Explore the Angles
Distributed energy solutions: Are they right for your business?
Distributed generation and storage, the small-scale production of energy at or near where it is used, is an integral component of the Perfect Power system. It also might make sense for your business for several reasons.
Reliability
- Distributed generation can be used to back up the electric grid, turning on automatically during power interruptions. These can work for individual facilities and, if connected to the grid, or to smaller “microgrids” can help keep the lights on and the motors running for entire communities, making even a serious disturbance in the grid imperceptible to most consumers.
- On a larger scale, more widespread use of distributed, on-site generation will substantially reduce the burden on the overloaded grid, making power disturbances less likely to occur.
Efficiency
- Approximately two-thirds of the fuel burned to generate electricity is lost in the generation and delivery process. By contrast, the most widely used form of distributed generation today achieves efficiencies of between 65 and 90 percent. This technology, called cogeneration or combined heat and power (CHP), captures the heat or thermal energy created when electricity is generated and recycles that heat in to steam used to power heat and air-conditioning and other appliances and machinery. The savings in fuel for individual companies can be substantial. In aggregate, the more fuel saved, the lower fuel prices drop for everyone.
