Renewables versus the grid at PJM
By David Wojick |July 17th, 2023|98 Comments
The grid was not built to run on “renewables”, and this simple fact is becoming clear at PJM, which is America’s biggest Regional Transmission Operator. To mix metaphors, the renewables stampede is swamping PJM, so the stampede is bogging down. This is good news.
By way of background, PJM once stood for Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Maryland. It was a voluntary utility group formed after the huge blackout in the late 1960s. Today it manages the grid as far south as Virginia and west to Illinois, serving about 65 million people in 13 states, including me. Central megalopolis if you like.
PJM’s key role in this story is called “interconnection”. Any utility or independent power producer can build a wind or solar generating facility, but PJM has to approve its connection to the grid, without which it is useless.
Before approving a new connection PJM rightly conducts a grid impact analysis. This means modeling the operation of the grid with the new generation active, to see what problems it might cause. They also determine what transmission upgrades will be needed and bill the owner of the generator accordingly. This is basic grid management.
https://www.cfact.org/2023/07/17/renewables-versus-the-grid-at-pjm/
