News & Events
New Research Evaluates How US Wind Plant Performance Changes with Age
Wind plant performance declines due to plant age in the United States can be partially managed and is influenced by policy, according to a recent study from the Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab).
Energy Efficiency Continues to Be Cheaper Than Natural Gas
A new study by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) estimates that utility efficiency programs for natural gas achieved energy savings at an average cost to program administrators of 40 cents per therm from 2012 to 2017.
Two New Reports Highlight Actions State and Local Governments Can Take to Increase Electricity System Flexibility
Growth in peak demand, higher levels of wind and solar generation, and transportation electrification are raising new challenges for electricity systems. Buildings are a source of demand flexibility that can help meet these challenges cost-effectively.
Hybrid power plants are growing rapidly: are they a good idea?
New article explores the advantages, disadvantages, and development trends of generator-plus-battery power plants
As battery prices continue to fall and the penetration of variable wind and solar generation rises, power plant developers are increasingly combining wind and solar projects with on-site batteries, creating “hybrid” power plants.
New Berkeley Lab report on solar-adopter income trends
A new report by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory highlights income trends among residential rooftop solar adopters.
Latest Grid Data Book Reveals Key Trends in Renewable Integration
Biennial Data Compilation Identifies Changes in Markets and Power System Operations as Renewables Are Integrated onto the Grid
The share of variable renewable energy (VRE)—mainly solar and wind—generation on U.S. regional power systems more than doubled on average from 2012 to 2018, according to the newly released 2018 Renewable Energy Grid Integration Data Book.
Webinar announcement: Explore the LCOE and market value benefits of wind turbines with larger rotors and taller towers
At 1:00 PM EST on Wednesday, March 4, please join researchers from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) for a free, one-hour webinar that will provide a wide-ranging assessment of the costs and benefits of continued wind turbine scaling in the United States.
Berkeley Lab’s “Utility-Scale Solar” report sees continued growth and falling costs for big solar
We are pleased to release the 2019 edition of Berkeley Lab’s Utility-Scale Solar report, which presents analysis of empirical project-level data from the U.S. fleet of ground-mounted photovoltaic (PV) and concentrating solar-thermal power (CSP) projects with capacities exceeding 5 MWAC.
New Study Highlights Cost Performance of Electricity Efficiency for Publicly Owned Utilities
A new study by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory finds that energy efficiency programs for customers of publicly owned utilities saved electricity at an average cost of 2.4 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh) from 2012 to 2017.
End-Use Load Profiles: How and When Are Buildings Using Electricity?
Berkeley Lab and National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL) present a free webinar on December 10, 2019, to discuss a new report, End-Use Load Profiles for the U.S. Building Stock: Market Needs, Use Cases, and Data Gaps.
In the Nick of Time: Aiming for Efficiency’s Highest Value
Berkeley Lab presents a free webinar on December 4, 2019, to discuss a new report, Time-Sensitive Value of Efficiency: Use Cases in Electricity Sector Planning and Programs.
New Berkeley Lab Report Quantifies the Drivers of Wholesale Power Price Changes
Wholesale power market prices have fallen dramatically in all organized markets in the past decade:
Wind and solar power, despite their rapid growth, are just two of numerous factors that influence local pricing patterns
Articles yield insights into Americans living near wind projects, including their attitudes and levels of annoyance
Five journal articles analyze data from the comprehensive U.S. wind survey
JOB ANNOUNCEMENT
The Electricity Markets and Policy Group is seeking a brilliant and passionate researcher to join our team at Berkeley Lab
JOB ANNOUNCEMENT
The Electricity Markets and Policy Group is seeking a researcher/program manager to join our team at Berkeley Lab.
Distributed Solar Prices Continue to Fall as Systems Become Larger and More Efficient
The latest edition of Lawrence Berkeley National Lab’s annual Tracking the Sun report finds that prices for distributed solar power systems continued to fall in 2018, that industry practices continue to evolve, and that systems are getting bigger and more efficient.
New Study Finds Energy Efficiency May Help Utilities Meet Peak Demand at Relatively Low Cost
With rising peak demand for electricity in many regions of the country, utilities and states are increasingly interested in understanding how efficiency programs contribute toward electricity system reliability and resilience at the most affordable cost. According to a new study by Berkeley Lab, these programs appear to be a relatively low-cost way for utilities to meet peak demand, compared to the capital cost of other resources.
New report develops simple methods to explore the resource adequacy contribution of solar and storage
Resource adequacy contribution of solar and storage depends on the configuration
We are pleased to announce the publication of a new report titled “Drivers of the Resource Adequacy Contribution of Solar and Storage for Florida Municipal Utilities.” This report describes relatively simple methods for estimating the resource adequacy contribution of solar and storage. Simple methods can be useful for many utilities and regions addressing similar questions prior to evaluation of specific cases that require more detailed and resource-intensive modeling.
New National Lab Study Quantifies the Cost of Transmission for Renewable Energy
We are pleased to announce a new study conducted by Berkeley Lab entitled Improving estimates of transmission capital costs for utility-scale wind and solar projects to inform renewable energy policy, which has been accepted for publication in the journal Energy Policy.
Online Tool Helps Estimate Power Outage Costs
Several researchers in the Electricity Markets & Policy (EMP) Group have responded to a variety of media requests during the unprecedented Public Safety Power Shutoff in Northern California starting October 9th, 2019.