April 19, 2012
Vehicle-to-Grid Development & Integration: EnVision 2030 SPECIAL V2G FEATURE (Part 1 of 3)
By Jon T. Brock, President, Desert Sky Group, LLC
This is the first installment of our 3-part interview with Dr. Russell Lefevre, a widely recognized IEEE Smart Grid technical expert and chair of the IEEE Steering Committee on Electric Vehicles. Dr. Lefevre is an IEEE Fellow, past president of IEEE-USA, and a member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the Aerospace and Electronic Systems Society of IEEE. The interview is conducted by Jon Brock, EnVision 2030 Contributing Editor. This initial session addresses the roles that electric vehicles will play in the future of Smart Grid and the benefits they can provide. Some of the pertinent issues around consumer acceptance of these new and emerging electric vehicle technologies are also discussed. Parts 2 and 3 – appearing in the July-August and November-December 2012 issues – will delve deeper into other facets of V2G development and deployment; be sure to watch for them!
March 21, 2012
Smart Grid Interoperability: An Interview with Rob Wilhite III
By Jon T. Brock, President, Desert Sky Group, LLC
I recently had the good fortune to interview a smart grid thought leader, Robert Wilhite III, Global Director Management & Operations Consulting for DNV KEMA on issues related to the smart grid, DNV KEMA's new interop lab, and what an optimal smart grid may look like in the future. Rob will be joining myself and other industry luminaries at the Smart Grid RoadShow to be held April 23-25, 2012 in St. Petersburg, FL. For now, I trust you enjoy this interview with Rob.
February 23, 2012
Integrating Renewables in a Smart Grid World: An Interview with NREL's David Mooney
By Jon T. Brock, President, Desert Sky Group, LLC
Renewable energy and energy storage are becoming critical components of an emerging smart grid. The ability to integrate renewables in a large scale and safe manner are a high priority in the national energy picture. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) is at the forefront of renewable integration. Late last year at the Smart Grid RoadShow hosted by AEP, CenterPoint Energy, and Oncor in Corpus Christi, TX, NREL's David Mooney gave utility industry executives a glimpse of its work in the area of renewable integration. I recently caught up with Dr. Mooney in his Golden, Colorado office. I trust that you enjoy the insights that Dr. Mooney and NREL have on renewable integration.
May 19, 2011
Smart Grid Trends That "Most" Agree On: A Perspective Courtesy of Erich Gunther
By Jon T. Brock, President, Desert Sky Group, LLC
The “smart grid” is so widely defined that most will not venture into a definition publicly. It can mean different things to different individuals or companies. I recently had the good fortune to attend the Smart Grid RoadShow, an event focused exclusively on Grid Transformation and Smart Grid initiatives in Chattanooga, TN. On the first evening of the event an invitation-only dinner occurs with utility and energy luminaries called EnVision 2030. Speaking to the dinner guests was Erich Gunther, Chairman and Chief Technology Officer of EnerNex. Mr. Gunther also is the founder of Smart Grid Labs, chairman of the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) GridWise Architecture Council, among many other roles working with EPRI, IEEE, to mention a few. Recognizing the many different paths that the smart grid is taking, Mr. Gunther revealed to the audience that in his multiple roles with various organizations there is some commonality. The need to define a vision of where the smart grid is going in the next 10, 20, 30 years is something that all the various organizations are striving for.
November 16, 2010
FERC and the Electric Car: An Interview with Jon Wellinghoff
By Jon T. Brock, President, Desert Sky Group, LLC
Recently I attended the Smart Grid RoadShow in Portland, Oregon and got a few minutes of Jon Wellinghoff’s time for a brief interview. Named as Chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) by President Barack Obama in March 2009, Wellinghoff was in Portland to give the keynote address at the Smart Grid RoadShow, an event focused exclusively on Grid Transformation and Smart Grid initiatives. The event’s focus and FERC’s priorities seemed to align very well as FERC has stated its top initiatives to be the Smart Grid, Demand Response, and Integration of Renewables.
May 4, 2010
Would You, or Could You, Use 3,200 Different Internets? An Interview with Mike Davis, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
By Jon T. Brock, President, Desert Sky Group, LLC
Many have compared the smart grid to the Internet, claiming that what we are doing is building an “energy Internet” of sorts. With that in mind, some also claim that we are building this “energy Internet” differently by service territory, which makes it difficult if not impossible to optimize asset performance on a holistic scale. If that is the case, then why don’t we take a step back and look at this on a country or even continent basis as opposed to city, state, regional basis?
April 28, 2010
Can China Leapfrog the US When Implementing a Smart Grid? An Interview with Don McConnell, Battelle Energy Technology
By Jon T. Brock, President, Desert Sky Group, LLC
The smart grid has gone global. It may mean different things to different stakeholders and may also vary based on geography. Cultural differences across the globe will impact how consumers adopt what we as practitioners are calling the “smart grid.”
April 22, 2010
Is A European Smart Grid More Innovative Than The U.S.? An Interview With Ray Gogel, CURRENT Group, LLC
By Jon T. Brock, President, Desert Sky Group, LLC
The smart grid has gone global. It may mean different things to different stakeholders and may also vary based on geography. While North America appears fixated on getting into the consumer’s home, Europe appears to have started focusing on the distribution technologies, while Asia is learning from other geographies on where to put its priorities. Alexander Graham Bell would not recognize what we have done to the telecommunications industry he helped father while Thomas Edison would totally recognize the electric industry of today. Interestingly enough, the new smart grid world may involve the convergence of these two industries leveraging an information technology industry that did not exist when they were born.
April 16, 2010
Advertise or Educate? A Smart Grid Interview With Charles Dickerson, PEPCO Holdings, Inc.
By Jon T. Brock, President, Desert Sky Group, LLC
The smart grid is becoming an implementation reality. Last week the U.S. Department of Energy announced $100 million towards workforce education for the implementation and operating of what electric utilities call the “smart grid.” That money is for the workforce per se and not the end consumer. Recent issues involving consumers highlight the need for educating the end consumer on what this “smart grid” is and what it will do for them.
