Not only does renewable energy help reduce the strain on the traditional electric grid system, it can also be produced and delivered at lower costs. It saves money for both energy producers and end users. And this trend toward rapidly increasing use of more eco-friendly energy sources is expected to continue through the next few decades.
Analyzin​​​​g Renewable Power Growth
The growth of renewables can be analyzed using four key elements: a customer experience map, insights and tools, actionable results, and strategic frameworks.
A customer experience map encompasses customer pain points and fears that need resolving. Using insights and tools will be key in energy analysis to make more accurate estimations and projections regarding energy needs. Actionable results associated with better performance give energy stakeholders more confidence and reasons to invest further in renewables. And strategic frameworks lead to infrastructure improvements to achieve more reliability and resilience in energy production.
Now that utilities are becoming increasingly invested in building more efficiency for the future of energy production, here are the steppingstones they are using to improve performance with the help of renewables:
Investment in new products and services
Research and development funding
Analysis of regulations that will benefit stakeholders
Geographical studies on which regions need the most transformation in meeting demands with renewables
Emphasis on cost optimization strategies within supply chains
Awareness of political and economic factors in shaping renewables
Understanding barriers to entry for new players
Monitoring the trends in renewable energy growth will offer a clear idea why utilities around the world are moving in this direction. Meanwhile, scientists are constantly discovering new ways to harness energy from nature, including the ocean and the ground.
Research on Ren​​​​ewable Growth
While hydropower is still the most prevalent form of renewables on a global level, solar and wind are gaining quickly. Geothermal energy from below the earth's surface is also steadily gaining in electricity production. Utilities need backup energy to supply baseload requirements when traditional sources have momentary shortfalls; geothermal has become useful to utilities as a viable alternative.
Utilities are becoming more flexible when it comes to drawing electricity from renewable sources as part of an energy mix. Current conditions are sufficient to allow 80% of U.S. electricity to be generated by renewables by 2050. This new system will be far more efficient at meeting electricity demands on an hourly basis throughout the nation.
As modern utilities become more flexible at energy generation, they will have the ability to meet energy demands more effectively. Utilities will have more options for supplementing the primary energy sources with secondary sources. This direction also emphasizes more flexibility in grid storage so that backup power is instantly available to account for voltage drops in transmission.
The more diverse a utility is, the more efficient it will be in meeting customer demands during peak periods. This factor will help utilities drive toward more sustainable and environmentally-friendly operations. It will help reduce greenhouse gas emissions and wasted resources.
Conc​​​​lusion
The future of renewable energy is set to experience continued growth, as the need for diverse and cleaner energy sources grows. Innovation in the development of these much-needed renewable sources will also be more prominent. The conversion of coal plants to wind and solar facilities will continue as fossil fuels now fall behind renewables in efficiency in certain places. Look for renewables to be part of big energy company mergers throughout the coming years.
After 25 years in engineering, Johannes Beekman founded IoT Marketing with the goal of helping companies bring wide-scale awareness to their inventions. He received a Master of Science in Physics degree from the Eindhoven University of Technology, and a Master in Business Administration degree from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, and started his career in the semiconductor field. Johannes pioneered two successful wafer fab startups for Philips Electronics; one in Europe and the second one in Asia. And served as Senior Program Manager for Sematech, where he provided solutions for semiconductor industry-wide product improvement and cost reduction challenges. Johannes has also published articles on several trade-focused websites.
