Earth Equity News

Obama Putting $3.4 Billion Toward a 'Smart' Power Grid. By H. Josef Hebert, AP, October 27, 2009. "The Obama administration is giving a jolt to the futuristic 'smart' electric grid, hoping to more quickly bring America's power transmission system into the digital age. President Barack Obama, during a visit to a solar energy facility in Arcadia, Fla., announced on Tuesday that he is making available $3.4 billion in government support for 100 projects aimed at modernizing the power grid. The projects include installing 'smart' electric meters in homes, automating utility substations, and installing thousands of new digital transformers and grid sensors. White House officials provided details of the initiative prior to the president's scheduled visit to Florida Power & Light Co.'s DeSoto Next Generation Solar Energy Center, the largest photovoltaic electricity facility in the country. Officials have argued that a more modern grid is needed to give consumers better control over their electricity usage and costs, and to spur development of renewable energy sources such as wind and solar. The $3.4 billion in grants from the government's economic stimulus program will be matched by $4.7 billion in private investments, the officials said. The smallest grant will be $400,000 and the largest $200 million. 'We have a very antiquated (electric grid) system in our country,' said Carol Browner, assistant to the president for energy and climate change... Browner said the federal funding will spur the needed modernization of the grid and set the stage for the smooth introduction of large amounts of electricity from wind or solar sources into the transmission system."