| It wasn’t long ago that utilities feared the breakneck growth of large-scale solar.
In the early 2000s, many utilities expressed concern about the intermittent nature of solar generation, worried that fluctuating output from solar farms could stress their systems, creating voltage problems on the grid and enhancing wear on conventional power plants.
Fast forward a few years, and utilities are not only handling unprecedented levels of solar penetration, but are clamoring for more. In 2016, U.S. utilities added more solar than any other resource, and average utility-scale prices dropped below $1/watt this year, fueling even more demand.
Solar’s growth has not erased integration problems — utilities are still dealing with the infamous “duck curve” created in high-solar jurisdictions. But power companies and grid operators are getting better at handling the resource. New software systems, updated grid and generation infrastructure, and the addition of new technologies like smart inverters and storage are helping utilities embrace the large-scale solar boom nationwide.
How exactly are they doing it? That’s the focus of this Spotlight edition on utility-scale solar integration. See a trend that we missed? Let us know at the e-mail link below.
Gavin Bade
Editor, Utility Dive
Twitter | E-mail News and Trends | Feature Story High levels of renewables can make utilities look good, but also strain their systems, with potential solutions requiring vetting by regulators. |
| Feature Story A utility-scale solar pilot project demonstrated how solar can compete with natural gas over grid services and cost. |
| Smart utility-scale solar systems go a step further than traditional utility-scale solar by cost competitively offering operational attributes comparable to conventional generation. |
| Feature Story SCE and APS want to use electric vehicles, water heaters and demand response to help add more wind and solar to the grid. |
| Feature Story Soaking up solar power during the day and dispatching it in the evening is often cited as a renewable-enabling use for energy storage, but in practice it's often not so simple. |
| Feature Story A rainy winter and growing solar have CAISO prices going negative and renewable energy going to waste — what should policymakers do? |
| Feature Story Building on Arizona's cheap solar-plus-storage PPA could present a new way to mitigate the duck curve, but the utility that signed it is skeptical. |
| Feature Story With up to 6 GW of gas plants at risk of closure in the coming years, energy stakeholders are scrambling for new compensation techniques and zero-carbon alternatives. |
| Feature Story While it's something to minimize, curtailment is crucial to the functioning of MECO's grid today, and the goal of reaching 100% renewables by 2045. |
Featured Resources | ScottMadden finds the duck curve is real and growing faster than expected. In addition, the analysis reveals some interesting, unexpected, and important nuances. Learn more. |
| How can utility-scale solar have such a large operational impact? Examine the impacts and risks of solar in major U.S. electricity markets. Learn more. |
| ScottMadden and the Smart Electric Power Alliance (SEPA) partnered to develop alternative curtailment approaches for Hawaii to consider and deploy that better manage curtailment risk and should result in more equitable power purchase agreements (PPAs) long term. Learn more. |
| What are the specific applications for energy storage? How do these applications provide benefit? ScottMadden and the American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE) assess the value of energy storage. Learn more. |
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