Fact Sheet Fact Sheet Fact Sheet Fact Sheet Fact Sheet Fact Sheet Fact Sheet Fact Sheet Fact Sheet Fact Sheet Fact Sheet Fact Sheet BONNEVILLE POWER ADMINISTRATION Fact Sheet Fact Sheet November 2010 Smart grid and BPA The Bonneville Power Administration has long promoted good for fish. It can help integrate variable resources smartFact grid technologies to improveSheet transmission such as wind into the transmission grid. And it can reliability and to reduce the need for new transmission help contain power system costs. infrastructure and power resources. Major smart grid Smart grid adds value by offering consumers choices, projects in which BPA is involved today include: just as cell phones provide many more options and Pacific Northwest Smart Grid Demonstration Project flexibilities than old fashioned rotary phones. Western Interconnection Synchrophasor Project BPA smart grid efforts today DemandFact response pilot projectsSheet BPA is supporting two major projects funded by the Storage studies and wind integration research U.S. Department of Energy through the American Electric vehicles Recovery and Reinvestment Act — the Pacific Northwest Smart Grid Demonstration Project and the Western Improved fiber optic data transfer Interconnection Synchrophasor Project. In addition, Why BPA supports smart grid BPA is leading several smart grid research and pilot Fact Sheet projects to explore how different smart grid technologies A smart grid uses technology to enhance power delivery can benefit BPA’s customers through cost containment and use through intelligent two-way communication. and improved reliability. Power generators, suppliers and users are all part of the equation. With increased communication and Pacific Northwest Smart Grid information, a smart grid can monitor activities in real Demonstration Project time, exchange data about supply and demand and BPA has joined 11 utilities, a major university and five adjustFact power use to changing Sheet load requirements. Smart technical firms across five states in a regional smart grid technology includes everything from interactive grid demonstration project. This large project involves appliances in homes to substation automation and $89 million in participant funds and the same amount sensors on transmission lines. in matching DOE funds through the Recovery Act. Directed by the Battelle Memorial Institute, Pacific Smart grid tools offer Northwest Division in Richland, Wash., the project is several benefits expected to involve more than 60,000 metered Smart grid can help meet increasing power demands, customers. BPA is contributing $10 million to the reduce greenhouse gas emissions, promote energy five-year project, which is eligible for an additional independence, enhance reliability and help improve $10 million in matching funds from DOE. national security. The project will measure and validate smart grid costs Here in the Pacific Northwest, smart grid can help and benefits for consumers, utilities, regulatory bodies reduce demands on the hydro system, which is and the nation. Results will inform business cases for future smart grid investments so utilities can select the monitoring and controls for the Western Interconnection. most cost-effective technologies for their customers. Although the technology is complex, the outcome is Project participants will use and test a variety of smart simple: equipment gets protected. That helps keep grid technologies such as smart appliances, smart the grid stable and prevents blackouts. meters, distributed generation, in-home displays, home Demand Response Pilot Projects area networks, voltage optimization tools and electric Demand response tools help utilities level out the vehicles. The project also will explore ways to improve spikes of energy consumption during times of peak the integration of renewable energy resources such as use, such as in the morning when people wake up and solar and wind. turn on lights and appliances. Demand response can BPA’s role is to coordinate with Battelle to create a also potentially help integrate large amounts of wind regional business case for smart grid technologies, energy in the Pacific Northwest system. lead the overall public outreach and communication Demand response tools allow electricity providers and effort and support research and infrastructure design. consumers to better manage how and when they The project will result in an installed base of smart grid consume electricity and, in some cases, at what price. assets and smart grid implementation strategies for For example, customers can volunteer for a program the region. It will stimulate the regional and national in which they allow their utility to reduce the energy economy through job creation and development of consumption of certain appliances at times of the day smart grid related industry. when the demand for electricity is high. In another pilot, Western Interconnect participants’ water heaters are equipped so they can Synchrophasor Project automatically turn on when a wind generator is Synchrophasor measurements are a type of smart grid producing power. technology that can help keep the grid stable and BPA currently has residential demand response pilot enhance reliability. This technology establishes a virtual projects in progress with six utilities: Kootenai Electric firewall between generation and transmission to protect Cooperative in northern Idaho; Central Electric equipment. The units monitor specific properties of Cooperative in central Oregon; Orcas Power and Light, electricity in the three-phase alternating current high- the City of Port Angeles and Mason County PUD #3 voltage power grid (the phases). It uses an extensive in northwest Washington; and Emerald PUD in western communication network to help prevent the kind of grid Oregon. Additional demand response pilot projects for instabilities that can occur when the system gets out of the commercial and industrial sectors are slated to phase. BPA is one of the first transmission operators to begin in 2011. use this technology. At Kootenai Electric Cooperative, BPA is implementing In August, BPA joined public and private partners a demand response program called The Peak Project. throughout the U.S. portion of the Western Working through Kootenai, BPA and the utility provide Interconnection in a Western Electricity Coordinating homeowners with a programmable thermostat and Council application for DOE funding of this smart water heater controls to curtail home heating/cooling grid technology. BPA is investing $20 million in the and water heater use at specific times of peak $53.9 million project as its share of participant demand. At Central Electric Cooperative, the program matching funds. Recovery Act funding will provide includes controls that turn off water heaters from 5 a.m. an additional $53.9 million. to 9 a.m. daily, seven days a week. In both pilots, homeowners can override the curtailment at any time. This project will deploy a large scale synchronized phasor measurement system with selected smart grid Variations of water and space heating control are also functions. It will include infrastructure and software featured in projects being implemented by the City of applications to improve situational awareness, system- Port Angeles, Orcas Power and Light, Mason County wide modeling, performance analysis and wide-area PUD #3 and Emerald PUD. Orcas will use home area 2 Added green power sources High-speed networked connections Plug-in hybrid Customer interaction electric cars with utility Smart thermostats, Real-time and appliances and in-home green pricing signals control devices Why is Smart Grid important to BPA? End-use consumers will have greater information about their energy consumption and will be able to make better choices in how they use electricity. networks and the internet to communicate real-time Storage studies and wind information about consumer behavior. The pilot for the integration research City of Port Angeles will feature in-home displays with Storing energy can enhance the integration of wind, home area network capabilities and thermal electricity solar and other variable renewable energy resources. storage devices. Mason County PUD #3 will provide a To that end, BPA is implementing an energy storage direct signal from its wind resources to end-user hot pilot with an international sustainable energy consulting water heaters to store renewable energy. company, Ecofys. The objectives of this project are: Demand response tools can be money savers for many Help develop and deploy end-use, controllable utilities and their consumers, because they reduce the electricity loads to help balance the variable nature amount of energy used during peak times, reducing of wind. fees consumers pay for their peak power demand. Find and implement at least three commercial and/ Flattening out electricity use during peak hours can or industrial end use storage projects. help keep rates lower by reducing the need for utilities Develop a demand response business case and to purchase more costly market energy to meet periods marketing materials to support the participating of higher demand. Ongoing consumer participation in utilities and other interested utilities. demand response projects also can reduce the likelihood of potential “brown outs” and other disruptions during Utilities participating in the project include Lower Valley periods of peak energy use. Energy in Wyoming, Eugene Water and Electric Board in Oregon, and Cowlitz County Public