pwr_october-2023 - 44

COMMENTARY
Is America's Electric Grid
Equipped for the
Electrification of Everything?
Anders Sjoelin
he U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) introduced a proposal
in July to increase the adoption of more efficient
water heaters. Water heaters are major energy-consuming
appliances, second only to heating, ventilation, and air
conditioning (HVAC) systems, and they account for an estimated
13% of annual residential energy use. These appliance
efficiency standards and using electricity as the source of
power over fossil fuels will help us achieve our decarbonization
targets in the long term. Still, there's a bigger problem
right now.
We increasingly depend on electricity to power essential
aspects of our personal and professional lives-from smartphones,
computers, and home health care equipment to
HVAC systems and transportation-and the U.S.'s electric infrastructure
is showing its age. Most of the U.S. electric grid
was built in the 1960s and 1970s when the population was
around 181 million. Today, the U.S. population is approximately
332 million people. Yet, the electric grid has not kept pace.
Much of last century's equipment is still out there. While the
Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act
allocate about $29 billion for power grid upgrades, that number
represents just a fraction of needed grid funding, according
to the World Resources Institute.
The nation's aging transmission and distribution system
needs a significant overhaul, and underinvestment could
make electricity service less reliable and hurt the nation's
economy in future years. For instance, the DOE estimates
that power outages cost U.S. businesses roughly $150 billion
annually. At the same time, the cost to American families
is immeasurable if home healthcare devices aren't powered,
electric cars can't be charged, and appliances, air conditioners,
or heating units can't run. With more demand for electricity
and more vital functions depending on a reliable supply,
the grid must be able to transmit and distribute much more
power than it did in the past.
Building a 21st-century grid requires broad collaboration.
T
Together utilities, regulators, government, industry, and consumers
have a unique opportunity to transform our grid infrastructure
and address the growing demand for sustainable
and resilient electricity. This means upgrading existing transmission
lines to incorporate distributed energy resources and
building new lines to bring energy from remote renewable
resources to population centers. The distribution grid-which
carries power to individual homes and businesses at the local
level-will need even more investment than the transmission
system. Sixty percent of U.S. distribution lines have
surpassed their 50-year life expectancy, and according to a
report from the National Conference of State Legislatures,
$1.5 trillion to $2 trillion will need to be invested by 2030 to
44
modernize the grid just to maintain reliability.
Fortunately, U.S. companies are doing what they always
do-innovating solutions to challenging problems. New
technology is available right now that can help the country
better manage its energy needs, modernize infrastructure,
and ensure the energy transition to clean power is a
smooth and successful one. Three ways that smart investment,
with focused attention on distribution, can make a
difference include:
Improving Grid Resilience. In addition to exponential
growth in electrical load, extreme weather events, such as
hurricanes, prolonged heat waves, and intense storms, are
becoming more frequent and severe. Distribution grids, such
as overhead lines, are particularly vulnerable to wind, heavy
rain, and downed trees. Technology exists right now that
can improve the grid's ability to maintain or restore power
quickly after a disruption. Strategic investment in long-term
distribution grid resilience can help to reduce or even make
sustained outages a thing of the past.
Making the 'Self-Healing' Grid a Reality. Integrating intelligence
into the grid allows for real-time communication
and monitoring. New advanced distribution grid technology
locates and isolates faults in overhead and underground
lines, reroutes power for faster service restoration, and operates
independently of centralized control systems. These
technologies dramatically improve reliability and power availability
and can be installed and deployed on the grid today.
Supporting Distributed Energy Resources. A grid built
for centralized power must be upgraded to incorporate distributed
energy resources at the grid edge and support bidirectional
power flow. Investment here helps maximize
installed capacity and enable a stable, flexible grid with reliable
and resilient power. This is especially important as we
shift to clean energy sources through renewables and work
to minimize our dependence on fossil fuels.
Our power grid is experiencing complexity for which it
wasn't built, and there is still much more to come as our
dependence on electricity will keep growing. Increased demand
from electric vehicles, equipment, and yes, appliances
like water heaters will only keep adding to the load growth
and stress. To transform our grid for the 21st century, take
full advantage of the energy transition, and ensure power,
no matter the weather, we must prioritize investment in the
edge of the grid, where most of us plug in and live our lives.
Now is the time to work together to ensure a reliable, resilient,
and sustainable future. The question is not " Can we
afford to invest in the distribution grid? " but, rather, " Can we
afford not to? " ■
-Anders Sjoelin is president and
CEO of S&C Electric Company.
www.powermag.com
POWER | October 2023
http://www.powermag.com
PWR_ October-2023

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