POWER January 2016 - 23

2016 INDUSTRY FORECAST
Gillespie: We need additional renewables,
and energy storage is particularly important
for the future. From an energy diversity
standpoint, we also need to keep the new nuclear
option, especially from a clean energy,
baseload generation perspective.
McCullough: If money were no obstacle,
we would put significantly more funding into
and attention toward research and development
(R&D). Achieving significant global
greenhouse gas reductions while also sustaining
reliable and affordable power generation
will require deployment of low-carbon fossilfueled
generation and advanced nuclear generation
worldwide.
Renewables have received a lot of attention
and R&D funding in recent years,
while we have limited the near-term options
for new, dispatchable generating capacity
to natural gas. Transformational technologies
for both low-carbon, fossil-fueled generation
and advanced nuclear generation to
help maintain fuel diversity are critical for
our industry. R&D focused on innovative,
low-carbon, firm-capacity power cycles is
currently moving too slowly. At the current
pace of development, there is no way
we can pilot, demonstrate and deploy new
technically and economically feasible lowcarbon
fossil generation or advanced nuclear
generation at commercial scale when
it will be needed. Appropriate investment
in R&D for distributed energy resources,
systems reliability, interact-ability, and security
also will be important as the " grid of
the future " evolves.
If the general public understood one
thing about power generation better,
what would that be, and how would
you suggest the industry deliver that
message?
Gillespie: Electricity is a necessity in
today's world, and generating electricity is
complex no matter the fuel source. It takes
good, capable, and dedicated people to allow
our business to thrive. The many systems
needed to produce and deliver electricity to
our customers require significant investment
in capital, material, and people. It is critical
we reinforce the inherent value of our product
to our customers in today's modern world.
McCarty: That hydroelectricity is clean,
green, and renewable.
McCullough: The value of firm generating
capacity on the grid and the difference
between capacity and energy is something
that continues to be confusing. Renewables
are seen as the generation of the future.
While we strongly support the need for additional
renewable generation deployment
to reduce emissions, firm capacity (provided
by fossil- and nuclear-fueled generation)
is also necessary to provide energy and to
manage renewable variability and meet customer
demands.
Renewables cannot be reliably dispatched
at any time, and also can't provide many of
the ancillary service capabilities that firm capacity
resources provide to support the grid.
These grid-level benefits are not directly visible
to the customer, but are a key component
of highly reliable service. The " grid of the future "
will require a much higher overall generation
nameplate capacity in order to provide
the same reliability. Explaining this complex
reality is challenging when the people take
the incredibly reliable electric service in our
nation for granted. There is no incentive to
learn more or even care.
Salati: The technology that we use every
day on our smart phones and computers-
such as batteries, nanotechnology, analytical
power-is revolutionizing our industry,
making it an exciting and dynamic sector in
which to work to improve lives around the
world. ■
-Gail Reitenbach is POWER's editor.
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January 2016 | POWER
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POWER January 2016

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of POWER January 2016