Epic EV’s Torq roadster is the world’s fastest three-wheeled electric vehicle and it will soon be launched in Southern California on April 6 at an unveiling party at Epic EV’s R&D facility in Vista, California. Though briefly presented during SEMA 2012’s Dub Show Tour, the Torq will be officially unveiled on April 6 when the Continue reading →
Pecan Street Inc. and collaborators including the Center for Commercialization of Electric Technologies (CCET), Frontier Associates and volunteer Austin, Texas homeowners are about to launch a side-by-side field research trial of the comparative impacts and benefits of new pricing models and a variety of other tools for shifting electricity demand away from peak use periods. Continue reading →
SSN’s competitors claim that it loses money on every sale – that it has priced its deals so low that it cannot make money on them. Yet SSN’s aggressive pricing and constant innovation have allowed it to become a clear mind-share leader in a sector that today is dominated by much larger competitors. But even Continue reading →
While electric vehicle sales fell short of automakers’ expectations last year, new forecasts project a stronger market through the rest of the decade, with global sales reaching 3.8 million units a year by 2020. Electric vehicle sales are expected to grow at a compound annual rate of nearly 40 percent through the remainder of the Continue reading →
How to deal with rising power bills – and how to help increasingly disenchanted energy consumers deal with them? It’s a thorny issue for Australian governments and, thus, a major theme of the Gillard government’s final energy white paper, which was released in Melbourne on Thursday. The long-awaited paper – titled “Australia’s Energy Transformation” and Continue reading →
AUSTRALIA could become the world’s biggest gas exporter but its domestic use of fossil fuels will decline as the carbon tax drives a gradual switch to renewables such as wind and solar, the government’s energy white paper says. The long delayed paper, released on Thursday, urges the deregulation of electricity pricing and the roll-out of Continue reading →
In a new study report, Pike Research says utilities in other parts of the world are following the lead of their U.S. counterparts in residential demand response. The cleantech market research firm says utilities are coming to understand DR’s benefits for both themselves and their customers in managing electricity demand. The result? Pike says more Continue reading →
In 2008, Boulder, CO became the “first Smart Grid City in the nation.” It wasn’t just a name, it was a step along the way for the town to become a green energy incubator. A few years later, Toyota sponsored a test program with 28 Prius Plug-In Hybrid vehicles conducted by Colorado University. CU has Continue reading →
Consumers are interested in various smart grid-enabled pricing programs and services and are increasingly likely to use social media to access energy information, according to a new Smart Grid Consumer Collaborative (SGCC) telephone survey of 1,089 U.S. electricity consumers nationwide. The Consumer Pulse Survey Wave 3, undertaken from August 17 to September 5, 2012 by Continue reading →
The Kentucky Public Service Commission (PSC) is considering the implementation of smart grid technologies, including smart meters, and electric prices related to time of usage. As part of the process, the PSC announced it would investigate smart grid technologies, including implementation costs, technical issues, and societal impacts. The Commission will also determine whether the use Continue reading →
The Smart Grid promises to deliver the right amount of power to the right equipment at the right time and at the right price. However, fulfillment of this promise is dependent on precise control of electricity, and is being offered just as renewable generation and variable pricing structures introduce more challenges to grid operations. via Continue reading →
For a long time certain renewable energy technologies have failed to enter the market to due to their high pricing, lack of proven track record and inability to provide a consistent level of power . But the smart grid could be what the industry needs to break down these barriers and provide a more stable Continue reading →
The scheme, which is linked to the rollout of smart meters, means people will be able to take advantage of discount rates at off-peak times. The Energy Minister Michael O’Brien has told ABC local radio that people can choose to stay on a flat rate or move to flexible pricing. “Flexible pricing is about providing Continue reading →
Comverge has announced a new dynamic pricing solution as part of an integrated suite of hardware and software. SmartPrice helps utilities realize the benefits of a dynamic pricing program such as significantly shaving peak demand, lowering customers’ electricity bills and increasing customer satisfaction by using a consumer’s broadband network, a cellular network or the utility’s Continue reading →
GE has launched PowerOn Precision demand optimization technology to help utilities reduce peak demands and costs while ensuring a more energy-efficient, reliable grid. PowerOn Precision is a demand response management system using GE software and continuous-learning algorithms to deliver dynamic pricing incentives and direct load control capabilities. via GE DR enables dynamic pricing, direct load Continue reading →
With little prior experience to draw from other energy companies, the Sacramento Municipal Utility District is trying out a wide array of smart grid technologies. The goal is to develop a roadmap for large-scale deployment. Prominent elements include smart metering, time of use and peak pricing, microgrid islanding and energy storage. The Sacramento Municipal Utility Continue reading →
The OpenADR Alliance today announced the release of the OpenADR 2.0a Profile Specification, the only existing open data model to exchange messages for Demand Response (DR) events between a service provider, aggregator and end-user in commercial, industrial and residential markets. OpenADR 2.0a is one of a suite of Smart Grid communication profiles that provides dynamic Continue reading →
If you have ever gotten a big summer time electricity bill, you know how important it is cut costs. One way to do that is by comparing electricity rates. While there are several places that can do that for you, a new one can use information from a smart meter to help you pick the Continue reading →
While most of the U.S. is moving to develop a smarter grid, many utilities still implement tired, static rate structures – a practice that is costing the industry and customers both energy and financial savings. As energy demand and rates continue to rise, utilities and customers want to reduce consumption and save money. Adjusting rate Continue reading →
There was a lot of finger-pointing about why residential dynamic pricing can’t gain a foothold in the United States during a recent Restructuring Today webinar called “Resurrecting the Money-Saving Promise of Residential Dynamic Pricing.” Most of the fingers pointed straight at utilities. But after decades of inaction, researchers, consumer advocates and consultants have found common Continue reading →
