The Future Of Power __TOP__
Renewable energy actually is the cheapest power option in most parts of the world today. Prices for renewable energy technologies are dropping rapidly. The cost of electricity from solar power fell by 85 percent between 2010 and 2020. Costs of onshore and offshore wind energy fell by 56 percent and 48 percent respectively.
The Future of Power
Although solar and wind power costs are expected to remain higher in 2022 and 2023 then pre-pandemic levels due to general elevated commodity and freight prices, their competitiveness actually improves due to much sharper increases in gas and coal prices, says the International Energy Agency (IEA).
Like many other industries, power generation is becoming increasingly digitized. Yet many players are only now taking steps to create value from tech-enabled initiatives and establish new ways of working. In fact, there are no global end-to-end cases of digitization in power generation; even the most technologically advanced players have implemented only a small number of isolated digitization use cases, which are often not directly tied to business value.
Many companies across industries fail to articulate a clear vision for their digital transformations. As a result, workers are often left guessing how digital and analytics can improve their day-to-day tasks; some might even perceive the transformation as a threat rather than an opportunity (for example, they may believe automation will make their jobs redundant). When it comes to power-plant transformations, many companies make the same mistake.
Explaining how different roles within a power plant are affected shows workers that successful digital transformations make smart use of data and efficient ways of working to focus on performance improvement. This means that digitization will lead to updated roles, rather than reduced headcount. Some of these updated roles include the following:
For power plants, an end-to-end digital transformation consists of use cases that are designed, built, piloted, and rolled out. Yet many companies prioritize use cases based solely on individual interest instead of business value. For example, one European utility prioritized a tool to support the operators on their shift inspection round. While this tool standardizes the inspection process of the operator rounds, it does not create high business value due to its narrow applicability. At the same time, large opportunities in the maintenance strategy and its execution are often untapped after being initially overlooked and deprioritized.
The lack of digital talent is among the biggest hurdles in digital transformations, regardless of industry. For power companies, transformations are often helmed by small IT teams and exclude engineers from operations and maintenance. Our research shows that successful power-plant transformations emphasize digital capability building across the organization early on in the process of reskilling or upskilling internal resources. Doing so serves as both motivation and confidence booster for the organization and can lead to sustainable change.
Equipped with outlines of the common pitfalls, power companies and plant operators can focus on shifting from a traditional power plant to a digital power plant. This transformation must occur across four key areas: operations, maintenance, energy efficiency, and HSSE (Exhibit 2).
Auxiliary power efficiency. Recommendations on the optimal operating points of equipment can be automated according to plant-operating points. Dashboards can provide data on auxiliary power consumptions and automated, analytics-based assessment of usage patterns. And auxiliary equipment instructions can be standardized and followed by all operators.
Even though many utilities have improved power plant performance in recent years to cope with the new market environment and the competition, we see that an end-to-end digital transformation of power plants could still generate a large bottom-line value to utilities. Executives will need to achieve a triple transformation in the near future to succeed.
The request will enable us to continue making critical investments in strengthening and further securing the electric grid, transforming our power generation to include cleaner and more economical energy resources and continue improving the customer experience. A decision is expected in December. If approved, the proposed rates would take effect beginning January 1, 2023.
The energy landscape is transforming rapidly. How can we continue to deliver power that is reliable, affordable, and more sustainable? Join our webinar to explore the current and future challenges of our energy infrastructure and learn about the latest energy supply and delivery technologies.
Addressing climate change must be an urgent global priority. To change course, the world must act quickly to decarbonize every aspect of modern life, from transportation to power. This requires a global effort built on cooperation and coordination from every major institution, government, and company to face and meet the challenge.
GE knows that the power sector serves as a model for other industries around the world. We believe that lower-carbon solutions, such as renewable energy supported by gas power, can contribute to a more decarbonized energy future. Their complementary nature offers tremendous potential to help cut carbon emissions with the speed and scale the world requires.
When it comes to gas power, coal-to-gas switching represents a fast and effective win for emissions reduction in many regions around the world. In addition, switching turbines from natural gas to hydrogen, and introducing carbon capture solutions, can lead to low or near zero carbon emissions.
Together, renewables and natural gas will help drive towards a cleaner energy future. And no one is better prepared to deliver that future than GE. Through our reach. Our knowledge. Our commitment. To building a more sustainable world. A cleaner world. A better world. A world that works for all of us. Take a look at how we are building a pathway to zero emissions.
New electricity markets and remuneration schemes are required as energy systems and power grids transition to net-zero carbon technologies. This white paper proposes key building blocks for successful power markets that need to balance energy, dependable capacity, and essential reliability support services.
The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries are committed to accelerating decarbonization efforts. The strategic and urgent deployment of renewables and gas, while transitioning away from liquid fuels, can contribute to this goal rapidly and at scale to secure a more reliable, affordable, and sustainable energy future in the region.
As the most dependable source of carbon-free power generation providing around-the-clock energy supply without interruption, nuclear energy is an important part of the power generation landscape, and it is a critical pillar in the transformation to a carbon-free future.
By using gas power and renewables alongside each other, Europe can deliver the quickest and deepest emission reduction and achieve its objective of climate neutrality by 2050 while producing the lowest possible cumulative emissions over the transition period.
Hydroelectric power is very versatile and can be generated using both large scale projects, like the Hoover Dam, and small scale projects like underwater turbines and lower dams on small rivers and streams. Hydroelectric power does not generate pollution, and therefore is a much more environmentally-friendly energy option for our environment.
Most U.S. hydroelectricity facilities use more energy than they are able to produce for consumption. The storage systems may need to use fossil fuel to pump water.[3] Although hydroelectric power does not pollute the air, it disrupts waterways and negatively affects the animals that live in them, changing water levels, currents, and migration paths for many fish and other freshwater ecosystems.
Hydrogen can be used as a clean burning fuel, which leads to less pollution and a cleaner environment. It can also be used for fuel cells which are similar to batteries and can be used for powering an electric motor.
In a transactive energy system, the power grid, homes, commercial buildings, electric appliances and charging stations are in constant contact, saving consumers and utilities up to $50 billion a year.
The largest ever simulation of its kind, modeled on the Texas power grid, concluded that consumers stand to save about 15 percent on their annual electric bill by partnering with utilities. In this system, consumers would coordinate with their electric utility operator to dynamically control big energy users, like heat pumps, water heaters and electric vehicle charging stations.
The study findings indicate that a transactive energy system would reduce daily load swings by 20 to 44 percent. And as more electric vehicles come into use, the study, perhaps counterintuitively, showed that smart vehicle charging stations provide even larger electric peak load reductions because they offer additional flexibility in scheduled charging times and power consumption.
In a transactive energy system, the power grid, homes, commercial buildings, electric appliances and charging stations are in constant contact. Smart devices receive a forecast of energy prices at various times of day and develop a strategy to meet consumer preferences while reducing cost and overall electricity demand. A local retail market in turn coordinates overall demand with the larger wholesale market. All parties negotiate energy procurement and consumption levels, cost, timing and delivery in a dynamic pricing scheme. 041b061a72