Obama Names 'Smart Grid' Projects

[WriteDown]

Source: WSJ

The Obama administration on Tuesday named 100 utility projects that will share $3.4 billion in federal stimulus funding to speed deployment of advanced technology designed to cut energy use and make the electric-power grid more robust.

Touring a field of solar energy panels in west-central Florida, President Barack Obama urged greater use of several technologies, including installing "smart" electric meters in homes, automating utility substations and installing thousands of new digital transformers and grid sensors.

"There's something big happening in America in terms of creating a clean-energy economy,'' Mr. Obama said, although he added there is much more to be done.

He likened the effort to the ambitious development of the national highway system 50 years ago. He said modernization would lead to a "smarter, stronger and more secure electric grid."

When combined with funds from utility customers, the program is expected to inject more than $8 billion into grid modernization efforts nationally.....

.....One question that's still unanswered is whether consumers in states like California and Texas, where utilities are already installing millions of smart meters, could wind up being penalized, in effect, because those states moved forward before stimulus funds were offered.


Read more: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125663945180609871.html?mod=igoogle_wsj_gadgv1&

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Wonder if that will be me. I've had a smart meter for over a year. Not sure if I trust it more than the spinning disk, but it sure looks more modern.

[Captain Hilts]

1. We need to trace the Ohio, NY, Ont, NYC massive power outage route for reform. nt

[WriteDown]

2. What we need is underground powerlines....

Unfortunately, that kind of retrofitting is going to be a nightmare.

[Captain Hilts]

3. Yes. They've been promising them in Va. Beach for 30+ years because of storms. Not. Gonna. Happen.

[WriteDown]

4. I wonder if that would require massive use of eminent domain...

I sometimes look through the old neighborhoods and wonder how they could actually enact that.

edited for extremely poor grammar.

[Captain Hilts]

8. No, the city owns the outer 4-6 feet of your property anyway. It's a cost factor. nt

[WriteDown]

11. But the rest is yours..

You would have to agree for them to tear up your property to install the lines.

[Captain Hilts]

13. They would not need to. They own the outer feet where the power lines and poles are. nt

[WriteDown]

14. I'm talking about zero poles....

I had completely underground wires when I lived in Wilmington, NC.

[Captain Hilts]

15. I am too. But the underground would go right along where the lines are above now.

Va. Beach anticipated this, perhaps to build sidewalks - which we do not have. But they have a right of way on the street edge of the property that's pretty wide.

[WriteDown]

16. Hmm, sounds like your setup is different than mine...

I have a long line coming from the pole in my backyard which connects near the roof of my house. Its well over 100 feet. They would have trench the line through my backyard to bring it to the house. That would be fine by me! But if I built a pool, it may not be fine then. :)

[Captain Hilts]

17. Well, yes, to get it to the house they would have to do so. But they would not have to ask.

They've invaded the yard before. Once to raise a water meter thingie in all the yards. I still don't know what that was about. Last summer they carved up the edges of the yards across the street to replace old pipes. I was really fearing they'd do it to our side and ruin our driveway.

[BR_Parkway]

18. That's pretty simple for them to work around - and if a homeowner didn't

allow them to bury the line to the house, then the house wouldn't have electrical service

[WriteDown]

20. Maybe...

But what if they wanted to go through a few ancient oak trees and your driveway or your swimming pool. I imagine there would be no reimbursement. Wouldn't be a problem for me, but I can see complications.

[Doremus]

19. Probably like gas and other utilities, line installation costs on your property would be your own.

Even still, if improvements involve any out-of-pocket costs to the utility co's they won't make them unless they absolutely can't be avoided. How do you think the grid became so decrepit in the first place?

Unless given the $$ for infrastructure improvements (read government handout), utility co's aren't going to voluntarily spend money that could have gone into dividends and management bonuses. It's as simple -and as sickening- as that.

[WriteDown]

21. That makes sense in a way...

I imagine if they did it and destroyed somethingl; a fence, driveway, etc. then it would open them up to lawsuits.

[Divine Discontent]

5. I wanted to drive down and hold a sign up & wave at the president, but I didn't know how hard it

would be to get close. I wonder if anyone from here in FL was there, or yesterday at the other stops?

Anyhow, 3.4 billion, wow. That's a good chunk for this plan.

Also, imagine if Dumbya had worked on doing this 8 years ago instead of playing DOG Bounty Hunter from the White House?

[Uncle Joe]

6. Kicked and recommended.

Thanks for the thread, WriteDown.

[bertman]

7. What part of the $3.4 billion is being used for small-scale regional and local solar and wind

farms?

Let's throw those dollars at small-scale power generation facilities that use alternative fuels and could provide power on a city or county scale instead of trying to tie everything in to a humongous national grid. The idea that there could be a lot of small-scale power generators is anathema to the planners who now envision giving more control to groups like Duke Energy, Progress Energy, and Public Service Energy (at least in our region).

Since we're looking at a new effort to conserve and to generate electricity from sustainable, clean sources, let's also look at doing away with these too-big-to-fail-(and regulate properly) utility corporations.

Smaller grids would mean that a terrorist or a major natural disaster could not knock out power to entire sections of the country. It would also make way for small entrepreneurial startups to get involved in this move toward a green energy future.

[glitch]

9. Damn good question, I look forward to seeing the details. nt

[Wizard777]

10. Energy prices will STILL continue to go up.

My Local Utility Co. is getting one of these grants. We the consumer buy energy star homes and appliances. We bend over backwards to reduce consumption. Does this give us a price break? does this allow us to enjoy the savings of our energy consumption reducing investments? Hell no! The energy companies raise their rates to steal our savings. We just end up paying more for less.

[lefty369]

12. through green technology we will rebuild

our economy and thrive once again.

[TomCADem]

22. Californian cities are rolling financing plans for residential solar panels

... a smart grid would allow these panels to deliver energy into the grid when the house is empty during the day if everyone is at work, then the homeowners can get a discount on their energy bills.

[TomCADem]

23. U.S. electrical grid gets $3.4 billion jolt of stimulus funding

Source: Washington Post

ARCADIA, FLA. -- President Obama stepped up his promotion of the job-creating potential of the $787 billion economic stimulus package Tuesday, announcing $3.4 billion in grants to improve the nation's electrical grid.

The federal money will pay for "smart meters," updated transformers and other devices to make the transmission of power more efficient and reliable. Obama called the grants the largest investment in energy-grid modernization in U.S. history.

"There's something big happening in America in terms of creating a clean-energy economy," he said.

Obama's vision for changing energy habits and reducing U.S. dependence on fossil fuels, especially foreign oil, relies on establishing a national "smart grid": an array of switches, sensors and computer chips that will be installed at various stages in the energy-delivery process.

Read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/27/AR2009102703559.html?hpid=topnews

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Not surprisingly, Republicans are attacking this announcement as more government spending. I wonder how do coal and oil companies view this announcement.

[CatholicEdHead]

24. This is the smart grid investment

modernizing the aging electrical grid and refreshing it for another two or three generations. It is rebuilding our infrastructure, a good investment.