Although – or perhaps because – attitudes towards and experience of PV technology differ vastly amongst electricity utilities in IEA-PVPS participating countries, generators, network operators and suppliers can have critical influences on the success or failure of grid-connected PV projects.

During the IEA-PVPS Osaka Conference (see PVPS focuses on its second decade for details), the concept of a utility forum emerged as a potentially valuable tool for assisting the electricity utility sector to share experiences and information on how to handle PV and potentially also other decentralized generators such as fuel cells and micro-cogeneration systems which are achieving increasing penetration on distribution networks.

The challenge of defining such an international forum has been taken on by PVPS Task 1 (Information Exchange and Dissemination). Under Denmark’s leadership and with financial support from the Danish Network Operator ELTRA, Task 1 is developing the utility concept further with a view to formally launching the forum with a 2-day workshop in Denmark in April/May 2004.

The workshop will serve to identify and present examples of problems and opportunities, such as network integration and management of RE technologies; modeling & forecasting of decentralized generators; conditions and regulations for grid-connection; standardization; value of electricity from decentralized stochastic generators; decentralized generation as a business area, etc. It will also serve to establish membership and practical operating structures, work content and distribution of responsibilities, communication approaches and future development of the Forum.

Interested parties from electric utilities, network operators and regulators should contact Peter Ahm at PA Energy for further information. Fax: +45 86 93 36 05

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