Smart Grid Blog

The New Mexico counties of Rio Arriba, Los Alamos, northern Santa Fe and five American Indian communities will receive $10.6 million in stimulus grants to improve high-speed Internet infrastructure, according to the U.S. Commerce Department’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration.

…The project also will promote energy efficiency by enabling smart grid applications for regional rural electric cooperatives. Officials said local Internet service providers will be able to utilize the new infrastructure to deploy new or improved high-speed Internet service to consumers and businesses.

via New Mexico lands millions in broadband funds – New Mexico Business Weekly.

The check has arrived to pay for the main work phase on the largest and most comprehensive project in the nation to demonstrate how the electric grid can be used more efficiently and be made more reliable.

“The work being done here makes Washington state a leader in smart grid technology,” said Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., during a visit to Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland on Monday. The Department of Energy lab is operated by Battelle, which is managing the Pacific Northwest Smart Grid Demonstration Project.

via Largest smart grid in U.S. gets funding – BostonHerald.com.

American Transmission Co. has entered into two agreements with the United States Department of Energy, accepting investment grants totaling $12.7 million to invest in smart grid technologies to be incorporated into ATC’s transmission system.

The DOE in October notified ATC that two of its applications for smart grid investment grants were selected for smart grid grant awards. The grants to ATC are among 100 made nationwide – totaling $3.4 billion – by the DOE to advance smart grid technologies.

via DOE to expand $12.7 mn on smart grids – CIOL News Reports.

Cleantech industry leaders worry the U.S. government is picking the country's energy winners with its hefty fiscal stimulus handouts, when the market could be better equipped for that task, a new survey shows.

The U.S. Department of Energy hopes to give or loan $110 billion in stimulus funds to cleantech businesses dealing in everything from smart grid technology to wind power to electric cars and high-speed rail.

Start-ups that snag the cash could see a rush of private capital, analysts say.

via Cleantech Leaders Concerned Stimulus Dollars Altering Competitive Landscape | SolveClimate.com.

Remember the Pepco guy coming to your house to read the meter? It looks like those days might be over soon. Six months after landing $168.1 million in federal stimulus funds, Pepco is now set to begin building smart grid projects in DC, Maryland and New Jersey.

via Pepco Set to Start $168.1 Million in Smart Grid Projects « Awesome DC.

Accenture, a consulting company at the forefront of many IT and infrastructure projects, outlined some of its smart grid efforts at its analyst meeting last week and CEO Bill Green shed some light on the state of the U.S. stimulus funding. In an odd twist, the U.S. government’s effort to prime the economic pump may have actually delayed some smart grid development projects.

Simply put, the stimulus funding, known as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, is still making its way to infrastructure projects but the impact on the health care, public sector and smart grid has been fairly limited.

via Accenture: U.S. stimulus may have slowed down smart grid projects – SmartPlanet.

U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) announced more than $3.2 million in federal funds for two Ohio smart grid workforce training programs. The funds, distributed through the U.S. Department of Energy, will be used to train electrical engineers and other members of the industry in the development and application of smart electrical grid technology.

“Through our skilled workforce and strong supply chain, Ohio will lead the nation in the clean energy economy,” Brown said. “These funds will ensure that our workers have the training they need to upgrade our energy infrastructure, increase our energy efficiency, and help attract new jobs in the clean energy industry.”

via Brown announces more than #3.2 million for development of smart electricity grid for Ohio.

Michigan will receive just more than $5 million for two programs to train workers for jobs in electric utilities, the Obama administration said today.

The administration will provide $4.4 million to the state’s Electric Power Workforce Training Strategy, which aims to train 588 workers for electric sector jobs. Northern Michigan University will get $670,000 for another program that trains about 40 entry-level electrical technicians a year.

via Michigan gets $5M for smart grid job training | freep.com | Detroit Free Press.

The lack of federal legislation for energy-related reform in 2004 left the electrical transmission system, known as the grid, in dismal shape as electrical use continued to climb very rapidly.

According to an article in the November 2009 issue of Baseline magazine entitled, “Is the Smart Grid a dumb idea” by Dave Greenfield: “The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, better known as the ‘Stimulus Bill’, added the necessary money to focus on grid modernization, allocating $4.5 billion toward [smart] grid efforts.”

How will this money be spent, and will it help transform the antiquated electrical infrastructure into a smart grid that can meet the demands of the twenty-first century? More importantly, can the U.S. discuss and resolve the issues involved in developing a smart grid?

via Is the Smart Grid Possible?: Can Our Electrical Grid be Modernized?.

Westar Energy, Inc. has announced that it has signed an agreement with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for funding under the Smart Grid Investment Grant program.

Westar will move forward with its SmartStar Lawrence project, bringing smart grid technology to the Lawrence, Kansas area. Approximately $40 million in combined funding from the DOE and Westar will complete the project over the next 3 years. When completed, SmartStar Lawrence will offer customers the opportunity for more insight to their daily electricity use and cost information.

via Westar Energy’s Smart Grid Funding Application Gets Approval from U.S. Department of Energy.

Black Hills Corp.’s electric utilities will receive $20.7 million in stimulus grants from the U.S. Department of Energy for “smart grid” projects in Colorado, Wyoming and South Dakota.

Rapid City, S.D.-based Black Hills (NYSE: BKH) has a corporate office in Golden. Its utility arm serves 759,000 power customers in southern Colorado as well as neighboring states. It also generates wholesale electricity and produces natural gas, oil and coal.

via Black Hills Corp. gets $20.7M from stimulus for smart-grid projects in Colorado, Wyo., S.D. – Denver Business Journal:.

Eight companies and their collaborative partners have been given grants totaling £2.8 million by the U.K. Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) for research and demonstration of smart energy technologies.

The grants, which will support smart grid development to a total value of £7.6 million, are part of the U.K.’s plan to move to smarter energy supplies including smart meters in every home, a smart grid and entire smart cities.

via www.metering.com | Grants for U.K. companies for smart energy research.

Westar Energy, Inc. announced that it has reached agreement with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for funding under the Smart Grid Investment Grant program.

Westar reported it will now move forward with its SmartStar Lawrence project, bringing smart grid technology to the Lawrence, Kansas area.

via Westar Energy’s Smart Grid Funding Application Earns Approval from U.S. Department of Energy | TradingMarkets.com.

NB Power has been given $2.4 million by the New Brunswick Environment Department to support the development of a smart grid. Environment Minister Rick Miles says, “Investments such as this will ensure that New Brunswick meets its goal set out in the climate change action plan.”

via New Brunswick to Develop a Smart Grid.

Reliant Energy has finalized its contract with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for approximately $20 million in funding to develop and deliver innovative energy solutions for Texas electricity customers. Reliant is the only competitive electricity provider in Texas to have been selected to receive a grant through American Reinvestment and Recovery Act.

via Reliant Energy and DOE Finalize $20 Million Stimulus Grant Agreement To Expand Rollout of Smart Energy Solutions to Texas Residents – MarketWatch.

IDACORP, Inc. (NYSE: IDA) subsidiary Idaho Power signed a contract with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), securing $47 million in stimulus funding as part of the DOE’s Smart Grid Initiative.

Idaho Power’s Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) program, including smart meters, was previously approved by the Idaho Public Utilities Commission. The AMI program provides the matched funding requirement for the DOE Smart Grid stimulus grant.

via Idaho Power Signs Department of Energy Contract for Smart Grid Funding — BOISE, Idaho, March 31 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ –.

Westar Energy, Inc. (NYSE: WR) today announced that it has reached agreement with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for funding under the Smart Grid Investment Grant program. Westar will now move forward with its SmartStar Lawrence project, bringing advanced smart grid technology to the Lawrence, Kan. area.

via U.S. Department of Energy Approves Westar Energy’s Smart Grid Funding Application.

Governor David A. Paterson today announced that $24 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funding has been awarded to 206 energy conservation projects.

These energy efficiency and renewable energy projects will help 137 municipalities throughout the State reduce energy and operating costs by $3.3 million annually and fully return the initial investment in less than nine years.

via New York Clean Energy Projects Receive $24 Million In Stimulus Funding | Gov Monitor.

With the Obama Administration having earmarked $3.4 billion in Recovery Act funds to spur the energy industry’s transition to a smart energy grid, the impetus is clearly there for utilities to start making progress on this important modernization of the nation’s energy delivery system. Oracle polled C-level executives from its substantial roster of energy industry clients, providing a glimpse at where the smart grid transition effort stands.

via Smart Grid: 7 Reasons Why It Matters – Technology.

Oh, the endless issues with the smart grid stimulus funds — the close to $4 billion in federal grants to over 130 smart grid projects. With that level of funding there were bound to be some hurdles. Here’s another: speed. On Thursday morning at the Wall Street Journal’s Eco:nomics conference, the CEO of Florida power company FPL Group, Lewis Hay III, expressed his concern that “not a dime” of the smart grid stimulus funds had been allocated to the winners to his knowledge.

via FPL CEO: We Haven’t Seen A Dime of the Smart Grid Stimulus.