Grids & Integration

Pumped hydro energy storage can be readily scaled to any required storage capacity at a known and affordable cost.

The US Court of Appeals has ruled that an 80 MW (AC)/160 MW (DC) solar farm, with 50 MW of battery storage, meets “Qualifying Facility” status of 80 MW (AC) or less under the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act (PURPA) of 1978.

Australian grid operator Transgrid has partnered with German machinery manufacturer Zeck for the use of its innovative steel separation tech. Zeck’s machine can process electricity transmission lines into a recycle-ready state onsite. Previously, Transgrid sent old transmission lines offshore for this process at a much higher cost.

An international research group has developed a new Aalborg inverter design for high-power applications in solar arrays. The device has fewer switches than conventional, voltage-source inverters and can reportedly improve PV system performance by reducing switching losses.

Britain’s T-1 Capacity Auction for delivery in the 2023-24 period saw battery energy storage technology emerge as the third-biggest winner in terms of secured contracts, following gas and nuclear. Batteries accounted for more than a half of the new build capacity.

A new report by IEA-PVPS Task 16 looks at the use of “implicit storage” to transform intermittent renewable sources such as solar and wind into firm power generation. It shows that the total cost of the electricity system transformation could be lowered with the optimal use of capacity overbuilding and dynamic curtailment.

There is currently no widely accepted test methodology to assess the safety of second-life lithium-ion batteries (LiBs). However, a UK government study reveals two opposing views on their safety, raising concerns over whether such devices should be deployed in homes under any circumstances.

A new research paper proposes an optimal planning technique to identify the locations and sizes of electric-vehicle (EV) charging stations with controlled charging and hybrid wind and PV systems in a multi-microgrid.

Singapore-based VFLowTech is manufacturing compact, scalable vanadium redox flow batteries with 24/7 operation over lifespans of 25 years. It is now setting up a 200 MWh production line, with plans to scale up the production of modular, long-duration storage solutions.

Discovery Battery’s new lithium iron phosphate battery system has a nominal voltage of 51.2 V and a capacity of 100 Ah. Up to six 5.12 kWh battery modules can be stacked in a single enclosure, and up to four enclosures can be connected in parallel for a total capacity of 120 kWh.