Developing the renewable Grid

Reuters said:

“the first utility-scale battery storage system in the U.S. is now in commercial operation… The system is an 8 MW lithium ion battery located in Johnson City, NY. …While there are dozens of MW of battery storage in various stages of development and testing in the U.S., the Johnson City installation makes history as the first one that is actually a full-fledged system playing in the natural gas dominated ancillary services market.

At the other end of the storage spectrum, Gridflex Energy LLC just announced plans for five pumped hydro installations in Wyoming. The plants would increase the utilization rate of wind farms in the area for consumption in Wyoming and neighboring states. The total capacity of the five projects, if they all make it to operation, would be 1.9 GW with an energy storage potential of over 50 GWh.”

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Reuters said:

“The EMerge Alliance's first standard, released during October 2009, defines a 24-volt DC microgrid for use in commercial interiors (Occupied Space). …One of the EMerge Alliance's biggest challenges is overcoming the perceived safety issues associated with DC power (an interesting twist from Edison's early attacks on AC). The specified use of class 2 circuits, as defined by the National Electrical Code, provides acceptable protection from electrical shock and fire hazards. In fact, such 24 Volt DC power is said to be significantly safer than the power at 120 Volt AC wall outlets.”

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