility bill and at the same time reduce greenhouse gases...a win win!  The installs are done with volunteers like myself supervised of course by people that know what they are doing.

 The nice thing about this is that not only does this reduce their costs but it exposes people to solar energy,  They want to teach you about installing this technology.  They are VERY patient with everyone who comes out as some folks with no experience show up...i.e. can't use a screw driver, .  They want you to have a wonderful experience...and you do.  In the end everyone pitches in and gets some hands on.

I just helped on a project in Oakland that was in conjunction with Habitat for Humanity.  They are building several low income condo units and Grid Alternatives is installing solar on each one, 16 in total I think.  The cool thing about this is that they don't give away the panels.  They work out a loan so that a customer's monthly payment is less than their current energy bill.  This makes sure that people who get these really want them..and will be ambassadors for GA.  It is really exciting to see customers come out every10 minutes asking it is done yet?  When they finally flip the switch to turn on the system and watch the meter run backwards, the smile on their face is a huge reward.

Don't get me wrong it can be hard work and being on a roof all day takes it out of you.  When you get home you are tired but its the best kind of "tired" you can have.

http://www.gridalternatives.org/

See Through Solar Powered Windows

 New Energy has developed a spray on technology (at room temperature!) for glass that allows it to create electricity from sunlight.  They were set to demonstrate their prototype technology at University of South Florida.  Typically solar film is opaque which is not the best thing for a window, especially if you want to enjoy the view.  Their solution is clear so the view is not the limit!

If this technology is cheap enough it could jut bee added to any window..can you imagine a high rise glass building with these?

http://bit.ly/bHY9dx

MiaSole to Achieve 15.5 with Thin Film?

I jusr read that MiaSole feels confident that they can achieve 15.5% efficiency with their CIGS thin film and produce modules at around 70 cents/watt by 2012.  That pretty good considering they currently produce modules with 10.5% efficiency.  Then I go on to read that they are lining up series F funding and plan to go public in the second half of 2011...hmmm...boasting a bit?
I don't think so.  They put out a press release that says they've received confirmation from NREL verifying that their large area production panels (1 square meter)  are in fact 14.3% efficient.  They feel they can produce these at around 79 cents/watt.  This is great because this puts them on par with silicon modules but the best thing is that these modules can now be financed.  This will really move the "PV" ball forward and help to drive the industry. They are saying that they will ship 22MW worth of panels this year and that's at 10.5% efficiency..can you image what they will do next year with panels that cost less and are roughly 25% more efficeint?  It's great to see new technology be so successful.

Here's the press release:  http://bit.ly/aPaos0

California Solar Array to be the Largest in World!

California has a reputation for being on the leading edge of change.  This is no exception when it comes to energy policy.  A path was laid for companies to come in and build alternative energy projects in the hopes that CA could put off building more large generating stations..or even close some they already have in place.  The problem has been that the approval process  is like stepping in to quicksand...the more you struggle the deeper you are stuck.  Don't get me wrong, it is still very important to make sure that projects are not doing more harm than good..not creating Superfund sites or wiping out entire species..but there has to be balance, a fine line between those.  The California Energy Commission needs to find that line much quicker than they have been.

So I applaud the CEC in that they have finally approved a huge solar project in the desert of Riverside county.  In fact this will be the largest project in world..sweet!.  It will produce about 1,000 megawatts of power, enough for 800,000 homes.  That's putting a dent in our power needs! 

You can read more about it here: bit.ly/bSudFs

I hope that the CEC will continue to enhance the approval process so that we get more of these in place. 

Xcel Energy to Pass Costs of SmartGridCity on to Ratepayers

I was in Denver over the weekend and read an article about Xcel Energy's SmartGridCity project in Boulder.  The PUC there approved a rate hike so they could pass the costs on to consumers.  OK I with them so far...seems reasonable that people pay for the upgrade.  However as I read on I had a "hmmm" moment.

A rate hike including the projected costs had already been approved.  This was for the overrun since the project costs three times what it was supposed to..which means the rate hike will be even higher.  Hmmm..though I'm still not writing them off yet.  After all they are on the bleeding edge on this smart grid stuff taking what they call a holistic approach to the smart grid.  I applaud them for taking a leadership position.

Where they completely lost me is that they said they wouldn't do this again or expand the program..what??  They decide to lead the country in this and become a role model, go through a huge learning curve and then bag on the great stuff they did.  They basically said it was too expensive and would look at ways to spend 25% of what they did to get 75% of the return...hmmm.. so much for the visionary stuff.

The worst thing is that this is going to make future projects from other utilities harder to get through.  Opponents will have plenty of fodder from this to slow, reduce or even stop smart grid roll outs.  I can only hope that Xcel will extremely forthcoming in sharing their data and "scar tissue" with others to help them be successful in deploying these across the country.