A smart grid pilot will be put into action in the Thai province of Mae Hong Son, to integrate and balance growing shares of renewable energy using battery energy storage systems (BESS).

India-based solar manufacturer and EPC player Vikram Solar has signed a collaboration agreement with the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA), while at the founding ceremony of the International Solar Alliance (ISA).

Northern Powergrid, one of the six distribution network operators (DNOs) responsible for delivering power across regions of the UK, is to plough £1.9 million (US$2.53 million) into the creation of a smart energy grid across its network, allowing its eight million customers to trade power and services using their home solar, battery systems and electric vehicles (EVs).

Car manufacturer Renault has created a new energy subsidiary which will create smart charging networks, explore vehicle-to-grid (V2G) solutions and utilise second-life EV batteries for stationary energy storage projects.

32 separate projects in smart grid, energy storage and related technologies which received backing through a European Union innovation programme, will pool knowledge and expertise in a shared network.

Siemens has helped start a smart grid pilot project in Rotterdam that will connect 20,000 homes with renewables and storage facilities.

The US Department of Energy (DOE) and the Indian Ministry of Science and Technology (MST) have committed new funds for research on energy storage and smart grids under the US-India Partnership to Advance Clean Energy Research (PACE-R) for US$30 million.

Research into energy storage and related technologies has been given a boost in the US in the past few days, with a major utility company committing funding in Indiana for renewables integration and New York’s governor announcing the creation of a research facility.

The increased growth in urbanisation is putting a strain on our energy, transportation, water, buildings and public spaces, so solutions need to be found which are ‘smart’, i.e. both highly efficient and sustainable on the one hand, as well as generating economic prosperity and social wellbeing on the other.