Amid growing concerns, Biden Administration announces effort to prove a renewable grid's reliability

As major voices in the energy landscape are calling for increased investment in natural gas, the federal government in the U.S. is launching a small program to show a grid that runs on renewables can be a reliable grid. 

Last month, North American Electricity Reliability Council's director of reliability John Moura said existing battery storage technology is not going to be enough to ensure reliability for a renewable-based electricity grid, and that investments into existing and new natural gas facilities will be needed to ensure the lights stay on. Similarly, California legislators approved a plan directed at extending the life of natural gas plants as the state faces reliability concerns. 

Amid this highly publicized concern with renewable energy, the Biden Administration announced a $26 million program that will finance 10 projects aimed at demonstrating the reliability of a grid running on 100% renewables. Tagged the Solar and Wind grid Services and Reliability Demonstration Program looks to show how large-scale renewable energy systems can adapt to live changes in supply and demand while keeping the lights on. The project will focus on reliable delivery from electricity plants greater than 10MW, through modern transmission lines, to customers. 

Now, $26 million from the federal government isn't necessarily putting their money where their mouth is. But the program successfully demonstrating large-scale reliability will be critical for the Biden Administration to meet its energy and climate goals set for 2030. This will be a program to watch. For more information, the U.S. Department of Energy will host a webinar on the program on Aug.17.