Batteries for Energy Storage: New Developments Promise Grid Flexibility and Stability

Integrating variable output renewable generation into the grid means balancing supply and demand. Tildy Bayar looks at developments in large-scale battery energy storage solutions.

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Balancing power supply and demand is always a complex process. When large volumes of renewables such as solar PV, wind and tidal energy, which can change abruptly with weather conditions, are integrated into the grid, this balancing process becomes even more difficult.

The issue for power plants is flexibility. "Large amounts of wind energy are being reliably and cost-effectively integrated onto the power system today," said Denise Bode, CEO of the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), who added "Energy storage can be a valuable resource for the power system in maximising the efficient use of this resource, and add flexibility for electric utilities."

The Electric Reliability Council of Texas Inc. (ERCOT) faced the renewable power industry's most critical issue in February 2008. With a huge wind portfolio in the state the wind died down, and ERCOT declared emergency conditions after a 1200-MW drop in production. The three-hour shortfall, accompanied by increasing overall electricity loads, very nearly caused rolling blackouts. David Crane, president and CEO of New Jersey-based NRG Energy Inc., told the Houston Business Journal that "If a system can go unstable in the winter because 1500 MW of expected wind turns into 400-MW wind and then fossil has to scramble to come online - and several of our plants had to scramble to fill the gap - that's a big issue and there's going to be a big debate."

Effective energy storage can match total generation to total load precisely on a second by second basis. It can load-follow, adjusting to changes in wind and solar input over short or long time spans, as well as compensating for longterm changes. While fossil plants may take 10 minutes or more to come online, and will consume fuel even on "spinning reserve" standby, storing renewable energy for later use effectively produces no emissions.

"Grid-scale storage is here now," says Ed Cazalet of MegaWatt Storage Farms, which develops and operates large electricity storage facilities that connect directly to the wholesale electric grid. "Storage should be deployed now at the gigawatt scale...where capacity, ancillary services and energy time-shifting are clearly needed," he adds. But each power plant faces different issues, and each requires a tailored energy storage solution.

Some well-established technologies offer significant energy storage capacity but require specific geographical features and considerable infrastructure. Others can be deployed rapidly to wherever they are required, but currently offer restricted capacity, often at high cost. One technology that is now attracting considerable interest is large-scale battery storage.

BATTERIES FOR LARGE-SCALE ENERGY STORAGE

Several types of batteries are used for large-scale energy storage. All consist of electrochemical cells though no single cell type is suitable for all applications.

Invented in 1859, lead-acid batteries use a liquid electrolyte and are still in common use. They store rather small volumes of energy but are reliable and, above all, cheap. In renewable energy systems multiple deep-cycle lead-acid (DCLA) batteries, which provide a steady current over a long time period, are connected together to form a battery bank. Indeed, banks of up to 1 MW of lead-acid batteries are already being used to stabilise wind farm power generation. For instance, Trojan Battery Company's industrial line of deep-cycle batteries is designed for backup and peak shifting in off-grid and grid-tied photovoltaic (PV) systems.

In a dry cell battery, the electrolytes are contained in a low-moisture paste. Lithium-ion (li-ion) batteries in particular are the subject of much interest as they have a high energy density, and larger-scale production due to emerging electric vehicle applications is expected to bring down their cost significantly.

A123 Systems is involved in a demonstration project with Southern California Edison which will see 32 MWh of li-ion battery capacity integrated with wind turbines in the Tehachapi region 100 miles (160 km) north of Los Angeles.

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries is beginning tests of a 40-foot (12 metre) long container unit housing more than 2,000 li-ion rechargeable batteries. According to the company, the system has a capacity of 408 kWh - enough to supply 100 households for three to eight hours and is designed to have a system efficiency of 90 percent. As well as grid power stabilisation, the system will be tested for micro-grid use in areas where regular grid connections are difficult, providing a stable supply of electricity from renewable sources.

Flow batteries are emerging energy storage devices that can serve many purposes in energy delivery systems. They can respond within milliseconds and deliver significant quantities of power. They operate much like a conventional battery, storing and releasing energy through a reversible electrochemical reaction with an almost unlimited number of cycles. The active chemicals are stored in external tanks, and when in use are continuously pumped in a circuit between the reactor and tanks. The great advantage is that electrical storage capacity is limited only by the capacity of the tanks.

Vanadium Redox Batteries (VRBs) are a particularly clean technology, with high availability and a long lifecycle. Their energy density is rather low - about 40 Wh per kilogram - though recent research indicates that a modified electrolyte solution produces a 70 percent improvement in energy density. Vanadium prices are volatile, though, with the increased demand for battery use likely to stress supply. Prudent Energy has installed a 1-MWh VRB energy storage system, sized at a rated power of 500 kW and a peak pulse power of 750 kW, for the China Electric Power Research Institute (CEPRI) in Zhangbei, Hebei province. Research group the Fraunhofer Institute is developing a giant 20-MWh flow battery. A 20-kW facility is planned to be operational next year; and the research team hopes to cross the megawatt threshold within five years.

Researchers at Case Western Reserve University are using iron to create a scalable energy storage system that can service a single home or an entire community. Robert Savinell, professor of chemical engineering at Case Western, calls it the rustbelt battery. Since the cost of iron is as little as 1 percent of that of vanadium, the iron-based battery is estimated to cost US$30/kWh, well below a $100/kWh goal set by Sandia National Laboratories. A large-scale 20-MWh iron-based flow battery would require two storage tanks of about 250,000 gallons (950 m³), and could supply the power needs of 650 homes for a day. The US Department of Energy's Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability is funding the research with a grant of some $600,000.

Molten salt batteries (or liquid sodium batteries) offer both high energy density and high power density. Operating temperatures of 400-700°C, however, bring management and safety issues, and place stringent requirements on the battery components. In 2010, Italy's Enel opened the 5-MW Archimedes solar farm, the first in the world to use molten salt technology.

Ultracapacitors (or supercapacitors) store energy electrostatically by polarising an electrolyte, rather than storing it chemically as in a battery. Ultracapacitors have a lower energy density but a higher power density than standard batteries: they store less energy (around 25 times less than a similarly sized li-ion battery) but can be charged and discharged more rapidly.

Although ultracapacitors have been around since the 1960s, they are relatively expensive and only recently began being manufactured in sufficient quantities to become cost-competitive. Ultracapacitors have applications in 'energy smoothing', momentary-load devices, vehicle energy storage, and smaller applications like home solar energy systems where extremely fast charging is a valuable feature.

The US Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-e) sponsors a number of interesting energy storage projects currently in the research and development stage, including metal-air ionic liquid (MAIL) batteries, planar sodium-beta batteries, high energy density lithium batteries, zinc-manganese oxide batteries, a liquid metal battery called Electroville and thermal energy storage with supercritical fluids. Each of these research projects promises to deliver low-cost, sustainable, high density energy storage for renewable energy applications.

COMPARISONS AND PREDICTIONS

The US Electric Power Research Institute's (EPRI) paper entitled Electricity Energy Storage Technology Options states that sodium-sulphur batteries (a variety of molten salt battery) are currently the third most widely used energy storage solution, with 316 MW installed worldwide.

The Electricity Storage Association (ESA) compared energy storage technologies for high power and high energy applications, as illustrated in Table 1 (below). Each technology has inherent limitations or disadvantages that make it practical or economical for only a limited range of applications.

Frost & Sullivan's analysis of the European utility-scale battery market found earned revenues of $126.4 million in 2010 and the company says it expects this to increase to $564.9 million in 2015.

Meanwhile, Lux Research's report entitled: Off-grid: A Modest Meal for Starving Storage Developers argues that li-ion technologies are expected to see small, steady growth in diversified markets.

Li-ion batteries will grow from $795 million in revenue in 2011 to $2.2 billion in 2016, the report states, adding that thanks to its improved cycle life and energy density over lead-acid batteries, li-ion will see narrow penetration into the high-end datacenter market. If li-ion developers can trim costs 33 percent to $400/kWh and demonstrate improved lifetimes, the technology could usurp further market share.

http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2011/08/batteries-for-energy-storage-new-developments-promise-grid-flexibility-and-stability

Military Tightens Its Belt, Goes Green

It may seem ironic that the largest military in world would be one of the most enthusiastic advocates of alternative energy, but it’s true, writes MoneyShow.com contributor Gregg Early.

To cynics, it’s likely unsurprising as budget cuts get bigger and the economy seems to be teetering on another recession that the Department of Defense (DoD) is redoubling its efforts in green energy.

They may figure that this is precisely the kind of boondoggle that the politicians should be cutting out of the budgets. But nothing could be further from the truth.

And the spinoff technologies that DoD supports now will be the next leg up in energy independence for the US.

Actually, the military has been one of the most farsighted organizations when it comes to repositioning itself for a world where energy security is a top priority. DoD’s shift has been under way for many years.

The armed services are keenly aware of the logistical and operational challenges involved in being overly dependent on oil. In Iraq, many suicide-bomber and roadside-bomb casualties were transport personnel or lead vehicles in transport convoys, moving gasoline to forward bases for their operations.

A few years back, they tracked the costs of getting gasoline to a northern base in Afghanistan from the port at Lahore, Pakistan. All in, it was costing the about $100 per gallon to move fuel to where the troops needed it.

People are always talking about $100 toilet seats. How about a $100 gallon of gas?

But instead of just spending it and writing it off as yet another cost of war, the armed services decided to look for options. And not simply because of cost or the desire to lower its carbon footprint.

Tactically, it’s crucial to have a secure power supply that has a minimal chance of disruption, especially when you’re engaged in active operations. It’s also advantageous if you can increase the energy independence of forward bases, so they can operate with limited dependence on outside supplies.

Another key advantage of many alternative energy sources is stealth. Electric motors are much quieter than diesel generators; solar power and wind are also silent energy producers relative to their fossil fuel alternatives.

Also, in combat zones you can’t expect the energy infrastructure to be operational or consistent. These days, with all the technology deployed with even the lowliest Infantry grunt, a steady source of electricity is crucial.

So there are certainly strategic and tactical advantages of alternative energy. And there’s no doubt that there are huge security advantages in securing your energy supply chain as efficiently as possible.

The next question is whether there is enough commitment for DoD to be a long-term driver of US alternative energy development.

When you’re dealing with a $670 billion annual budget, there’s usually a few million in the sofa cushions for some important R&D work. But more important, the armed forces have already begun requiring new equipment to be designed with renewables in mind.

For example, the Navy’s newest and most modern ship, the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) Freedom, built by Lockheed Martin (LMT) doesn’t have propellers (screws to you nautically inclined), and has a hybrid drive motor that enhances stealth and fuel consumption. It also has an impressive array of unmanned vehicles that keep sailors out of harm’s way until absolutely necessary.

In March, the Air Force flew an F-22 filled with biofuel manufactured in the US. Two companies to watch in this space are Dyadic (DYAI) and Solazyme (SZYM), two US firms that are doing some impressive work in the biofuels space.

The US Army has inked a deal with Clark Energy Group to build a $2 billion, 500-megawatt solar farm in the Mojave Desert to power Fort Irwin and support its 5,000 personnel. The cost to the Army? Nada. Zilch. Bubkus. S

The deal is, Clark will build the facility, sell the power to the Army...and then has the right to sell the surplus energy, which is enough to power another 100,000 homes.

Not to be outdone, the US Marine Corps has begun to convert Twentynine Palms in California to energy independence from the civilian grid. It’s built a solar farm, wind farm, and a co-generation plant that recycles waste heat into energy.

(Page 2 of 2)

Who are the winners in this shift? US companies that are working in these sectors and have the technologies to deploy.

Some good companies have been swallowed up in the grinding economy of the last 3 years, when green tech almost made it into the private sector...but was kicked to the curb as lending dried up and spending was slashed on every level.

The survivors may well get a lifeline from the US military, and then be in prime position to expand quickly when the economy stabilizes. Here are the firms to watch:

In the biofuels space, as discussed above, Dyadic and Solazyme have a great deal of promise.

In renewable energy, American Superconductor (AMSC) stock was decimated by troubles selling to China’s Sinovel, but it has projects across the globe and would be a logical supplier of wind equipment to the military. Plus, its superconducting wire business is gaining popularity with “secure grid” projects at Homeland Security and various utilities.

I don’t think solar panel builders are the best way to buy into solar. The next-generation panels are coming out now and there will likely be a game-changing technology—an iPad for solar panels—but until that happens, there’s not a lot of money in it and the client side is unstable.

Two other interesting plays are AeroVironment (AVAV) and Clean Energy Fuels Corp (CLNE). Both offer alternative energy distribution systems that will have increasing value as the military and civilian sectors incorporate alternative energy vehicles into the mix.

AVAV worked with GM on the charging system and charging stations for the EV-1, and has continued in the business since then. It is the approved charging station for the Nissan Leaf, and when Toyota commercial equipment dealerships sell customer fork lifts, etc., they also recommend the AVAV charging system. If there’s an American company with an established pedigree for build electric-vehicle charging systems, it’s AVAV.

What’s more, AVAV also builds some of the most popular unmanned aerial vehicles in service today. These aren’t the big ones, but the ones used by special forces and Marines on the vanguard—a very good niche indeed.

CLNE is partly owned by oil tycoon T. Boone Pickens, and is the sharp part of his stick regarding converting the US from foreign oil to domestic natural gas. CLNE is a veteran of natural-gas filling stations in the US and Canada. The recession and recovery have kept natural-gas prices low, so the stock hasn’t done much yet.

But Pickens is a smart guy, and at 83, he’s fond of saying “I don’t buy green bananas.”

Another interesting fact in his favor: electric motors aren’t powerful enough to run tractor trailers. There are a lot of tractor trailers in North America.

At the time of publication, Gregg Early may or may not own positions in any of the stocks mentioned in this column.

http://www.moneyshow.com/investing/article/1/GURU-24241/Military-Tightens-Its-Belt-Goes-Green/?aid=guru-24241&iid=GURU&page=2

Beacon Power’s Spin on Energy Storage: It’s a Service

Selling frequency regulation services instead of flywheel energy storage hardware.

Energy storage is widely referred to as the holy grail and linch pin of our renewable energy future.

That's debatable. There are certain countries and grids that have managed to incorporate high penetration of renewables without the benefit of storage.

And for now, almost all energy storage technology has questionable economics, unproven reliability, and exists in a fuzzily defined regulatory framework.

Here's Vinod Khosla giving his compelling viewpoint on energy storage.

Still, a few energy storage firms have managed to show signs of viability with a rational business plan.

Beacon Power is one of them. Despite its money-losing ways, small market capitalization, and battered stock price.

Beacon (Nasdaq: BCON), a public firm since 2000, develops flywheel energy storage using a rapidly spinning cylindrical rotor which serves as a kinetic battery. The CTO of the firm compares energy storage to data storage. Some storage, like RAM, is accessed very frequently while other storage media, like a DVD, are accessed infrequently. Beacon is more like RAM with frequent access and high throughput. And Beacon's payment is based on throughput. Beacon claims a significantly longer cycle-life compared to electrochemical storage solutions such as batteries or regenerative fuel cells -- which is important for utility capital costs.

I spoke with Bill Capp, the CEO, about Beacon's business. The firm actually started out applying their technology to the telecom market but soon moved into the frequency regulation sector of the utility energy market. Beacon estimates the frequency regulation market as well in excess of $500 million and about one percent of load.

And although Beacon designs and manufactures the flywheel storage systems, the firm now utilizes its flywheels in its new role as an Independent regulation services provider or IRSP (pronounced IRSP). We've covered this transition from energy storage hardware supplier to energy storage service provider before. Beacon has taken advantage of deregulation and now has the ISOs as their customers, rather than the utility.

Beacon was just granted $5 million for construction of a 20-megawatt flywheel energy storage plant in Hazle Township, Pennsylvania and was a recipient of a $43 million DOE loan guarantee for a New York-based storage farm, now in operation. Beacon has raised approximately $125 million through the sale of stock but will have to raise considerable more funding to fund operations and begin construction of its next plant. Obviously this financial situation implies that energy storage is still in early days.

The market for storage is counting on receiving regulatory support. FERC has proposed rules for paying rapid-response assets for their performance advantage over fossil fuel generators in frequency regulation markets. This pay-for-performance (PFP) regulation market tariff-in-the-making could be the catalyst for energy storage firms and an incentive to accelerate deployment of this type of technology.

Capp reckons that although Beacon is more expensive than lithium-ion batteries on a capital cost, the firm is cheaper on a per cycle basis. Capp also sees the growing wind power resources in the ERCOT territory, California, Denmark, and Ireland as creating more demand for Beacon's products and regulation services.

There is a growing market ahead for Beacon of hundreds of megawatts of potential -- if it can raise sufficient capital to grow and if it can continue to scrub out cost from the flywheel technology.

http://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/beacon-power-a-new-spin-on-energy-storage/

Energy Storage Industry Grows To Integrate Wind, Solar

Energy storage has long been touted as the silver bullet needed for widespread renewable energy adoption but costs have remained high. Today, several projects hold promise.

Texas, USA -- Grid-scale energy storage is gaining momentum as batteries, flywheels and compressed air systems begin proving they can regulate frequency and ancillary services with the same efficiency of "spinning reserves" from fossil fuel-fired power plants.

“We still hear people say storage isn’t ready for primetime, but that isn’t the case because we already have 20-MW storage plants being built all over the country,” said Brad Roberts, executive director of the Electricity Storage Association (ESA).

As more renewable energy hits the grid, generators and independent system operators are looking to new storage systems to provide emissions-free backup and regulation when intermittency interrupts solar and wind power.

“We are interested in the potential of battery storage to be a game changer in our industry in both regulated utilities and commercial businesses,” said Greg Efthimiou, spokesman for Duke Energy, which operates more than 1,000 MW of wind farms.

Duke Energy is installing the country’s largest battery storage system, a 36-MW unit, near its 153-MW Notrees Windpower Project. The system will regulate frequency and store excess energy for use during peak demand. In Texas, where nearly 11,000 MW of generation comes from wind farms, grid operator Electric Reliability Council of Texas relies on standby gas turbines and steam coal generators to ramp frequency up or down as wind generation changes.

The Notrees battery system is funded by a $22 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and matching funds from Duke Energy, which will use Austin-based Xtreme Power’s proprietary dry cell technology.

Investment, Policy Gains

ESA’s Roberts said the $158 million in stimulus earmarked by the DOE for storage research generated $780 million in investments for battery, compressed air, flywheels and other systems.

The storage industry has been calling for creation of an ITC to further stimulate growth. With passage of Assembly Bill No. 2514 in September, California began the process of developing a portfolio standard for energy storage.

Storage technology pulled in $150.3 million in venture capital during the second quarter, according to Ernst & Young. General Compression received the largest percentage, with $54.5 million. The company plans to use General Compression Advanced Energy Storage (GCAES), a unique heat transfer technology, to compress air in underground caverns. Investors include ConocoPhillips, US Renewables Group, Duke Energy and Serious Change L.P.

Compressing air underground has the potential for storage in excess of 100 MW but there are only two such projects in the world: A 290-MW facility built in Huntorf, Germany in 1978, and a 110-MW facility completed in 1991 in McIntosh, AL. And in July Iowa officials and the DOE scrapped the Iowa Stored Energy Park, a facility intended to store up to 270 MW of wind energy in a limestone cavern 3,000 feet underground. Studies showed limitations with air permeability in the site’s geology.

CAES Winners, Losers

Compressed Air Energy Storage (CAES) utilizing man-made, above-ground storage tanks has also gained traction with DOE funding. Startup SustainX, Inc. is working with AES Energy Storage to demonstrate a one-hour, 4-MW storage system. SustainX was founded in 2007 by engineers at the Thayer School of Engineering at Dartmouth College. It received $5.39 million DOE grant.

The Arizona Research Institute for Solar Energy (azRISE) at the University of Arizona has been developing a CAES solution for three years. DOE funds will enable azRISE to scale up a 10-kW proof-of-concept prototype (image, below) that will be grid-tied to a 1.6-MW solar power plant.

SOLON Corp., the solar plant’s developer, is working with azRISE and Tucson Electric Power (TEP) to demonstrate a variety of storage projects, including lithium ion batteries.

“As we see more integration of solar, we want to control storage for our utility customers,” said Bill Richardson, SOLON’s director of research and development. “The ultimate goal is to make renewable energy plants look like traditional plants with dispatchable energy.”

Joseph Simmons, azRISE director, said storage prices are high, particularly for battery systems, but he predicts a breakthrough will come with “intermediate size” compressed air systems that use off-the-shelf storage containers and have capacities of up to 100 kW. The institute’s concept, he said, can be scaled up to 1 MW with a coiled natural gas pipeline buried underground.

“I like batteries but they are very expensive,” Simmons said. “We expect to see more of a combination of batteries and compressed air storage.”

Heat transfer is another issue associated with CAES since air cools when it expands and warms during compression.

The azRISE system removes heat from a compressor then stores it in fluid. The system recovers electricity when heat returns to the compressed air before entering an expander. SustainX manages heat by uses an isothermal system to cycle air in hydraulic cylinders.

Price Points Still High

In just three years, the storage industry has grown rapidly from a handful of prototypes to revenue-generating corporations, Roberts said. Current battery technology has a long way to go before renewable energy can be stored and dispatched in meaningful amounts. Meanwhile, revenue is limited to ancillary services, critical observers say. And then there’s the price: At $43.6 million, the 36-MW Notrees system costs $1,211 per kilowatt. Others are down to $400.

“But the price is still way too high for this market,” said Donald R. Sadoway, Professor of Materials Chemistry at MIT.

The leading battery systems are based on lithium ion or sulfur-sodium (NaS) power cells. A multiple-megawatt storage system using these technologies can require thousands of cells.

Sadoway co-founded Liquid Metal Battery Corp., a startup that uses pizza box-sized power cells made with liquid metal and molten salt. Sadoway is banking on his batteries to provide game-changing, cost-effective power storage capacity.

“Storage will have to be below $200 per kilowatt if we’re going to be major players in the long-term storage firming in renewables without government subsidy,” he said.

Pumped-hydro, which accounts for 20 GW of the country’s energy storage, can provide 1,000-MW storage systems for $100 per kilowatt-hour, according to The New York Times. It requires massive reservoirs that cost more than $1 billion and take years to construct with ideal geography and abundant water resources. That pretty much rules out the arid Southwest, so researchers like Simmons and Sadoway look to alternatives. (For a primer on Energy Storage Costs, see Sidebar: Understanding Energy Storage Costs, below.)

Sadoway’s company received a $6.9 million grant from the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) as well as seed money from Total, an oil company, and Microsoft Co-Founder Bill Gates. Sadoway said the size of his batteries will broaden grid-scale storage capacity since more liquid will be present per cell than conventional cells.

Lithium Ion Still Popular

“We’re starting to see prices come down as we scale up each project,” said John Zahurancik, AES Energy Storage vice president.

AES Energy Storage is installing a 32-MW lithium ion storage system to regulate the 100-MW Laurel Mountain Wind Farm in West Virginia. Since it was founded in 2007, AES Energy Storage has completed more than 32 MW of storage, and it claims to have 500 MW “in the pipeline.”

“We are starting to demonstrate the real commercial competence of storage,” Zahurancik said.

Storage is attractive to generators – parent company AES Corp. operates 132 power plants worldwide – because it provides “fuel-free” power during peak hours, Zahurancik said. Large-scale battery storage is still years away, so revenue streams are limited to ancillary services, which represent a small piece of all sales on the electricity market. The ESA and American Wind Energy Association are lobbying utility regulators who oversee electricity sales to create markets that recognize a premium for emissions-free storage and regulation.

Some systems are growing outside of ancillary services. AES is installing an A123 Systems battery unit capable of providing 20 MW of spinning reserve for 15 minutes in Northern Chile.

“We’re moving out of the lab and into large production facilities,” said Chris Campbell, vice president of marketing for A123 Systems’ Energy Solutions Group.

He said A123 Systems European customers are interested in 100-MWh to 500-MWh storage systems that will help them meet clean air goals. Zahurancik said battery storage devices in the next three years will offer two to four hours of storage for that can transfer nighttime wind energy for peak use.

“We’re already seeing our market grow like the solar and wind industries,” he said.

---

Sidebar: Understanding Energy Storage Costs

Energy storage systems are typically quantified in terms of capacity (kilowatts or kW) and generation (kilowatt-hours or kWh), but there are some exceptions.

“In the case of energy storage costing, dollars per kilowatt-hour can be very misleading,” said Brad Roberts, executive director of the Energy Storage Association.

Battery storage is growing rapidly, but costs remain high, so the industry is striving for average prices to dip below $500 per kWh within three years.

“Technologies like lithium ion need to see huge price declines in the next few years which may be possible as electric transportation grows,” Roberts said.

The approximate cost of a 1-MW, 6-hour sodium-sulfur (NaS) battery is $3,000 per kW. That translates to a cost of $500 per kWh ($3,000/ 6 hours = $500), Roberts said.

Xtreme Power Chief Development Officer Darrell Hayslip said battery costs are expressed in dollars per kWh when considered “stored energy.” Xtreme Power often quotes prices in terms of dollars-per-kilowatt because it markets its dry cell products as a “generating or supply resource,” Hayslip said.

Xtreme Power’s 36-MW Notrees project is funded by about $22 million U.S. Department of Energy grant and $22 million in matching funds from Duke Energy, which Hayslip said brings the cost to $1,211 per kW ($43.6 million/36,000 kilowatts = $1,200).

Joseph Simmons, director of Arizona Research Institute for Solar Energy (azRISE), estimates a 10-kW compressed air storage system with a $50,000 price tag can generate 30 kilowatt-hours, or three hours of electricity at 33 cents per kilowatt-hour.

Calculations for the University of Arizona system call for use of a 1,000-gallon storage tank. He said the system could be scaled up to 10 MW using coiled pipeline to create 1 million gallons of storage space. Such a system would generate 30 MWh, but price is unknown at this point, he said.

--RC

http://is.gd/ryqAUh

Happiness is a military microgrid

Fort Bliss moving on premise, self-sufficiency = security

Phil Carson | Aug 15, 2011

When it comes to a sense of urgency, there's nothing like the armed services of the United States. As previously documented in this space, the U.S. Department of Defense "gets it" when it comes to energy efficiency and self-sufficiency: they add up to energy independence and that means security. (See "Military Microgrids: a Journey.")

While civilian populations continue to debate the status quo versus implementing standards for wise use of energy, the military is simply going about its business pursuing security through energy efficiency and self-sufficiency.

That explains Fort Bliss' new "Request for Information" (RFI) on commercial partnerships that could result in a Fort Bliss microgrid with a net zero energy profile. Fort Bliss sprawls over 1,700 square miles of the westernmost tip of Texas and southeastern New Mexico, a U.S. Army installation second in size to nearby White Sands Missile Range. I'd guess that there's plenty of solar and wind resources at that location.

The military was not first out of the gate, of course. But it has since caught up with its civilian counterparts - led by the state of California - which early on established and have continued to tweak practical approaches to similar goals.

Why a column on military microgrids? They are the partners of public, "smarter," modernized grids that can play a symbiotic role with centralized power systems and microgrids are essentially scale models of how large-scale smart grids can and should operate. (See "Central and Distributed Power: Symbiotic?" and "Smart Grid and the Military: Meet the First Adopter.") And military grids are a great example of what is possible when a sense of urgency is brought to bear.

The military's rationale in the Fort Bliss RFI basically articulates very similar drivers for many public programs in California, particularly the California Energy Commission's Renewable Energy Secure Communities (RESCO) efforts.

The qualities being sought for Fort Bliss aren't much different from the communities involved in the RESCO program, a comparison pointed out yesterday to me by Byron Washom, director of strategic energy alternatives (aka a microgrid) at the University of California San Diego. (We wrote about UCSD's highly successful microgrid in "Big Picture Thinking: lab to market!" and the imaginatively titled "Big Picture Thinking, Part II."

Check out two statements in the RFI. First: "The Army energy security mission is to make energy a consideration for all Army activities to reduce demand, increase efficiency, seek alternative sources and create a culture of energy accountability while sustaining or enhancing operational capabilities."

And this: "Fort Bliss has positioned itself to lead the Army in these aspects and continues to lead with aggressive pursuit of energy security. In its role as an Army energy leader, Fort Bliss has established the goal of becoming a Net Zero Energy Installation (NZEI) by 2015. To do this, Fort Bliss must aggressively conserve energy and also generate as much renewable energy as it consumes, measured over the course of a year."

Further: "The legislated energy mandates and changes to the cultural initiatives support Army-wide goals of improving its resiliency and endurance as a military force. These include:

• Surety: preventing loss of access to power and fuel resources;
• Supply: accessing alternative and renewable energy sources;
• Sustainability: promoting support for the Army's mission, its community and the environment;
• Sufficiency: providing adequate power for critical missions; and
• Survivability: ensuring resilience in energy systems.

The Army proposes to give vendors the opportunity to build on Army land and the Army in turn will sign a power purchase agreement for the energy supplied.

In its general outline, of course, this sounds a lot like FortZED, which is the Zero Energy District in Fort Collins, Colo., now a college town with no role in national defense. See both "Smart grid's grass roots," and "Local smart grid with global implications."

To me, the military effort reflects the dual drivers of security and cost. Fort Bliss figures it will save money and increase security. Funny, you don't hear the same naysaying and questioning of motives in the military's efforts to achieve energy efficiency, maximize renewable energy and integrate systems to achieve energy security as you do when, say, a town such as Boulder, Colo., looks to do the same thing.

The Fort Bliss's of the world establish that all this can be done. Whether it shall be is simply a question of self-determination. And in that area, civilian America is lagging way behind.

http://www.intelligentutility.com/article/11/08/happiness-military-microgrid

The US Army Has the 'Land and the Demand' for Renewable Energy

exas, United States -- The U.S. Army wants you, private investors, to install large-scale renewable energy projects on its lands to meet a goal of drawing 25% of electricity from clean sources by 2025.

“(It’s) the right thing to do for the environment – certainly in this age of diminishing resources the right thing to do for the federal taxpayers and, most importantly, the right thing to do for our soldiers,” Secretary of the Army John McHugh said during a media call at the GovEnergy conference.

On Wednesday, McHugh announced that the Army will open an Energy Initiatives Office (EIO) Task Force on Sept. 15 to serve as a “one-stop shop” for the private sector to find opportunities for partnerships in a variety of renewable energy projects. Unsolicited proposals are welcome.

The Army estimates it will need $7.1 billion in private investment to generate 2.1 million megawatt-hours of clean power annually. The EIO approach will help the Army aggressively add multiple megawatts of clean energy by 2025 while saving tax dollars.

Katherine Hammack, assistant secretary of the Army for Installations, Energy and Environment, said the Army is looking for average power plants to be 10 MW or greater. The U.S. Department of Defense recently granted the Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Installations and Environment authority to approve long-term contracts of up to 30 years for power purchase agreements (PPAs). The 30-year PPA had been limited to geothermal energy.

“We’re not saying all projects will need 30-year authority, but it’s something we’re going to be working on [on] a project-by-project basis,” Hammack said.

McHugh said the approach could be attractive to investors because the Army will be “a guaranteed customer,” while there are also opportunities to sell surplus energy back to the grid.

“In short, we have the ‘land and the demand’ and we think that’s a good catchphrase,” added Jonathan Powers, director of outreach for the Energy Initiatives Office.

The Air Force used long-term PPAs to spur development of a 15-MW solar array at Luke AFB in Arizona and a 14-MW solar plant at Nellis AFB near Las Vegas. The Army built upon that business model for a 500-MW solar plant at Ft. Irwin base in California.

Powers said the Army has completed 126 renewable projects, while another “20 are in the hopper.” Lessons learned from those projects, he said, will help the EIO provide future investors with development assistance on legal, technical and policy issues.

The office will be working closely with Fort Bliss, which released a request for information this week seeking industry input to help the El Paso, Texas, base become the first large-scale “net zero” military installation.

The EIO is part of a greater effort by the military to use renewables to enhance energy security inside the continental United States and reduce dependence on fossil fuels. Last spring, the DoD said its Operational Energy Strategy would pursue alternative fuels and electricity generation to help secure warfighters overseas.

NPR reported that the military spends about $20 billion on fuel for air conditioning in Iraq and Afghanistan. Fuel delivery trucks have been a regular target of enemy combatants, so the military is exploring use of renewable energy to enhance security of troops.

http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2011/08/the-us-army-has-the-land-and-the-demand-for-renewable-energy

Bloom Boxes Powering NTT Data Center

NTT America, a subsidiary of Japanese telecom giant NTT, has selected Bloom Energy Servers to power its new Silicon Valley data center. A natural gas pipeline delivers biogas from a California dairy farm to power the innovative fuel cell technology and deliver clean energy to the data center in San Jose.

NTT said it installed five of Bloom Boxes, which are priced between $700,000 and $800,000 each. The five servers have a total generating capacity of 500 kilowatts (kW), or enough to power 500 average homes or five 30,000-square-foot office buildings. NTT said that these cells will produce 4.2 million kW annually and will reduce the company’s carbon dioxide emissions by 1.6 million pounds, the equivalent to planting approximately 4,000 trees each year.

image via Bloom Energy

Bloom’s fuel cells, which generate power as a result of a chemical reaction rather than the burning of fossil fuels, are typically more expensive than drawing power directly from the grid. However, modern data centers require large amounts of reliable power, which the Bloom servers provide. Recently, many large companies, such as ATT, Adobe, Walmart, Google and Ebay have opted for Bloom’s clean, reliable energy

Besides adding reliability and reducing green-house gas emissions, having Bloom’s servers on site also brings companies what’s known as distributed generation. Distributed generation means electricity is generated where it will be used, allowing a company to reduce the amount of energy loss due to transmission across power lines, increasing efficiency and trimming costs.

http://is.gd/b9GcxK

Spotlight on pumped storage

Pumped storage hydropower activity is increasing in the US, alongside demands for renewable energy. Engineering firm MWH Global has provided specialized expertise worldwide in this area for more than 50 years. Here are highlights of some of the largest and most recent project developments.

Viewed as one of the only economically viable forms of large-scale energy storage, pumped storage hydropower plays a key role in the energy grid. It’s a technology that can provide balance, energy reserves and grid stability. Various sources cite worldwide generation topping 127000MW, and according to the US Energy Information Administration, pumped storage generates more than 20000MW of energy in the US, enough to power more than 7 million homes. Beyond energy generation, the unique characteristics and benefits of pumped storage make it a clean, low-energy component of the energy grid, an important consideration as many countries focus on mitigating the effects of climate change.

As many states work toward meeting renewable energy mandates, pumped storage is also primed to complement more intermittent renewable energy sources such as wind and solar. For example, a study released in 2009 by global engineering firm MWH Global details how pumped storage can support anticipated aggressive growth in wind power generation in the Pacific Northwest for Bonneville Power Authority, which supplies a third of the power consumed in that region.

Many existing pumped storage facilities are decades old, and are undergoing rehabilitation to extend plant life and increase capacity and/or efficiency. New construction of pumped storage hydropower is coming off a 15-year lag for major facilities, and more than 20 projects are currently in the FERC permitting process.

“Deploying advanced hydropower, including using water to store energy, will help meet peak electricity demands,” says Steven Chu, Secretary of the US Department of Energy (DOE) during a recent announcement committing more than $10 million of technical and financial assistance from the DOE to accelerate development of projects already in the pipeline. “[It will also] provide additional clean energy sources for America’s future.”

As momentum shifts towards an increase of pumped storage activity in the US, we highlight some of the largest and most recent developments of this innovative energy source, including projects planned, designed and managed by MWH, which designed the largest pumped storage facility in the world and has been involved in more than 15000MW of projects in the US ranging from 40 to nearly 2800MW.

Bath County

Bath County is the world’s largest pumped storage project, with a total installed capacity of 2772MW, generating electricity for residents spanning six states. The project, located in Bath County, Virginia, celebrated its 25th anniversary on 18 December 2010.

MWH provided complete engineering services for the project from conceptual design in 1972 to start-up in 1985. Services included FERC licensing, design, preparation of tender documents, assistance in evaluation of tenders, preparation of detailed construction drawings, preparation of engineer’s cost estimates and construction management. Original construction costs were approximately $1.6B. Each of the six turbine generator units were recently refurbished over a six year period to increase generating capacity.

The project consists of a 47Mm3 upper reservoir impounded by a 140m high, 671m-long central core earth and rock-fill dam and a 38Mm3 lower reservoir impounded by a 41m-high, 732m-long central core earth and rock-fill lower dam. The project has 365m of head. The power tunnel and penstock system, connecting the upper and lower reservoirs via the powerhouse, is comprised of three power tunnels with a diameter of 8.7m and three 300m-high shafts. The tunnel/penstock system includes 7.2km of tunnels. The powerhouse is equipped with six 462MW vertical reversible Francis unit turbines manufactured by Allis Chalmers. Excavation of the powerhouse required removal of about 380,000m3 of rock, with rock cuts in the excavation ranging from 21 to 104m.

As construction of the facility was nearing completion, and just days prior to putting the station online, a 500-year-flood accompanied Hurricane Juan, which came on shore and settled over the region filling the reservoir much more quickly than planned. It was a nervous time for engineers who preferred to raise water levels more slowly to ensure that the dam would respond as projected.

Rocky Mountain

The Rocky Mountain Pumped Storage project in Rome, Georgia is the last utility grade pumped storage project constructed in the US. Completed in 1996, and generating 848MW of hydroelectric power from three reversible pump/turbine-motor/generator units, an upgrade is currently underway to increase generating capacity to approximately 1050MW. The upgrade will also realize increased efficiency (plant cycle efficiency will increase from 77.2% to 78.3%), increased pumping capacity, and reduce the daily pumping period from 8.2 to 7.2 hours.

MWH provided design and construction management services to Oglethorpe Power for the completion of the project, including technical and economic feasibility studies, engineering assessment, project management, detailed design, FERC licensing, tender documents, construction management, equipment procurement and QC. The reservoirs serve as a recreational area, and MWH also assisted OPC in environmental and permitting studies to develop a detailed recreational plan. In 2002, MWH began work on the upgrade of the project, serving as Owner’s Engineer and Construction Manager, providing project design and construction management services.

The project has more than 3000ft (914m) of shafts, tunnels and penstocks and four reservoirs. The 221-acre upper reservoir is formed by a 12,800ft-long (3901m) earth and rock-fill ring dam with a 2h:1v outer slope and an average height of 65.5ft (20m). The 600-acre lower reservoir and two auxiliary pools (205-acres and 221-acres, respectively) are impounded by a main dam and seven earth and rock-fill dams that vary in height from 10 to 90ft (3-27.4m). The power tunnel includes a 35ft (10.7m) diameter, concrete-lined shaft with a depth of approximately 650ft (198m) and a 35ft (10.7m) diameter concrete-lined tunnel that is 2150ft-long (655m). Two concrete-lined bifurcations distribute the flow from the tunnel to three 19ft (5.8m) diameter steel penstocks.

Castaic

Castaic generates 1275MW of electricity, and is the largest pumped storage facility in California. When at full power, the plant generates approximately 20% of the electricity needed to power Los Angeles on even the hottest of days.

Located approximately 35 miles (56km) north of Los Angeles, the plant utilizes Pyramid Lake as the upper reservoir and Castaic Lake as the lower reservoir, which also serve as recreational and water supply sources for Southern California and is part of the California State Water Project. Water flows 7.5 miles (12km) from Pyramid Lake through the powerhouse. The powerhouse includes six Hitachi reversible pump-turbines and Hitachi generator motors, rated at 270MW each, and one Escher-Wyss Pelton turbine rated at 54MW. Castaic has a generating capacity of 17,840ft3/sec (505m3/sec) and pump-back flow capacity of 12,000ft3/sec (339.8m3/sec).

MWH served as Owner’s Engineer to the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power to support recent plant modernization efforts that increased capacity by 80MW, increased pumping efficiency by almost two percent and extended operating life by more than 40 years. MWH services included project planning, project management, construction management, scheduling, cost estimating, environmental compliance and value engineering. Originally constructed in the 1970s, modernization efforts realized gains in productivity as reflected in improved cost, efficiency, capacity and availability, and reduced operation and maintenance costs. The upgrade included refurbishment/upgrade of the pump/turbines (including replacement of turbine runners), generator/motors (including new complete stators), spherical valves (including redesigned controls and replacement seals), and controls and automation (consisting of a PLC-based distributed control system).

Iowa Hill

The planned 400MW Iowa Hill Pumped Storage Project near Sacramento, California is the pumped storage project currently the furthest along in the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) licensing process. It is a proposed off-stream pumped storage facility that will use the existing Slab Creek Reservoir as the lower reservoir and develop a new 6400-acre-foot capacity upper reservoir with a surface area of 72 acres on the top of Iowa Hill.

MWH has performed preliminary engineering, geotechnical investigation and cost estimating services for the project, and is currently performing preliminary design, analysis and specification preparation for generation assets and supporting infrastructure. Conceptual design has included the lower Slab Creek powerhouse, white rock tunnel hydraulic evaluation and a corrosion study.

The project has the ability to improve the reliability and stability of Sacramento Municipal Utility District’s electrical system to better meet future energy demands in the area.

Seneca

The 435MW Seneca pumped storage station is located on the Allegheny River in Pennsylvania. The project – operated by First Energy Corporation – utilizes the Allegheny Reservoir (owned by the US Army Corps of Engineers) as the lower reservoir and an asphalt-lined upper reservoir on a sandstone plateau about 800ft (243m) above the river, formed by a circular ring dike about one-half mile in diameter.

MWH performed original design on the project, which was put into service in 1970 and has continued to provide owner’s engineering and dam safety services. Recently MWH prepared final designs, plans and specifications for relining of the aging asphalt-concrete side slopes and floor of the upper reservoir. MWH is also providing engineering support services during the floor relining construction, which is taking place during a plant outage for plant refurbishment and upgrades.

Yards Creek

First Energy Corporation’s 400MW Yards Creek pumped storage generating station in Blairstown, New Jersey consists of two reservoirs separated by an elevation of 700ft (213m). It began commercial operation in 1965.

MWH performed an expansion study in 1990, evaluating alternatives and developing cost estimates for expanding the project by enlarging the upper and lower reservoirs and adding up to three additional generating units. MWH began work in the subsequent upgrade in 1989, which increased generating capacity by 70MW, increasing station capacity by more than 20%, pumping capacity by 6.5%, and energy storage in the upper reservoir by 6.5%. Most recently, MWH performed services on the turbine-generator equipment, penstock and performed dam safety and tunnel inspections.

For further information on the services offered by MWH, please contact: Donald Erpenbeck, Vice President and Hydropower Practice Leader for MWH, Donald.Erpenbeck@mwhglobal.com.

http://www.waterpowermagazine.com/story.asp?sectioncode=46&storyCode=2060364

Cutting-Edge Energy Storage In Spotlight

Creating energy from renewable sources is just one part of the challenge. Storing the energy so it can used how and when it’s needed – that’s every bit as important. Which is what led the California Energy Commission to recently award $845,894 to two projects dedicated to energy storage advancement.

The first project, headed by EnerVault of Sunnyvale, received $476,428, supplementing a $4.76 million grant that came courtesy the 2009 stimulus, and $4.29 million of privately raised capital. That all adds up to $9.53 million, which will pay to install and evaluate the company’s novel flow battery technology for commercial viability. This test will be done with a 150-kilowatt photovoltaic power system in the state’s Central Valley.

image via Shutterstock

The hope is that EnerVault can succeed in offering safe, economical and adequate storage options for utility-scale renewable energy projects, whose intermittent production makes them sometimes difficult to integrate with the grid. Current battery technology tends to be too expensive to meet utility-scale needs, and overheating can be a concern, as well. EnerVault uses an iron-chromium redox system, in which, according to NASA, “electricity is generated when pumps move the electrolytes into separate sections of a reaction chamber. Electrodes collect that charge, and the electrolytes can then be recharged from an outside power source.”

The second project is from Fremont-based Amber Kinetics. The company received $369,466 for the research, development and demonstration of a utility-scale flywheel energy storage system, which they hope will boost the use of such technology due to its high efficiency and low cost. In a flywheel system, energy is stored as rotational energy as a rotor, or flywheel, spins at a very high rate. The faster the wheel spins, the more energy is stored, and as energy is taken out, the wheel’s speed decreases. Amer Kinetics also received $3.7 million from the U.S. Department of Energy, and comes in with $5.94 million of its own capital toward the total $10 million project cost.

http://www.earthtechling.com/2011/08/cutting-edge-energy-storage-in-spotlight/

FuelCell Energy Announces Signing of Two Long Term Service Agreements for Power Plants Purchased by a California Utility

FuelCell Energy, Inc. /quotes/zigman/67190/quotes/nls/fcel FCEL -3.94% a leading manufacturer of ultra-clean, efficient and reliable power plants, today announced the signing of two multi-year service agreements with Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) to operate and maintain two 1.4 megawatt Direct FuelCell(R) power plants previously purchased and located at two California universities. FuelCell Energy was contracted to install the plants and will maintain the power plants under the service agreements. Both plants are installed and have generated power with full operation expected within the next few weeks.

Utility-owned fuel cell power plants provide ultra-clean distributed baseload generation which lessens reliance on the electrical transmission grid and represents incremental capacity that avoids or reduces investment in the electric transmission and distribution system.

"Services are a key portion of our value proposition to our customers and a cornerstone of our business model," said Chip Bottone, President and Chief Executive Officer, FuelCell Energy, Inc. "Service agreements allow our customers to focus on their business while we focus our expertise on maintaining the power plants."

FuelCell Energy offers a comprehensive portfolio of services for fuel cell power plants ranging from one to 20 years. Technicians and engineers remotely monitor and operate Direct FuelCell power plants globally, 24 hours per day, seven days per week, 365 days per year from the state-of-the-art Global Technical Assistance Center, located at the Company's Danbury, Connecticut headquarters.

Mr. Bottone continued, "Services represents a long term and consistent source of revenue for the Company and is a key growth area, as demonstrated by this announcement."

About FuelCell Energy

Direct FuelCell(R) power plants are generating ultra-clean, efficient and reliable power at more than 50 locations worldwide. The Company's power plants have generated over 800 million kWh of power using a variety of fuels including renewable biogas from wastewater treatment and food processing, as well as clean natural gas. With over 180 megawatts of power generation capacity installed or in backlog, FuelCell Energy is a global leader in providing ultra-clean baseload distributed generation to utilities, industrial operations, universities, municipal water treatment facilities, government installations and other clients around the world. For more information please visit our website at www.fuelcellenergy.com

This news release contains forward-looking statements, including statements regarding the Company's plans and expectations regarding the continuing development, commercialization and financing of its fuel cell technology and business plans. All forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected. Factors that could cause such a difference include, without limitation, general risks associated with product development, manufacturing, changes in the regulatory environment, customer strategies, potential volatility of energy prices, rapid technological change, competition, and the Company's ability to achieve its sales plans and cost reduction targets, as well as other risks set forth in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The forward-looking statements contained herein speak only as of the date of this press release. The Company expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any such statement to reflect any change in the Company's expectations or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based.

Direct FuelCell, DFC, DFC/T, DFC-H2 and FuelCell Energy, Inc. are all registered trademarks of FuelCell Energy, Inc. DFC-ERG is a registered trademark jointly owned by Enbridge, Inc. and FuelCell Energy, Inc.

This news release was distributed by GlobeNewswire, www.globenewswire.com

SOURCE: FuelCell Energy, Inc.

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/fuelcell-energy-announces-signing-of-two-long-term-service-agreements-for-power-plants-purchased-by-a-california-utility-2011-08-04?reflink=MW_news_stmp

BrightSource To Build Solar Plants That Generate Power After Dark

In another sign that solar is moving toward becoming a mainstream source of power, BrightSource Energy said Wednesday that it would offer utilities power plants that continue to generate electricity after the sun sets.

The company, based in Oakland, Calif., builds solar thermal power stations that deploy vast fields of mirrors called heliostats that focus the sun on a water-filled boiler that sits atop a 459-foot tower. The resulting steam drives an industrial turbine that generates electricity. Now BrightSource will install a molten salt system that can store that heat so it can be released to create steam after dark or when electricity demand spikes.

That flexibility will allow utilities to more efficiently and cheaply integrate intermittent sources of renewable energy into the power grid, according to John Woolard, BrightSource’s chief executive.

“It’s more of an economic question than anything else,” he said in an interview. “How valuable is power and how long into the evening? The beauty of this system is that you have the flexibility to produce any amount of storage and you just optimize it for each client.”

In BrightSource’s SolarPLUS system, two tanks of molten salt are placed at the base of its power tower. Depending on how many hours of storage is desired on any given day, a percentage of the steam generated by the solar system is diverted to a heat exchanger to increase the salt’s temperature.

Such a storage system increases capital costs, but it also raises the capacity of a BrightSource solar thermal power plant to generate power, lowering the overall cost of the electricity as well as producing more of it when demand spikes at different times of day, according to Woolard.

While it’s possible to add enough storage to allow a solar power plant to operate around the clock, BrightSource believes most utilities will want the option of adding two to six hours of storage. Woolard notes that six hours of storage would boost a BrightSource power plant’s capacity by 50%, allowing it to produce twice the electricity of a similar-sized photovoltaic power plant.

“You’ve got a massive decrease in cost,” he said. “I can move power from when it’s less valuable to the system in the morning and move it to when it has got the most value for the system in that 4 to 6 o’clock time period.”

Molten salt systems have been deployed in Europe and have become of increasing interest in the United States as utilities in states like California grapple with a growing supply of renewable energy that generates electricity intermittently depending on whether the sun is shining or the wind is blowing.

“If utilities look at keeping costs down for customers as their primary objective, they’re seeing that the penalty for the integration of intermittents is really costly, “ said Woolard, noting that utilities in California usually must rely on natural gas-fired power plants to fill in the gaps in the grid.

In response to such utility concerns, BrightSource rivals such as SolarReserve and Abengoa Solar are also offering molten salt storage. Such systems are a selling point against competitors who build photovoltaic power plants that deploy tens of thousands of solar panels like those found on residential rooftops but are not capable of storing the electricity they generate.

BrightSource, which filed for an initial public offering in April, is currently building the first solar thermal power plant to begin construction in the United States in two decades and has signed contracts to supply electricity to utilities Pacific Gas & Electric and Southern California Edison from 11 other projects to be built in the coming years.

Woolard said the salt storage system would most likely be installed on power plants scheduled to come online in 2016 and 2017.

http://blogs.forbes.com/toddwoody/2011/08/03/brightsource-to-build-solar-plants-that-generate-power-after-dark/

PG&E Research

The following is also in a Word doc at: Dropbox>AECOM Energy>Summer Research>Sheena

Vandenberg’s rate schedule (E-20) - http://www.pge.com/tariffs/tm2/pdf/ELEC_SCHEDS_E-20.pdf (Best to just use the rates & costs shown in the Excel file Michael sent us though.)

Feed-in tariffs info (rates that PG&E pays to customers selling their excess electricity back to the grid) - http://www.pge.com/includes/docs/pdfs/b2b/energysupply/wholesaleelectricsuppliersolicitation/Feed-in_Tariffs_FAQ.pdf

However, a customer cannot collect feed-in tariffs & participate in net metering. (Not sure which option
Vandenberg is going with, but sounds like net metering according to the article Gomati found - http://www.vandenberg.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123263779)

Net Energy Metering (NEM):On June 9, 2011, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC)approved the net surplus compensation (NSC) rate for net energy metering (NEM) customers who produce more electricity (kWh) than they use over their true-up period, usually 12 billing months. This payment was authorized by Assembly Bill 920 (AB 920). The NSC rate may fluctuate every month, as it is based on a rolling 12 month average of spot market prices. Based on current market prices, the rate would be approximately 4 cents per kWh.

More NEM info at: http://www.pge.com/myhome/saveenergymoney/solarenergy/nembilling/faq/ and at http://www.pge.com/myhome/saveenergymoney/solarenergy/install/netenergymetering/standardnem/index.shtml

It appears that NEM only applies if you produce more all year than you use though, which definitely won’t be the case with Vandenberg (unless that one building with the panels metered separately??)

That's what I have for now, but still researching....

NREL Partners With Semikron To Develop Renewable Energy Inverter

The U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), along with industrial partner Semikron and with funding from the California Energy Commission (CEC), has developed a prototype of a 50 kW inverter that converts distributed renewable energy, such as wind or solar power, into grid-compatible alternating-current (AC) power.

The 50 kW modular power block is the size of a microwave oven, and it can be included with a photovoltaic array, small wind turbine, battery charger, fuel cell or flywheel to control the flow of energy into the electric grid, according to NREL, adding that when the power block is produced in volume, the price is expected to be one-third of the cost of other integrated power electronics of the same rating.

Because the power block is modular, it can be used for multiple technologies. It is also scalable, so two or more can be connected to create a larger power converter without having to redesign a system, according to NREL.

The power block includes electronic switches, sensors, direct-current (DC) bus filtering, a heat sink, a driver and a controller board. It will be packaged inside a 6-foot by 2.5-foot inverter, which also will contain inductors, capacitors, sensors, contactors, pilot relays and a DC power supply, along with protective devices to suppress surges, protect against ground faults and ensure emergency shutoff.

"After one more redesign, we'll get a dozen or so of these into the hands of industry across different disciplines to get their feedback," says NREL's Bill Kramer, the principal investigator for the project.

NREL's Cooperative Research and Development Agreement with the CEC is being used to develop the power block.

http://www.nawindpower.com/naw/e107_plugins/content/content.php?content.8333

Sandy Springs Corp to Manage Defense Project for Backup Emergency Electricity

Logan Energy will develop and manage the $6.6 million project for the Department of Defense and Department of Energy.

The U.S. Army Corp of Engineers has contracted Sandy Springs-based Logan Energy to develop and manage fuel cell projects that will test an emergency backup electricity system.

Nineteen backup power systems will be deployed at nine different military installations. The $6.6 million project is funded by the U.S. Department of Energy and the Department of Defense.

The experimental program will test how the fuel cells perform in real world operations, identify any technical improvements manufacturers could make to enhance performance, and highlight the benefits of fuel cells for emergency backup power applications, according to a statement by Energy Secretary Steven Chu. The ultimate goal is to hasten the day the systems are available for widespread use.

"Based on our decade's long experience with government fuel cell programs, we believe this one will not only stimulate [broad] markets but also private sector markets toward broader adoption of fuel cell products and applications," said Keith Spitznagel, Logan Energy's SVP of Marketing, in a press statement.

Logan Energy is a private fuel cell services company that specializes in carrying out such projects. The company will oversee four manufacturers - ReliOn, Inc. of Spokane, Washington; Altergy Systems of Folsom, California; Idatech, LLC of Bend, Oregon; and Hydrogenics Corporation of Ontario, Canada.

"Projects like these fuel cell systems will help reduce fossil fuel use and improve energy reliability at military installations across the country,” added Chu, in his press statement.

Fort Bragg, N.C. is one of eight military installations where the U.S. Department of Energy and U.S. Department of Defense will test an emergency backup electricity system.

Known as fuel cells, the system is design to deliver cleaner, more reliable energy than traditional systems.

The fuel cells could have benefits in combat, too.

“America's military pays a high price in terms of added costs, risk of life, and lost operational flexibility to deliver fuel supplies and power to combat forces,” said a spokesperson in the Office of the Secretary of Defense. “Reducing or replacing fossil fuels with clean energy technologies like fuel cells can help address these vulnerabilities and improve energy security at military facilities across the U.S. and ultimately across the globe.”

The spokesperson asked that her name not be used in this report.

Compared with diesel generators, which are often used for backup power, fuel cells use no petroleum, are quieter and produce fewer pollutants and emissions. Fuel cells also typically require less maintenance than either generators or batteries, and can easily be monitored remotely to reduce maintenance time. Their cost has been an issue, but tests like the one at Fort Bragg are designed to bring down costs.

The other military installations that will receive the fuel cell backup power units are:

• Fort Hood, Texas
• The U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York
• Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland
• Picatinny Arsenal, New Jersey
• Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Base, Colorado
• U.S. Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center 29 Palms, California
• The Ohio National Guard, Columbus, Ohio