Global renewable energy-grid project: integration of renewable energies over HVDC and centralized storage

The global challenges of energy and environment can be handled through a local, regional or even a national approach. You need a global perspective and a much broader vision, a global grid for renewable energy [GREG]. A transmission system for high voltage DC [HVDC] must be created, storage facilities serve as the majority of electrical power transport medium, GREG needed with centralized energy installed. And perhaps most importantly, a group of socio political supervision institutions of all nations of the world must network and also seamlessly manage physical grid.

The obstacles to such a global shift to technical, economic and socio-political, socio-political challenges that will be used to categorize hardest. As those demonstrated researchers at the Stanford University, that appropriate renewable energy resources are available, to the planet makes, but still need a detailed and comprehensive proposal for a global energy grid shape at: regional planners need to combine their efforts before this can be achieved. Likewise must the full and clear rules as pay I produced for a global energy grid. This would require, brings together top energy administrators at each participating nation under an umbrella organization at the United Nations.

After a brief overview of the energy sector along with political obstacles, we offer technical suggestions on how a global grid could be implemented. HVDC transmission is recommended as a clear choice for the efficient and reliable long-distance delivery of electrical energy 24.07.52. And centralized storage mega plants are proposed for the balance of supply and demand in a network mostly intermittent sources.

Economy

If we want to tackle the rapidly deteriorating climate by fossil fuel power plants, creation is critical enough grid one globally for renewable energy, in order to justify our highest priority. The United States, for example, in its highway system, sensible investing from the 1950s. The rapid growth of the US economy, centred on road transport can after the second world war directly attributable to this motorway infrastructure. Also, you can associate the "dot-com" boom of the nineteen nineties directly to the wired and wireless global electronic highway. We need not be surprised, whether our economies can afford that with GREG. We must recognize that the world economy would actually expand and are therefore stronger.

With today's sluggish economy and massive public debt it can trust for all Nations to GREG with urgency be questionable. Therefore a mixture of public and private investment would be needed to implement the project. All Nations must create an environment for renewable raw materials to develop and their respective components of the transmission network to carry responsibility and commitment. As well as motorway networks for the transportation of people and products in the creation of the national and global economies are and belong to the public, so must be the power supply for the transmission of electrical energy in the public domain. While the war machines destroy economies, GREG would create economies around the world, requires only a fraction of households now reserved for sophisticated, expensive weapons of war.

Construction requires comprehensive analysis of its socio economic benefits of global, high-voltage, high-power-grid [GREG]. Increased electrical reliability and efficiency should be included as quantifiable benefits. However, if we are to global warming and CO2 emissions, the design alternatives to thermal emission units not in monetary units, which are evaluated by a handful of bankers manipulated should the challenges then. Since GREG Eventuallfy would reduce the energy costs for all Nations, which projected cost of electricity for all consumers would decline significantly in the long run.

Public funds for GREG must be hashed in the halls of national Governments and in the boardrooms of banks of developing world out. Remember that the US interstate highway system built by a special gasoline tax was financed by a trust fund. A similar approach would be at the level of the United Nations with a global "GREG Trust Fund" built on taxes for carbon rendered content of all fossil fuels produced. Furthermore, could a small [1-2 per cent] global tax on all weapons produced is collected.

Management and regulation

The most formidable obstacles to the creation of GREG lie in the socio political sphere. But company deeply invested in the fossil energy will vote against the amendment. Top energy administrators must give priority, social responsibility, not to maximise ROI, if you plan the transition to renewable energy. Policy makers need rules based on long-term goals in the short term while acknowledging potential conflicts between the regional operators and between producers and consumers. Right-of-ways, electricity markets and prices are the varied interests of the producers, utilities, network operators and prosumer [customers with own wind and solar generators] recognition takes into account.

All countries need to establish after a domestic RE-grid, be a balance between national and global interests. Power-sharing agreements, placing the transmission interconnects, security issues and reliability issues all are important. The extent at which rich countries, developing countries will support, must also be set up. Here the basis for supervision and dispute not biased is resolution by an international panel to a particular nation as an organization of the United Nations renewable energy.

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Distributed energy storage advantages on both sides of the counter

Solar and wind energy are excellent sources of clean, renewable energy, but a larger share of the generation fleet contribute, be their integration into increasingly sophisticated. The reason: solar and wind can not be sent in the same way as other energy sources, such as nuclear, hydroelectric and fossil fuels. Because the grid "just in time" with generation constantly relevant claim must act for stability, special accommodation required to efficiently integrate a significant contribution from the Sun or the wind. Intermittent production and tendency to produce peak power periods not always pretty close peak demand.

Battery storage is recognized as a way to integrate more solar and wind energy into the grid for a long time. The deployment of intelligent energy storage at the edge of the grid, where energy is consumed, emerges several compelling advantages on both sides of the counter. The advantages of such distributed energy storage (DES) derive from his ability to create and demand through consumption and electricity generation, or to decrease it. In the end this demand allows redistribution, as changing grid conditions include reduced or be increased. And by the demand for more redistribution, also is easier to integrate that higher levels of penetration it from solar and wind generation.

Customer wins

The image below shows to calculate time differences as a commercial customer demand by increasing the "demand" in the night, the batteries (in this case, preferably with wind energy), and then "generated" to reduce power peaks when necessary in the course of the day.

The benefits of the customer can be significant. The ability to time-shift-demand enables commercial and industrial (C & I) customers Cap demand charges during the day and take advantage of reduced time of use at night. Customers will be able to achieve a return on investment in a system in five to seven years are among the most fare structures, C & I. Shorter, the payback can be disturbing when solar energy is integrated, or by participating in the utility production program response, which the facilitated in a manner of less.

THE facilitated the in place solar generation to integrate, by space for regular spikes in demand and clouds with fewer interruptions to the customers and more stability for the grid. Depending on the capacity and skills of in place-solar and the can survive the customer to a power outage again with little or even no interruption of operation systems (possibly as part of a Microgrid).

The utility side of the counter

There are equal benefit from distributed energy storage on the other side of the counter for all the utilities that generate, transmit or distribute electricity. DES is beneficial for wind power, because those plants far away are usually the hub of a city, in sparsely populated rural settings where winds just the strongest blow. However, the transfer to distant population centers is required. But the real problem with the temperament of the wind, which often tends to evening peak at the energy requirements are relatively low.

Renewable energy certificate (REC) market wind allows manufacturers of credits only for actually makes the grid bring to earn. From this producer there often needed to pay other energy sources (e.g., at night) to qualify production credit for the ramp or shut down at times of low demand reason. In the spring of 2010, for example, the costs for other resources went go offline always as high as 10 ? per kilowatt-hour.

The wind and solar energy requires the periodicity other sources of energy and support network stability with a decrease in wind speed or a lack of sunshine on a cloudy day. For small levels of penetration, such periodicity is easy to accommodate. Greater levels of integration is renewable but this is a problem. Integration of energy storage with distributed solar systems can the battery as a buffer, guaranteed to be a constant and redistributable power from the PV system. Traditional baseload and peaker plants benefit from the demand leveling effect of with a decline of startups and ramp prices, which contribute to reduced equipment, fuels and emissions.

Similar benefits adult transmission and utilities, based on more efficient utilization of existing transmission and distribution (t &:-d)-infrastructure. I2r losses are minimized with the possibility for the transmission and distribution of power in times of low demand. DES makes C & I customers more to participate in request-response programs, and reduce power consumption events even more DR. Changes, including growth in distributed generation and the introduction of electric vehicles (EVs) are less threatening to grid stability. THE system can be operated also to improve grid stability by providing services such as frequency and voltage, and power factor correction.

By increasing the utilization of existing infrastructure in T & D, are utilities to move and possibly avoid a costly expansion or upgrade, as demand grows and increased renewable production. Finally, are North America (and the entire planet for that matter) benefit greater use of clean, renewable energy sources, which are integrated in a stable and reliable power supply. DES can even help, society, to achieve a more important goal: energy independence by greater use of EVS - charged, naturally clean with solar and wind energy.

Conclusion

As the contribution from solar and wind generation rises to 20 percent or more, since it will probably see renewable portfolio standard mandates the provision of distributed energy storage at the edge of the grid provides an opportunity this energy redistribution and firm make clean. In fact, through the provision of services on both sides of the counter, DES has the potential that generated way to transform, electricity, transferred, distributed and consumed. It is for this reason that utilities incentives for their C & I customers, which should provide for deploying intelligent distributed storage from renewable sources.

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Hub Department of energy announces new batteries and energy storage

The Energy Department on 30 November, announced that its Argonne suburb was elected national laboratory in Chicago for a price of up to $120 million within five years to a multipartner a new batteries and energy storage hub to connect team. Called the hub, the Joint Center for energy storage research (JCESR), research and development makes the five Department of energy national laboratories, five universities and four private companies in an effort that combine to achieve the revolutionary advances in battery performance. Advancing next-generation technologies are an important part of the President Obama of the strategy to reduce dependence on foreign oil and lower energy costs for U.S. consumers battery and energy storage for electric and hybrid cars and the power grid.

Other national laboratories, a partnership with Argonne are Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and Sandia National Laboratories SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory. Partner universities include the University of Chicago, Northwestern University, University of Illinois-Chicago, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and University of Michigan. Four industrial partners have also joined; including Dow Chemical Company, applied materials, Inc.; Johnson controls, Inc.; and clean energy trust.

Does the State of Illinois to build the State-of-art JCESR helper function $5 million campus located on the Argonne in the suburb of Chicago. JCESR is the fourth energy innovation hub, produced by the Department of energy since the modeling and simulation of nuclear reactors, to achieve significant improvements in the energy efficiency of buildings and the development of fuels from sunlight are 2010 other hubs dedicated. A fifth hub focused on critical materials research was announced earlier this year and is still in the application process. See Energy Department press release.

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MHI and SSE partner Orkney Islands power cargo container battery storage install

According to a press release issued by MHI, there three are involved overall container-project: two of the container home is about 2,000 units of lithium ion batteries and a third House is the air conditioning system that makes responsible for converting direct current (DC) to alternating current (AC).

The storage system is set, the Kirkwall installed power plant in the UK Orkney Islands. Power is always a lack of profit making or to the and be transferred from the Mainland via a u-boat cable. In theory, the storage system is excess energy in the lithium-ion batteries should, if needed, provides the supply exceeds an increased degree of reliability for future performance.

The problem of storing energy in the heart of one of the biggest perceived weaknesses of the renewable energy technologies calls: If the wind is not blowing whats happens when the tide is not rotating, and when the Sun isn't shining is? According to Michael Goggin, Manager of transmission policy with the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), energy storage systems such as that developed by MHI and SSE work well in certain situations, but in others it may be actually less cost effective than alternative methods.

"Integrated power system on the Mainland, there are many existing sources of flexibility, so that new energy storage resources are not required to accommodate the very small amount of variability and uncertainty," Goggin said. "Storage is an option to increase a system's flexibility makes it and using it makes sense when it is more cost effective." However, other options, particularly the greater use of the existing resources are or building more transmission, usually less expensive on large integrated makes systems."

After the AWEA of "wind power and energy storage" Factsheet allows built into the existing system of power increase flexibilities operators or reduce the output of generators. This makes it more space for certain variability possible, easy, and inexpensive.

Goggin went on to say that he believes that systems can benefit from the power of the island far better from energy storage systems. "they have no connection to the outside world and have often weak transmission systems and inflexible power plants," he said, "so that it tends to be more cases where can be economical storage."

MHI/SSE shared memory system is to go online early 2013.

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In the domestic and abroad, is key to the development of renewable energy energy storage

"We this technology need, if we want to change Germany's energy, to make a success," said Center for solar energy and hydrogen research Specht, a head of the Department on the ZSW last month on a tour of the plant, where the energy storage unit is based. "The question is not, it will be provided, but when."
Woodpecker is one of an army of researchers to the technological challenges of the German Chancellor Angela Merkel decision to abandon to overcome nuclear power and shift to renewable energies in the largest energy infrastructure revision since the second world war. Your task is to fill the energy gap if within a decade Atomic plants which makes 20 percent of the German early last year were offline.

As executives from EON AG, Siemens AG to go join government officials, discussing impact of energy today at a Conference in Berlin, the challenge for Merkel, who burn lights and energy is affordable to keep. There is a risk that its energy policy is a second crisis fuels, such as with turbulence from Greece is that rages in the euro region.
"The energy overhaul an epic project that will cover many decades", said Claudia Kemfert, Chief energy expert at the Berlin DIW economic Institute. Estimates at least 200 billion euro ($250 billion) of public and private investment needed nuclear are more than 10 years to compensate. If Merkel manages smart it put "economic advantages, to increase competiveness and to create jobs," Kemfert said.

Election year

The alternative is Europe's largest economy and higher prices for energy disorder. With the plans for the accelerated construction of the unpopular power lines and consumers warned to expect to pay an election year for renewable energy in 2013 steeper bills energy policy sees the euro crisis as theme campaign between Merkel State to join and a third term in Office.

The opposition Social Democrats and the Green Party, which the nuclear phase out in 2002, when working in coalition together, accuse commitment lack their Government for the project after his sudden conversion to renewable energy after the tsunami and the nuclear disaster in Fukushima in Japan. They say, Merkel not far or fast is enough, and give their blessing for some new coal-fired plants, she preferred utilities interests of the consumer and the renewable energy industry.

'Follow'

Peter Altmaier, the Minister for the overhaul is getting open right there on the high-stakes. Failure to deliver "Significant consequences for prosperity, growth and employment would have," he said in a Aug. 16-statement.

Almost 18 months after Merkel announced, that she was Germany's nuclear plants 2022, shuttering financed if its energy policy head, the Government research boom to ensure that that power outages in Germany not through Indian-style. EON and RWE AG, Germany's two largest utilities are the companies on board, after a combined 26.80 billion wiped their share value in the last year as they were forced, overhaul its measures to reduce the losses from reactors early close.

Research focuses on a large disadvantage of renewable energies: in contrast to nuclear energy, solar panels and wind turbines make consumers without electricity when the wind is not blowing or the Sun not shine. This makes key for their use to store energy.
Sixty energy storage have awarded projects for a total of EUR 200 million in research grants by 2014. The Government is also mobilizing the State-owned bank KfW banking group, to provide low-interest loans for memory projects.

'No way round'

"Current memory really the Holy Grail for the German energy transformation", said Dieter Manz, Chief Executive Officer of Manz AG, a German company interested in battery system, in an interview. "There is no way around it around if we want to make things work."

This is where comes the Woodpecker box in Stuttgart, Germany. It consumes a greenhouse gas, which then can the blame for global warming, to convert water into methane stored in underground caves for days or weeks in gas plants if carbon dioxide and electricity burned.

Volkswagen AG luxury car Division builds Audi 6 megawatt industrial medium-sized plant based on the technology, which is due to start from next year. EON has invested at least EUR 5 million in the electricity-gas approach and started with the construction of a pilot plant on the 21 August.
Other government-funded research projects include a test system renewable generators with storage facilities and consumers on the North Sea Island of Pellworm and the study of chemical batteries combine with computer technology, which are larger and have a longer lifetime than the lithium-ion batteries.

Flexible plates

Scientists at the Fraunhofer Institute in Freiburg work on longer-term projects, of flexible solar panels to high-speed charging stations for electric cars, one day as a battery for the national grid could act.

The overhaul is growing markets for domestic manufacturers including the Solarworld AG, as well as for their foreign counterparts such as Vestas Wind systems a / s, the world's largest manufacturer of wind turbines.

All amounts to "A significant innovation wave within the German economy, strengthening our position on the world market for the next 20 or 30 years can," Altmaier said last month.
Altmaier, 54, a practice familiar and former parliamentary whip for Merkel's, appointed Environment Minister in may after his predecessor, Merkel Norbert Rottgen, in the midst of reports that he was not listening party industry concerns and opposition claims that were targets to slip.

Green objections

Forged the Greens and Social Democrats, whose original Plan give up nuclear power under Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder was removed by Merkel in 2010, then again six months later after Fukushima, they accuse of mismanaging the task. Juergen Trittin, co-leader who has green, calls Chancellor push ambitious renewable energy instead of cutting subsidies, say that the entire project "in danger."

The average German budget may numbers 175 euro next year, renewable energy, an increase of 40 percent, according to Stephan Kohler, to subsidize joint venture by the Government Director of the Energy Agency Dena, a researcher. Which prompts, "one heck of a current price debate," said Kohler reporters Aug. 22.
The share of electricity produced from renewable energy sources to at least 35 per cent is now to Germany until the end of the Decade by at least 25 percent. United Kingdom aims about 30 percent by 2020, while Sweden, Austria, and Spain, of which resources have any richer hydroelectric power station, have promised to improve Germany's share. The United States have no orders from the Confederation for renewable energy.

Merkel, whose constituency on the Baltic Sea coast, an offshore wind farm consisting of from 21 looks Siemens turbines EnBW Energie Baden-Wurttemberg AG, the energy transition "a Herculean task." says
But it said "can be an example for other Nations show them that you can be successful," she June 25 in a speech. "It is possible to go the way to a sustainable energy supply."

Copyright 2012 Bloomberg.
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Department of energy award of $43 million for energy storage technologies

The U.S. Department of energy announced on 2 August 19 new projects total $43 million of advanced research projects Agency energy (ARPA-E) received breakthrough energy storage technologies development. The projects focus on innovations in the battery management and storage for electric vehicles (EV) technologies advance, increase the efficiency and reliability of the electrical network and deliver important energy security benefits for US forces. They are supported by two new ARPA-E programs: Advanced management and protection of energy storage devices (AMPED) and small business innovation research (SBIR).

Twelve research projects get $30 million in funding in the context of the AMPING programme, which aims, develop advanced and control techniques could significantly improve grid scale and vehicle batteries sensors. In contrast to other energy Department efforts, the limits of the battery chemistry of push AMPED focuses on maximizing the potential of the existing battery chemistry. These innovations will help to reduce costs and the performance of the next generation of storage technologies that both plug - in can be applied and hybrid EVs. Such as the Battelle Memorial Institute in Columbus, Ohio, an optical sensor to monitor the internal environment of a lithium-ion battery in developing real time.

ARPA-E grants also $13 million in seven enterprising small businesses, the innovative energy storage developments for stationary and electric vehicles track. These companies are new battery chemistry and battery models as part of the larger Department-wide small business innovative research (SBIR) / small business technology transfer (STTR) program develop. Z. B. energy storage systems, Inc., in Portland, Oregon, is a flow battery for grid scale storage with an enlarged cell design construct and electrolyte materials of low-cost iron. See Energy Department press release.

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Energy Department to Back $30 Million Storage Competition

The Energy Department on April 11 announced a $30 million research competition for improving the performance and safety of energy storage devices, including hybrid energy storage modules being developed by the U.S. Department of Defense for military applications.

DOE, through its Advanced Research Projects Agency - Energy (ARPA-E), is funding the Advanced Management and Protection of Energy-storage Devices (AMPED) program. It is designed to seek out transformational, breakthrough energy storage technologies that are too risky for private-sector investment.

Specifically, AMPED technologies have the potential to create a new generation of electric and hybrid-electric vehicles; increase the fuel efficiency of military generators to help reduce the need for fuel convoys on the battlefield; improve the reliability of military aircraft generators to help to reduce operation and maintenance costs; enable next-generation high-power weapons systems and fuel-efficient operations for U.S. Navy ships; and enhance the efficiency and reliability of the U.S. electricity grid. See the DOE press release and the ARPA-E website for funding details.

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Grid-scale Energy Storage: Lux Predicts $113.5 Billion in Global Demand by 2017

In the grid-scale sector alone, Lux predicts an average year-on-year demand growth of 231 percent from 2012 through 2015 when the growth rate moderates to 43 percent per year for 2016 and 2017. The forecast is tempered, however, by a cautionary note that demand of that magnitude can't be satisfied because "Believe it or not, the grid storage market will be supply-constrained in 2017."

Technologies and players 

The eight energy storage technologies Lux evaluated for their new report are summarized in the following table, along with the price and performance metrics highlighted in beige. Comparable price and performance metrics from a recent Sandia National Laboratories "Energy Storage Systems Cost Update" are also presented and highlighted in green. While there's room to quibble over the details and users of Lux's Smart Grid Storage Tracker and Demand Forecaster can fine tune the price and performance variables to suit their analytical needs, the parallels between the two sets of system cost estimates are close enough to lend substantial credence to Lux's basic assumptions. 

Based on a comprehensive evaluation of various local factors including "utility market structure, generation technology compositions, peak power demand, demand growth rate, infrastructure growth rate, penetration and growth rate of intermittent renewable energy sources, grid reliability, [time of use] electricity rates, commercial demand charges, and outage costs," Lux concluded that Japan, China, the United Kingdom, Germany, and the State of Arizona will be the top five regions for grid storage and collectively account for about 58 percent of global demand in 2017. Japan and China will each account for about 18 percent; United Kingdom and Germany, will each account for about 9 percent; and the US will account for about 23 percent, with Arizona alone accounting for 4 percent of global demand.

Some of the more surprising conclusions in the Lux report related to the relative importance of the various grid-scale applications by 2017. For me the biggest surprise was the conclusion that the current killer apps, ancillary services and renewable energy integration, will only account for 1.4 percent of global demand in 2017 while renewable energy time shifting will account for an impressive 54 percent of demand, or $61 billion in annual revenue potential. I was also surprised by the conclusion that high spreads between peak and off-peak electricity prices would create a major market opportunity in the residential and commercial sectors, which account for 28 percent and 17 percent, respectively, of the 2017 demand forecast. 

Based on their in depth evaluation of application requirements and the price and performance of the eight energy storage technologies they evaluated, Lux reported that: 

Li-ion takes the early lead, but fades to cheaper alternatives. Li-ion batteries for [power] applications capture nearly 80% of the market in 2012, but quickly fade as cheaper molten-salt and flow batteries become available in the ensuing years. By 2017, Li-ion batteries capture only 13% of the market, yielding 33% to vanadium redox batteries and a nearly even split of the rest of the market between sodium sulfur, sodium nickel chloride, and zinc bromine flow batteries at 19%, 15%, and 19%, respectively. This indicates the short timeframe Li-ion battery developers have to reduce their costs. In the long run, systems with discharge durations between two hours and four hours are the “sweet spot” size for most grid applications. Currently, Li-ion batteries are sought-after due to their availability and proven performance. Flow batteries and molten salt batteries, both of which perform well for longer discharge applications, have shown comparable performance to Li-ion batteries at a fraction of the cost and are currently limited by their availability and proven reliability. Flywheels retain 2% of the market in 2017 and find their niche in relatively small frequency regulation market and other niche applications that require rapid discharge capabilities, short durations, and an extremely long cycle life.

Many participants in the lithium-ion battery sector are developing and demonstrating grid-scale energy storage products. To date, the highest profile player has been A123 Systems (AONE), which has shipped over 90 MW of storage systems for ancillary services and renewables integration. While Johnson Controls (JCI) has been quiet about its plans to package and sell lithium-ion batteries for stationary applications, I have to believe the global footprint and sterling reputation of its building efficiency unit will make it a formidable competitor in the commercial markets. 

Sodium Nickel Chloride, or Zebra, batteries have been a relatively low profile chemistry for years. They were originally developed by Daimler for use in electric vehicles but failed to gain much traction in that market despite a decade of solid performance in a 3,000 vehicle fleet that's logged over 150 million kilometers. In 2009 General Electric (GE) announced plans to build a NaNiCl factory in New York. In 2010, Italy's Fiamm bought a controlling interest in Swizerland's MES-DEA, the sole European manufacturer of NaNiCl batteries, and is now doing business as FZ Sonick. Both firms are rapidly ramping their marketing efforts on grid-scale systems.

The largest manufacturer of sodium sulfur batteries is Japan's NGK Insulators (NGKIF.PK), which was the global leader in grid-scale storage for the over a decade with an installed base of over 300 MW. NGK had a spotless safety record until late last year when they suspended NaS battery sales and asked customers to refrain from using installed systems pending completion of an investigation into the cause of a battery fire in Japan. Last year, NGK accounted for roughly 54 percent of the grid-scale energy storage market. While NGK's market share will fall as other technologies gain traction in the grid-scale markets, its revenues should continue to ramp because of rapid overall growth rates in the sector. 

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Energy Storage: Q1 2012 Winners and Losers

Long-term readers will notice that the current list is a good deal shorter than it was in March of last year because of my decisions to delete China Ritar Power (CRTP.PK), Advanced Battery Technologies (ABAT.PK), New Energy Systems (NEWN), C&D Technologies (CHHP.PK), Ener1 (HEVVQ.PK) and Beacon Power (BCONQ.PK) for reasons ranging from reporting deficiencies and changed business models to outright business failures. It's been a turbulent year.

The best performer for the year and the quarter ended March 31, 2012 was Tesla Motors (TSLA), a stock that investors either love — or love to hate. Tesla is trading at  a 119 percent premium to its $17 IPO price and one of the market's most heavily shorted stocks. Where sell side analysts see upside potential to $49, more pragmatic types expect the price to collapse into single digits. While experience tells me that consensus among short sellers is usually right, only time will tell. 

It was a solid quarter for several companies that were beaten down over the last year but started to recover some of their long-term price declines during the quarter. The lead-acid group in particular is performing very well. The only group that was down for both the year and the quarter were lithium-ion battery developers. That group's performance would have been even worse if I hadn't culled Ener1 after its public stockholders got flushed in a bankruptcy reorganization. 

The following summary table shows how the surviving companies in my five tracking categories performed compared to broader market indexes.

My last table for the day provides a summary of some key financial metrics I like to focus on when performing a high level forward-looking analysis of the companies I track. The data is stated in millions, derived from the most recent SEC reports filed by the companies and adjusted for material events including financing transactions and extraordinary losses reported after the date of the most recent financial statements. 

For companies with a history of losses, the first number I focus on is working capital. If a company can't cover expected losses for the next year and make planned capital investments with available funds, it will almost certainly be forced to seek new financing and that can be tough in a turbulent capital market. This year, only three of the companies I follow have clear working capital issues, a significant improvement from last year. While I've been impressed with its business development activities over the last year, I'm less impressed with ZBB Energy's (ZBB) financing activities, which have boosted its share count by 57 percent while the balance sheet treads water.

A second key metric is the difference between a company's market capitalization and its book value, which is commonly referred to as blue-sky. Public companies normally trade at a premium to their book value because intangible assets like intellectual property, human resources, industry experience, customer relationships and the like usually have no balance sheet value. When the blue-sky premium is inordinately high, it's a bright red warning flag. When the blue-sky premium is out of line on the low side, it can hint at significant upside potential.

To simplify comparisons among companies I like to calculate the ratio between blue-sky and book value. The result is a "BS to Book Ratio" that can be quite illuminating. 

The most alarming BS to Book ratios in my tracking group, in fact the most alarming BS to Book Ratios I've ever seen, belong to Valence Technologies (VLNC) and Tesla Motors. Valence has a $60 million deficit in stockholders equity but it carries a market capitalization of $138 million, which makes its BS to Book ratio infinite. Tesla is a little better since it has $204 million in equity and $182 million in working capital, but it's sky-high market capitalization of $3.7 billion gives it BS to Book Ratio of 16.4. To put things in perspective, Apple has a BS to Book ratio of 5.2 and it's become the most successful tech company in history.

Companies with inordinately low BS to Book ratios include Exide Technologies (XIDE) and A123 Systems (AONE) which both trade at a 40 percent discount to book value. If you adjust A123's book value to include $128 million of ARRA grant proceeds that aren't reflected on the face of its balance sheet, the discount to book value is closer to 60 percent. While both companies have had more than their fair share of problems over the last few quarters, I continue to believe their market prices have fallen to very attractive entry points.

I believe a BS to Book ratio of one is healthy for large established manufacturers and that BS to Book ratios of up to four are reasonable for transition stage companies that have completed their principal product development and are focused on commercializing new technologies. Enersys (ENS) has had a strong run over the last two quarters but still has a way to go before it achieves parity with Johnson Controls (JCI). Since Maxwell Technologies (MXWL) is currently sporting a BS to Book ratio at the top of the reasonable range, I don't look for it to outperform the market on a go-forward basis. Active Power (ACPW), on the other hand, seems to have significant upside potential if its management can continue to execute. Baring unforeseen negative developments, Axion Power International (AXPW.OB) should be an easy double as revenues continue to ramp and advanced testing programs with a variety of first tier OEMs and battery users mature into orders. 

The energy storage sector occupies a unique position global industry because it must prosper as humanity changes the ways it produces and consumes energy. For those who believe conservation of fossil fuels and waste minimization are key elements of our energy future, batteries are essential. They're also essential to a future powered by intermittent power from the wind and sun. No matter what you believe the path will be, the future simply can't happen without cost-effective energy storage. It's not just a desirable thing — it is an essential thing! 

There aren't any silver bullet technologies or killer apps in the energy storage sector, but there are several emerging trends that will create new multi-billion dollar markets over the next few years. In that rapidly evolving environment, every company that can offer a cost effective product will have more customer demand than it can satisfy. As global demand for cost-effective energy storage increases, so will margins and profitability. 

Disclosure: Author is a former director of Axion Power International (AXPW.OB) and holds a substantial long position in its common stock.

This article was originally published on AltEnergy Stocks and was republished with permission.

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President's 2013 Energy Budget Invests in Solar, Energy Storage and ARPA-E Research

President Obama on February 13 released his Fiscal Year 2013 budget request to Congress, which proposes $27.2 billion for DOE. The blueprint includes investments in innovation, in the job-creating clean energy technologies, and in national security strategy. Specifically, the FY 2013 request promotes efforts to cut the cost of solar energy by 75% by the end of the decade and continue crosscutting research into clean energy technologies that can lead to a one-third reduction of dependence on oil by 2025.

Among the highlights: $60 million to perform critical research on energy storage systems and devise new approaches for battery storage; $350 million for the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) to continue support for promising early-stage research projects that could deliver game-changing clean energy technologies; $120 million to support energy frontier research centers and $140 million for five existing energy innovation hubs and to establish a new hub to focus on grid systems and the tie between transmission and distribution systems. The president's FY13 budget request also highlights steps taken by DOE to reduce costs, including for example, reducing, consolidating, or moving 40% of its websites to the Energy.gov platform to increase communication and transparency, and streamline website infrastructure processes, which will save more than $10 million a year. See the DOE press release and the proposed FY 2013 DOE budget.

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DOE Awards 7 million for storage technologies in fuel cell vehicles

This is an excerpt from EERE network news, a weekly electronic newsletter.

DOE on 12 December more than 7 million $ within four projects in California, Oregon and Washington, the hydrogen storage technologies for use in electric fuel-cell vehicles develop. The 3-year projects will help, cost and improve the performance of hydrogen storage systems through the development of innovative materials and advanced containers. DOE is committed to help advanced fuel cell technology research, bringing domestic automakers more electric fuel cell vehicles on the market.

The selected organizations provide close to $2 million in costs for storage systems to reduce the cost of compressed hydrogen leading projects, and develop materials for hydrogen storage advanced. Compressed hydrogen storage provides a short-term way to commercialization and lower costs for compressed tank systems availability and adoption speed up their market. Advanced materials-based storage hydrogen technologies enable more efficient memory on lower prints current compressed hydrogen tanks allow.

Among the projects DOE's Pacific Northwest used national laboratory a coordinated approach to reduce the costs associated with compressed hydrogen storage systems by focusing on the improvement of the carbon fiber composite materials and the development and production of hydrogen storage tanks. HRL laboratories, LLC, Malibu, California, explores an innovative approach to the hydrogen storage with altered fluids to absorb efficiently and can release hydrogen gas. DOE's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and partners will use a theory guided approach to synthesize new materials with high hydrogen adsorption capacity. And a tied under the direction of the University of Oregon, including the DOE's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, develop and test promising new materials for hydrogen storage. The proposed chemical hydrogen storage materials could liquid fuel and regeneration of hydrogen storage material, temperature and pressure ranges for both onboard mobile and stationary fuel cell applications suitable activate. See the DOE press release (copyright) and the fuel cell technologies program Web site.

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Innovative energy storage technologies enable more renewable energy

This is an excerpt from EERE network news, a weekly electronic newsletter.

Solar and wind power provide for America the opportunity to strengthen the security of energy supply, jobs in the growing markets and improve the environment. Thanks to breakthroughs in the energy storage systems including the first grid tied solar and storage facility which is closer to potential to reality. The combination of energy storage systems with smart grid technology, utilities can output of power automatically "smooth". This enables intermittent energy sources be available even if the Sun is not or is not the wind is blowing.

In the United States, the American reinvestment Recovery Act is the financing so that 32 demonstration projects, including the large energy storage, smart meters, distribution and transmission system monitoring devices and a range of other intelligent technologies to explore the provision of integrated smart grid systems widely.

Recently, three of these projects for their progress recorded in the development and implementation of energy storage systems. How to extend the worldwide market for clean energy, such projects are continuing the tradition of American leadership in the development of next-generation technologies. See energy blog-post.

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Aquion energy has a jump in bulk-grid storage

Aquion uses energy to make a cheap battery that stores wind and solar, the ingredients in salt and water.

A spin-off from Carnegie Mellon, the start-up detected, $ 20 million of a planned $30 million round of financing according to a regulatory filing by Earth2Tech triggered. The company was originally developed by the Department of energy with $5 million from the federal stimulus program funded and added a Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers as an investor.

Aquion energy battery packs are built from modular components and especially for the raster memory.(Credit: Aquion energy)

Aquion energy developed a room temperature sodium ion battery as an alternative to lithium-ion and other batteries for grid storage. It expects to begin their refrigerator size, battery packs for customers, the tests this year or next year, according to the company.

Cost is one of the advantages of sodium ion batteries. Far more than lithium, sodium, one of the ingredients in salt, is abundant. Aquion energy batteries use a water-based electrolyte, which is easier to use and simplifies the manufacturing process, company founder and materials science Carnegie Mellon Professor Jay Whitacre told technology review.

Sodium-sulfur batteries are one of the preferred technologies for the storage of wind and solar power or other grid applications. But sodium-sulfur batteries run at high temperatures, making them less energy than the ambient temperature batteries, secure and efficient according to researchers at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory is working on sodium-ion batteries. Lead acid batteries, result in the release of toxic lead, Whitacre's patent application notes in the meantime.

In a presentation, Aquion said energy the battery 85 percent are more efficient and use non-toxic materials. The anode consists of a "low cost, high-performance" carbon and the cathode is from manganese oxide. As in other battery move chemistry, sodium ions between the anodes of the battery by the water-based electrolyte during loading and unloading.

The company product plans are low voltage cells together are lined up to use for grid storage. A battery pack would be operated to the size of a server rack data between 12 and 48 volt. Can lined up together in a shipping container size box for 500 volts to 1000 Volts batteries.

After testing his equipment with customers it ramp up production in the time frame planning 2013 and 2014. His target price is under $300 per kilowatt hour, which is well below the price of today's lithium-ion batteries.

Feeding has established itself as one of the most difficult technical challenges in energy storage electricity into the power for several hours. Lithium-ion batteries, which bursts on the provision of power, are the "wind energy, but cost remains a barrier firm" used.

The bulk of grid storage space, the several hours of storage for solar and wind, has attracted many researchers and companies. An example is total, cheap liquid metal battery recently by Bill Gates and oil company, long-lasting grid develop memory financed was.

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Oiltanking Odfjell terminals increases storage space in the Oman port

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