QUICK NEWS, June 4: SOLAR POWER PLANT BUILDING BLOCKS; WIND AND NEGATIVE PRICES, THE FACTS; PLUG-&-PLAY GRID SCALE BATTERY

SOLAR POWER PLANT BUILDING BLOCKS First Solar Launches Modular PV Plant Design

30 May 2014 (Solar Industry)

“…[First Solar Inc.’s] modular AC Power Block solar power plant system…[is designed] for power plant owners and developers…[and is scalable and configurable] to address a wide range of project conditions. The pre-engineered system is available in modular units ranging from 800 kW to 3.8 MW…[and] backed by a 25-year capacity warranty…First Solar also rolled out its new Series 4 thin-film PV module compatible with 1,500 V plant architectures…[with] a new anti-reflective coated glass…intended to enhance energy production. The module is backed by First Solar’s 25-year linear performance warranty.” click here for more

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WIND AND NEGATIVE PRICES, THE FACTS Gain Exceeds the Cost With Wind Energy; The tax relief provided to wind energy more than pays for itself.

Michael Goggin, May 26, 2014 (Wall Street Journal)

“…Negative prices are extremely rare and are usually highly localized in remote areas where they have little to no impact on other power plants, are caused by inflexible nuclear power plants much of the time, and are being eliminated as long-needed grid upgrades are completed…Wind energy's real impact is saving consumers money by displacing more expensive forms of energy, which is precisely why utilities bought wind in the first place. This impact is entirely market-driven, occurs with or without the tax credit, and applies to all low-fuel-cost sources of energy, including nuclear…[T]ax relief provided to wind energy more than pays for itself by enabling economic development that generates additional tax revenue and represents a small fraction of the cumulative incentives given to other energy sources.” click here for more

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PLUG-&-PLAY GRID SCALE BATTERY New Utility-Scale Energy Storage System Makes Market Debut

May 29, 2014 (Renew Grid)

"UniEnergy Technologies…has unveiled its Uni.System grid-scale energy storage platform…a modular, factory-integrated solution that provides 500 kW AC of power for four hours, with power up to 600 kW AC and energy up to 2.2 MWh AC. It is a plug-and-play product comprising five 20-foot standard containers and requiring only a concrete pad and interconnection…The system uses a vanadium electrolyte that was developed at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory through the U.S. Department of Energy's Grid Storage Program. The company says the vanadium flow batteries offer high energy density, a broad operating temperature range, unlimited cycle life, and full use from a 0% to 100% state of charge.” click here for more

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