Democratization: The Fourth D of the Energy Future






There can be no democracy without citizenship every day

– Ralph Nader

In recent weeks I have addressed three trends of the energy future: decarbonization, decentralization and digitalization. Together these three trends create and reinforce a fourth trend: the democratization of energy, which is the fourth D of the energy future.

Democratization, for the purposes of this article, is not related to the concept of political science that refers to the transition from authoritarian political regimes to democratic ones, but it does take the most important component of the concept of democracy: the citizen who is the center of the democratic process.

A related concept would be the democratization of knowledge, which refers to the process of disseminating knowledge among ordinary people, thereby breaking the concentrations of knowledge enjoyed by elites. Libraries and access to the internet are sources that allow knowledge to be democratized.

In the same way, democratizing energy implies the process of breaking the barriers that prevent universal access to energy and the adaptation of consumption centers into production centers. This implies several things, but the most important is to develop regulation that places the consumer, the user and the citizen at the center.

This means that they are freely allowed to choose their energy provider and their source of generation; that they are allowed to install solar panels on their roofs without the need for complex regulations that benefit horizontally and vertically integrated production chains; and above all it implies that all citizens have access to energy, understanding by this not only electrification but having the capacity to pay or having a protected tariff according to their basic needs.

Just as in political democracy the source of the legitimacy of the ruler is deposited by sovereign citizens as a whole, the energy sector starts from the same logic, from the existence of social demands that are important for the development of a modern energy future for new generations.

This includes decarbonization reflected in a responsible consumption of energy that must consider the least possible impact on the environment. It also includes the breaking of state monopolies and State control in matters of provision of energy services and redesigning its role as regulator and protector of citizens, that is, a process of decentralization.

It also includes taking advantage of the resources that digitalization places within reach of modern societies for the consolidation of a sector that takes advantage of the interconnectivity of consumption centers with production centers and breaks with the limitations of the integration of renewable energies into energy distribution and transmission networks, which must at all times be intelligent.

And, of course, it implies paying attention to the most unprotected, marginalized and vulnerable, to those citizens who do not have access to energy or who have access to energy of lower quality — such as firewood or other solid fuels — or who have access to polluting energy or who, having an electric connection, for example, cannot pay their electricity bills.

The gap in access to energy is the fundamental source of energy poverty and inequality and that has an impact on the quality of life of citizens. In an energy democracy that must matter. The democratization of energy is therefore about bringing more energy at lower prices at lower environmental and social costs and that goes hand in hand with the digitalization, decentralization and decarbonization of the energy sector of the future.

This article was originally published by Business Insider México.
Date: August 5, 2020
Original Link: https://businessinsider.mx/democratizacion-energia-electrica-futuro-energetico-energia-circular-opinion-paul-sanchez/ [offline]
Archived Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20210306234818/https://businessinsider.mx/democratizacion-energia-electrica-futuro-energetico-energia-circular-opinion-paul-sanchez/ [Archived]

Digitalization: The Third D of the Energy Future




“Artificial intelligence is the new electricity”

–Andrew Ng

Digitalization is a topic very intimately linked to energy, but it is necessary to differentiate the exogenous and endogenous effects of this relationship. The exogenous effects of digitalization have more to do with the process of transformation of goods, products or processes. We have already addressed this: how currencies, records and books become chains of digital data that ultimately require electric energy. For example, we no longer use the Guía Roji to locate ourselves but Google Maps, and today’s students no longer need to have an illustrated encyclopedia but only access to Wikipedia.

To the above is added the digitalization of classic household appliances and other electronics that are not only automated, but also interconnected to internet networks, giving rise to the so-called internet of things. Beyond devices to which we have already become accustomed — computers, video game consoles and televisions —, this is also a trend in washing machines, refrigerators, air conditioners and even lighting in general; everything can be controlled through networks with a cellphone or another device connected to the same network of our house or even remotely through the internet.

But, on the other hand, there are endogenous effects of digitalization in the electric sector. Digitalization in turn implies a process of adaptation and rapid response to a changing environment such as greater integration of renewable energies and storage. Power plants and large consumption centers are interconnected through remote communication means, whether through conventional internet or satellite communications, in such a way that they can process information in real time and integrate it into a more robust network with intelligent dispatch.

Operators and intelligent networks connected in real time, together with generators and representatives of consumers and other marketers, would have the possibility of sending more precise data on generation and consumption, which would avoid the programming of excess generation and would reduce technical losses. Likewise, it could help a better integration of renewable energies in real time and also make precise information available to citizens instantly.

Accompanying this interconnectivity goes hand in hand artificial intelligence and data science for the development of algorithms and self-learning machines that allow integrating a large amount of data in real time, such as weather, prices, operations, demand and storage, which would grant greater reliability in the operation of the electric system.

Additionally, consumption centers integrate smart meters and distributed generation and storage systems that can interact continuously with the network and enable the sale of solar or stored energy; controllable demand and other products for the benefit of the network. In case of non-payment, it also allows remote disconnection and connection without crews of technical bodies or long waiting times.

A smart home could decide whether at a given moment of the day it uses energy from the grid to store it or to charge an electric car; or else sell energy from a distributed generation system or share it with its neighbors or, why not, donate its surplus to a nursing home, church or school.

Digitalization and interconnectivity are, undoubtedly, two of the topics that reflect the bright future of the electric sector, decentralized and decarbonized, and this enables something else: democratized. We will talk about that next week.

This article was originally published by Business Insider México.
Date: July 29, 2020
Original Link: https://businessinsider.mx/digitalizacion-futuro-energetico-energias-renovables-opinion-paul-alejandro-sanchez-energia-circular/ [offline]
Archived Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20201026073748/https://businessinsider.mx/digitalizacion-futuro-energetico-energias-renovables-opinion-paul-alejandro-sanchez-energia-circular/ [Archived]

Decentralization: The Second D of the Energy Future








I buy everything from ACME, they are the company I trust the most.

– Wile E. Coyote

A fundamental aspect of the centralization that characterizes the electric sector lies in the maxim that says: “the bigger, the better.” For example, the bigger a generation plant is, the cheaper the energy is and therefore investment is made to take it from the distant production centers to the consumption centers. Right?

According to the logic of electric centralization, few large companies are required to make all the investments in generation and also in transmission and distribution lines to take energy to consumption centers. In such a way that production is centralized in vertically or horizontally integrated companies.

To illustrate the above, do you remember the Coyote from the “Looney Tunes” animated series? Created in 1949 with his co-star the Road Runner, in more than 70 years of life he has dedicated himself to the fruitless task of hunting the fast bird. For this he has used products from the ACME company, on which I will stop a little.

The ACME company is an acronym that means, translated into Spanish, “A Company that Makes Everything” and was the clear reflection of the companies of the 1950s. General Electric, for example, made the same irons, stoves, toasters, televisions, refrigerators; garbage burners, coal stoves, jet turbines and, in a futuristic vision, electric cars and their home chargers, to which we will dedicate an article later.

ACME, like GE, like the electric companies of old — known as utilities —, are part of that type of organization. However, since the 1970s this model entered into crisis and was replaced by smaller and more dynamic companies, reducing competitiveness to the large ACMEs. Eventually companies such as GE or the electric utilities began divesting assets and less competitive business branches.

If technological advance has taught us anything, it is the importance of miniaturization, individualization and personalization of products and services. Where before there was a landline telephone, now there is a smartphone for each member of the family. Why should it be different in the electric sector?

Smaller and more flexible plants are cheaper and easier to operate, they can be located near large consumption centers and, therefore, be more competitive than the large plants of old, and among these are solar plants. The development of small solar plants between 0.5 MW and up to 10 MW has grown everywhere in the world under that logic and has lowered the costs of electric energy in the most sophisticated markets.

But it does not end there. What is closer to the consumer than generating on their own roofs? The growth of solar panels on the roofs of residential, commercial, industrial users and even government offices has grown in those markets where regulation is more favorable, for example, California.

The energy future outlines a true trend of decentralization, users who take control of their consumption and require, increasingly less, energy from large production centers, cooperatives that create microgrids for self-consumption or entrepreneurs who use their land to sell energy near the cities.

And this is only the beginning, when electricity storage is economically viable, an important part of consumers will use increasingly less energy coming from large power plants.

Electric decentralization is synonymous with freedom and energy independence of consumers and goes hand in hand with the decarbonization of the sector. Undoubtedly, it will be a reality sooner rather than later.

This article was originally published by Business Insider México.
Date: July 22, 2020
Original Link: https://businessinsider.mx/descentralizacion-sector-electrico-energia-circular-paul-sanchez-opinion/ [offline]
Archived Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20210303081030/https://businessinsider.mx/descentralizacion-sector-electrico-energia-circular-paul-sanchez-opinion/ [Archived]