In this special edition, SunCast host Nico Johnson talks with pv magazine Americas editor about grid integration of high levels of renewable energy, and what’s going on at SPI

As part of the collaboration between pv magazine USA and SunCast, we bring you an audio special edition marking the one-year anniversary of Hurricane Maria and looking at the role that solar and energy storage has played in the recovery of Puerto Rico.

A new report by the Smart Electric Power Association argues that a process called reverse demand response can allow utilities to minimize curtailment of solar while simultaneously lowering power prices.

A measure allowing behind-the-meter batteries to get paid during periods of electricity oversupply was among the measures approved by CAISO last week. Several of the changes are expected to assist with the integration of higher levels of renewable energy.

Burns & McDonnell, a 6,000-strong engineering firm, is installing a Greenlots EV charging network and integrating it into the company’s campus network. The engineers hope to offer EV related services to their many electric utility customers.

The state’s recent passage of SB 100 and SB 700 is expected to spur a boom in solar and behind-the-meter battery deployment, and pv magazine has done the math on what we can expect.

A report analyzing the week of a heat wave in the Northeast estimates that solar power saved $30 million in wholesale electricity costs due to lowering demand at its peak during mid-day – including $6.7 million in savings on July 3rd.

In this op-ed for pv magazine, Mike Winn, CEO and co-founder of DroneDeploy explains the value of drone deployment in solar project development and maintenance.

Massachusetts has joined California, Hawaii, Nevada and Vermont in the club of states where solar represents 10% or more of in-state generation. Solar made up 2.4% of total generation in the United States during the first half of 2018, with solar and wind together making up slightly less than 10%.

According to a recent study, the benefits of distributed storage would well exceed its costs, making storage a cost-effective resource that utilities must employ under Massachusetts law. The benefit/cost findings may be applicable in other states, to the extent that the Massachusetts grid is representative of other grids nationwide.