Energy Systems Management - University of San Francisco

12/05/2021

On a crisp and bright Saturday morning in November, students from the ESM program and alumni promptly gathered at Lands End in San Francisco for an invigorating hike and get-together planned by the ESM program staff. The meeting point was at the Lands End Lookout point, affording great views of the historic ruins of the Sutro Baths, and beyond it, the gleaming Pacific Ocean with its blue waters and white surf crashing into rocky outcroppings of ancient islands and the cliff sides....

On a crisp and bright Saturday morning in November, students from the ESM program and alumni promptly gathered at Lands End in San Francisco for an invigorating hike and get-together planned by the…

05/03/2021

On April 16th, the Energy Systems Management Program organized an Alumni Panel for its current students to enable sharing of experiences between the cohorts.

The panel was hosted by Ivy Muir ('21), and the awesome alumni that joined us included Abhinav Aggarwal ('20), Mary Biswal ('20) and, Gabriela Volpato ('20).

The alums provided much-needed insights into job searching, interviews, and placements.

04/20/2021

Congratulations to Andrew Magie from the class of 2022 for landing a placement at the California Public Utilities Commission.

Magie is part of the Demand Response team that is responsible for ensuring grid system reliability specifically for Summer 2021.

He attributes the unique coursework of the ESM program, with its focus on California, as being a major factor in securing the job.

We wish him all the best!

04/11/2021

On March 19th, the ESM program arranged a advising panel which was hosted by Ivy Muir from the class of 2021.

The panelists included the program's esteemed external board members: Graham Richard - Angel Investor & Founding CEO of Advanced Energy Economy, Romie Basra - SVP at Wells Fargo, and Michele Chait - Former Director at E3.

The aim of the panel was to give the students insights into career options and skills needed to be successful in their respective fields.

04/05/2021

President Biden announces the $2 trillion infrastructure plan outlining investments in , the grid, manufacturing & R&D efforts. It aims to enable 100% by 2035 and build a emissions economy by 2050.

Read more at: https://www.utilitydive.com/news/biden-2-trillion-infrastructure-proposal-includes-billions-in-spending-on/597696/

The plan received wide-ranging support from climate and clean energy groups, but Republican leadership opposes its high price tag.

02/28/2021

California's rising electricity costs can hamper its decarbonization and climate goals, by deterring the move towards transportation and building electrification besides being disadvantageous to its low-income residents.

A Next 10 funded study proposes the move away from "volumetric
pricing" by charging customers based on their income levels.

Read more at: https://www.utilitydive.com/news/california-power-pricing-discourage-electrification/595697/?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Issue:%202021-02-25%20Utility%20Dive%20Newsletter%20%5Bissue:32659%5D&utm_term=Utility%20Dive

"Effectively, what we’re doing is imposing a very, very regressive tax on electricity consumption in order to pay for many programs and infrastructure," Severin Borenstein, faculty director of the UC Berkeley Haas School of Business' Energy Institute, said.

02/17/2021

With more than 4 million Texans severely affected by power outages, the blame has been mistakenly attributed to the high pe*******on of wind power in the Lone Star State.

Around 23% of energy comes from the wind but only 13% was responsible for the power outages, as reported by the Energy Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT)

Read more at:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/joewalsh/2021/02/16/wind-power-isnt-to-blame-for-texas-electricity-crisis/?sh=7093148521b

Other energy sources have also been hurt by frigid temperatures, and demand is up.

02/13/2021

30 European companies have partnered for a pioneering project aiming to provide green hydrogen for €1.5/kg by 2030.

The "HyDeal Ambition" initiative is scheduled to start in 2022 and aims to reach 95 GW of solar and 67 GW of electrolysis capacity.

Read more at: https://www.pv-magazine.com/2021/02/12/new-european-project-to-drive-95-gw-of-solar-and-67-gw-of-hydrogen/

A total of 30 major companies from across Europe are laying the foundations to create HyDeal Ambition, a value chain promising to provide 100% green hydrogen for €1.5/kg by 2030, matching the current price of fossil-fuel produced 'grey' hydrogen.

02/08/2021

Join us on February 10th at 12.00 PM PST to learn about the groundbreaking study on "Carbon-Neutral Pathways for the United States".

Our panelists include the lead author for the study, Dr. Jim Williams - Professor at the Energy Systems Program at the University of San Francisco and, Ryan Jones - Co-Founder at Evolved Energy Research.

Register now via the link to join the zoom webinar:
https://usfca.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_i5PIFeMyS2mjWtlDV5AIfQ

02/04/2021

Southwest Power Pool (SPP) has begun operating its new Western Energy Imbalance Services (WEIS) market, with a half dozen regional utilities being a part of it.

Full membership in the WEIS can produce up to $49 million a year in savings on account of transparency in wholesale energy prices, bilateral trade, and options to hedge against costly transmission congestion.

Read more at:
https://www.utilitydive.com/news/this-is-just-the-beginning-southwest-power-pool-begins-operating-western/594334/

The five-minute balancing market is expected to help utilities integrate more renewable resources, but there are some concerns about the creation of a transmission seam in Colorado.

01/27/2021

The Energy Systems Management Program at the University of San Francisco is proud to announce that one of its faculty members, Dr. Jim Williams is the lead author for a groundbreaking study on how the United States can reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.

The research article was published today in the scientific journal AGU (American Geophysical Union (AGU) Advances and stipulates that net-zero emissions of carbon dioxide from energy and industry can be accomplished by rebuilding U.S. energy infrastructure to run primarily on renewable energy, at a net cost of about $1 per person per day.

The study was published in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory & consulting firm Evolved Energy Research and is available for download at: https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1029/2020AV000284

12/10/2020

According to an analysis by , the Energy Storage Alliance, the Golden State could need up to 45 to 55 GW of long-duration-storage by 2045.

Read more at https://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/california-could-need-55gw-of-long-duration-storage-to-meet-2045-carbon-free-grid-goal

A new study calculates a drastically higher need for long-duration storage than state officials had recognized.