Breaking Down Berkeley Lab’s Annual Utility-Scale Solar Report – Part 1 Berkeley Lab’s annual Utility-Scale Solar Report has become one of the industry’s go-to resources for tracking the evolution of large-scale solar (and storage) deployment across the United States. The 2024 Edition analyzes ground-mounted PV projects above 5 MW ac, offering… Continue reading “Breaking Down Berkeley Lab’s Annual Utility-Scale Solar Report – Part 1”
How Does a Utility-Scale Solar Project Move from Concept to Fully Operational? The development cycle of a utility-scale solar project demands precise orchestration across multiple phases and stakeholders. From initial site acquisition through interconnection studies, Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) negotiations, and ultimately construction, each stage builds upon the last in a carefully… Continue reading “How Does a Utility-Scale Solar Project Move from Concept to Fully Operational?”
NERC PRC-024-3: Understanding “Ride Through” Capability and “No Trip Zones” “Ride through” capability in power systems has become increasingly important in recent years, because it contributes to maintaining grid stability during system disturbances. In this video excerpt from the new Interconnection of Utility-Scale Solar PV to Transmission course, HeatSpring instructor… Continue reading “NERC PRC-024-3: Understanding “Ride Through” Capability and “No Trip Zones””
“Electric Utility Distribution Equipment” course now free for members Very few solar people really understand the interconnection process from the utility side – so starting today, for a limited time, “Electric Utility Distribution Equipment” is free for HeatSpring members. Tim Taylor teaches the course. He’s published a suite of… Continue reading ““Electric Utility Distribution Equipment” course now free for members”
FERC Orders 1920 and 1977 – What’s the Bottom Line? The recent buzz in the electric transmission industry, which is a key part of utility-scale renewables growth, is the May 13th issuing of FERC Order 1920 and FERC Order 1977 . FERC Order 1920 FERC Order 1920, “Building for the… Continue reading “FERC Orders 1920 and 1977 – What’s the Bottom Line?”
A Brief History of Transmission Legislation in the United States The electricity industry in the United States has undergone significant changes over the past few decades, largely driven by a series of legislative and regulatory initiatives aimed at promoting competition, efficiency, and the integration of renewable energy resources. In this… Continue reading “A Brief History of Transmission Legislation in the United States”
Mastering Construction Drawings in Utility-Scale Solar Projects The large scale solar industry is growing at an incredibly rapid rate, and it’s one of the most dynamic and exciting sectors to be a part of right now. However – even with all the growth, the fundamental skills are… Continue reading “Mastering Construction Drawings in Utility-Scale Solar Projects”
Voltage Control Using Inverter Reactive Power Control This is the fifth of five articles in the series “Reactive Power in Utility-Scale Solar PV Applications.” In the previous four posts in this series, we discussed what reactive power is and where it comes from, its impact on T&D… Continue reading “Voltage Control Using Inverter Reactive Power Control”
Active Power Priority vs. Reactive Power Priority This is the fourth of five articles in the series “Reactive Power in Utility-Scale Solar PV Applications.” Here’s the last article – “Inverter-Based Resources Reactive Power Capabilities” – in case you need to catch up. In the earlier articles in this series,… Continue reading “Active Power Priority vs. Reactive Power Priority”
Inverter-Based Resources Reactive Power Capabilities This is the third of five articles in the series “Reactive Power in Utility-Scale Solar PV Applications.” Here’s the last article – “Reactive Power and Transmission & Distribution Operations” – in case you need to catch up. Inverters are a… Continue reading “Inverter-Based Resources Reactive Power Capabilities”
Reactive Power and Transmission & Distribution Operations This is the second of five articles in the series “Reactive Power in Utility-Scale Solar PV Applications.” In Part 1 of this series, we looked at the differences and relationship between real, reactive, and apparent power. We also looked at… Continue reading “Reactive Power and Transmission & Distribution Operations”
What Are Reactive Power and VArs? This is the first of five articles in the series “Reactive Power in Utility-Scale Solar PV Applications.” Right after I started my first job out of college, I found myself presenting at a meeting and talking about reactive power and… Continue reading “What Are Reactive Power and VArs?”
Utility-Scale Solar PV Flourishes Despite Mixed Business Conditions In September 2023, SEIA and Wood Mackenzie released its “Solar Market Insight Report Q3 2023” report. The report projects more than 20 GW of additions in utility-scale solar in 2023, up from 11.8 GW in 2022. Last month, EIA reported… Continue reading “Utility-Scale Solar PV Flourishes Despite Mixed Business Conditions”
Grading the States: Clean Energy Adoption and Access to the Grid One difficulty that solar PV and other clean-tech companies face when looking to expand their business into other states is that every state is different – different in their goals, policies, interconnection processes, technical standards, data availability, and other factors.… Continue reading “Grading the States: Clean Energy Adoption and Access to the Grid”
“Electric Utility Distribution Equipment” now included with HeatSpring Membership Starting May 31st, for a limited time, Tim Taylor’s “Electric Utility Distribution Equipment” is included with your HeatSpring Membership. Membership gives you access to premium courses that usually cost more, including: There are tons of other benefits, too – you… Continue reading ““Electric Utility Distribution Equipment” now included with HeatSpring Membership”
Power Flow Studies on Utility Distribution If you work with utility-scale or community solar PV, you may have heard the utility refer to the term “power flow study”, also called “load flow study”, and wonder what that is. Utility distribution feeders are designed and operated at… Continue reading “Power Flow Studies on Utility Distribution”
How Much Solar PV Can a Feeder Host? As increasing amounts of solar PV connect to electric distribution systems, in the forms of utility-scale solar PV and behind-the-meter solar PV, a critical question that many in the industry have is “How Much Solar PV Can a Feeder Host?” The… Continue reading “How Much Solar PV Can a Feeder Host?”
Impacts of IEEE 1547 to Developers and Engineers Working on Distribution Interconnections The latest revision of IEEE 1547TM-2018 – IEEE Standard for Interconnection and Interoperability of Distributed Energy Resources with Associated Electric Power Interfaces turns five years old this year. Many solar PV developers and engineers that are just entering the industry… Continue reading “Impacts of IEEE 1547 to Developers and Engineers Working on Distribution Interconnections”
Standards for Distributed Energy Resources Interconnecting to Utility Systems Interconnection standards for Distributed Energy Resources (DER) connecting to utility transmission and distribution systems have evolved and will continue to change in the coming decades. DER includes inverter-based resources (IBR), such as solar PV, battery energy storage, and vehicle-to-grid (V2G),… Continue reading “Standards for Distributed Energy Resources Interconnecting to Utility Systems”
New Course: Understanding IEEE 1547-2018 – The Interconnection Standard for DER on Distribution HeatSpring is pleased to announce a new course focusing on IEEE 1547-2018, the interconnection standard for Distributed Energy Resources (DER) on utility distribution systems. Understanding IEEE 1547-2018 – The Interconnection Standard for DER on Distribution, will launch in February 2023,… Continue reading “New Course: Understanding IEEE 1547-2018 – The Interconnection Standard for DER on Distribution”