Utilities are responding to smart grid strategies: survey

A research study has indicated that global utility executives have embraced smart grid strategy as a platform for fundamental business process transformation initiatives that span the entire energy value chain across generation, T&D and customer service operations.

The study, designed to analyse the smartgrid strategies of leading utilities around the world, has been sponsored by Ventyx and conducted by The McDonnell Group.

Of those interviewed, 87 percent indicated the formal establishment of a smart grid initiative at their company, with the majority indicating that these efforts had been formalised in the past year and roughly one third indicating formalisation in the past two to three years.

"The utility industry is responding to regulatory and business improvement opportunities from smart grid strategies," said Ventyx VP of marketing, Andy Bane.

The executives in this study see an opportunity to fundamentally realign the relationship between supply, demand, efficiency and environmental objectives in support of intelligent utility enterprises, said Bane.

The study sample included five of the top 15 utilities in North America by residential revenue, two of the top five US public power utilities, three of the six largest global utilities by total end consumer count, as well as utilities that serve customers in more than half of the states in the US, three Canadian provinces and several European countries.

AMSC announces Turnkey D-VAR® order for long island power grid

- Long Island Power Authority Adopts Solution to Ensure Continued Grid Reliability During Periods of Peak Electricity Demand
- AMSC to Provide D-VAR Reactive Compensation Systems, Ancillary Hardware, Installation Services and Ongoing Maintenance

DEVENS, MA – January 27, 2009 – American Superconductor Corporation (NASDAQ: AMSC), a leading energy technologies company, announced today that it has received an order for a large-scale dynamic reactive compensation solution from National Grid (LSE: NG) (NYSE: NGG), one of the world’s largest investor-owned energy companies, which manages the electricity network on Long Island under an agreement with Long Island Power Authority (LIPA). AMSC will install its proprietary D-VAR STATCOM solution on eastern Long Island to ensure the continued reliability of the local power grid. Reactive power compensation is necessary to stabilize voltage, relieve power grid congestion, improve electrical efficiency, and prevent blackouts in power grids.

“Long Island Power Authority is supplying more power to its residential and commercial customers each year,” said Long Island Power Authority President and Chief Executive Officer Kevin S. Law. “In order to continue providing reliable, high quality power, we needed a solution to stabilize voltage during times of peak demand, particularly over the summer months when Long Island’s population is at its highest.”

D-VAR dynamic reactive compensation systems are classified as Static Compensators, or “STATCOMs,” a member of the FACTS (Flexible AC-Transmission System) family of power electronic solutions for alternating current (AC) power grids. These Smart Grid solutions are able to detect and instantaneously compensate for voltage disturbances by dynamically injecting leading or lagging reactive power into the power grid. AMSC has received orders for over 60 STATCOM power grid solutions worldwide, more than all other manufacturers. The company’s D-VAR STATCOM customers include more than 20 electric utilities and 40 wind farms.

The total dynamic range of reactive compensation provided by this transmission grid solution will be -96 to +240 mega-volt-amperes reactive (MVAR). AMSC will provide a full turnkey solution, including installation and ongoing maintenance and support for LIPA. The contract calls for commissioning of the reactive compensation solution by mid 2010. It will include a 36 MVAR base-rated D-VAR STATCOM – one of the largest STATCOM’s ever deployed in North America – seamlessly integrated with capacitor banks.

This is the second D-VAR solution AMSC has sold for LIPA’s power grid. In addition, in April 2008, AMSC commissioned the world’s first high temperature superconductor (HTS) power transmission cable system in LIPA’s commercial power grid. The 138,000 volt (138 kV) power cable system is successfully operating in LIPA’s Holbrook transmission right of way. It contains hair-thin HTS wires that conduct 150 times the electricity of similar sized copper wires, enabling the cable system to utilize far less wire and yet conduct up to five times more power – in a smaller right of way – than traditional copper-based cables.

“LIPA has one of the most reliable power grids in the U.S.,” said AMSC founder and Chief Executive Officer Greg Yurek. “By deploying this D-VAR STATCOM solution, LIPA will continue its tradition of utilizing the latest technologies to meet and exceed its customers’ demands for reliable, digital-grade power.”

AMSC’s D-VAR systems are modular and scalable solutions that can be customized to meet specific customer needs. These Smart Grid solutions are being utilized in a wide range of applications, including voltage regulation and grid reliability, optimization of power transfer capacity on stability-limited transmission networks, and reactive power support for wind farm interconnection to the grid. To learn more about AMSC’s D-VAR solutions for the power grid, please visit: http://www.amsc.com/products/transmissiongrid/reactive-power-AC-transmission.html

About LIPALIPA, a non-profit municipal electric provider, owns the retail electric Transmission and Distribution System on Long Island and provides electric service to more than 1.1 million customers in Nassau and Suffolk counties and the Rockaway Peninsula in Queens. LIPA is the 2nd largest municipal electric utility in the nation in terms of electric revenues, 3rd largest in terms of customers served and the 7th largest in terms of electricity delivered. In 2006, LIPA outperformed all other overhead electric utilities in New York State in all three major reliability categories. LIPA does not provide natural gas service or own any on-island generating assets. More information about LIPA can be found online at: http://www.lipower.org.

About American Superconductor (NASDAQ: AMSC)
AMSC offers an array of proprietary technologies and solutions spanning the electric power infrastructure – from generation to delivery to end use. The company is a leader in alternative energy, providing proven, megawatt-scale wind turbine designs and electrical control systems. The company also offers a host of Smart Grid technologies for power grid operators that enhance the reliability, efficiency and capacity of the grid, and seamlessly integrate renewable energy sources into the power infrastructure. These include superconductor power cable systems, grid-level surge protectors and power electronics-based voltage stabilization systems. AMSC’s technologies are protected by a broad and deep intellectual property portfolio consisting of hundreds of patents and licenses worldwide. More information is available at www.amsc.com.

NaREC and CENER to address renewable solutions at a community level

UK’s New and Renewable Energy Centre (NaREC) and National Renewable Energy Centre of Spain (CENER) have joined hands for a one-year project.

For this project, which will focus on creating new ways of generating and distributing power from small-scale renewables within communities, technology experts from the UK’s leading renewable energy R&D centre will work with their counterparts at CENER.

On the significance of the tie-up, Dr. Keith Melton, Director of Technology and Innovation at NaREC said the centre would be addressing renewable solutions at a community level in a way which has not yet been previously attempted by the energy industry.

According to NaREC, there is a significant amount of interest across Europe in so-called ‘Smart-grid’ systems better capable of transmitting and distributing power from different renewable resources in a reliable, flexible electrical network. Creating localised, intelligent electrical networks, will protect power users from the future risks of black-outs and periods of electricity shortages when electricity supplies struggle to meet with increased energy demands during peak periods.

The team is currently identifying existing communities within Spain and the UK with populations of between 10 and 25 000, which can be used as test subjects for ‘smart-grid’ renewable systems. The project will showcase the most appropriate technical solutions for integrating low carbon power generation technologies into a localised, community-based electrical system.

The project followed agreements made between former Prime Minister Tony Blair and President Zapatero of Spain to deepen collaboration between the two countries in the field of renewable energy. Officials at the British Embassy in Madrid and the President’s private office developed the concept, which is now being delivered by NaREC and CENER.

IBM works on technical blueprints for smart grids

IBM is preparing a technical framework “to accelerate new technology integration into the creaky electricity distribution grid.”

This was recently shared by Drew Clark, director of strategy for IBM’s Venture Capital Group, according to CNET. The report added that the focus is on a common set of communication protocols and data formats that utilities and smart-grid start-ups can adhere to. IBM’s San Mateo-based Venture Capital Group has been charged with finding partner companies that can help the tech giant offer its customers comprehensive data center solutions.

IBM is developing a software framework for writing applications that takes advantage of the two-way communication of smart-grid technologies.

Last year, IBM facilitated a 125-home pilot study of smart-grid technology for residential users on the Olympic peninsula in Washington.

In April this year, when IBM had teamed up with Country Energy, Australia’s biggest power system operator, to develop smart grids, it was then shared that with this and other ventures, IBM is targeting a global power grid infrastructure market worth about $81 billion and estimated to grow at about five percent a year through 2010. The core element of the initiative is an open digital network that remotely senses and directs the flow of electricity, enhancing efficiency by more intelligently managing load -- the amount of electricity flowing over the grid at any given moment -- while selecting power from the most efficient local generation sources.

Among other companies, SAP is involved with SAP AMI Lighthouse Council, which is a consortium of vendors and utilities addressing business processes and use cases to support AMI (Advanced Metering Infrastructure) to create the SAP for Utilities solution.

FirstEnergy’s Ohio utilities come up with Electric Security Plan

The electric utility companies of diversified energy company FirstEnergy Corp. have filed an Electric Security Plan (ESP) with the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO).

The filing features Ohio Edison Company (Ohio Edison), The Cleveland Electric Illuminating Company (CEI) and The Toledo Edison Company (Toledo Edison). It would phase in generation rates over a three-year period and incorporate the companies’ distribution rate case that was filed with the PUCO in June 2007.

Anthony J. Alexander, president and chief executive officer of FirstEnergy said the plan “protects customers from the kind of rate shock experienced in other states” while providing for appropriate investments in system reliability

He added, “At the same time, our company will provide up to $50 million to support energy efficiency, demand reduction and economic development and job retention programs under the plan.”

Under the plan, total customer rates - including generation, transmission and distribution - would increase an average of 5.3 percent in 2009, four percent in 2010 and six percent in 2011. Of the 2009 increase, approximately 3.2 percent is related to the companies’ pending distribution rate case. If approved, the ESP would represent the first increase in base rates since 1990 for Ohio Edison and 1996 for CEI and Toledo Edison.

Although the percentage change in rates will vary depending on usage, the impact on a typical residential monthly bill from Ohio Edison based on 750 kilowatt-hours (kWh) would be a decrease of $1.28 in 2009, followed by an increase of $3.06 in 2010 and an increase of $3.67 in 2011.

For CEI, the decrease would be $0.10 in 2009, then an increase of $3.45 in 2010 and $1.29 in 2011. For Toledo Edison, the decrease would be $0.16 in 2009, then an increase of $3.06 in 2010 and $3.30 in 2011.

Proposed rates reflect the end of transition cost recovery for all three companies, including CEI, which was scheduled to continue collecting regulatory transition costs through 2010. The filing is required under Amended Substitute Senate Bill 221 (Am. Sub. SB 221).