| Why GridWise™
The Case for Modernizing
the Nation’s Electricity Grid
What is the Electric Grid?
The U.S. power grid is a vast, complex network of
wires and devices that carries electricity from where
it is made to where it is used. Throughout the 20th
century, the electric power delivery infrastructure
served our nation well, providing adequate, affordable
energy to homes, businesses, and factories. It is the
largest machine on earth and a cornerstone of America’s
prosperity, national security, public health and safety.
The Current State of the Electric Grid
As we move into the 21st century, the nation’s
electricity grid faces shortcomings in capacity, reliability,
security and power quality. Largely designed in the
1950s and 1960s, much of this critical national asset
is well beyond its design life. In the 1980s, electrical
load from sensitive electronic equipment, such as chips
(computerized systems, appliances, and equipment) and
automated manufacturing was limited. In the 1990s, chip
share grew to roughly 10%. Today, load from chip technologies
and automated manufacturing is 40%, and the load is
expected to increase to more than 60% by 2015.
The Economic Impact of an Unreliable Grid
Electricity is the only form of energy capable of
running computers and telecommunications systems, the
very lifeblood of the 21st century “information
age.” These systems require significantly higher
power quality and reliability. As a result, the stress
on the grid is increasing. There have been five massive
blackouts over the past 40 years, three have occurred
in the past 9 years.
The economic impact of these interruptions is significant.
- It is estimated that failures within the grid such
as blackouts and power interruptions, cost the American
economy in excess of $100.0 billion per year.
- The August 14, 2003, blackout that affected the
area from New York City to Detroit impacted the lives
of 50 million people and cost an estimated $6.0 billion.
- Power interruptions at computer software giant
Sun Microsystems are estimated to cost the company
$1.0 million per minute.
The machine that helps to drive the U.S. economy is
under siege and, unless changes are made, the impact
on the American way of life will be far reaching and
significant.
The Solution
The GridWise™ Alliance, a public – private
forum that brings together a diverse set of industry
stakeholders and resources to deploy, demonstrate and
quantify new technologies, approaches, and business
models that cut across traditional industry segments
and market boundaries. Through collaborative leadership
and cooperation, a safer, more reliable, more affordable
power delivery system will emerge, and the U.S. economy
will have room to grow and thrive.
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