“Innovation can and will transform the energy sector and in turn, people’s lives.”
On July 19, 2017, the House Committee for Science, Space, and Technology assembled a panel of experts and government representatives for a discussion on the latest technology advancements in the energy industry. The hearing, titled “Energy Innovation: Letting Technology Lead,” brought together speakers from all areas of the energy sector, from nuclear generation to grid energy storage, including AES Energy Storage’s own Market Development Director, Kiran Kumaraswamy.
The House Committee covered a range of issues in their questioning, but the primary theme that emerged was the acceleration of renewables. The Committee was eager to learn how the latest technologies would enable the United States to stay on track with carbon emission goals and integration of wind and solar.
Congressman Beyer of Virginia asked about the role energy storage can play in the renewable future: “Do you see energy storage as a way to reduce emissions, increasing renewables?” To this, Kiran responded: “The way we see it is that energy storage gives us capabilities to decouple demand and supply, which is transformational. It has significant potential to increase efficiency in the grid – on the generation, transmission and distribution side… the most cost-effective way of providing peaking capacity is through energy storage.”
Kiran continued to make the case for energy storage: “By increasing the amount of energy storage that we have on the grid we can make sure that we integrate all of the renewable energy sources that we have on the system and most importantly help operate the existing conventional resources more efficiently.”
It was clear throughout the discussion that the US electric grid is in need of a transformation, and that advanced technologies such as energy storage will be vital to building the new energy network. Hear more from Kiran and the rest of the panel by watching the recording of the hearing below:
