This quarterly newsletter highlights recent projects, partnerships, and resources
from the Global Power System Transformation (G-PST) Consortium.
Innovation to Drive Power System Transformation
Transforming our power systems demands creative solutions. Since its inception, G-PST has proven to be a unique and worthwhile partner in driving the innovation needed to modernize our grids and develop advanced power systems worldwide. At the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), we are committed to helping lead and design what the future of electricity reliability, markets, and technology looks like. That is why we joined G-PST as a founding member and are excited to support its efforts and activities.
ERCOT staff, as well as staff from G-PST’s fellow founding system operators, are working together with members of G-PST’s partnered research institutions to identify, explore, and answer the most pressing questions that can ensure our power systems safely provide sustainable and reliable energy services to all at an affordable cost.
Through G-PST, power system operators all over the world can access cutting-edge research, teaching materials, and technical expertise that allows them to drive their own innovations and deploy the best tools, knowledge, and processes. In turn, our hope is for widespread power systems innovation to create new opportunities and drive economic development. This innovation will almost certainly open new doors for a diverse workforce and unleash investment in the power sector.
While challenges almost always accompany innovation, G-PST is ready with resources that can help system operators access what they need to adapt to a rapidly evolving electric industry. ERCOT is proud to be part of the team making those resources available.
Pablo Vegas
Chief Executive Officer
ERCOT, G-PST Founding System Operator
Featured News
G-PST Hosts Partners from Ukraine, Vietnam, and Colombia for U.S. Study Tour
In March 2023, six visitors from Kiev, Ukraine; Hanoi, Vietnam; and Medellín, Colombia arrived in Denver, Colorado, as part of the first-ever, G-PST-hosted study tour. The group was composed of 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.
Their arrival to Denver kicked off a 10-day, two-part U.S. study tour that included tool demonstrations, best-in-class facilities tours, technical presentations, peer learning, and discussions with subject matter experts. The visiting partners spent three days at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) campus, touring the lab’s Energy Systems Integration Facility and the National Wind Technology Center, as well as a visit to Xcel Energy’s control center. The visit to NREL finished with the group presenting to NREL staff about their experiences managing reliable power systems and renewable energy growth in their respective countries.
After wrapping up their time at NREL, the group traveled with other members of the G-PST team Tucson, Arizona, for the Energy Systems Integration Group (ESIG) Spring Technical Workshop. They spent the week participating in seminars, networking, and hosting a session where they had another opportunity to share their experiences in managing change in their own power systems with workshop attendees.
This study tour offered a valuable opportunity for the visiting staff and other members of the G-PST team to learn from each other. Its success launched new discussions about how G-PST might collaborate with Vietnam, Colombia, and Ukraine moving forward.
Report: G-PST Vision for Control Rooms of the Future
Control rooms are a key element of electricity network operation. While the look and feel of the control rooms has maintained some consistency throughout history, the visualization technology and computer processing power must continue to evolve to manage the increasing complexity of the underlying power system.
To help address this challenge, G-PST’s founding system operators – the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO), California Independent System Operator (CAISO), National Grid Electricity System Operator (NGESO), ERCOT, EirGrid, and Energinet – worked with the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) to prepare a report summarizing the status of control room operations and technology.
The report aims to identify existing gaps to allow the industry to collaboratively develop modernized control rooms of the future. It also intends to bridge the gap in understanding of operational issues by:
- Building awareness and a common understanding of the challenges system operators face.
- Providing a reference point for industry partners, from manufacturers to asset owners and regulators.
- Creating a useful reference to other system operators that are working to uplift operational capabilities.
Inaugural Grid-Forming Implementation Council Meets in Brussels
G-PST is convening several implementation councils that will bring together key stakeholders to advance standardization, field verification, and deployment of the emerging grid technologies needed to operate 100% inverter-based grids.
One of these emerging technologies is grid-forming inverters. As inverter-based energy resources, such as wind, solar and batteries, account for increasing shares of overall electricity supply, grid-forming inverters allow greater grid stability at these higher penetration levels and can even restart the grid independently in the event of a blackout or other grid disturbance.
In March 2023, at the Brussels office of the European Network of Transmission System Operators for Electricity (ENTSO-E), G-PST gathered approximately 25 representatives from system operators, developers, and manufacturers with a goal of identifying opportunities for studies, pilots, and other practical deployment strategies for grid-forming inverters. The council also discussed how it can operate as a coordinating force to ensure the deployment process is harmonized and lessons learned can be shared and applied at scale.
G-PST is excited about the launch of this inaugural implementation council and the valuable connections the first meeting established. Thanks to all who joined and made it a success! Stay tuned for more information and outcomes from future G-PST implementation councils.
Video: Empowering Women to Lead Power System Transformation
The Women in Power System Transformation initiative (Women in PST) is already helping create a more gender-diverse power systems operations field. To celebrate International Women’s Day on March 8, the Women in PST team developed a video that features some of the women leading and participating in Women in PST activities. The video explores just a few of the program’s achievements to date as well as the experiences of the first cohort of Women in PST interns. Watch the video: Empowering Women to Lead Power System Transformation.
Women in PST also released free, university-level course materials consisting of pre-recorded lectures and student assignments to support universities around the world with staying at the forefront of power system transformation education. These materials can also be accessed and used by individual practitioners. The experts and professors who developed the course materials recently offered office hours to answer questions and offer more in-depth context to each of the course modules. The recordings of the office hours are now available. Download the Women in PST course materials.
Meet the Team: Amy Rose, NREL
Amy Rose is a senior researcher in the Transmission Planning Group at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). Her expertise includes power sector planning and production cost modeling, regional power pools, and grid integration of renewable energy. Rose has worked for over 10 years with governments, utilities, and regulators in Africa, South Asia, and Central Asia.
As part of G-PST, Rose serves as the lead for coordinating technical assistance activities to system operators around the world. She recently penned a piece for NREL’s Tell Me Something Grid thought leadership series about G-PST’s work with system operators worldwide and why coordinated, global efforts are key to successfully mitigating the worst effects of climate change and accelerating the clean energy transition.
Read the full Tell Me Something Grid article.
To complement her Tell Me Something Grid piece, the G-PST team followed up with Rose to learn a little bit more about her background and passion for working with teams all over the world to improve their power system operations.
Events and Resources
Register for upcoming G-PST trainings and workshops.
In case you missed any, access all of the past quarter’s trainings and workshops.