Alstom Smart Grid Demonstration Project Receives Funding from the U.S. Department of Energy

Dec. 9, 2010
Alstom’s Smart Grid demonstration project has been selected by US Energy Secretary Steven Chu as one of the five projects, among some 40 applications, for USD 6 million federal funding aimed at optimizing the US electric grid with Smart Grid technologies.

Alstom’s Smart Grid demonstration project has been selected by U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu as one of the five projects, among some 40 applications, for US$6 million federal funding aimed at optimizing the US.. electric grid with smart grid technologies. This DOE initiative, as part of the Obama Energy policy started in 2009, intends to develop these technologies to improve the grid’s energy efficiency, reliability, and carbon footprint.

The Alstom Grid (formerly Areva T&D) demonstration project was designed to efficiently integrate distributed energy resources into the electric grid. Its objective is to help the DOE reach its smart grid targets for 2030: a 20% reduction in the U.S. electricity peak demand; a 100% availability to serve critical loads at all times (and a complementary range of reliability services for other loads); a 40% improvement in system efficiency; and an increase to a 20% share of the U.S. electricity capacity coming from distributed and renewable energy sources (200 GW).

The demonstration project will leverage Alstom Grid’s e-terra distribution Integrated Distribution Management System (IDMS), enhancing the distribution grid’s reliability and efficiency while minimizing end user outages. Alstom Grid will develop advanced models and analytical tools for integrating multiple types of distributed energy resources (wind, solar, electrical vehicles, energy storage), while monitoring information from several distributed interfaces such as smart meters, advanced sensors and telecoms, across the distribution grid.

This project will be implemented with Alstom Grid’s ecosystem of partners, including utilities, laboratories and universities such as Duke Energy, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, University of Washington and University of Connecticut.

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