Smart Grid Blog

Senate Commerce Communications, Technology, and the Internet Subcommittee Chairman John Kerry, D-Mass., expressed “frustration” Tuesday that the Obama administration has not moved fast enough to build out the country’s electricity infrastructure. “I don’t often express frustrations publicly about things on the administration, but this is one … I don’t get it. I don’t understand … why this wasn’t issue almost number one,” Kerry said during a subcommittee hearing. “[If] you want to get the economy moving, you've got to build out America’s grid.”

via Kerry Frustrated By Pace Of Smart Grid – Tech Daily Dose – Tech Daily Dose.

‘Window of opportunity for malicious intent’ as energy firms roll out smart-grid pilot programs

Attacks against the power grid are likely to rise and intensify during the next 12 months as smart grid research and pilot projects advance, according to utility security experts and a recently published report that analyzes threats to critical infrastructure.

The so-called Project Grey Goose Report on Critical Infrastructure points to state and/or non-state sponsored hackers from the Russian Federation of Independent States, Turkey, and China as the main threats to targeting and hacking into energy providers and other critical infrastructure networks.

via Spike In Power Grid Attacks Likely In Next 12 Months – Donna’s SecurityFlash.

With the push for more efficient energy distribution, the Smart Grid has quickly transformed from the hottest buzzword to a global reality. While the Smart Grid promises to deliver many benefits, it is essential to secure this critical infrastructure now, before it’s too late.

So what exactly is the Smart Grid?

via ICT Review: Securing the Smart Grid: The Road Ahead.

Energy companies around the world are worried. They’ve been tasked to deliver a “smart grid” — one that is able to control consumer appliances , cut costs and boost efficiency while managing the distribution of power.

A source (who shall remain nameless) who works at one of the UK’s largest energy suppliers recently told Greenbang how utility companies are finding it hard to see where they can make any money from the smart grid. It encourages people to use less electricity — and if they don’t, it does it for them, keeping the costs down all the way. And it means a big overhaul of infrastructure.

via Why Cisco is feeling so smart | Efficiency.

While utility companies may see lower profits after establishing a global smart grid that uses and manages power more efficiently, other companies responsible for applications, devices, data, and building the new infrastructure stand to reap significant financial rewards. Cisco is one of those companies poised to be major player in smart energy.

via Smart Grids May Utilize P2P Networks.

Public Service Electric & Gas Co. has proposed expansion of an existing 230-kilowatt power line and approximately 80-foot towers from Berwick, Pa. to Roseland. It is proposing a double circuit line with one circuit being operated at 500 kV and the second circuit being energized at 230 kV.

The existing single line now on the right-of-way would be removed and replaced with larger 190-foot towers. The $750 million, 45-mile project could earn up to a 12.9 percent return on its equity investment, according to The Wall Street Journal.

via Is there an alternative to PSE&G powerline project? | dailyrecord.com | Daily Record.

The communications revolution is shifting the national and global focus towards e-health, e-education and smart grids. Increasingly we are seeing governments around the world undertaking national broadband initiatives as awareness grows that broadband infrastructure can also be used by other sectors such as healthcare, education and government services as well as by smart grids and digital media. Another key reason is that, in the context of the recent economic crisis, they see this development as a new method of economic innovation.

via OfficialWire: USA And Australia Leading The World In Smart Grid Development.

In Monday’s budget announcement, President Obama followed the path that he outlined in last week’s State of the Union address, proposing a massive $100 billion for job creation. In the process, he renewed his administration's commitment to infrastructure improvement, adding a call for a $4 billion “infrastructure bank” that will be used for large-scale construction projects. But, even as the President stated that “we’re going to put more Americans to work rebuilding our infrastructure, and building our infrastructure of the future,” a key element was missing. The “smart grid,” long a centerpiece of Obama’s plans for infrastructure spending, was seemingly out of the conversation.

via Absence of Smart Grid in Budget Talks Isn’t Smart – DailyFinance.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) plans to make recommendations for how the National Broadband Plan — due to the U.S. Congress on March 17 — should help shape the fledgling smart grid industry. Interested parties have been submitting their comments over the past few weeks, and this week network infrastructure giant Cisco submitted its comments to the FCC, with a couple of key suggestions.

via Cisco to FCC: 5 Suggestions for the Smart Grid.

Jackson, Miss.-based SmartSynch said today it has been picked by the U.S.’s largest public power company Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) for its smart grid infrastructure technology.

TVA has rolled out a new distributed renewable generation program, branded Generation Partners, offered by 156 local power companies that distribute TVA power. TVA provides energy to large industries and power distributors that serve about nine million consumers in seven southeastern U.S. states.

via TVA taps SmartSynch for new renewable energy program | Cleantech Group.

The concept of a smart grid powers up imaginations around the world—and not just inside the energy industry. The cultural phenomenon of smart grid touches everyone from politicians to primary school children. There are articles and documentaries on the subject. There are entire magazines and conferences on the topic. But, why stop there? Why stop with just the confined concept of a smart grid?

via Smart grid is just the start… « POWER-GEN Europe Blog.

PNNL’s Report, The Smart Grid: An Estimation of the Energy and CO2 Benefits suggests a smart grid could reduce carbon emissions 12 percent by 2030. Pictured at PNNL’s Electricity Infrastructure Operations Center are four of the report’s authors (from left to right): PNNL Scientists Rob Pratt and Tom Secrest; and PNNL Engineers Michael Kintner-Meyer (seated) and Kevin Schneider.

via Smart grid could reduce emissions by 12 percent.

Silver Spring Networks, a provider of smart grid systems, has been selected by Bluebonnet Electric Cooperative to provide the network infrastructure and smart grid applications and hosting services for its Sustainable Grid initiative.

via Bluebonnet Selects Silver Spring Networks For Sustainable Grid Initiative – Energy Business Review.

We hear a lot about renewable energy these days, especially emerging technologies like wind and solar. Most of us appreciate the potential these technologies hold for our energy future, and we understand the challenges they can bring in terms of cost and reliability. Yet, we often overlook one of the most important challenges in bringing renewable energy online – how to actually get the energy generated from a windmill to a television or refrigerator miles away.

via Getting From Point A To Point B: Why Fixing The Electric Grid Is Critical To Our Energy Future : TreeHugger.

Siemens, the German energy and engineering giant, has been slower to move into the smart grid than fellow competitors like GE and Swiss-based ABB. But over the past year Siemens has seemed to be making up for lost time, announcing a flurry of new projects and partnerships, and saying that it wants to double its current growth rate in the smart grid sector to capture €6 billion ($8.48 billion) in global business over the next five years, compared to its current €1 billion ($1.41 billion) in estimated smart grid related revenues in the fiscal year ending Sept. 2009.

via How Siemens Is Tackling the Smart Grid.