NREL - Power Lunch Lecture Series

The Role of Energy Storage in Today?s and Tomorrow?s Electric Grid Presented by NREL Senior Energy Analyst Paul Denholm One of the more persistent claims about wind and solar is that they need energy storage for reliable integration into the nation?s power grid. The reality is far more complex, with significant analysis demonstrating no ?hard limits? to how much wind and solar can be put on the grid. However there remain many technical and institutional challenges to extremely large scale deployment of renewable energy and energy storage can potentially play an important role. This talk provides an overview of the role of energy storage in today?s and tomorrow?s electric grid and describes some of the tools and methods NREL and others have used to understand the value of energy storage and its ability to help integrate very large amounts of renewable energy. Paul Denholm is a Senior Energy Analyst at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. His research interests include examining the technical, economic, and environmental benefits and impacts of large-scale deployment of renewable electricity generation, including the role of enabling technologies such as energy storage, and flexible generation resources. He holds a B.S. in physics, an M.S. in instrumentation physics, and Ph.D. in Environmental Studies and Energy Analysis.. Call 303-384-6565 or e-mail educaton.center@nrel.gov to make a reservation for this free public program. Participants are welcome to bring a lunch to enjoy during the presentation. For information about upcoming events, visit http://www.nrel.gov/education_center/.