QUICK NEWS, March 12: CALIFORNIA BREAKS RECORD FOR SOLAR OUTPUT; WIND HITS 4% OF U.S. POWER; GRID MANAGERS TO TRIPLE SPENDING FOR SMART CONTROLS

CALIFORNIA BREAKS RECORD FOR SOLAR OUTPUT California ISO breaks new solar production record; Connected solar and wind renewables surpass 11,000 megawatts to help light up the Golden State

March 10, 2014 (California Independent System Operator)

“Solar power production hit a new record of 4,093 megawatts on Saturday, March 8, 2014. The previous record was 3,926 megawatts (MW) set the previous day on March 7. Electricity generated from solar has more than doubled from [ the 2,071 MW peak of] June 7, 2013…The new record generation can instantaneously power about 3 million homes…[Wind resources of 5,890 MW and solar resources of 5,231 MW] now account for 11,121 MW interconnected to the ISO grid…[and] all renewables (including geothermal) make up about 15,000 MW of the ISO generation mix. The current wind production record stands at 4,302 MW set June 23, 2013…” click here for more

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WIND HITS 4% OF U.S. POWER American wind power reaches major power generation milestones in 2013

March 56, 2014 (American Wind Energy Association)

"American wind power topped 4 percent of the U.S. power grid for the first time last year and has delivered 30 percent of all new generating capacity for the last five years. In Iowa and South Dakota, wind power now exceeds 25 percent of total electricity production. In nine states it provided more than 12 percent and in 17 states, more than five percent…Wind power generated 4.13 percent of all the electricity in America in 2013 as the fifth largest electricity source in the U.S., according to the latest data from the Department of Energy’s Energy Information Administration (EIA). That is enough to power the equivalent of 15.5 million American homes…” click here for more

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GRID MANAGERS TO TRIPLE SPENDING FOR SMART CONTROLS Asset Management and Condition Monitoring; Grid Sensors and Software Solutions for Transmission and Distribution Networks: Global Market Analysis and Forecasts

1Q 2014 (Navigant Research)

“…[W]ith the advent of the smart grid – and the deployment of communications networks that enable advanced metering infrastructure and distribution automation programs – the inclusion of sensing or monitoring is starting to make more economic sense…Asset management and condition monitoring (AMCM) solutions encompass physical devices that may share real-time or near real-time data with the operations center…[and software and analytics solutions]… The benefits of more refined grid operations are increasingly recognized, not only by financial stakeholders, but also by regulatory bodies concerned with electric rates for customers and the reliability and efficiency of the power grid overall…Navigant Research forecasts that the global market for AMCM devices and solutions will more than triple between 2014 and 2023 to nearly $6.9 billion…” click here for more

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