Lithium-ion batteries are everywhere these days. From cellphones to electric cars, they dominate the market for rechargeable devices. One of the main challenges faced by the electric vehicle industry is related to the energy density of electric car batteries. (more…)

No doubt, a few eyebrows were raised when Gamesa, one of the world’s largest manufacturers of utility-scale wind turbines, recently invested in a company that builds micro-solar photovoltaic (PV) systems and mobile microgrids that are being deployed in Afghanistan by the U.S. military. This is rightly so, since it shows that (more…)

In the venture capital community, one hears a great deal about “technology risk.” In my most recent meeting with Ray Lane, Managing Partner at Kleiner Perkins a few months ago, he told me: “We want all technology risk removed before we put more than a few million dollars into a deal.” (more…)

One of the things I enjoy most about shows like Storage Week, sitting through many dozens of presentations on energy storage, is the breadth of perspective on the subject of clean energy. We all know that ultimately, storage is 100% required if we are to achieve the high rates of penetration we’d all like to (more…)

I was reading an article recently about mountaintop removal (MTR) coal mining and got to thinking….

How many square miles have been cleared in Kentucky for MTR?

And, if we covered all that space with photovoltaic (PV) solar panels, how much electricity in (more…)

Despite sometimes being in competition, the relationship between natural gas and the power grid is destined to become more intertwined. As an ally, natural gas is cleaner than coal, is an abundant domestic resource for generating energy, and its profile in providing steady output to offset the (more…)

Primus Power is a Hayward, California, startup that makes flow batteries for grid-scale energy storage. A flow battery is a type of rechargeable battery that works by the flow of electrolytes through an electrochemical cell, which converts the chemical energy to electricity. (more…)

For more than a year, the California Independent System Operator (CAISO) has been engaged in a cutting-edge modeling effort simulating how a 33% renewable future might affect the state’s grid reliability.

This ‘renewable integration’ modeling ought to (more…)

Xtreme Power (XP) is a Kyle, Texas, advanced battery maker which provides and operates integrated energy storage and power management systems.

Marketed as the Dynamic Power Resources (DPR) product line, XP’s systems combine energy storage and control capabilities in a modular approach that (more…)

Energy storage comes in many shapes and sizes. Pike Research covers six energy storage technologies in depth for its upcoming update to Energy Storage on the Grid alone and includes discussions on many more emerging technologies. The variety of technologies is matched only by the variety of applications – up to 17 by EPRI’s count. In the (more…)