Grid Assurance Announces Major U.S. Utilities Sign on to Transmission Grid Resilience Solution
Utilities will have cost-effective access to critical long-lead-time
transmission equipment securely stored in the U.S. and ready to deploy
when needed
KANSAS CITY, Mo.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–#Energy–Grid Assurance today announced that six major utilities with 31
transmission-owning affiliates, pending any needed regulatory approval,
are in the initial group of subscribers to its transmission grid
resilience solution. These companies, American Electric Power, Berkshire
Hathaway EnergyÔÇÖs MidAmerican Energy Company and NV Energy, Eversource,
FirstEnergy, Kansas City Power & Light and National Grid, and their
affiliated transmission-owning companies, have transmission facilities
in 26 of the 48 lower continental United States.
Grid Assurance and its subscribers believe that there is an urgent need
for increased inventory of secured critical long-lead-time transmission
equipment to enhance utilitiesÔÇÖ ability to respond more quickly to major
grid disruptions.
Grid Assurance will maintain an inventory of critical long-lead-time
spare transformers, circuit breakers and related transmission equipment;
provide secure domestic warehousing of the inventory in strategic
locations; and offer preplanned transportation and logistics support for
delivery.
ÔÇ£Increasing the security and resilience of the U.S. bulk power grid is a
must for our country. Having an adequate supply of on-hand, on-shore
access to long-lead-time equipment is the biggest challenge to utilities
when recovering from catastrophic events,ÔÇØ said Michael Deggendorf, CEO
of Grid Assurance.
As the industry continues to enhance grid resilience, electric utility
commissioners and customers expect the most cost-effective solutions.
ÔÇ£Our ability to quickly obtain spare equipment for our transmission
system is critical to keeping power flowing to our customers,ÔÇØ said Carl
Bridenbaugh, vice president, Transmission, FirstEnergy Corp. ÔÇ£Having
access to a shared inventory of vital, hard-to-obtain transmission
equipment can provide what we need, when we need it.ÔÇØ
ÔÇ£Our customers and our economy are increasingly dependent on electricity
for everything from high-tech manufacturing to transportation, so a
resilient transmission system is more important than ever,ÔÇØ said Rudy
Wynter, National Grid President and COO of Transmission, Generation and
Energy Supply. ÔÇ£Grid Assurance will be critical to helping us ÔÇô and our
customers ÔÇô recover more quickly in the event of a major disruption to
our grid.ÔÇØ
Access to critical transmission equipment is most cost effective when
the costs are pooled among subscribers, than when transmission-owning
companies look to purchase spare equipment on their own. Grid Assurance
offers subscribers a cost-share model that optimizes cost and inventory
to the collective transmission grid resilience needs of multiple
utilities across the country.
ÔÇ£Grid Assurance provides our customers with the most cost-effective way
to address the new threats facing our country by providing timely access
to long-lead-time, ready-to-deploy equipment that is properly stored and
maintained and can be transported quickly to the affected location using
preplanned logistics,ÔÇØ said Lisa Barton, Executive Vice President,
Transmission, American Electric Power.
Grid Assurance was developed in response to concerns about the ability
to respond quickly and effectively to threats to the U.S. bulk power
grid. The Fixing AmericaÔÇÖs Surface Transportation (FAST) Act required
DOE to study the need for a strategic transformer reserve to mitigate
possible threats to the U.S. bulk power grid. The U.S. Department of
Energy released its Strategic Transformer Reserve Report last year as a
follow-up to the FAST act.
The Strategic Transformer Reserve Report supports an industry-based
approach, and Grid Assurance is the only industry-led solution that
increases the number of spare transformers ready to be transported and
installed.
ÔÇ£As subscribers of Grid Assurance, these companies increase their grid
resilience by having access to critical transmission equipment required
to quickly recover from catastrophic events while increasing the
industryÔÇÖs spare capacity of domestically located transmission
equipment,ÔÇØ said Deggendorf.
ÔÇ£Having access to long-lead-time equipment is critical for quick
restoration. Grid Assurance provides transmission owners immediate
access to equipment that can historically take manufacturers 12 to 18
months to deliver. With Grid Assurance, our subscribers can plan for
quicker restoration providing additional peace of mind to communities
and customers,ÔÇØ said Deggendorf.
ÔÇ£We are pleased to welcome the first subscribers of Grid Assurance and
commend them on supporting this appropriate level of grid resilience. We
look forward to growing our subscriber base and service offerings to
extend both the reach and cost effectiveness of this critical service,ÔÇØ
Deggendorf added.
Grid Assurance will continue to add capacity of critical transmission
equipment as more subscribers sign up for service, providing further
resilience for the U.S. electric grid.
Each subscribing company will know the condition, location, dimensions
and weights, manufacturer, performance characteristics and accessory
details of the new critical assets which allow preplanned transportation
and logistics plans to be developed.
Orders for equipment will be placed later this year with deliveries
expected to begin by mid-2019.
Grid Assurance:
Affiliates of American Electric Power (NYSE:AEP), Berkshire Hathaway
Energy, Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK), Edison International (NYSE:EIX),
Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) and Great Plains Energy (NYSE:GXP) are
founding member companies of Grid AssuranceÔäó, a limited liability
company that offers cost-effective solutions for enhancing transmission
system grid resilience and faster access to critical transmission
equipment following a catastrophic event.
Additional information is available at GridAssurance.com
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Contacts
Grid Assurance
Kristine Cooper, 702-808-3596
