Dive Brief:
- The Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities is requiring the state's investor-owned utilities to file plans within six months for modernizing the state's grid.
- The plans must include business cases for a range of smart grid functions including voltage regulation, outage detection and communication between the utility and a customer's appliances and equipment.
- Also, utilities will be able to get pre-approval for their smart grid investments and get more rapid cost recovery than is typical.
Dive Insight:
The effort in Massachusetts aims to “ensure that electric distribution companies adopt grid modernization technologies and practices to enhance the reliability of electricity service, reduce costs of operating the electric grid, mitigate price increases and volatility for customers, and empower customers to adopt new electricity technologies and better manage their use of electricity,” according to the DPU's order.
It's an innovative effort that could provide opportunities for utility to modernize the grid system and grid operations. Assured and rapid cost recovery will appeal to utilities.
