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smart grid initiative
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| Click above to view the interactive Smart Grid Movie. |
Con Edison Smart Grid Initiatives
Smart grid combines various technologies that modernize the electric grid, including self-healing capabilities.
It also allows for a two-way flow of energy and information between customers and utilities.
Current Plans
- Deploying smart grid technologies focusing on proven technologies, such as intelligent grid systems. Intelligent
grid systems use sophisticated communications technology that find problems on the grid and fix them faster, enhancing
reliability.
- Testing technology that can analyze critical information real time throughout the grid to facilitate energy management,
planning and forecasting.
- Testing the integration of greener energy sources, electric vehicles, smart meters and smart building technologies.
A comprehensive smart grid in the future would enhance reliability to all customers including major medical facilities,
transportation systems, financial institutions, and media headquarters. Smart grid technologies would
help nine million New Yorkers use energy more efficiently, support alternative energy sources, and enable widespread
adoption of electric vehicle charging. Con Edison invested in a smart grid pilot project in Queens in late 2009. The
Department of Energy awarded Con Edison nearly $200 million to expand its smart grid projects.
Smart Grid Illustration
Click above to view the interactive Smart Grid illustration.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a smart grid?
A smart grid puts information and communication technology into electricity generation, delivery, and consumption, making systems cleaner, safer, and more reliable and efficient.
How will customers benefit from smart grid?
Customers will benefit from increased reliability, added capacity through increased system efficiency, reduced outage response
time, and reduced operating and maintenance costs.
Can New York be a model for smart grid?
New York can be a model for smart grid implementation, especially for other dense urban areas. The unique
challenges in New York and the solutions we will test and refine in the smart grid demonstration can contribute to success
in implementing smart grid in other areas with similar challenges.
Who is paying for the current smart grid initiatives?
The Smart Grid initiatives are funded in part from two significant grants totaling $181 million from the
Department of Energy through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
What are some of the challenges of a smart grid in New York City?
Smart grid technologies must be able to accommodate the unique qualities of our electric system and population. One
of the challenges is the terrain of the city. The buildings in New York City create canyons which make a conventional
wireless communication approach difficult without significant investment. Also, a vast majority of the electric
infrastructure is underground and requires equipment to be rugged, presenting challenges for wireless communication. The
overall density of the company’s electric infrastructure compared to other population centers and electric utilities
is also a challenge. Furthermore, the typical New York residence is quite different from other less urban populations
in the country, in terms of size and energy consumption.
How do renewable resources play into a smart grid? Plug-in electric vehicles?
Renewable energy resources can provide additional generation, that can offset the energy required to supply
customers and can provide system support during contingencies. Electric cars can connect to the smart grid and
charge overnight or when demand is low, for a cleaner, greener planet. Plug-in electric cars may potentially serve
as an energy resource and support the electric grid; dispatchable control and smart grid technology is required to accomplish
this.
What are you doing with renewables?
Con Edison is part of a collaborative between the private sector and a host of New York State
and New York City agencies working on what could be the largest offshore wind farm proposal in the country. The offshore wind project
would be situated approximately 13 miles off the south shore of the Rockaway Peninsula in the Atlantic Ocean. The wind project
would likely be designed for 350 megawatts (MW) of generation, with the ability to expand it to 700 MW, giving it the potential
to be the largest offshore wind project in the country. We have a joint Web site: www.linycoffshorewind.com.
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