City of Tallahassee Smart Grid Project

The City of Tallahassee Utility will receive $8.8 million in funding to develop a smart-grid energy management system. The U.S. Department of Energy selected 100 companies nationwide to receive funding as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, to modernize the nation's energy grid.

The City of Tallahassee’s Automated Demand Response project involves the deployment of customer systems, load control programs, and distribution automation equipment. The City of Tallahassee is installing customer systems and programs to provide consumers with information, choices, and technologies to better manage their electricity costs while reducing distribution system peak demand and correlated pollution and cost impacts. Distribution projects include the deployment of a communications network, automated devices, and the upgrade of the distribution management system (DMS), which enables interoperability with existing and new devices. The City of Tallahassee expects distribution automation to improve the reliability of electric service and to enhance monitoring and optimizing distribution system conditions when demand response events are initiated.

Equipment

• Up to 15,000 Programmable Communicating Thermostats
• Direct Load Control Devices for 100 Sites
• Customer System Communication Systems
• Distribution Automation Equipment for 15 out of 138 Circuits
• Automated Distribution Circuit Switches
• Automated Capacitors
• Automated Regulators

Targeted Benefits

• Reduced Customer Electricity Costs
• Improved Electric Service Reliability and Power Quality
• Reduced Ancillary Services Costs
• Reduced Congestion Costs
• Reduced Costs from Equipment Failures
• Reduced Greenhouse Gas and Criteria Pollutant Emissions