Renewable energy technologies, fueled by worldwide government support in the form of stimulus programs and other incentives, have improved the global economic outlook with new jobs and industry. Six will hit double digit growth in the next five years — and change our lifestyle, according to a series of market studies from SBI Energy. Here’s what the industrial market research company found:
via Smart Grid and Renewable Technologies May See Double Digit Growth in Five Years.
Talk about timing. Allied Waste had already decided to transform its fleet of garbage trucks from biodiesel to compressed natural gas when federal stimulus funds became available.
“How much more shovel-ready can you get?” said Rachele Klein, manager of business development for Allied in the Treasure Valley.
The Maryland Public Service Commission (PSC) on Friday conditionally approved Baltimore Gas and Electric Co.’s (BGE) revised smart grid implementation plan.
As a result, BGE, a subsidiary of Constellation Energy (NYSE:CEG), will move forward with implementation of a multi-million dollar plan that will receive $200 million in support from the U.S. Department of Energy.
via Maryland Regulators Approve BGE’s Revised Smart Grid Proposal.
After weeks of testimony and 11th-hour changes to its big smart meter project, Baltimore Gas & Electric has gotten itself back into the good graces of Maryland state regulators. The utility announced Monday (PDF) that the Maryland Public Service Commission approved the redrawn project on Friday, meaning BG&E won’t have to return a $200 million Department of Energy stimulus grant for it.
Many see the electric and power utility industry as a huge dinosaur that is slow to respond to new challenges. However, there are a number of leaders that are quickly embracing smart grid and renewable energy technologies and approaches.
The leading utilities for this year were just announced by IDC Energy Insights and Intelligent Utility magazine in their annual UtiliQ rankings, designed to measure the progress utilities are making on the path to intelligent energy.
via Top 10 ’smartest’ utilities for 2010 announced – SmartPlanet.
Baltimore Gas & Electric Co. on Thursday defended its plan to pay for its smart grid program with some form of surcharge passed on to customers, and intimated that it might walk away from the project without one.
After rejecting BGE’s first plan in June, the Public Service Commission began two days of hearings about the utility’s revised smart grid plan, which includes installing meters in customers’ homes that transmit usage and outage information along with other data. The PSC’s action threatened a $200 million federal stimulus grant attached to the project. BGE amended its initial plan to allay the PSC’s concerns.
The blogosphere and media channels have recently been full of news about the Maryland PSC’s decision to reject a Smart Grid program proposed by Baltimore Gas & Electric, even though this plan had already received ARRA stimulus funding and the utility claimed that failure to approve the plan by July 30 would cause those stimulus funds to be lost. That case has been resubmitted to the PSC which is expected to rule on the revised proposal by August 5. We can expect more controversy whichever way the PSC decides.
via Getting the Consumer On-Board: Naperville IL Does Smart Grid Right. « Smart Grid Seeker.
More than half a million homes and businesses in Sacramento, Calif., will be equipped with smart utility meters by the end of 2011, promising consumers sophisticated tools to manage energy consumption and helping the local public utility deliver power more efficiently.
Sacramento is just one example of how billions of dollars in federal stimulus funds are jump-starting smart-grid investments.
via Federal Stimulus Grants for a Sacramento, Calif., Utility and Others Spur Smart Grid Activity.
“Trilliant and competitors such as Itron Inc., the largest U.S. maker of utility meters, are beginning to benefit from the $4.5 billion in stimulus funds the Obama administration directed toward smart grids to improve efficiency and accommodate electric vehicles and rooftop solar panels,” reports the Washington Post in a July 15th article. Trilliant Chief Executive Officer Andrew White told the Washington Post, “There’s been an avalanche of requests from utilities; we’re getting about one a week.”
via PR-USA.net – Smart Meter Manufacturers and Utilities Reap Benefits of U.S. Stimulus Package.
Baltimore Gas & Electric Co. submitted an amended smart grid proposal to regulators Monday, three weeks after its initial proposal was rejected as too financially risky for customers.
BGE asked the Public Service Commission for a rehearing on the proposal in order to win a speedy ruling and try to hold onto the $200 million federal stimulus grant attached to the project.
Potential outages and other disruptions on New England’s power grid will be spotted more quickly as the region’s grid operator installs new equipment paid for by federal stimulus money.
via New England power grid upgrades for quick data – BostonHerald.com.
Governments, industry bodies, and electric utilities around the world are coming together with newfound urgency – spurred in some regions by copious amounts of economic stimulus funds – to stimulate the development of the Smart Grid. These initiatives are designed to improve the reliability of the electrical grid, reduce costs through increased operating efficiencies for utilities, and prepare the grid for the integration of renewable energy and electric vehicles.
According to a recent report from Pike Research, these efforts will lead to a dramatic increase in worldwide Smart Grid capital spending, from $10.5 billion in 2009 to a high point of $35.8 billion in 2013. However, after the initial government and industry push of the next several years begins to taper off, the Smart Grid market will decline in size, though the cleantech market intelligence firm anticipates that it will remain a robust business for years to come.
via Global Smart Grid Investment to Peak at $35.8 Billion in 2013, Says Pike Research | Business Wire.
The vision of a smarter grid is of course a lovely thing to behold: an electric power system that’s much more interactive, interoperable, reliable, and robust—“self-healing,” even. That’s why so much excitement attended the news this time last year that the U.S. stimulus bill would contain billions of dollars in new funding to support smart grid construction, and the news six months later than the National Institute for Standards and Technology was issuing draft standards and a roadmap for completing standardization of the smart grid (the Framework and Roadmap for Smart Grid Interoperability Standards, issued in final form in January). And it’s the reason too why such high expectations ride on the avalanche of smart meter installation projects launched in the last year.
NYSE-listed energy efficiency company Progress Energy has received a $200m grant from the US Department of Energy (DOE) under the 2009 federal stimulus package for smart grid projects.
via NewNet News – Progress Energy receives $200m federal smart grid grant.
The Naperville City Council on Tuesday night took the first step toward the eventual installation of up to 57,000 smart meters in homes that will allow the city and rate-payers to monitor electric use and hopefully lower energy bills, reduce outages and shrink carbon footprints.
Council members voted 7-0 to work with the United States Department of Energy to proceed with the three-year, $22 million project, half of which will be funded by a federal grant. The city previously agreed to fund the other half by selling bonds.
via Naperville agrees to proceed with smart meter program – chicagotribune.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.
“We are pleased to enter into these agreements and take part in the effort to more fully deploy smart grid technologies to enhance the operation of our 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.
The University of Colorado at Boulder announced that the U.S. Department of Energy has awarded it $2.4 million in Recovery Act funding for building a smart grid workforce training program.
With the help of this funding, the university will be able to build an engineering graduate program focused on smart grid technologies, which will focus on networking, wireless communications, and cyber security within electric power systems. Colorado hopes to receive at least $6.7 billion in Recovery Act funds through more than 100 different programs.
via University Of Colorado at Boulder Receives $2.4M in DOE Recovery Act Funds.
Money is starting to move in the market targeting municipal power utilities aiming to read citizen power usage remotely through automated meters. In October 2009, the U.S. Department of Energy DOE subsidized 100 utilities with $3.4 billion set aside in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act for smart grid initiatives. Smart grids use the aforementioned meters, along with other technologies, to cut the costs of delivering energy and alleviating demand.
via California Utility Deploys Smart Grid with Stimulus Funds.
The X PRIZE Foundation, which seeks to encourage innovation through multi-million dollar prize awards, has said it is looking to launch new prizes to encourage clean energy development.
The California-based non-profit that has previously rewarded private missions into space said on Friday it will hand out $100 million in prizes over the next 10 years, for projects in four categories, one of which is Energy and the Environment.
via XPRIZE to offer millions for era-changing clean energy | BrighterEnergy.org.
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.
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