Page Description - this page contains information related to the Smart Grid.
Page Description - this page contains information related to the Smart Grid.
The Costs and Benefits of Smart Meters for Residential Customers - 38 pages - 2011-07-01 - Despite this rapid growth in the home energy management space (almost 100 percent growth is expected over the next 3-4 years according to Greentech Media), and the significant energy management opportunity that is unleashed by the combination of smart meters and smart home energy management devices, concerns about the adverse effects of smart meters continue to dominate conversations among regulators, consumer advocates, and electric utilities. With an eye toward resolving some of these controversies, this paper presents a framework for quantifying the costs and benefits of smart meters from a wide variety of perspectives across a range of electric utility and customer types. It shows how the magnitude of both costs and benefits might vary across different types of electric utilities and different types of customers. In the paper, we allow utility types to vary in terms of their load shapes; supply mix, including renewable energy and other energy sources; cost structures; current metering technology; and customer base. Furthermore, customers vary in terms of the level of their engagement in energy management. http://www.EnergyCollection.us/Energy-Metering/Costs-Benefits-Smart.pdf
Estimating the Costs and Benefits of
the Smart Grid – A Preliminary Estimate of the Investment Requirements for a Fully Functioning Smart Grid - 162 pages - 2011-03-01 - The present electric power delivery infrastructure was not designed to meet the increased demands of a restructured electricity marketplace, the energy needs of a digital society, or the increased use and variability of renewable power production. As a result, there is a national imperative to upgrade the current power delivery system to the higher performance levels required to support continued economic growth and to improve productivity to compete internationally. To these ends, the Smart Grid integrates and enhances other necessary elements including traditional upgrades and new grid technologies with renewable generation, storage, increased consumer participation, sensors, communications and computational ability. According to the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, the Smart Grid will be designed to ensure high levels of security, quality, reliability, and availability of electric power; improve economic productivity and quality of life; and minimize environmental impact while maximizing safety. Characterized by a two-way flow of electricity and information between utilities and consumers, the Smart Grid will deliver real-time information and enable the near-instantaneous balance of supply (capacity) and demand at the device level. The primary goal of this report, which is a partial update to an earlier report (EPRI 1011001), is to initiate a stakeholder discussion regarding the investment needed to create a viable Smart Grid. To meet this goal, the report documents the methodology, key assumptions, and results of a preliminary quantitative estimate of the required investment. At first glance, it may appear the most obvious change from the 2004 report is the significant increase in projected costs associated with building the smart grid. In actuality, the increased costs are a reflection of a newer, more advanced vision for the smart grid. The concept of the base requirements for the smart grid is significantly more expansive today than it was seven years ago, and those changes are reflected in this report. http://www.EnergyCollection.us/Energy-Smart-Grid/Estimating-Costs-Benefits-SG.pdf