Load Management, Efficiency & Demand Response


  • A signpost for General Motors' assembly plant in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
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    Retrieved from General Motors on August 15, 2024
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    GM Fort Wayne plant cuts natural gas use by 30%, wins DOE award

    General Motors’ assembly plant captures waste heat from landfill gas-powered generators. The recovered heat can provide over 80% of the site’s building heating needs, the U.S. Department of Energy said.

    By Nish Amarnath • Aug. 20, 2024
  • Image of a data center facility
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    Courtesy of Fluor
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    Opinion

    Surging data center power demand risks subtracting clean energy from the grid

    Regulators and policymakers must react effectively to big tech’s acquisition of renewable resources by driving investments in new dispatchable energy and capacity.

    By Brad Viator • Aug. 16, 2024
  • Photovoltaic cells and battery systems on a building.
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    Kyoshino via Getty Images
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    Budderfly acquires tech for distributed energy resource management

    The company says Sunverge Energy’s system allows it to create virtual power plants that can help improve customer site resiliency and add load flexibility to the grid.

    By Joe Burns • Aug. 14, 2024
  • Several vehicles lined up along a curb are blurred while in the foreground a white and silver electric vehicle charger is in focus.
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    Permission granted by Enel X Way North America
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    Opinion

    Reconciling two competing goals: residential electrification and grid stability

    By focusing on distributed resources, utilities will avoid overloading individual distribution feeder circuits and expensive upgrades that greater electrification might otherwise require.

    By Jerry Jackson • Aug. 13, 2024
  • A facade of a building with the General Services Administration signboard
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    Douglas Rissing via Getty Images
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    GSA updates federal building standards in clean energy push

    The latest P100 update, which applies to 300,000 federal buildings, mandates clean energy use in facilities and sets new benchmarks for efficiency.

    By Nish Amarnath • Aug. 12, 2024
  • Two cooling towers at Constellation Energy's 2,300-MW Limerick nuclear power plant in Pottstown, Pennsylvania.
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    aimintang via Getty Images
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    Constellation raises 2024 profit guidance amid PJM load growth, tighter power supplies

    Higher output, less downtime and nuclear production tax credit revenue boosted the company’s second-quarter financial performance.

    By Brian Martucci • Aug. 8, 2024
  • Low Angle Shot of Data Center With Multiple Rows of Fully Operational Server Racks.
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    gorodenkoff via Getty Images
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    Opinion

    How data centers are being used to bypass clean energy goals

    It is possible that real growth is coming for the electricity sector from data centers, electric vehicles and electrification. But that growth can be met without expanding fossil fuels.

    By Patty Durand • Aug. 8, 2024
  • A man in a red uniform repairing a heat pump.
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    welcomia via Getty Images
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    US households claim $8.4B in efficiency, clean energy tax credits for 2023: Treasury

    The total includes $2.1 billion in energy efficiency tax credits, an amount the Treasury Department expects will grow as more returns are processed.

    By Aug. 7, 2024
  • Engineers look at digital twins to monitor building energy use.
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    Andrey Popov via Getty Images
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    AI could halt energy use growth in US buildings: LBNL study

    Combined with policy measures and low-carbon generation, building carbon emissions can decline over 90% by 2050 compared with business-as-usual scenarios, according to national lab researchers.

    By Joe Burns • Aug. 6, 2024
  • A facade of a Schneider Electric building.
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    Permission granted by Schneider Electric
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    Schneider Electric’s Q2 revenue in North America soars amid growth in energy management

    Energy management revenue organically rose 15.5% year over year, to nearly $3.4 billion in North America, despite contending with supply chain challenges, the company said.

    By Nish Amarnath • Aug. 6, 2024
  • A data processing and storage center.
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    Andrey Semenov via Getty Images
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    Opinion

    It’s time to stop fretting about load growth and get serious about demand-side solutions

    As electricity demand growth fuels a crisis of confidence, utilities and grid operators should prioritize least-cost, least-risk demand-side solutions to deliver valuable grid services.

    By Sara Baldwin • Aug. 6, 2024
  • Two people wearing yellow wide-brimmed hats and orange work gloves hold a solar panel leaning on a home's roof.
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    Mario Tama/Getty Images via Getty Images
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    $36M for low-income housing energy efficiency available from US DOE grants

    Local governments and other entities can get up to $2 million each for weatherization and workforce training efforts.

    By Ysabelle Kempe • Aug. 2, 2024
  • Dominion Energy headquarters
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    Zach Gibson / Stringer via Getty Images
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    Dominion miss on Virginia efficiency target could impact gas peaker approval

    The Virginia Clean Economy Act set Dominion energy savings targets through 2025. “It seems very probable they won’t hit any of the targets,” said Nate Benforado, senior attorney at the Southern Environmental Law Center.

    By July 31, 2024
  • A view of the facades of commercial skyscrapers in Boston's bustling Copley Square
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    Elijah-Lovkoff via Getty Images
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    US cities sharpen focus on building performance standards to meet net-zero goals

    Over 40 cities will have these standards in place by 2026, compelling building owners to prioritize energy efficiency and emissions reduction measures, according to a report from JLL.

    By Nish Amarnath • July 29, 2024
  • A view of the facade of New York City Hall and Manhattan Municipal Building in lower Manhattan, New York City.
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    Mark Zhu via Getty Images
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    600+ NYC facilities pledge to cut energy use as part of expanded demand response program

    The city plans to additionally install over 1,150 real-time meters in city buildings to help manage electricity use, the New York City Department of Citywide Administrative Services said.

    By Nish Amarnath • July 24, 2024
  • A home Wallbox electric vehicle charger
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    Courtesy of Wallbox
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    EnergyHub to integrate Wallbox L2 chargers into grid flexibility programs

    About 80% of EV charging occurs at home, according to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, making residential customers a key to utilities looking to manage growing demand.

    By July 24, 2024
  • Modern container battery energy storage power plant system rendering
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    Petmal via Getty Images
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    Energy storage industry sees 117% increase in corporate funding in H1 2024: Mercom

    Storage deal volume reached $15.4 billion in the six months ending June 30, but funding for smart grid companies dropped 11% from the year-earlier period to $1.8 billion, Mercom Capital Group said.

    By Brian Martucci • July 23, 2024
  • A facade of a Schneider Electric building.
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    Permission granted by Schneider Electric
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    Schneider Electric upgrades cloud-based energy management platform

    The enhancements include an automation feature that provides building operators with real-time calculations of renewable energy coverage against consumption data, a company executive said.

    By Nish Amarnath • July 18, 2024
  • The Google logo is displayed on a building.
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    Justin Sullivan via Getty Images
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    Google cuts on-site carbon emissions but struggles to contain data center electricity use

    Despite implementing demand response programs, electrification efforts and power purchase agreements, AI’s computational requirements have led to increases in the company’s emissions.

    By Joe Burns • July 15, 2024
  • A bank of electricity meters on a wall.
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    Ward DeWitt via Getty Images
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    PJM market monitor asks FERC to end grid operator’s energy efficiency capacity payments

    The complaint from Monitoring Analytics adds to energy efficiency issues in the PJM Interconnection’s capacity market, including Affirmed Energy’s possible bankruptcy.

    By July 15, 2024
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    iStock/metamorworks

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    Sponsored by GridX

    How digital rates are fueling our clean energy transition

    Take a modern, customer-centric approach to implement digital rates and fuel our clean energy future.

    July 15, 2024
  • an interior of a data center room
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    Nikada via Getty Images
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    Lack of power pushes rental price increases in major U.S. data center markets: report

    Demand growth and shrinking availability of data centers are pushing companies to secondary markets with greater power availability, a new report says.

    By Joe Burns • July 11, 2024
  • The illustration of yellow and grey bitcoins
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    Wirestock
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    EIA prepares for second attempt to survey bitcoin miners about electricity consumption

    Preliminary estimates from the Energy Information Administration suggest cryptocurrency mining could account for up to 2.3% of total U.S. electricity consumption today.

    By July 11, 2024
  • The U.S. Department of Energy in Washington, D.C.
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    Douglas Rissing via Getty Images
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    ‘There’s been a ton of progress’ on energy efficiency this year. Next up: court cases and an election

    2024 has been a banner year for energy efficiency so far, particularly with a slate of new appliance standards finalized by the U.S. Department of Energy. But a court case and upcoming election could stall progress, say experts.

    By July 3, 2024
  • Man is adjusting a thermostat using a tablet with smart home app in modern living room.
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    Saklakova via Getty Images
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    FERC targets Affirmed Energy for alleged tariff violation in PJM capacity market

    The company contends it followed market rules in selling energy efficiency resources in the PJM Interconnection’s capacity market.

    By July 1, 2024