United States. The Department of Energy (DOE) announced a $61 million investment for 10 pilot projects that will implement new technology to transform thousands of homes and workplaces into state-of-the-art, energy-efficient buildings.
These connected communities can interact with the power grid to optimize their energy consumption, which will substantially reduce their carbon emissions and reduce energy costs. This project will help achieve the Biden Administration's goal of achieving a net-zero carbon economy by providing a model for reducing the construction sector's contribution to the climate crisis.
"From our homes to workplaces, this innovative grid-connected building technology will help reduce our impact while cutting energy bills, maximizing convenience and powering our efforts to achieve a clean, carbon-neutral energy economy by 2050," said Energy Secretary Jennifer M. Granholm. "These projects will help universalize technology that can maximize the efficiency and sustainability of America's nearly 130 million buildings and make significant progress in the fight against climate change."
Connected communities of efficient interactive buildings (GEBs) use intelligent controls, sensors, and analytics to communicate with the power grid, reducing the amount of energy they need during periods of peak demand. This capability is used to optimize buildings and distributed energy resources to maintain the comfort of building occupants, reduce utility bills, and reduce grid system costs.
A recent DOE study estimated that by 2030, GEBs could save up to $18 billion per year in energy system costs and reduce 80 million tons of carbon emissions each year. That's more than the annual emissions of 50 medium-sized coal plants or 17 million cars. DoE's first two connected communities in Alabama and Georgia have already demonstrated this potential by using approximately 42% to 44% less energy than the average home electric power today.
"Reducing energy bills through energy efficiency and energy efficiency systems is the best way to reduce our carbon emissions and reduce costs for businesses, renters and homeowners," said U.S. Rep. Mike Doyle (PA-18). "Developing new technologies to create connected communities that move energy more efficiently is the kind of innovation needed to build an affordable, cleaner energy system for the future, and I am pleased to see a Pittsburgh organization leading a project at the forefront of this innovation."
The 10 selected projects will further demonstrate the capabilities of GEBs in a wider range of technologies, locations and building types. The teams selected to manage these projects represent a representative sample of the construction industry that includes utilities, local governments, home builders, and end users. Numerous projects plan to bring the economic benefits of GEBs to the low-income communities that need it most.
The 10 selected projects
- Electric Power Research Institute, Inc. (New York City, Seattle, San Diego)
- IBACOS, Inc. (NC)
- Open Market ESCO Limited Liability Company (MA)
- PacifiCorp (UT)
- Portland General Electric (OR)
- Post Road Foundation (ME, NH)
- Slipstream Group Inc. (WI)
- Spokane Edo LLC (WA)
- SunPower Corporation (CA)
- The Ohio State University (OH)
