Nov 1, 2022 | Txses Impact
Texas is saddled with a vulnerable energy system: Winter Storm Uri and this summer’s extended heat wave proved that. Now, distributed energy resources (DER) are getting some attention—finally.
State regulators are looking at how aggregated DERs could give the ERCOT grid greater stability. On the table is an 80 MW virtual power plant pilot that could serve as a showcase and building block for a much larger set of DERs.
TXSES board member Amy Heart, who leads public policy at Sunrun, helped craft the pilot as a member of the ADER task force. She joins the Texas Power Podcast to discuss lessons learned from past weather events, talk about current market redesign efforts, and offer insights into the future for DERs in Texas.
Oct 24, 2022 | Txses Impact
TXSES wishes Platinum Business Member Mission Solar a very happy 10th anniversary!
As if 10 years as a premier Texas solar manufacturer isn’t enough reason to celebrate, Mission Solar announced a long-awaited 1GW expansion plan to ramp up production to meet industry demands for 2023 and beyond.
Since its founding, Mission Solar has produced durable and reliable American-built solar modules in its 246,000 square-foot facility on 86 acres in south San Antonio at Brooks, a mixed-use community located on the former Brooks Air Force Base. The recent passage of the Inflation Reduction Act includes incentives for expansion that the company plans to convert into more manufacturing and support jobs.
The company will add to its 300MW production capacity immediately, with plans to reach 1GW annually in 2024. Expansion of the Mission Solar facility will begin in Q4 2022. OCI Company Ltd., the module manufacturer’s parent company in Seoul, South Korea, will play a vital role in providing polysilicon for Mission modules sourced within a careful and conscientious supply chain.
‘By 2035, solar installations are expected to quadruple from current levels. At present, four percent of the electricity fed to American energy grids is generated by solar. The U.S. aims to have 40 percent of its electricity generated by solar technology by 2035. These are exciting opportunities for us as a company. Additional motivated team members will be needed to help us build a greener future,’ said Jae Yang, President and CEO of Mission Solar Energy.
Read the full release.
Oct 20, 2022 | News
Source: The Eagle/Dallas Morning News
19 October 2022
Solar and wind energy saved Texans nearly $1 billion a month this year in electricity costs, according to a recent clean energy study from energy system analysis group IdeaSmiths LLC.
In the first eight months of 2022, renewables saved the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, which operates the grid, about $7.4 billion, the report shows, or about $925 million per month. Renewables are on track to save Texans $11 billion total this year.
“With a coal or natural gas power plant, you have to both build a power plant and continuously buy fuel to burn in that power plant, and so there’s higher ongoing costs,” said University of Texas Austin research scientist and IdeaSmiths executive Joshua Rhodes, who led the research. “Wind and solar generally produce very cheap electricity because they don’t have fuel costs … after you’ve built the plant there are no fuel costs associated with generating electricity.”
The report quantifies the economic benefit of renewables in terms of electricity cost, water usage and pollution. The report doesn’t address the impact of renewables on grid reliability.
Read the full article.
Sep 26, 2022 | Txses Impact
Our board member, renewable energy expert and all-around marvelous human,
Karl Rabago, talks with
NewsRadio 1080 KRLD AM‘s Mitch Carr about the rise of and massive potential for solar in Texas. Have a
listen!
Aug 18, 2022 | News
The Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT) is developing a pilot project to investigate how distributed energy resources can boost electric reliability and deliver the proposal to ERCOT by October 11, 2022 to meet a pilot start date in Q1 2023.
ADER Pilot Projects allow ERCOT to evaluate costs and benefits of proposals without full implementation through ERCOT Protocols.
Specifically, the pilot will answer how aggregated distributed generation can support reliability, enhance the wholesale market, incentivize investment, potentially reduce transmission and distribution investments and support better load management during emergencies. The pilot is expected to run for three years.
A 20-member stakeholder committee includes four categories: transmission and distribution providers; rural electric providers; ADER providers; and technical expertise/institutions. Amy Heart, vice president of public policy at Sunrun and TXSES board member, is on the ADER providers committee.
Transmission and Distribution Service Providers
Jason Ryan, CenterPoint Energy Chair
Alejandro Ramirez, AEP
Andrew Higgins, CPS Energy
John Padalino, Bandera Electric Cooperative
Martha Henson, Oncor
Retail Electric Providers
Arushi Sharma Frank, Tesla
James McGinnis, David Energy
Michael Lee, Octopus Energy
Ned Bonskowski, Vistra
Resmi Surendran, Shell Vice Chair
ADER Providers
Amy Heart, SunRun
J. T. Thompson, Generac
Joel Yu, Enchanted Rock
John Bonnin, AutoGrid
Suzanne Bertin, Texas Advanced Energy Business Alliance (TAEBA)
Technical Expertise/Institutions
Carmen Best, Recurve
Erik Ela, Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI)
Margo Weisz, Texas Energy Poverty Research Institute (TEPRI)
Miroslav Begovic, Texas A&M University
Scott Hinson, Pecan Street
