Opinion

An Open Letter to Panasonic Energy

Sept. 19, 2022

Please consider the following world changing idea.

You desire to “do what humankind requires” and deliver “energy that changes the future”: https://www.panasonic.com/global/energy/.

Please consider the following world changing idea.

Panasonic Energy announced a $4B battery manufacturing plant in DeSoto, Kansas on July 13, 2022. The plant, no doubt, is in early design.

We propose that Panasonic Energy design and build a Direct Current(DC), Net Zero Energy (annualized) microgrid on the DeSoto site powered by 1)onsite wind and solar plus storage, 2) onsite natural gas converted to hydrogen with renewables for microgrid system support, AND 3) a highly resilient, dedicated underground HVDC and back-up AC transmission line built in an 2.5 meter diameter EarthGrid tunnel connected to the proposed SOO Green or equal transmission line and the existing regional transmission system.

The microgrid will use demand side management (DSM) and demand response (DR) to control the specially designed DC loads and some AC loads in the state of the art plant, facilities and supporting infrastructure. Panasonic Energy will be able to arbitrage the plant electrical needs with the regional price of power and need for ancillary services buying and selling both when most profitable.

Panasonic Energy will demonstrate to the “world” the most current applications of Panasonic Energy battery products for ALL applications in a net zero, living laboratory environment of DC power with AC back-up.

Panasonic Energy will be positioned as the manufacturer and builder of the world’s most progressive DC products and services today, tomorrow and in the years to come.

Interested? Let’s talk. Thanks.

Michael E. Beehler, PE*, F. ASCE

Chief Opportunity Officer of MBA, LLC

www.mikebeehler.com

*AL, AZ, CO, FL, GA, HI, KS, TX

About the Author

Mike Beehler | Vice President

Mike Beehler P.E., ([email protected] ), is the national spokesperson for the Power Delivery Intelligence Initiative and the chief opportunity officer for Mike Beehler & Associates LLC. He started his career designing and building transmission lines and substations for Tucson Electric Power and the Hawaiian Electric Co. and then spent more than 20 years designing T&D infrastructure and consulting on emerging trends at Burns & McDonnell. He has written, presented and consulted on reliability-centered maintenance, critical infrastructure protection and program management. In addition, he is a well-known industry writer and speaker on the early definition of the smart grid, 3-D and building information modeling applications in T&D, and development plans for smart cities. Most recently, he is sought for his strategic leadership and vision on the application of emerging technologies in changing business models to include the integration of distributed energy resources, augmented/virtual reality and artificial intelligence. He authored the book, The Science of the Sale. Beehler is a registered professional engineer in Arizona, Florida, Hawaii, Texas, Colorado, Kansas, Georgia and Alabama. He also is a Fellow in the American Society of Civil Engineers and a member of IEEE and CIGRE.