Smart Partnerships: Co-ops bring a nimble, innovative approach to their work with national labs
CEC is partnering with CoBank to offer a one-time donation match to a 501(c)(3) Non-Profit including schools and government organizations....
Cordova’s Microgrid Integrates Battery Storage with Hydropower
By Clay Koplin Several remote, off-grid communities in Alaska have adopted energy storage systems as part of their microgrids, as they drive to replace expensive diesel generation with renewable wind and solar power. Now, the small town of Cordova, Alaska, U.S., 150 miles (241 km) southeast of Anchorage, Alaska, is pioneering...
The Growth of Hydropower in Alaska
FAIRBANKS, Alaska - Universities, National labs, and companies from across the country have been working together to research ways to make renewable energy the best option for communities. Cordova - a town of just over 2-thousand, is only accessible by plane or boat- and can get caught without electricity in bad storms....
RADIANCE Project
The objective of this project is to enhance the resilience methods for distribution grids under harsh weather, cyber-threats, and dynamic grid conditions using multiple networked microgrids, energy storage, and early-stage grid technologies. Planned Outcome: Using zonal approaches in multiple loosely and tightly networked microgrids will increase the resilience and resources on...
Senate committee hears testimony on microgrid technology
Testimony at a U.S. Senate field hearing on energy held in Cordova on June 10 had one clear message: to be successful in renewable energy innovation, collaboration and sharing of information between all stakeholders is a must....
Cordova hosts U.S. Senate field hearing on microgrids
When it comes to emerging energy technologies, many remote Alaska communities are on the cutting edge. That was the message from Cordova this weekend, where U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski held a field hearing of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, which she chairs. The focus of the hearing was microgrids: self-contained electrical...
Birds, salmon and energy storage: Going 100-percent renewable in Alaska’s pristine, resilient remote communities
Late last year, the Smart Electric Power Alliance (SEPA) posted a fanciful holiday blog about Santa’s microgrid. The piece was, in essence, a hypothetical case study of the use of solar, storage and other distributed energy resources (DERs) to meet the electricity needs of a small, remote community with an...
Thinking Big: From Broadband to Microgrids, Small Co-ops Find Innovative Ways to Make a Large Impact
Big electric cooperatives, with their heftier budgets and larger staffs, often get the recognition for leading on technological innovations and groundbreaking projects. But some smaller co-ops have refused to let size stand in the way of their commitments to big-time service. “The pace of change and innovation may be different around the...