sensors
Successfully deploying 44 synchrophasors hardly sounds like a big deal, until you realise what those devices can mean in terms of keeping the lights on. Integrated across a regional power transmission network, that relatively small number of devices can “bring a new level of situational awareness to grid operators,” said
buildings
The Texas city of San Antonio is on a $10-million quest to make its buildings smarter and more energy efficient. That’s how much it was awarded in 2009 federal economic stimulus funds for an initiative originally called the Retrofit Ramp-Up program. Now known as the Better Buildings Program, the
high speed rail
Starting in 2016, rail passengers in Germany will be able to start riding on high-speed, energy efficient trains that “(lay) the cornerstone for the long-distance transportation of the future.” Rüdiger Grube, chairman and CEO of rail operator Deutsche Bahn, also described the new ICx trains as “the most modern … in
energy security
Reducing the military’s dependence on fossil fuels would not only make it easier to provide supplies in a war zone but could save the lives of many soldiers, according to a renewable energy company executive whose firm focuses on security and international aid markets. Speaking at the European Defence
water efficiency
Natural gas energy has its drawbacks (see, for example, “Gasland”), though it’s cleaner burning than coal. But that’s not what makes NV Energy’s new combined-cycle, natural gas-driven power plant addition in Nevada so noteworthy. The 484-megawatt addition to the existing 144-megawatt Harry Allen Generating Station north of
meter data management
With gas prices approaching $4 per gallon in the US, what wouldn’t you give to drastically cut down your mileage these days? One Arizona utility has found it’s been able to avoid more than two million miles of driving on service calls — saving some 198,000 gallons in
grid optimisation
Chicago-based S&C Electric Company is expanding its reach into the smart-grid market with the acquisition of a host of new grid opimisation solutions, including volt/VAR management software, intellectual property and development platforms. While it didn’t provide further specifics on the acquisition, S&C said it
efficiency
Australia’s TransGrid aims to improve the efficiency of its nearly $6 billion in electricity assets with the help of software from Mincom. Under a deal worth $7.2 million, TransGrid will use Mincom software to manage assets, human resources, supply chains and field operations. TransGrid, one of the largest
electric vehicles
Woo … we have a new world record for an electric vehicle: fastest 0-to-60-mph acceleration by an electric kart. Powered by a Saft lithium-ion battery, Linde Material Handling’s E1 electric kart went from sitting still to speeding along at 60 mph in just 3.45 seconds. Guinness World Records was
photovoltaics
New Jersey’s Public Service Electric and Gas Company (PSE&G) aims to develop 80 megawatts (MW) of solar power over the next three years as part of its “Solar 4 All” program. That amount of energy would be enough to meet the electricity needs of about 13,000
Energy
How do you know whether your smart-grid initiatives are succeeding or failing? The Ontario Smart Grid Forum, established in 2008 to draft a vision for the Canadian province’s next-generation energy infrastructure, outlines four key metrics in its latest progress report. While noting that “this is just a starting point,
photovoltaics
Construction of a 150-megawatt (MW) solar plant — a greater capacity than any photovoltaic plant (PV) in operation today — is set to begin in Arizona next month. When it’s completed in early 2013, Sempra Generation’s Mesquite Solar 1 is expected to produce enough electricity to power 56,000 average-size
