The company has signed an agreement with all the parties to its application at the Oklahoma Corporation Commission that, if approved by the commission, will authorize the company to spend up to $366.4m on smart grid deployment by the end of 2012.
It has also signed an agreement with the US Department of Energy, which finalizes the process for receiving $130m in stimulus funding for smart grid implementation. Receipt of the stimulus funding is a condition of the stipulated agreement.
Pete Delaney, chairman, president and CEO of OGE Energy, said: “These two agreements are important steps for the rollout of one of the most comprehensive smart grid programs in the nation.
“The smart grid program as we’ve designed it is an essential component in our strategy to directly engage our electric customers in an effort to help them manage energy consumption. Together, we believe we can defer the need for us to add to our total net generating capacity until after 2020.”
OG&E said that it has completed the installation of more than 42,000 smart meters in Norman, Oklahoma, and the next step is for smart grid crews to move on to Moore and south Oklahoma City.
Commission approval of the settlement agreement will add $1.57 to the average residential customer’s monthly electric bill. In addition to deferring the need for new generation, OG&E projects smart grid deployment will benefit customers by significantly lowering operational costs, the company said.
DOE accepted OG&E’s application in October to negotiate for funding to help cover the cost of the company’s smart grid program. The grant will allow OG&E to accelerate deployment of smart grid technology across its 30,000-square mile territory in Oklahoma and western Arkansas.
