The DER Revolution and Right Sizing of Energy Resources

Small, distributed resources provide benefits to both utilities and end users, and installation of these resources continues to grow in number. Small generators located at or near the loads they serve have the technical and economic advantage over large remote plants when siting, construction time, reliability, and operational flexibility are considered. Among these advantages include avoidance of significant grid construction and maintenance costs and improvements to utility grid performance. This presentation starts with a historical look at the evolution of steam turbine power stations from local, neighborhood-scale generators into huge, remote power plants in the 1960s. It also discusses the technical and economic impacts of DER on the existing grid infrastructure