EERE News 8/8/2008

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Wind & Hydropower Technologies Program on August 5th announced funding awards to seven national laboratories to address challenges to the integration of substantial amounts of renewable energy into the Nation’s electric system.

The awards, which total $4.057 million, will fund research and industry collaboration on wind energy integration at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Argonne National Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratory, and Los Alamos National Laboratory.

The laboratory awards will be used to address three major areas of interest:
(1) Analysis and modeling support: labs engaged in this effort will work with regional utility operators and planning authorities to better understand the impact of large wind energy penetration, in conjunction with other renewables, on grid operations, reliability, and economics.
(2) Wind resource assessment research: labs receiving awards will seek to improve understanding of wind resources at modern turbine hub heights, improve forecasting methods, and incorporate wind forecasting into utility control area operations.
(3) Siting and environmental issues: labs involved in this research will address environmental barriers to wind project development and create an integrated database for wind energy site analysis.

For more information on the Wind Energy Program’s Renewable Systems Interconnection Support, please contact Stan Calvert, Chief Engineer of the Wind & Hydropower Technologies Program, DOE. [ stan.calvert@ee.doe.gov ]