1. Introduction and Overview

Distributed generation (DG) is a broad term that encompasses myriad technologies that generate, store, and distribute electricity close to the end user. DG technology is rapidly developing and being deployed around the world. Subsequent chapters of this book describe the legal and economic issues as well as implications of the everincreasing prevalence of DG. In this chapter, the authors introduce, in nontechnical terms, the basic concepts and technologies most frequently used in DG installations in the United States. Any discussion of rapidly developing DG technology comes with the inherent risk that it will be outdated soon after it is written. Therefore, this introductory chapter serves to provide the reader with a foundation for further inquiry and a general introduction of the chapters that follow, rather than a comprehensive technical exposition of DG.