Solar Gets $25M Integration Boost From Energy Department
The U.S. is adding in a lot of solar and wind power right now. The Energy Department estimates that since Obama entered office the amount of solar installed in the U.S. has gone from 1.2 gigawatts to 27.4 gigawatts. That’s causing concern for utilities who are trying to manage the variability of wind and solar power on the grid. The U.S. Energy Department’s SunShot Initiative is offering $25 million to help modernize the grid with real-time monitoring through it’s new Enabling Extreme Real-Time Grid Integration of Solar Energy (ENERGISE) offering. The Energy Department anticipates that the funding will help develop 10 to 15 different solutions that utilities will field-test in real-world environments. The live demonstrations will show the viability of the tools and hardware that the awardees have developed. The offering will help software developers, solar companies, and utilities accelerate the integration of solar energy into the grid with real-time monitoring and energy management technologies. “ENERGISE specifically seeks to develop software and hardware platforms for utility distribution system planning and operations that integrate sensing, communication and data analytics. These hardware and software solutions will help utilities manage solar and other distributed energy resources on the grid and will be data-driven, easily scaled-up from prototypes, and capable of real-time monitoring and control,” the Energy Department said. “Our ongoing grid modernization work will help accelerate the widespread adoption of the clean energy resources that will define our low-carbon future. This funding will help that mission by supporting industry partners working to integrate, store, and deploy solar energy throughout our electric grid,” explained Lynn Orr, Energy Department Under Secretary for Science and Energy. “In doing so, we hope to drive down costs and encourage even more American homeowners and businesses to install solar systems.” The initiative will offer awards of between $500,000 and up to $4 million to support the projects. Potential applicants must submit their concepts by June 17 and file a full application by August 26. Tweet
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