Poudre Valley REA inks smart grid contract for $4.5 million

Poudre Valley REA has contracted with Landis & Gyr for the installation and deployment of an advanced metering infrastructure on the cooperative's 3,600 miles of power lines.

The system components are a major part of Poudre Valley's efforts in moving toward "smart grid" technology. The project will include automated energy monitoring and control capabilities to help achieve greater efficiency and detect surges and interruptions in the power supply, according to PVREA officials. AMI hardware and software will enable real-time grid diagnostics across the 5,760-square-mile PVREA service area.

The total capital investment required will exceed $4.5 million when the project is fully deployed. During phase one in 2009, the association will spend $750,000. Projected completion date is December 2010.

Adapting the PVREA grid to this new technology will have benefits for consumers in reduced costs and enhanced reliability of the electricity delivery system. The reaction time to outages will be reduced, and efficiencies gained from more effective power management are projected to result in reduced carbon emissions from electricity generation. It will also enable remote meter reading.

Future applications of smart grid concepts will allow for in-home displays for monitoring energy use