Smart Grid Regulation

The Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Advisory Committee (RE&EEAC) will hold a meeting to review subcommittee work identifying proposed programs or policies to focus on in developing its next set of recommendations to the Secretary of Commerce. The recommendations will generally relate to the development and administration of programs and policies to support the competitiveness of the U.S. renewable energy and energy efficiency industries, including specific challenges associated with exporting. The Committee will also discuss its workplan for the remainder of its 2011-2012 charter.

The United States Department of Commerce, International Trade Administration, U.S. and Foreign Commercial Service (CS) is publishing this supplement to the Notice of the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Executive Business Development Mission, 76 FR, No. 140, July 21, 2011, to clarify eligibility and amend the Notice to revise the dates and provide for selection of applicants on a rolling basis.

Feds may need to override state regulators to prevent future disruptions like last night's West Coast blackout

Commissioners for the village of Downers Grove village commissioners this week voted across the board to oppose state legislation supported by Commonwealth Edison (ComEd), that would authorize a rate increase to pay the $2.6 billion invested by the utility for smart technology improvements.  The vote comes despite the village’s efforts to have ComEd make some infrastructure repairs.

United States Energy Secretary Steven Chu has announced the partial guarantee of a $344 million loan for the SolarStrong Project, which is expected to be a record expansion of America’s residential rooftop solar power. Through the SolarStrong Project, SolarCity Corporation will install, own, and operate up to 160,000 rooftop photovoltaic (PV) solar systems on more than 100 military bases across 33 states.

With grass roots organizations in the United States still claiming smart meters are a health hazard and Ontario, Canada, Progressive Conservatives vowing to undercut efforts to implement smart meter technology by killing the proposed smart meter service fee and supercomputer plan should they be elected, the U.K. continues to blaze the smart grid trail.

The Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Advisory Committee (RE&EEAC) will hold a meeting to deliver 11 recommendations to the Secretary of Commerce and other U.S. agencies' officials regarding the development and administration of programs and policies to enhance the competitiveness of the U.S. renewable energy and energy efficiency industries, including specific challenges associated with exporting. The Committee will also discuss its workplan for the remainder of its 2011-2012 charter.

United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack announced funding to rural electric cooperative utilities for smart grid technologies and improvements to generation and transmission facilities. The loans, totaling $900 million, will benefit more than 19,000 rural consumers in 14 states.

United States Energy Secretary Steven Chu announced that the Department of Energy has finalized a partial guarantee for an $852 million loan to support the development of the Genesis Solar Project, a 250 megawatt (MW) parabolic trough concentrating solar power (CSP) facility that will increase America’s currently installed CSP capacity by about 50 percent. The project, sponsored by NextEra Energy Resources, is located on land managed by the Bureau of Land Management in Riverside County, California.

Shakopee Public Utilities (SPU) is the tenth Minnesota utility to launch Opower’s Home Energy Reporting program. Since the technology’s implementation in 2009, Minnesotans have saved more than $6 million on their energy bills and more than 107 GWh of electricity. Counting SPU, six percent of Minnesota households now receive Home Energy Reports.

United States Energy Secretary Steven Chu announced a $197 million loan guarantee to SoloPower, which will support the construction and operation of state-of-the-art thin-film solar module manufacturing facilities at two sites in Portland, Oregon as well as an existing site in San Jose, California. When the facilities are completed and operating at full, they are expected to produce over 400 megawatts of flexible photovoltaic (PV) modules annually. SoloPower also estimates the project will create approximately 450 permanent jobs and 270 construction jobs.

Silver Spring Networks will integrate Freestyle’s Zigbee-based smart water meter module with its Silver Spring Smart Energy Platform. The partnership reflects the companies’ commitment to providing an interoperable and open networking platform that supports the development of next-generation smart grid applications for both utilities and consumers. The smart water meter module is the first joint project for Freestyle and Silver Spring

The New York State Public Service Commission (PSC) has adopted a policy statement that establishes regulatory policies and presents guidelines for utilities to follow pertaining to the development of smart electric grid systems and other efforts to modernize the power grid.

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