California’s Valiant Attempt to Address Resiliency through Microgrid Commercialization Falls Short
Payne Institute and Mines Advanced Energy Systems student Emily E. McDonald writes about how recently, the interplay between extreme weather events and the US electric grid has taken center stage. This past summer, California utilities instituted rolling blackouts to fight wildfires caused by downed electric lines. These events have brought to light the need for a more resilient electricity grid that can provide power when demand sky-rockets, supply is removed, and transmission lines cannot carry power. A new microgrid plan approved by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) in January aims to address resiliency through commercialization of renewable energy microgrids. While this is a good first step toward rapid commercialization, the focus of this policy is too narrow; It incentivizes only utilities to build microgrids through financial schemes that do not adequately address high economic and regulatory barriers to entry. March 12, 2021.