A smart grid is a transactive grid.
- Lynne Kiesling
Author Archive

The Coming Revolution in Smart Electric Power

Via the New York Academy of Sciences, a forecast from Yu Zhang, Assistant Professor, Department of Electrical Engineering, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA: The way we generate and consume electricity in the early 22nd century will look a lot different than the way we do it in the early 21st century. Advanced sensor capabilities and […]

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Tesla’s New Virtual Power Plant Lets Texans Sell Electricity Back To The Grid

Via Verge, an article on how Tesla is inviting Powerwall owners in parts of Texas to join in on its new retail electric provider service that is designed to save on energy costs: Tesla launched a new power utility provider service in Texas this week that lets select locals with home Powerwall backup batteries sell excess energy back […]

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Persistent Optical Wireless Energy Relay: A Revolutionary Power Distribution Network

Via Energy Daily, a look at at the next leap forward in energy distribution – leveraging wireless power beaming to create a dynamic, adaptive, speed of light wireless energy web: DARPA is working on the next leap forward in energy distribution by leveraging wireless power beaming to create a dynamic, adaptive, speed of light wireless […]

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Texas Designing 80 MW Virtual Power Plant Pilot With Aggregated Tesla Powerwall Batteries

Via Utility Dive.com, a report on Texas’ efforts to design a 80 MW virtual power plant pilot spurred by Tesla desire to aggregate Powerwall batteries: The Public Utility Commission of Texas is preparing to authorize development of an 80 MW virtual power plant project and could give approval for the initial phase of the pilot at […]

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It’s Common To Charge Electric Vehicles At Night. That Will Be A Problem.

Via The Washington Post, an article on the dilemma of charging times as more EVs enter the US car fleet: As electric vehicles hit the road around the country, hundreds of thousands of Americans are beginning to learn the ins and outs of car charging: how to install home chargers, where to find public charging […]

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Electric Vehicles Could Rescue the US Power Grid

Via WIRED, an article on how – by 2035 – the batteries in California’s zero-emission cars could power every home in the state for three days: Last month, California finalized a rule that will ban the sale of new gas-powered cars, starting in 2035. Obviously, that’ll accelerate the adoption of electric vehicles and encourage other states to do […]

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About This Blog And Its Authors
Grid Unlocked is powered by two eco-preneurs who analyze and reference articles, reports, and interviews that can help unlock the nascent, complex and expanding linkages between smart meters, smart grids, and above all: smart markets.

Based on decades of experience and interest in conservation, Monty Simus believes that a truly “smart” grid must be a “transactive” grid, unshackled from its current status as a so-called “natural monopoly.”

In short, an unlocked grid must adopt and harness the power of markets to incentivize individual users, linked to each other on a large scale, who change consumptive behavior in creative ways that drive efficiency and bring equity to use of the planet's finite and increasingly scarce resources.