Interconnection standards for DER (Distributed Energy Resources) connecting to utility transmission and distribution systems have evolved and will continue to change in the coming decades. DER includes IBR (inverter-based resources), such as solar PV, battery energy storage, and V2G (vehicle-to-grid), but also synchronous machine-based generation and other types of generation. Read more…
An incident occurred in central North Carolina on Saturday night, December 3, about 45 minutes from where I live, in which equipment in two substations was made inoperable by gunfire. The result was approximately 40,000 customers without power. As of the morning of December 6, the outage map of Duke Read more…
IEEE 1547-2018, IEEE Standard for Interconnection and Interoperability of Distributed Energy Resources with Associated Electric Power Systems Interfaces, is the standard for interconnecting all technologies of DER (Distributed Energy Resources), including solar PV and battery storage to distribution systems. The standard is critical to the industry, since it contains requirements Read more…
The development and publishing of interconnection standards and guides to facilitate the large numbers of grid-connected DER (Distributed Energy Resources) to utility systems in the coming years continues, with a new guide focused on energy storage. On August 5 of 2022, IEEE published IEEE 1547.9-2022, “IEEE Guide for Using IEEE Read more…
I ran across an excellent graphic from the folks at the US Department of Energy’s (DOE) NREL and SETO. The below is from their Solar Future Study Fact Sheet (2021). In their study they projected the generation mix if the US was to obtain 95% decarbonization by 2035 and 100% Read more…
For anyone that missed it, on April 22, 2022 (Earth Day) IEEE published a new standard that is important for those dealing with Electric Transmission systems: “IEEE 2800 – 2022: IEEE Standard for Interconnection and Interoperability of Inverter-Based Resources (IBRs) Interconnecting with Associated Transmission Electric Power Systems”. IBR’s include Solar Read more…
This five-minute video describes “IEEE 1547-2018 – Interconnection and Interoperability of Distributed Energy Resources with Associated Electric Power Systems Interfaces.” For more information on courses offered in Solar PV Interconnection and Utility Distribution Systems, go to HeatSpring.com.
THE RECORDING OF THIS 90-MINUTE WEBINAR IS NOW AT AVAILABLE. GO TO WEBINAR! I’ll be having a free webinar on Wednesday, June 8th 12-1:30pm on Utility-Scale Solar PV and Distribution Voltage Challenges. This will be on the HeatSpring platform, and is approved for one NABCEP CEU! If you or your Read more…
Various states in the US have either adopted, or are in the process of adopting, IEEE 1547-2018, which leverages new capabilities of smart inverters. Smart inverters are a kind of “grid-following” inverters. Now there is growing interest in “grid-forming” inverters, which are not new but are relatively early in the Read more…
I just launched a new 8-week course called “Interconnection of Utility-Scale Solar PV to Distribution”. With the growth in Utility-Scale Solar PV strong, the need is increasing for knowledgeable people that understand the electrical considerations and challenges with interconnection. You can watch a video describing the course here. To learn Read more…