What happens when a country commits to a nationally determined contribution (NDC), but the country’s grid system operator is not confident it can meet those goals while maintaining grid system reliability? In this session, attendees heard from system operators who have said “yes” to this challenge and are now bending the limits of what was previously thought possible with high penetration and renewable energy grid operation. Attendees also heard about solutions these leading system operators are using to manage grid frequency and strength, how they achieved record-breaking, instantaneous renewable penetration in large grids, and conceptualized their outlook on what the next steps are to achieve grids that are reliably stable under 100% renewable energy conditions. System operators from countries at earlier stages of renewable energy integration shared their plans regarding what interventions they are taking to avoid locking in emissions from additional fossil fuel-based generators, and instead put them in a position to create high penetration renewable energy grids in the future. By using the lens of individual stories, the session humanizes technical topics and share the triumphs, setbacks, and excitement of one of the greatest technical endeavors of our times.
Speakers:
- Jonathan Pershing – Office of the Special Envoy for Climate, U.S.
- Luke Robinson – Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO), Australia
- Veronika Henze – Bloomberg
- Mark O’Malley – Energy Systems Integration Group
- Stine Grenaa Jensen – Energinet, Denmark
- Jon O’Sullivan – EirGrid, Ireland
- Julia Matesovyan – Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), U.S.
- Gav Hurford – Eskom, South Africa