Insights from our Editorial Team
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Former California Energy Commission chair comments on bulk storageOct 05, 2010 |
The passage of California's AB 2514 means that the California Public Utilities Commission will seek to define "cost effective" storage and work with utilities on goals to achieve it. A former chairman of the California Energy Commission shares his views on issues surrounding the legislation and the topic in general.
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Are we asking the right questions?Oct 05, 2010 |
The evolution to a smarter grid has some utilities, and some consumers, spinning in circles. There's a lot to consider, and a lot of questions to answer. With this in mind, we revisit the Big Hairy Audacious Goal (BHAG) concept. What is the "ultimate" answer?
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Oct 04, 2010 |
Municipal utilities come with certain challenges that are unique when compared to their brethren at investor-owned or cooperative utilities. Dawn Roth, general manager of IT at Colorado Springs Utilities, shares with Christopher Perdue her view of the current challenges being faced by municipal utilities
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New study underscores utility readiness, battery price dropOct 04, 2010 |
This time it's really happening - forget the stops and starts of past years. Electric vehicles in the tens of thousands will roam America's roads in the near future. And utilities - everywhere across the country - had better be prepared or face "havoc."
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Nebraska utility goes slow on smart gridOct 01, 2010 |
While many smart grid discussions focus on coastal utilities or highly populated areas, the largely rural Midwest often does not share an affinity for the "bleeding edge." Enter the Nebraska Public Power District (NPPD), where the mantra is "go slow." Here's a refreshing take on metering, wind power and IT issues from the NPPD's IT leader.
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Readers sound off on smart grid-related issuesSep 30, 2010 |
Readers say the darndest things, typically with great insight into the solution of issues confronting smarter grids. The past week illustrated this point as our correspondents weighed in on variable rates for charging electric vehicles, Secretary of Energy Chu's perspective on coal and the question of who pays for research-and-development when a utility undertakes a smart grid pilot. Don't miss these valuable insights.
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Sep 29, 2010 |
Critics of President Obama's stimulus spending, particularly in the energy sector, criticize the pace at which that money is being disbursed. EnergyBiz columnist Ken Silverstein argues that a deliberate pace avoids waste and fraud and provides sustainable spending that encourages job growth.
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I get charged up when I talk about fast carsSep 28, 2010 |
I love cool, fast, expensive vehicles as much as the next person ... and probably even more. (I once proposed the closing of a three-lane section of the highway between Edmonton and Calgary, Alberta, once a month, just for a taste of the feeling of the Autobahn.) But with electric utilities across the country ramping up to add consumers' EVs to the mix, I decided to compare the specs of a Tesla Roadster Sport to a Ferrari 599 GTO, just for fun.
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Sep 28, 2010 |
In the second installment of a two-part interview, the Obama Administration's point man on ARRA spending discusses job creation, wind generation and smart grid issues. Matthew Rogers calls stimulus funding a "down payment" on American competitiveness and suggests that Congress take the next step to help re-establish the United States' global leadership in clean energy innovation.
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OG&E's Reid Nuttall talks about business challenges, and changing business modelsSep 27, 2010 |
Regulators are focused front-and-center on ratepayers, and the benefits they may or may not see from smart grid. Reid Nuttall, chief information officer at Oklahoma Gas & Electric Company, shares with Christopher Perdue advice for other utilities on working with their utility commissions regarding their smart grid initiatives. Nuttall also shares business challenges, and the utility's changing business model.
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