Solar Basics is a video series by Solar Power World created to help installers learn about the business, tools and tricks of the solar power trade.
To capitalize on burgeoning solar-plus-storage markets, solar developers need to include more multi-dimensional thinking into their projects. We look at three steps they can take to do just that in this Solar Basics video. Based on the article: 3 steps for developers to succeed in solar+storage.
Solarman says
There was this guy Luke something, that was a physicist back in the 1980’s that found he could hear lightning strikes on power lines from several States away. This brought forward the concept of broad band internet over power lines. To some extent, this is what a smart house control is. Devices with a transceiver that can be controlled remotely, say through a cell phone. The technology wide spread development is still ongoing on the so called PLC or PLCC or even BLC.
Back in 2010 or so, the electric utilities were becoming uninterested with solar PV projects that generate 100MW to 1GW peak power. There was no cost adder to installing such large generation projects, as the utility would have to build a Peaker plant for off hours power generation. So, the beneficial PPAs of 25 to 30 years were being reduced to maybe 10 years with a renewal clause. Not very inspiring to solar PV plant investors. Then utilities wanted smaller distributed solar PV farms of around 10MW peak. Now, with energy storage dropping in price and often quoted as part of the project price, the value adder that the electric utilities want has been brought online. Although plant size may not increase above the 10MW peak size. The adder of an energy storage system gives the utility the ability to shift generation to distribution by storing the over generation. This storage allows the “avoided cost” of no need for a “backup” fueled power plant online for night time needs. Also this storage system could also be used by the utility as a place to store excess energy from their online fueled generation assets instead of running plants in “spinning reserve”.