Inside a tiny office in a business park near West Virginia University, Allegheny Power is testing the power-control system of the future.
The electric meters and programmable thermostats on two office walls connect to a large television screen, which a technician uses to monitor changes in room temperature. The screen tells the tech when the air conditioning or heating unit needs to shut down.
Like other utilities across the nation, Allegheny Energy is experimenting with technologies called “smart grids” to find solutions to age-old problems — inefficient energy usage and rising electric costs.
“For the smart grid to work, it will take a great deal of education of our customers,” said Harley Mayfield, an Allegheny Power planning engineer who is the utility’s smart-grid point man. “Our customers need to want to save on their electric bill.”
The Obama administration is offering utilities $4.5 billion in economic stimulus money to upgrade the power infrastructure, add smart-grid technology to existing grids and connect the grid to renewable-energy sources, such as solar and wind power, said spokeswoman Jen Stutsman of the Department of Energy.
via Smart grids can give people power to cut electric bills – Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.
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