|
BEL applies to DOE Grid Deployment Office for smart grid funding
In March, BEL submitted a joint proposal to the Department of Energy’s Grid Deployment Office for $38.1 million in funding from the Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnerships (GRIP) program. BEL is grateful to our 16 utility partners who contributed mightily to this effort. The diversity of community, Tribal, and labor organizations supporting the project speaks to the strength of the community-owned utility model.
Asserting the value of grid modernization to local economic development, the proposal includes investments in the following technologies:
-
Sensors, fault detection, and automation to reduce the risk and impact of outages.
-
Advanced metering infrastructure, new smart switches, and automation to increase system capacity and flexibility.
-
Seamless communication and visibility between the distribution system and the bulk power grid to tap the rapidly expanding array of distributed energy resources, improve efficiency, and make demand response programs more robust.
The proposal includes a plan for broad communication, transparency, and information sharing over the life of the program to achieve economies of scale and share lessons and replicable program models.
If funded, the project will enable hundreds of local communities in 15 states to access the benefits of these technologies while laying a foundation for accelerated deployment in other regions.
| 
