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The Grid Of The Future Could Be Brought To You By ... You
The electricity system is experiencing growing pains these days. But it's not only demand for electricity that's expanding — it's the sources of electricity, particularly unpredictable kinds, like wind farms and solar panels. And grid operators know that we're just at the beginning. States are requiring more renewable power to fight climate change, and it may be the customers who will play a big role in helping grid operators manage these clean, but finicky, sources of power.
Take Hawaii, which is thousands of miles from anywhere, and has to ship in oil to make much of its electricity. The state wants to replace these costly, dirty imports with clean, homegrown power. "The state has an initiative to reach 40 percent renewable energy by 2030," says Nohea Hirahara, an engineer for Hawaiian Electric Company. "I believe that's the most aggressive of any state. And it's coming up fast."
...snip...
But Hirahara says eventually a partnership with customers like this could help keep the demand and supply of electricity balanced, even in the face of fickle winds. She already has seen the power of customers. In another program, 36,000 customers have signed up to let grid operators switch off their water heaters when demand for power is high. That saves everybody money and limits the use of dirty fossil fuel.
...snip...
For example, Kammen has solar panels at his home. "If it's a really hot day and our utility calls an alert where they want people to minimize consumption, if I turn down appliances in our home, then I can sell back more energy, which benefits me but also benefits them," he says.
And Kammen says the grid of the future also needs more ways to store clean energy. Customers can help here, too. "In California, for example, the wind blows much more strongly at night, when most people's cars are at home in the garage," Kammen says. "And so if wind power comes on to the grid when demand is low but gets put into our cars, that's finding a way to store it."
Take Hawaii, which is thousands of miles from anywhere, and has to ship in oil to make much of its electricity. The state wants to replace these costly, dirty imports with clean, homegrown power. "The state has an initiative to reach 40 percent renewable energy by 2030," says Nohea Hirahara, an engineer for Hawaiian Electric Company. "I believe that's the most aggressive of any state. And it's coming up fast."
...snip...
But Hirahara says eventually a partnership with customers like this could help keep the demand and supply of electricity balanced, even in the face of fickle winds. She already has seen the power of customers. In another program, 36,000 customers have signed up to let grid operators switch off their water heaters when demand for power is high. That saves everybody money and limits the use of dirty fossil fuel.
...snip...
For example, Kammen has solar panels at his home. "If it's a really hot day and our utility calls an alert where they want people to minimize consumption, if I turn down appliances in our home, then I can sell back more energy, which benefits me but also benefits them," he says.
And Kammen says the grid of the future also needs more ways to store clean energy. Customers can help here, too. "In California, for example, the wind blows much more strongly at night, when most people's cars are at home in the garage," Kammen says. "And so if wind power comes on to the grid when demand is low but gets put into our cars, that's finding a way to store it."
http://www.npr.org/2013/08/14/212020224/the-grid-of-the-future-could-be-brought-to-you-by-you