It's all about consumer empowerment
FERC Chairman Jon Wellinghoff in a recent GreenTech Media Energy Team podcast on distributed generation pointed out that that the solar PV industry is consumer driven. Wellinghoff said that
When asked what he thought was the most exiciting thing going on in the power industry, Wellinghoff responded
"I think the most exciting thing I see in the solar industry is the enthusiasm of consumers. Consumers really wanting to embrace this technology and how that is driving growth in the industry. That is the most exciting thing I have seen over the last couple of years and I think it is going to accelerate in the future."
"Baseload" is an anachronism
In response to a question about whether we need more coal plants Wellinghoff said
"We don't necessarily need any more baseload plants. I think baseload is an anachronism because what we need is the cheapest source of energy services that will provide the level of reliability we desire and if you do that, you don't need a baseload coal plant. You need whatever you do need - it may be a wind system provding power remotely, it may be a battery system for storage, it may be a local generation system, solar PV or natural gas, or a combined heat and power system. But whatever it is, it is what the consumer needs at the cost level that is appropriate and the reliability level they think is appropriate based upon their choices."
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