Smart meters and transactive energy: Examining the benefits and addressing the concerns
BY JOHN CASKEY, National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA)
Smart meters are beneficial to consumers and utilities. What makes this meter “smart” is its two-way communication system and ability to monitor electrical load, pricing, and a variety of other data.
Using a smart meter, a utility can remotely take meter readings, eliminating the need to send a meter reader to the home. For the...
Leveraging AMI to improve grid reliability and outage response BY TIM WOLF, Itron Getting a handle on overall grid reliability and outage trends for the entire U.S. can be challenging. Despite generally high reliability numbers, power outages are occurring more frequently and the U.S. Department...
Optimizing conservation benefits through AMI BY MELODY TOMKOW, Aztech Associates The conservation benefits of ‘real-time’ electricity consumption information provided by home energy monitors, also known as in-home displays, have been studied repeatedly over the past decade. Recent...
New study shows metering devices are electrically safe BY LEN GARIS, Fire Chief of the City of Surrey A new study by a Canadian university may help mitigate any lingering concerns about the fire safety of smart meters. “Revisiting the Safety of Smart Meter Installations in British Columbia”,...
How to design successful AMI implementations with data analytics BY KEVIN CORNISH & ROB YOUNG, Black & Veatch Electric utilities embarked on their smart meter programs envisioning the delivery of quantifiable benefits as well as strategic value. Initial business cases were developed to...
A coalition of large energy consumers and ratepayer advocates has filed a complaint with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), urging the agency to prohibit transmission owners from independently planning "local" transmission projects exceeding 100 kilovolts (kV). The coalition argues...
The evolving demands of modern power grids necessitate the adoption of advanced technologies that can provide enhanced efficiency, reliability, and flexibility. Smart transformers are at the forefront of this technological revolution, offering a range of capabilities that significantly improve the...
In a significant shift, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has decided to abandon its transmission incentives policy, particularly the construction work in progress (CWIP) incentives. This decision marks a pivotal change in how transmission projects are financed and regulated,...
In a landmark move aimed at accelerating the U.S. transition to a more resilient and sustainable energy grid, the Department of Energy (DOE) has announced a groundbreaking investment of $2.2 billion in innovative transmission and energy storage projects across 18 states. This significant funding...
In the past 100 years, customer interaction with electric utilities has not changed significantly. However, with the introduction of smart meters, customers are now able to sign up for new programs and access their electricity usage data. In early 2013, the Illinois Energy Infrastructure and...
Already, smart city technologies are strong in Europe and the Middle East. Now, cities all over North America are joining the smart cities movement as well. Once the journey begins, a city quickly realizes that it cannot become smart and sustainable without the help of its electric power utility....
