Under the new agreement, Oak Ridge National Laboratory will test smart grid technologies using its technical expertise in areas such as data analytics, control systems, cybersecurity and high-performance computer modeling.
Oak Ridge National Laboratory will also process on the electric grid in Chattanooga, allowing EPB to further capitalize on its smart grid investment.
The US Energy Department Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability Office assistant secretary Patricia Hoffman said: "Our electric grid must deliver reliable, affordable, and clean electricity to consumers.
"This new partnership will help improve our understanding of grid operations in valuable, new ways and represents another important step in moving the nation closer to the grid of the future."
Oak Ridge National Laboratory director Thom Mason said; "Chattanooga’s smart grid is ideally suited to be a live extension of ORNL’s extensive research system.
"The progressive nature of EPB allows for opportunities to demonstrate ORNL’s emerging technologies in Chattanooga’s real-world environment."
Researchers are planning to assess the advanced controls and microgrids benefits which could have the potential for widespread deployment in distributed generation, storage and renewable systems.
The collaborators will also include high performance computing for modeling and simulation to further broaden understanding of the system’s operations.
Additionally, the organizations will work together to develop strict protocols for protecting EPB customer privacy and data.
