Back On The Grid

Back On The Grid

By Nick SorokinTechnology
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Back On The Grid episodes

  • Controversial Energy Opinion To Start 2024

    I was asked during an interview recently what my most controversial opinion on energy was. And while I would like to think I have more than one controversial opinion, because otherwise what’s the fun, I’d like to dive more into the answer I gave, which was about the ramp rates of nuclear power.

    Key questions: how does solar PV fit into power grids with a lot of nuclear? And conversely, how does nuclear fit with high renewables systems?

    References and recommended reading:

    • Residential Solar PV Systems in the Carolinas: Opportunities and Outcomes (2016)
    • Example of Nuclear Power ramp rate for South Korea APR1400 (2021)
    • Overview of Nuclear Ramping Constraints by Argonne National Labs and MIT (2020)
    • EIA visual of new capacity being added to grid in 2023 (2023)
    • TerraPower
    • The Duck Curve Illustration

      • Thanks so much for listening and I hope to see you in future episodes this year. If you have insight on ramp rate concerns other than the Xenon-135 buildup, please let me know!

      11 min
    • U.S. Hydroelectric Power Overview

      There’s this idea that hydropower is dead in the U.S. Little capacity is being built. There’s a bunch of environmental concerns. The works. But is that really true? Here's what’s going on with hydroelectric power plants in the United States.

      Sources and recommended reading:

      • Improving Fish Migration at Hydropower Dams
      • Bipartisan Infrastructure Act Funding for Hydropower
      • U.S. Hydropower Market Report Update (October 2022)
      • Pumped Storage Hydropower Wind and Solar Integration and System Reliability Initiative
      • Army Corps of Engineers Hydropower Program
      • National Hydropower Association
        • 13 min
      • Georgia's New Nuclear Power Capacity

        The near-term future of nuclear power projects in the U.S. may hinge on Georgia's new units at nuclear plant Vogtle, which is estimated to cost over $30 billion. This episode explores cost concerns related to nuclear fission from a public service commission perspective, methods to uprate existing nuclear plants, and my perception of risk comparing small modular reactors (SMRs) versus conventional nuclear plant projects in the face of Vogtle's cost overruns.

        Sources:

        • Nuclear Regulatory Commission List of Approved Uprated Nuclear Units.
        • IEA article on 'Repurposing Fossil Fuel Power Plant Sites with SMRs to Ease Clean Energy Transition' published in 2022.
        • Southern Company Annual Report to Investors for the year 2022, published February 2023.


          • 13 min
        • Massachusetts Residential Solar in 2016: Net Metering, SRECs, and Apple Pie

          This episode is about my experience supporting the solar renewable energy credit program in MA in 2016. Timestamps and recommended reading below.

          Timestamps:

          • 00:00-Intro
          • 00:30-Why has Massachusetts invested over $10 billion into solar PV?
          • 01:20-Where does Massachusetts get its electricity from?
          • 03:00-Solar PV Incentives Overview
          • 03:40-How does Net Energy Metering Work?
          • 04:40-Solar Renewable Energy Credits (SRECs) Overview
          • 06:00-How do you sell SRECs?
          • 06:40-SREC aggregation companies and the difference between bundled vs unbundled RECs
          • 08:00-How do you report solar production in Massachusetts?
          • 09:00-My experience supporting residential PV owners with production data reporting (+ apple pie offers, which I did not accept)
          • 010:30-Price per watt comparisons for popular solar installers
          • 11:20-SREC I and SREC II Program Review
          • 11:50-SREC + ITC + NEM
          • 12:30-MA Solar Tariff Program (SMART program)
          • 13:30-Industry Concerns with the SMART program in 2016
          • 14:00-Government philosophy in reducing incentives over time
          • 15:30-Conclusion

            • Recommended Reading:

            1. https://www.masscec.com/production-tracking-system-pts
            2. https://www.mass.gov/info-details/pilgrim-nuclear-power-station
            3. https://www.eia.gov/state/?sid=MA
            4. https://www.masscec.com/srec-reporting-requirements

              5. Quick correction: at 15:55 - I meant to say 860 MW of residential solar, instead of 860 kW.

              17 min
            5. Introducing: Back On The Grid

              How does the electricity grid work? What are the barriers to making it cleaner? And who has the power to decide? Hi, I’m Nick Sorokin, a master’s student at Duke University studying energy and the environment. And welcome to my new show, Back on the Grid.

              There was a time when I worked in clean energy, but now, I'm all washed up. This weekly show is my journey to learn new things about the electricity sector and will hopefully culminate in my pivot back in a career in clean tech.

              Thanks for listening and I hope to see you in the first episode, where I'll cover my experience supporting residential solar PV in Massachusetts in 2016.

              2 min

            About Back On The Grid

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            How does the grid work? What are the barriers to making it cleaner? And who has the power to decide? Tune in each week to hear about tech, markets, and policy related to the U.S. electricity sector.