Inside the ‘crazy grid’: why the future of energy needs everything, everywhere, all at once - Energy Gang

<p>Building out the electricity grid was traditionally a predictable and straightforward business. Now it’s like trying to land a jet on a moving aircraft carrier in the dark. That’s a quote from this week’s guest Quinn Nakayama. He’s the senior director of Grid Research and Innovation at Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E). He joins host Ed Crooks and regular guest Amy Myers Jaffe to discuss how California is dealing with all the uncertainty created by new demands being placed on the grid: variable renewable generation, electric vehicles, data centers, and more. </p><p> Quinn refers to the fast-changing electricity system of today as the ‘crazy grid’, because so many things are happening at once. Wind and solar power create new challenges for grid stability, while batteries and demand response offer new solutions. Electric vehicles, following mandates from the state of California and other governments around the world, create new patterns of electricity consumption. T...