Grid Modernization News
Explore our archive of grid modernization news stories.
Nov. 2, 2021
Incorporating energy efficiency measures can reduce the amount of storage needed to power the nation's buildings entirely with renewable energy, according to analysis conducted by researchers at NREL.
Oct. 28, 2021
In a breakthrough for the autonomous energy systems research program, NREL has demonstrated new methods for optimizing more than 1 million distributed energy resources with autonomous controls. The updated approach cuts the computation time by more than tenfold, enabling real-time distribution system optimization for economics and stability in high-renewable power systems.
Oct. 26, 2021
NREL has shown that relatively simple controls can enable power grids to operate with 100% wind, solar, and storage, without the need for dedicated device-to-device communications.
Oct. 18, 2021
A novel multi-model analysis led by NREL explores the benefits and costs of uniting two of the world’s largest power systems.
Oct. 6, 2021
An exciting new initiative has been created by DOE and NREL to catalyze the development of cybersecurity solutions for the nation's clean energy grid of the future. The Clean Energy Cybersecurity Accelerator brings together federal infrastructure and expertise, asset owners in the energy sector, and technology innovators in a way that has not yet been done before.
Oct. 1, 2021
An NREL-led project is working on a new type of grid device that could segment sections of the grid, providing advanced control for flexibility and resilience for our power systems.
Sept. 29, 2021
The infrastructure that defines the U.S. electric grid is based largely on pre-digital technologies and is now faced with increasingly difficult load and power quality demands. New tools are required to create a flexible and modern electric grid and the next generation of renewable energy professionals are here to help.
Sept. 21, 2021
With its cutting-edge research capabilities and technical leadership, NREL has a history of developing essential standards that strengthen energy systems around the world.
Aug. 31, 2021
NREL will lead the Department of Energy's new Universal Interoperability for Grid-Forming Inverters Consortium to develop a universal set of guidelines enabling seamless integration of inverter-based resources like solar, wind, batteries, and electric vehicles.
July 30, 2021
NREL is developing and validating multi-timescale tools that will bring Maui and other systems closer to 100% clean and stable energy futures.
July 27, 2021
Early-stage companies used microgrid validations at NREL to size-up commercial systems, and the results have high-impact lessons for the larger grid.
July 20, 2021
The United States has 37 gigawatts (GW) of utility-scale solar capacity—enough to power over 4,070,000,000 LED lights—with an impressive additional 112 GW of capacity currently under development.
July 1, 2021
NREL is soliciting feedback from industry, utilities, grid operators, governments, and other grid stakeholders around applications of the Advanced Distribution Management System (ADMS) Test Bed, a capability for validating advanced grid architectures, controls, and operations.
June 29, 2021
Partnership with Los Angeles Department of Water and Power continues with stakeholder-driven effort to ensure equitable transition to 100% renewable energy for Los Angeles.
June 28, 2021
Simulations show nonlinear relationship between renewable contribution and costs—and that the U.S. can get to 80+% renewables at the same cost as keeping the system at today’s 20%.
June 24, 2021
Multiyear analysis shows that increasing electricity trade between countries and expanding interregional transmission can support a reliable future power system.
June 23, 2021
NREL and Sempra Energy's cooperative, multiyear projects exploring low-carbon fuels and microgrid technology have reaped success—including some groundbreaking achievements. Now, a memorandum of understanding signed in June 2021 formalizes a joint effort by NREL and Sempra Energy to continue advancing clean energy systems.
June 22, 2021
To address challenges for future electric markets, a major research collaboration has published its first study for a national project targeting grid modernization and understanding current market design challenges and opportunities.
June 17, 2021
Recent analyses suggest a need for coordinated dialogue and consistent modeling to understand the value of hybrid renewable energy systems.
June 16, 2021
Large-scale simulations by NREL researchers show that the U.S. can get close to 100% renewable generation cost-effectively—but the final few percent drive a nonlinear increase in total system cost.
May 19, 2021
Published in the journal Joule, "The Challenges of Achieving a 100% Renewable Electricity System in the United States" offers important insights into the technical and economic challenges that would need to be overcome to achieve 100% renewable electric power across the United States.
April 26, 2021
System operator CEOs and energy leaders from around the world discussed paths to net-zero-emissions during the launch event for the Global Power System Transformation Consortium.
April 21, 2021
NREL will bring cross-cutting technical assistance to remote and island communities seeking resilient energy solutions as part of the DOE-funded, multi-lab, multi-partner Energy Transitions Initiative Partnership Project (ETIPP).
April 6, 2021
For Miramar's latest energy management mission, on-the-ground champions and energy experts partnered to build a new efficient, resilient, and cost-effective data center.
March 31, 2021
To strengthen bulk grid stability for highly renewable grids, NREL has developed a breakthrough impedance measurement system for understanding how wind, solar, and other modern energy devices interact to affect the grid's moment-to-moment stability.
Feb. 26, 2021
With funding from the Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO), NREL will lead and contribute to multiple projects that emphasize microgrid controls and stability for community-scale systems, building and demonstrating new microgrid designs in a variety of real-system scenarios.
Jan. 29, 2021
A Q&A with David Narang and Richard DeBlasio, two of the pioneers of IEEE Standard 1547 and its 2018 revision that have become the definitive technical standards for interconnecting distributed energy resources into the grid.
Jan. 26, 2021
The first report in the study outlines four phases of utility-scale energy storage deployment, providing a potential roadmap to 100+ gigawatts of installed capacity in the United States.
