Several companies develop technology that allows utilities and power players to know approximately how much wind and solar to expect from their plants minutes, hours and even days in advance. Dr. Bruce Bailey, president and CEO of AWS Truepower, said decision makers who have the responsibility of knowing how much power will be available “should view forecasting methods as a smart grid advancement.”
In September 2010, AWS Truepower was awarded $2.15 million in federal funding from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to develop, deploy and manage a targeted observation campaign using advanced forecasting methods covering the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) territory. The funding is intended to enable utilities and grid operators to more accurately forecast when and where electricity will be generated from wind power.
Bailey said AWS Truepower research has found that wind plants can offer more stable voltage to the grid. “These projects are being designed to have low-voltage ride through capabilities, among other benefits.”
In fact, wind integration studies have shown that forecasting is critical to the future penetration of wind and in many cases will reduce operation costs, in turn lowering the cost of energy, Bailey said.
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