But what’s most interesting is the state’s desire to make sure that investment in smart grid technology will pay off not just for utilities, but...
When author Michael Pollan spoke at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in mid-October, it’s a safe bet his hosts didn’t offer fresh cherries to the...
As with almost all major reforms, the movement to more sustainable power has been the result of actions taken by individuals and by states —...
The boon of concentrating solar thermal power plants is their ability to deliver more consistent electricity, and to offer thermal storage (cheaper than batteries) to...
A nice, short comparison of the cost of electricity storage with pumped hydropower and batteries. Using pumped hydro to store electricity costs less than $100...
Distributed solar photovoltaic (PV) proponents have recognized that solar is not without economies of scale – larger installations generally have lower installed costs per Watt...
One of the keys to maximizing renewable energy production (decentralized or otherwise) is providing electricity storage to smooth out variabilities in wind and solar power...
Right-Wingers Just Don’t Like the Ones Who Don’t Agree with Them. In 1787, writing in the Federalist Papers in support of state ratification of the...
We could explore the possibility of eliminating the need for long-transmission lines and utilize wind energy closer to the source (Minnesota and Iowa are two...
How self-sufficient in energy generation could states be if they relied only on their own renewable resources? In November 2008, ILSR began to address this...
The interconnection and locational benefits of [Wholesale Distributed Generation] represent a large part of the ratepayer value for projects 20 MW and under. Because the...
A recent University of California, Berkeley, study showed that if we hit our state’s renewable energy goals for 2020 [33%] with wholesale generation projects instead...
Building wholesale [distributed] generation projects instead of large-scale renewable energy farms in remote areas helps consumers by avoiding unnecessary costs. If energy is generated close...
The ubiquitous nature of renewable energy argues for a decentralist energy approach.… Read More
Let’s say I built a 100 megawatt photovoltaic power plant in Blythe, in a hot desert. The same 100 megawatts in 1,000 commercial rooftops in...