Ford's "Smarty Pants" Hybrid Plug-In System

An interesting article of Ford's new, "intelligent" hybrid plug-in system that communicates with the electric grid (link):

Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) announced today that it has developed an intelligent vehicle-to-grid communications and control system for its plug-in hybrid electric vehicles that "talks" directly with the nation's electric grid.

This new technology - which builds on Ford's advancements such as SYNC(R), SmartGauge(TM) with EcoGuide and Ford Work Solutions(TM) - allows the
vehicle operator to program when to recharge the vehicle, for how long and at what utility rate.

"Electric vehicles are an important element of our strategy for improving fuel economy and reducing CO2 emissions," said Bill Ford, Ford's executive chairman. "This vehicle-to-grid communication technology is an important step in the journey toward the widespread commercialization of electric vehicles."

All 21 of Ford's fleet of plug-in hybrid Escapes eventually will be equipped with the vehicle-to-grid communications technology. The first of the specially equipped plug-in hybrids has been delivered to American Electric Power of Columbus, Ohio. Ford's other utility partners' vehicles will also be equipped with the communications technology.

When plugged in, the battery systems of these specially equipped plug-in hybrids can communicate directly with the electrical grid via smart meters provided by utility companies through wireless networking. The owner uses the vehicle's touch screen navigation interface and Ford Work Solutions in-dash computer to choose when the vehicle should recharge, for how long and at what utility rate.

For example, a vehicle owner could choose to accept a charge only during off-peak hours between midnight and 6 a.m. when electricity rates are cheaper, or when the grid is using only renewable energy such as wind or solar power.

"We are designing what plug-in hybrids and battery electric vehicles will be capable of in the future," said Greg Frenette, manager of Ford's Battery Electric Vehicle Applications. "Direct communication between vehicles and the grid can only be accomplished through collaboration between automakers and utility companies, which Ford and its partners are demonstrating with this technology."

Over the past two years, Ford and its energy industry partners have logged more than 75,000 miles on the plug-in hybrid test fleet. The plug-in hybrid research focuses on four primary areas: battery technology, vehicle systems, customer usage and grid infrastructure.

"Broad commercialization of electric transportation is not something a car company can achieve on its own," said Nancy Gioia, Ford director, Sustainable Mobility Technologies. "Developing and producing the vehicles is just one part of the electric transportation equation. We are well on our way to delivering the vehicles, but for widespread adoption the infrastructure to support the technology needs to be in place and we need to ensure that the national electric grid can support increased electric demand."

Real-world usage and laboratory research is helping to accelerate the advancement of electrified vehicles. Ford and its research partners are now focusing on ways to make the recharging process easy and efficient for consumers. In addition to low-cost recharging at home through the use of a smart meter, Ford researchers say recharging away from home - whether at work, in a shopping mall parking lot or at a curbside station - needs to be as simple as plugging in and swiping a credit card.

- Brewskie

US Possesses 8.3 Million Smart Meters

Roughly 6% of US households now have smart meters, up from 4.7% of last year; and the number is expected to quadruple by 2011 (link).

The 8.3 million smart meters installed as of May 2009 make up more than 6 percent of the total number of residential electricity meters in the United States.

That's up from 4.7 percent penetration as of 2008, according to a December report from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (see Smart Meter Installations Grow Nearly Fivefold).

But the real growth is set to come in the next few years, as large-scale smart meter deployments by the country's biggest utilities - as well as smaller scale installations by hundreds of smaller cooperative, municipal and public utilities – continue, according to Bill Ablondi, Parks Associates' director of home systems research.

Smart meter penetration is expected to grow to 13.6 million by next year and more than 33 million by 2011, he said.

- Brewskie

Recruiting for Europe's Super Grid

The European Renewables Grid Initiative is seeking to recruit additional members for a pan-European super grid:

The group was formally launched last week with a goal of promoting the adoption of regulations and policies to support the development of a pan-European super-smart grid, capable of transmitting renewable energy from remote locations such as offshore wind farms and North African solar farms, and automatically managing energy generated from distributed micro-generation technologies.

Lucile Barras, project manager at German thinktank Thema1, said that the group was looking to sign up more companies to join the founding members: WWF and NGO group Germanwatch, and grid operators Vattenfall Europe Transmission and Tennet.

"We are absolutely looking to expand the group and the initiative is open to all transmission operators, energy suppliers, renewable energy producer and green NGOs," she said.

Barras added that the goal of the new group was to lobby at a national and EU level for the wider adoption of the policy and legislative framework that will be needed to support the upgrading and expansion of existing transmission lines and the development of a pan-European super-grid.

The new group was welcomed by Antonella Battaglini, senior scientist at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) and a leading expert in grid technologies, who argued that the roll out of a cross-border energy grid will be essential if the EU is to meet its long-term emission reduction targets.

"A clear framework for tailored investments in grid expansion will enable simultaneously large renewable expansion projects, which substantially contribute to the 2020 and 2050 targets, while stimulating the economy," she said.

- Brewskie

The Department of Energy Issues Rules for Smart Grid Grants

The DOE has finally issued guidelines for utilities, and other companies clamoring to get a bit of the $3.9 billion of stimulus money for smart grid projects (a link to the DOE's guidelines is included):

The funding opportunity announcement issued Thursday sets rules for how to apply for about $3.9 billion in grants, which will provide part of the cost of qualifying projects.

It's an important boost for utilities seeking to build out expensive two-way communication and control technologies for their electricity grids, with projects ranging from smart meter networks to sensors and controls for distribution and transmission grids.

As expected, the DOE's funding will be broken into two categories. The larger portion, about $3.3 billion, is for the Smart Grid Investment Grant Program, aimed at technologies that can be deployed on a commercial scale.

And the pressure is on to apply for those investment grants, noted John Quealy, managing director of equity research for Canaccord Adams. Letters of intent are due by July 16, and full applications are due by August 6, with awards to be announced in October, he said.

[...]

The grants will also be split up according to the size of the proposed projects, with those under $20 million to get 40 percent of the total, and larger projects between $20 million and $200 million to get 60 percent of the total, he said.

The DOE will also be giving out about $615 million for smart grid demonstration projects, for "new and more cost-effective smart grid equipment, tools, techniques, and system configurations that can significantly improve upon today's technologies." The largest grants it will give under that pool of grant funds is $100 million.

For both types of grants, the DOE has kept to its May decision to increase the maximum grant amounts from what had previously been smaller caps of $20 million for investment grants and $40 million for demonstration grants.

- Brewskie

Smart Grid: Five Smart Cities

Here's five cities on top of the smart grid game:

Boulder, CO: Boulder is aiming to become the world's first smart grid city by the end of 2009. The city has partnered with Xcel Energy on the $100 million effort and customers can use the Internet to lower their thermostats or home or change the temperature on their furnace.

Worcester, MA: National Grid will be building a smart grid pilot in Worcester. The pilot, believed to be the largest in New England, will work towards creating a highly reliable modern grid that can provide customers with energy use information, automation, and the ability to control how they use energy.

Miami, FL: Energy Smart Miami, an energy initiative here proposes to use federal economic stimulus funds to help spur a $200 million investment in smart grid technology over the next two years. The initiative will deploy more than 1 million advanced wireless meters to every in Miami-Dade County. These meters will give Florida Power & Light Company (FPL) customers more information and control over their electricity usage while also providing FPL with information that will enhance system efficiency and reliability.

Austin, TX: The city of Austin's Pecan Street Project aims to get people to start generating power from their own homes. "Smart" appliances, like refrigerators that turn off when there's too much load on the grid will also be a part of the project.

Chicago, IL: With the help of the Galvin Electricity Initiative the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) is adopting the electric grid. As with the other cities, the smart grid would use digital technology to collect, communicate and react to data, making the system more efficient and reliable. For example, sensors would help utilities locate problems and fix them quickly.

- Brewskie

Smart Grid Comin' to Miami

The effort to bring da grid to da beach (hat tip: Peak Energy)...

Over the next two years, the City of Miami and some heavy-hitting business partners are going to overhaul the city's electrical grid.

Mayor Manny Diaz today unveiled an ambitious, $200 million "Energy Smart Miami" smart grid project developed in partnership with General Electric, Cisco Systems, Florida Power & Light and Silver Spring Networks to deploy smart meters on every home and most businesses in Miami-Dade County.

"This begins the transformation of Miami into the first truly smart-grid system in the nation," Diaz said during a press conference announcing the launch. "It is a model that supports and embodies the goals of the stimulus bill.

"The project, which aims to land stimulus bill funding for as much as half the project, will create as many as 1,000 new jobs as it brings next-generation technology to homes and businesses. In addition to smart meters, the project aims to install solar power systems on several schools and universities, add 300 plug-in hybrid vehicles to the city's fleet, and bring a series of new technologies like home energy use dashboards, smart appliances and smart-meter thermostats to pilot programs in 1,000 city homes.

[...]

Energy Smart Miami piggybacks on a series of already planned upgrades to the Miami area electric grid that has been in the works from FPL and California-based Silver Spring Networks. In the new project, GE will provide one million smart meters to the project, with the potential to upgrade to 4.5 million, enough to cover FPL's entire customer base in Miami-Dade. Silver Spring Networks will provide the technology to link those smart meters, and Cisco is spearheading the in-home smart devices and home dashboards in 1,000 residences.

- Brewskie

Federal Government May Overtake Smart Grid System

Replacing America's antiquated electrical grid system is imperative for various reasons: much of it was constructed decades ago; we need an adaptable grid system to better serve America's rearranging demographics; and we need a 21st century grid system to transport wind power from the Midwest, or solar power from the Southwest.

People in the federal government recognize this and are considering legislation to preempt states' power on the Establishment of new power lines. The Huff reports on this:

After two hours, a consensus seemed to emerge: The outdated electricity grid must be modernized and expanded if President Barack Obama's vision of dramatically increasing the country's renewable energy resources is to be accomplished. And the federal government will have to play a bigger role in locating high-voltage power lines to overcome local and regional resistance.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., a leading participant in the gathering, said he will soon introduce legislation to give federal regulators authority to override states when it comes to locating long-distance power lines.

"We cannot let 231 state regulators hold up progress," Reid said, referring to the members of state public utility commissions that decide on transmission locations.

[...]

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said he's ready to open federal land to renewable energy projects, including wind farms in the waters off the U.S. coast, and map out energy corridors. But, he warned, the power grid of today won't get the new energy to the markets that need it.

[...]

Sen. Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M., who chairs the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee that will craft energy legislation, said that while he has not seen Reid's proposal, he agreed the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission should have more authority for planning and locating high-voltage power lines.

Bingaman said he hopes to have a bill in four to six weeks that will address the grid issue and establish a requirement for utilities nationwide to generate a certain percentage of electricity _ as much as 20 percent by 2020 _ from renewable sources such as wind, solar and biomass.

Ghawar Guzzler comment: While controversial, the need for a smart grid system in the 21st century is too imperative, too important to not allow the federal government carry authority. Some may consider it idealistic to let states, or even private industry to take charge with this monumental task; but history has taught us - from the great engineering of Rome to our own Interstate Highway System - central government authority is by far the best at tackling infrastructure; and let us not forget... it was the federal government, with massive subsidies and the grand ambition of the Tennessee Valley Authority of the 1930s, that led to the electrification of the (then) underdeveloped Deep South.

Do not consider government's role of infrastructure constructor as usurper to private industry; it's rather an accomplice - a catalyst to private industry. Do we need proof? Could anyone seriously imagine Wal-Mart without the Interstate Highway System - the largest public works project in the history of the world??

Government electrified the Deep South and rural America, drained swamps, built sewer systems; it can lead the charge with a smart grid system and help transform our 21st century lifestyle.

- Brewskie