The smart grid passes first tests: a hope of greater reliability for end users.(ENERGY ONLINE: MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEMS)(Column)

In late 2004 this column examined GridWise, an exciting initiative of the Department of Energy's Office of Electricity and Energy Assurance (DOE OEEA). Since then I have been named a GridWise Architecture Council member, and I plan to provide periodic updates on this organization's activities and the smart grid movement.

The smart grid movement is so new that the entities addressing the technologies are still working diligently together to define their roles and to determine how they will collaborate. The Pacific Northwest National Lab (PNNL) is home base for a great deal of GridWise activity, The DOE GridWise Architecture Council (GWAC), the GridWise Alliance, and the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) IntelliGrid program each also address specific aspects of the GridWise vision for a smart grid. Their near-term efforts to apply automated demand response (ADR) may make it the first GridWise type application to see widespread implementation.Some Independent System Operators (ISOs), however, have attacked near-term technologies that match the GridWise vision, in particular ADR

The GWAC is an independent group of industry professionals whose expertise spans electric utilities, information technology, building and plant automation, computer networking, and the Internet. The Council is working to define the big picture architecture and technology that would be necessary to enable a smart grid.

Smart grid addresses issues related to the electric power system, but it involves the supply and demand sides of the electricity business as well as its information technology (IT) sector. GWAC anticipates the need for a long-term role that would define a form of governance for interoperability of technologies employed within the smart grid. GWAC believes that the first step is to create a GridWise consntution outlining the needs and requirements for interoperability on the grid, including near-term programs that enable load shedding and more far-reaching technologies.

The GridWise Alliance is a consortium of public and private stakeholders who have joined together in a collaborative effort to provide real-world technology solutions to support the DOE vision of a transformed national electric system. This electric system would employ distributed "plug and play" technologies using advanced telecommunications, information, and control approaches to create a devices society that functions as an integrated transactive system. The GridWise Alliance provides a forum where companies representing a broad range of energy sector interests can work cooperatively with the goal of moving our industrial-age electrical grid into the information age. This group works in the legislative and regulatory arena to overcome obstacles and promotes the shared GridWise vision.

The final entity is EPRI's IntelliGrid program, which has existed for four years. EPRI is dedicated to transforming the nation's energy system through advanced science and technology. Together with its partners, EPRI is developing, validating, and promoting adoption of new innovative technologies. The IntelliGrid Architecture focuses on transforming ...