Alstoms Smart Grid Technology Contributing to US Grid Modernization

From 2010 to 2015, Alstom Grid contributed to United States largest smart grid demonstration called Pacific Northwest Smart Grid Demonstration Project, which issued its extensive Technology Performance Report document earlier this month. During this five-year, $178 million research project spanning five Pacific Northwest states, Alstom provided the sophisticated power systems software to model regional behavior in a new approach to energy management called transactive control[1] which was at the heart of the overall project. 

Alstom Grid viewed the demonstration project as an opportunity to help develop distributed control across a complex grid, building a bridge from wholesale to retail electricity exchange. The Alstom Grid-developed software was implemented at Pacific Northwest National Laboratorys Electricity Infrastructure Operations Center in Richland, WA, utilizing real-time regional power system information to produce forecasts for the future state of the grid. This information was an essential component of the demonstration projects transactive signal that many of the project experiments were based on. 

Karim El Naggar, Vice President, Network Management Solutions, based at Alstom Grids center of excellence for control center software in Redmond, Wash., explained his companys contribution, We collected real-world data feeds from other project participants and then applied our Energy Management System and Market Simulation applications to the data to project the cost of generated energy and how this energy would flow within the region. We also applied our technology to provide visualization of the data in real-time and built a playback mode for historical data. 

The Pacific Northwest Smart Grid Demonstration Project led by Battelle included 11 utilities, the Bonneville Power Administration, two universities and six technology partners. The project engaged responsive electricity system assets of approximately 80 megawatts and involved 60,000 metered customers across five states: Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana and Wyoming. The project was supported by the federal American Reinvestment and Recovery Act. 

Alstom Grid is currently engaged in over 25 Smart Grid projects around the world. In the US, the company is contributing innovative technology to various Smart Grid projects including:

• Integrated Smart Distribution to manage and forecast Distributed Energy Resources;
• Microgrid Research Development and System Design using energy management technology to improve grid resiliency through advancement of microgrid technology;
• Synchrophasor Technology Realization featuring proactive grid stability management technology for a more holistic and accurate view of current grid stats for improved power system control; and
• Advanced Automated Demand Response for direct load control of large fleets of customer owned resources aggregated into targeted, dispatchable virtual power plants.

[1]Transactive control is a distributed system that uses signals communicating the current and expected state of the grid, so that electricity users and energy resources can adapt to reduce strain on the power system. Learn more here: http://www.pnwsmartgrid.org/transactive.asp

About Alstom

Alstom is a global leader in the world of power generation, power transmission and rail infrastructure and sets the benchmark for innovative and environmentally friendly technologies. Alstom builds the fastest train and the highest capacity automated metro in the world, provides turnkey integrated power plant solutions and associated services for a wide variety of energy sources, including hydro, nuclear, gas, coal and wind, and it offers a wide range of solutions for power transmission, with a focus on smart grids. The Group employs 88,000 people in around 100 countries.

About Alstom Grid

Alstom Grid has one clear vision: to develop innovative solutions for a flexible, reliable, affordable and sustainable electrical grid, everywhere. We design, manufacture, install and service the power transmission and distribution products and systems that empower the planets low carbon economy... for now and for the future.

Alstom Grid has over 130 years experience and ranks among the top three in the electrical transmission sector with an annual sales turnover of 3.8 billion. Alstom Grids 17,000 employees are spread across 87 manufacturing and engineering sites worldwide and have one common mission: be our customers trusted partner, from the source to the city.

Energising a smarter world with Alstom.

Lawrence McDonnell (Alstom USA)
Tel: +1 202 495 4968;
Lawrence.mcdonnell@crn.alstom.com 

Julie Khoo/Aline Besselièvre (Alstom Grid)
Tel: +33 1 49 01 74 48/67 60;
julie.khoo@alstom.com /aline.besselievre@alstom.com

Websites:
www.alstom.com
www.alstom.com/microsites/grid