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The California Independent System Operator (ISO) Corporation Board of Governors has approved changes that will help power plant developers better react to changing business conditions that trigger the downsizing of projects, many of which are often highly scalable renewable generators. The changes will allow developers to adapt projects to fit within a more flexible business model.

Credit: Jim Barton/Wikimedia Commons

Beginning October 2014, the interconnection changes will provide an annual process for developers to submit a request to reduce the megawatt size of their project for any reason.

"Building wind and solar generation or any type of power plant can take five to seven years and the business climate can change significantly during that time span," said Keith Casey, ISO vice president of market and infrastructure development. "These enhancements to our interconnection queue enable developers to complete projects without being subjected to risks beyond their control."

Before hooking up to the high-voltage grid, proposed projects enter the ISO interconnection queue, and ISO engineers study the projects to determine interconnection costs and any reliability impacts. Allowing this flexibility means developers no longer face the threat of their interconnection agreement being terminated for failing to meet original specifications. Further, ISO will not terminate a project solely because of a failure to complete the project at the size originally proposed, provided the developers participate in the annual downsizing window.

When generation projects decide to downsize, it can affect other projects in the queue by changing the scope and costs of the network upgrades required, so ISO will study the combined impacts of each year's downsizing requests within the annual generator interconnection process. To offset possible effects on other developers, downsized projects will be obligated to finance the cost of any network upgrades resulting from the original project size. In addition, developers modifying the size of projects will provide a $60,000 deposit toward the costs incurred by the ISO and the transmission owners to perform and administer the annual downsizing window.

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2. Utility business models need to accommodate DER

By Barbara Vergetis Lundin

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3. SCE targeting underserved market

Microgrids have been implemented across the globe, but each region varies widely in terms of investment, development and deployment. As new vendors continue to enter the market and previously undiscovered projects come to life, the microgrid market proliferates. Nowhere is this clearer than in North America. In fact, North America is the world's leading market for microgrids with a current planned, proposed, and deployed capacity of 2.7 GW, according to Navigant Research.

"[Navigant has identified] more than 600 microgrid project entries, underscoring the fact that utility business models will need to accommodate a growing reliance upon distributed energy resources (DER)," said Peter Asmus, principal research analyst, Navigant Research. "While subsidies for renewable energy are waning in several key markets, the need for new aggregation and optimization platforms and schemes will continue to grow. Microgrids are often the best solution to a variety of environmental and economic challenges."

Globally, capacity of currently operating microgrids totals 2.3 GW. Last quarter, the community/utility segment had the largest increase in capacity, but currently the global remote segment leads in new capacity additions with 195 MW, according to Navigant, reflecting the remote microgrid market's increasing visibility. A total of 41 new projects in the community/utility segment represents the greatest increase in the number of grid-connected projects in the fourth quarter of 2013.

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By Barbara Vergetis Lundin

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4. FEEDER Center bringing together universities, utilities

Southern California Edison (SCE) is putting its SEEP (Schools Energy Efficiency Program) to work to help reduce public and private school energy use. Education is a traditionally underserved market with the potential for a wide variety of retrofits, including fluorescent lamps, ballasts and high-bay lighting, light-emitting diode (LED) lamps, lighting occupancy sensors, and various other energy-saving measures that benefit school environments.

Credit: Leoboudv/Wikimedia Commons

With an initial budget of $4 million, SEEP targets pre-kindergarten through secondary schools, private colleges and universities, and vocational schools for high-efficiency lighting retrofits and other energy cost saving measures with the objective of lowering overall energy use and utility grid peak demand. As a result, school operating costs are reduced through a combination of no-cost and ratepayer-subsidized incentives and services.

As part of SEEP, an energy solutions provider will conduct site walk-through audits to identify energy-saving opportunities, consult with school clients to select solutions, oversee installations, and assist with incentive paperwork. SEEP also utilizes other energy-efficiency programs and rebate incentives to help schools leverage available funding.

In less than nine months, SCE's Public Pre-Schools, Elementary and Secondary Schools Energy Efficiency Program saved more than 14 million kilowatt hours and reduced demand by nearly 2,000 kilowatts for more than 300 public schools in 17 school districts. SCE hopes to have similar success with SEEP.

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By Barbara Vergetis Lundin

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5. Utilities, regulators vital to aging water infrastructure

The University of Central Florida (UCF) has been awarded $3.2 million to lead one of four national consortia to develop distributed technologies, increase engineering capacity and prepare for a national shift from traditional sources of electricity to renewables such as solar and wind.

University researchers, led by UCF, are developing ways to shift from traditional power distribution channels like this electrical substation to smaller distributed sources such as solar. Credit: Business Wire

The team's winning proposal, Foundations for Engineering Education for Distributed Energy Resources (FEEDER), is a part of a $12 million investment from the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) SunShot Initiative and the Grid Engineering for Accelerated Renewable Energy Deployment (GEARED) program.

The FEEDER Center will bring together seven universities (Auburn University, Florida State University, University of Arkansas, UCF, University of Florida, University of Kentucky, and University of South Carolina), eight utility companies (including Duke Energy, Florida Power & Light, Southern Company, Orlando Utility Commission), two national laboratories (National Renewable Energy Laboratory and Los Alamos National Laboratory), and eight industry manufacturers to speed the development of technologies needed to prepare nation's electric grid to operate on renewable energy.

Specifically, the FEEDER Center will research technological components such as distributed control, optimization, advanced communication, renewable generation and smart grid to transform the electric grid. It will also focus on education by establishing cross-institutional smart grid curriculum, facilitating research collaborations among the academic, utility and industrial partners, and incorporating the latest and most relevant research findings into new educational materials and courseware. FEEDER aims to train new and existing workforce and realize smart grid implementation. FEEDER's 31 electrical engineering faculty focus their efforts on improving energy independence and sustainability for our nation and its economy.

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- see this report

By Barbara Vergetis Lundin

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