CLEVELAND, Tenn. - Now that its "backbone" infrastructure is in place, Cleveland's next step for a smart grid system will be home and business meters that can be read remotely.
Cleveland Utilities directors last week approved a $3.4 million contract with Raleigh-based Elster EnergyAxis Advanced Metering Infrastructure to install the grid system.
Over the next three years, some of the money will be used to buy support equipment, but the meters make up the bulk of the cost, at $2.9 million.
WHAT'S A SMART GRID?A smart grid provides electrical power to consumers by using two-way digital technology that controls appliances at consumers' homes to save energy and reduce cost. The technology is being promoted by the U.S. Department of Energy as a way to aid energy independence.Source: U.S. Department of Energy
The city utility is not committed to a lump sum payment of $3.4 million, CU Finance Manager Ken Webb said.
"We pay only as the equipment is procured," he said. "If something came up, if the economy changed again where we had to stop it, we could."
Cleveland Utilities recently finished the fiber "backbone" of the grid system, said Information Technology Manager Walt Vineyard.
That fiber system already allows electric substations to "talk" to the utility's central office, he said.
For instance, he said, an equipment failure in early September at the Burlington substation caused a power outage that led to the closure of Cleveland High School for the day. But crews knew about the outage immediately, and power was restored by rerouting to other substations in about an hour.
With the meters, the same kind of monitoring will be available at homes and businesses, officials said.
It's all part of the preparation for the Tennessee Valley Authority's switch to a new billing system, probably next year, CU General Manager Tom Wheeler said.
TVA will bill based on the time of day and season of the year when electricity is used.
The system also allows better monitoring, officials said. For instance, Engineering Manager Jimmy Isom said it will be able to tell if even a single home is still without power after a storm or other outage, even if no one is at home to call.
Cleveland has talked about partnering with EPB's smart grid in Chattanooga for other services such as cable TV. The two utilities have scheduled two meetings only to cancel them.
Now that AT&T offers cable services in Cleveland along with Charter Communications, the dynamics for a utility cable service may have changed, Wheeler said. But he said the two utilities still want to discuss the smart grid.