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Upcoming Events

Find recordings of our past events on our Resources page.

Transforming the Global Power Sector: Open Tools and Data for Renewable Energy Integration

June 6th & 7th, 2023 at 9:00 am U.S. EDT

In a two-part webinar presented by the USAID-NREL Partnership and the G-PST Consortium’s Open Tools and Data Pillar, expert speakers will introduce open-source data platforms and tools that support planning for grid integration of variable renewable energy. The speakers will discuss production cost modeling (PCM) tools for power sector planning and demonstrate PCM development, supported by an open-source data and code package for side-by-side learning. Tools to be covered include the Sienna applications, the System Advisor Model (SAM), and the Renewable Energy (RE) Data Explorer. Participants are encouraged to access these open-source power system simulation tools as well as the world-class solar and wind resource data from RE Data Explorer to evaluate the operational constraints and costs associated with different energy resource portfolios.

  • Day 1 Agenda:
    Open Tools and Data for Power Sector Planning and Grid Integration of Renewables
    Introduction to RE Data Explorer – Publicly Available, High Resolution Renewable Energy Resource Data for Decision-Making
    Introduction to the reV Model and the Sienna applications
    Overview of Sample Data and Open-Source Code for Side-by-Side Learning
  • Day 2 Agenda:
    Overview of Sienna/Ops PCM Development – Data, Workflow, and Model Design
    Renewable Energy Resource Visualization and Site Selection Using RE Data Explorer
    PCM Demo Using Sample Data and Open-Source Code Package on GitHub

Register here.

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Press Room

Although women make up half of the worldwide workforce potential, they are often underrepresented in the power sector—especially in technical and leadership roles, such as utility management, power system operations, and engineering. To support these efforts, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) – National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) Partnership, Imperial College London, and the broader Global Power System Transformation (G-PST) Consortium community joined together to launch the Women in Power System Transformation initiative.

Three pairs of engineering staff from three system operators partnered with G-PST: the National Load Dispatch Centre (NLDC) in Vietnam, Compañía Expertos en Mercados (XM) in Colombia, and UkrEnergo in Ukraine, participated in a 10-day, two-part U.S. study tour planned and hosted by the G-PST Consortium.

To achieve a global and inclusive response to climate change, its critical to support system operators worldwide with managing the challenges related to integrating high levels of renewable energy. In the latest installment of NREL’s Tell Me Something Grid series, NREL senior grid researcher Amy Rose discusses her role with the Global Power System Transformation Consortium leading a team that works directly with system operators in developing countries to implement the technical solutions needed to operate reliable, low-carbon grids.

Professor Mark O’Malley, co-lead for G-PST’s Pillar 1 (System Operator Research and Peer-Learning), has joined Imperial College London as the Leverhulme International Professor of Power Systems. He joins the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering to lead a research team of 13 working to decarbonize the electricity grid, supported by £4million in funding from The Leverhulme Trust. The research will be done in collaboration with the G-PST Consortium.

In an article published by T&D World, the G-PST’s Karin Wadsack and IEEE’s Mark Siira shared relevant standards and recommendations from IEEE to integrate renewable energy technologies onto the electric grid. G-PST is supporting the development of these standards and advocating for universal system-wide requirements, while fostering power system research, technology pilots, workforce development, and the deployment of open-source tools and technical assistance to system operators around the globe.

As part of G-PST’s Women in Power System Transformation Initiative, Imperial College London’s Energy Futures Lab wrote a piece featuring stories from women leaders in power system operations.

In a thought leadership piece for the Irish Times, EirGrid Chief Executive Mark Foley outlines why he believes a decade of global collaboration is the key to successfully addressing climate change and how the G-PST Consortium is strengthening that effort.

The Women in Power System Transformation initiative, funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and implemented through the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and the G-PST, addresses educational and professional barriers to women’s entry and advancement in power system operation organizations. The program will create internships and fellowships at G-PST’s partner organizations for women and individuals in underrepresented communities. It will also create a university-level engineering training curriculum covering gender equality and empowerment topics as well as cutting-edge power system technical topics aligned with the G-PST Consortium’s teaching agenda.

The G-PST Consortium hosted its formal launch event on April 21st at 8 a.m. US EDT, convened in association with US Climate Action Week. U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm and U.K. BEIS Secretary of State Kwasi Kwarteng, together with several executives of power system operators and institutions from around the world, officially launched the G-PST Consortium. The event also showcased the G-PST Consortium’s inaugural research and teaching agendas.

Earlier today during the Bloomberg NEF Summit, Audrey Zibelman, CEO of the Australia Energy Market Operator (AEMO) announced the launch of the Global Power System Transformation Consortium. Speaking during the European Energy Infrastructure in Transition Session, Zibelman highlighted the need for a major global collaborative effort in overcoming technical barriers related to the integration of clean energy into power systems at an unprecedented scope and scale.