Jeff Ihnen, Author at Michaels Energy

May 14

Virtual Power Plants Order in Load Management

By Jeff Ihnen Energy Rant No Comments

Virtual power plants (VPPs) represent a considerable slice of the clean energy race these days, and for a good reason: policy continues to favor intermittent renewable energy supply over baseload nuclear and dispatchable natural gas assets. Load needs to follow supply. Theoretically, we would need a lot of load flexibility for many hours and sometimes days to keep the grid energized with, mmm, 50% renewable energy. As of 2021, the renewables slice of the supply pie was around 13%, so there is a long way to go. The DOE's Virtual Power Plants Commercial Liftoff report declares the United States needs 80-160 GW…

May 06

Love79

Resonating Fugitive Radical Renegades and GHGs

By Jeff Ihnen Energy Rant No Comments

Think you're a climate change genius? Strap in and prepare for whiplash. To close out last week's post, I referenced a Forbes article, Green Hydrogen's Hype Hits Some Very Expensive Hurdles, which seeded the roots for this week's Energy Rant. It referenced a Cornell University paper claiming carbon capture from the manufacture of blue hydrogen "is energy intensive and leads to even more climate pollution than if CO2 just wafted into the air." Whoa, ho, Nellie! Does carbon capture result in more emissions and energy consumption than free release of combustion products? The latter isn't surprising, but more emissions are a headliner. I…

Apr 29

Love79

Theory #2 For Batteries Increasing Emissions

By Jeff Ihnen Energy Rant No Comments

As a glutton for punishment (I look forward to getting past sciatica so I can run marathons again), I tasked myself with getting to the technical bottom of this article from Utility Dive: Energy storage for grid reliability can increase carbon emissions: University of Michigan study. The article doesn't get into the details, so I dived into the source document sponsored by the University of Michigan – a brutal read – like the last miles of a marathon, maybe Heartbreak Hill or Central Park. I spare readers the pain so they can follow along from their La-Z-Boys. I know enough about wholesale electricity markets to use terminology and…

Apr 23

Love78

Solar Wars

By Jeff Ihnen Energy Rant No Comments

A year ago, I introduced the mantle curve to illustrate California's overgeneration of solar power and the resulting need for curtailment. In 2022, California's scoping study set a target for an additional 60 gigawatts (GW) or 60,000 megawatts (MW) of solar generation to be deployed by 2030. Below are the forecast curves from last year's post in May. The system was penetrating the overgeneration region, but the net load was above zero MW. Similar forecast loads from last week are provided below. We see the net load digs below zero MW, into the mantle. Granted, the first chart represents a week in May last year, while the second represents…

Apr 16

Love77

Wildfire Dynamics – Utilities Save Lives

By Jeff Ihnen Energy Rant No Comments

In this week's rant, we are excited to include an epilogue written by Michaels Energy employee, Andrea Salazar. Read on to hear her story! In 2023, I wrote that Americans are moving into regions susceptible to wildfires, heat, droughts, and floods because housing was less expensive in such locations. Homes in some places are built among fueling forests, while some communities are built with just enough fire spreaders to be dangerous. A recent Wall Street Journal article, The Hidden Costs of Homeownership are Skyrocketing, drove my points home. Home insurance premiums are soaring – by more than 10% in 19 states in 2023—factor: floods,…

Apr 09

Love75

Distributed Energy Threats

By Jeff Ihnen Energy Rant No Comments

It’s been a little over a year since I reported on grid attacks, mainly of the physical type but also of the cyber attack stripe. Every connected device, including distributed energy resources, adds surface area for an attack. The Wall Street Journal recently provided details targeting “green energy,” warning that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), which makes many of our solar panels, electric vehicle batteries, and components, is a likely attacker. Indeed, inverter-based resources (IBRs) that regulate frequency and voltage from solar panels, wind turbines, and batteries to match grid needs present reliability and security challenges. Utility Dive recently reported that owners of IBRs connected to the…

Apr 01

Love76

Colors and Costs of Hydrogen vs. Natural Gas

By Jeff Ihnen Energy Rant No Comments

This post features a lot of refined hydrogen content you can't find online. But before I get to hydrogen, here's an update: I always get a little excited to lead news cycles. After publishing Electricity Shortages and What to Do About It last Tuesday evening, The Wall Street Journal published The Coming Electricity Crisis on Thursday, including the following common threads: I wrote, "In one year (2023 v 2022), the forecast peak load growth for 2028 doubled…" The WSJ wrote, "Projections for U.S. electricity demand growth over the next five years have doubled from a year ago." I wrote, "Growth projections in Georgia,…

Mar 26

Love72

Electricity Shortages and What to Do About It

By Jeff Ihnen Energy Rant No Comments

Some folks pin excessive weight on the federal government’s influence over our efficiency and load management industries. Even though billions/trillions of dollars are allocated through the “Inflation Reduction Act” and “Bipartisan Infrastructure Law,” those funds are fleeting. What’s more enduring? Rising electricity prices and load-balancing authorities are pushing for more baseload generation and transmission-line construction – things that are always met with stiff resistance by state and local governments and stakeholder groups. Utility Dive recently reported that electricity prices outpaced the broader U.S. consumer price index. Well, gee, why would this happen? Have fuel prices increased? No. You’d think electricity prices…

Mar 19

Love71

Guest Blog: The ‘Lift’ in Account Management – How to Inspire Action

By Jeff Ihnen Energy Rant No Comments

This week's Energy Rant is written by Kenny Porter and Tyler Kashdan of Michaels Energy. As I shoveled my way out of the recent record-breaking snowstorm, I couldn't help but reflect on the monumental effort it took to move all that snow. It reminded me of our work in outreach. Not the physical lifting of snow, but the weighty task of convincing customers that their time isn't wasted and that real benefits await them by enrolling in utility energy efficiency programs. We're dedicating this blog to talk about our role as Account Managers. So Much Waste Did you know that commercial…

Mar 04

Love69

Four Steps to Energy Code Flatline

By Jeff Ihnen Energy Rant No Comments

Energy efficiency program administrators can be quite conservative regarding change and innovation. I love hearing, “Bring us new ideas that have been successful in three or four other programs.” There you are! The pinch is on. Energy efficiency codes and standards have raised the bar consistently such that incremental savings from one code change to the next are exceedingly scarce. The gravy-train days of incremental widget-efficiency improvements, including lighting efficacy and heating and cooling equipment efficiencies, are quickly closing. Vehicles A nice parallel to diminishing returns on efficiency is vehicle mileage. The following chart shows fuel energy consumed per thousand…

Virtual Power Plants Order in Load Management

Resonating Fugitive Radical Renegades and GHGs

Theory #2 For Batteries Increasing Emissions

Solar Wars

Wildfire Dynamics – Utilities Save Lives

Distributed Energy Threats

Colors and Costs of Hydrogen vs. Natural Gas

Electricity Shortages and What to Do About It

Guest Blog: The ‘Lift’ in Account Management – How to Inspire Action

Four Steps to Energy Code Flatline

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