Today, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) released a new report, Hybrid Energy Systems: Opportunities for Coordinated Research, highlighting innovative opportunities to spur joint research on hybrid energy systems.  These opportunities could drive the production of valuable fuels, chemicals, and products, provide greater cost savings, increase grid flexibility, and enhance environmental performance across a range of DOE-funded technologies.

The report is a collaborative effort among DOE and nine National Laboratories. The report  finds that hybrid energy systems that integrate multiple generation, storage, and energy conversion processes can play a major role in decarbonizing the U.S. economy. These systems can produce high-value commodities like hydrogen; power industrial processes; and provide more grid flexibility to increase the deployment of renewable energy technologies. 

“To meet the Biden Administration’s goal of achieving a 100% clean energy economy by 2050, we’ll need a comprehensive cross-cutting approach to continue integrating more renewables into our energy mix,” said Acting Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Kelly Speakes-Backman. “This effort will enable programs across DOE to coordinate their efforts and maximize our impact - ultimately unlocking new innovations to benefit Americans with clean, reliable and affordable electricity.”

Members of DOE’s Hybrids Task Force include representatives from the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, the Office of Electricity, the Office of Nuclear Energy, the Office of Fossil Energy, and the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E).

Technical staff from Argonne National Laboratory, Idaho National Laboratory, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the National Energy Technology Laboratory, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, SLAC National Laboratory Accelerator, and Sandia National Laboratories also contributed to the report.

Learn more about how hybrid energy systems are driving innovation across the national power grid.