Rocky Mountain Supercomputing introduces site selection technology for renewable energy projects

Rocky Mountain Supercomputer Centers (RMSC) and Northrop Grumman have come together to introduce their maximizing and optimizing renewable energy (MORE) Power initiative. The new service is a technology that uses a laser-communications network optimization model by Northrup to help select the most effect sites for renewable energy projects. The MORE initiative will take worldwide wind and solar radiation data, which is collected by Northrop, and use it as a historical foundation in order to choose a site that will be the most productive for an alternative energy project.

“M.O.R.E. POWER answers the ‘where’ question in green energy development by calculating which geographic location will result in the highest wind or solar energy production and the least variance in power generation,” said Earl Dodd, RMSC executive director.

Rocky Mountain completed a test run against the operating boundaries of four existing and operating wind farms, which total a 370MW capacity. Using its high performance computing (HPC) cloud technology, it chose substitute sites that would not only produce 58% more electric power, but also gave a power variance score that would have received a reduction in bank financing equal to US$25 million during project development and construction.

“M.O.R.E. POWER was designed for renewable energy developers and investors, as well as state governments and regional energy authorities,” continued Dodd. “Once a wind or solar energy site has been built, this service also provides operational forecasts to maintain maximum efficiency of the facility, a park and even multiple parks geographically dispersed.”