Dearborn, MI – Congressman John D. Dingell (D-MI15) today hailed President Obama and Secretary of Energy Chu for their investment in smart grid demonstration and energy storage projects, including a nearly $5 million investment with close ties to Michigan.  The Department of Energy (DOE) granted $4,995,271 to Detroit Edison's Advanced Implementation of Community Energy Storage Systems for grid support by Ann Arbor company, A123.  The total value of the project including private sector cost sharing is $10,877,258.  Project locations will include Detroit, MI; Northville, MI; Auburn Hills, MI; Fairfax, VA; Blacksburg, VA; and Hopkinton, MA.

The funds designated for Detroit Edison will be to demonstrate the use and benefits of Community Energy Storage (CES) systems for utilities and test the ability to integrate secondary-use electric vehicle batteries as part of the CES demonstration. This project will install 20 CES units, 25kW/2hr each, into a system that includes a 1 MW storage device integrated into a solar system.

Said Dingell, “Today is another example of the Recovery Act being used to invest in American ingenuity and American jobs.  The funding for Detroit Edison and A123 is exactly the type of smart, targeted spending that will not only help right our economy, but also put us on a path towards energy independence, cost savings, and a sustainable economic growth.”

Secretary Chu announced that the Department of Energy is awarding $620 million to projects that demonstrate advanced Smart Grid technologies and integrated systems, which will help build a smarter, more efficient, and more resilient electrical grid.  These 32 demonstration projects, which include large-scale energy storage, smart meters, distribution and transmission system monitoring devices, and a range of other smart technologies, will act as models for deploying integrated Smart Grid systems on a broader scale across the country. This funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act will be leveraged with $1 billion in funds from the private sector to support more than $1.6 billion in total Smart Grid projects nationally.

Last month, DOE announced that it was investing $83.8 million in Detroit Edison to install over 600,000 smart meters across Michigan and start a Smart Home program to educate customers on how to become more energy-efficient in their homes.  Additionally, DOE invested in the Whirlpool Corporation of Benton Harbor at a total of $19.3 million to help with the development of smart household appliances that have the capability of communicating with a home computer network to defer or schedule the energy use in a more efficient and cost-saving manner.

At that time, Congressman Dingell made the following remarks about the investments in Michigan and across the nation:

“The great blackout of 2003 revealed just how much our nation needs to upgrade our energy grid to ensure we could provide energy to our people.  Since that massive failure, some investments have been made, but nothing like the investment the White House is making today.  This investment is the largest single energy grid modernization effort in our nation’s history.  The grants will help create jobs across the country, including many in Michigan.  The investment is made with a 21st Century sensibility, as we shift to clean, low cost renewable sources.  Because of the investment today, we can expect an energy grid that is more reliable, more environmentally friendly and offers consumers more choice and control.  This is a huge step forward, and all Americans will benefit because of the investment the White House is making today.”