USF's Power Center, Progress Energy To Build Smart Grid

The Power Center for Utility Explorations at the University of South Florida will partner with Progress Energy Florida to build the largest and most comprehensive smart grid in the Southeast, serving at least 5,000 customers on the west side of St. Petersburg and St. Pete Beach.

Selected by Florida’s Energy and Climate Commission for this three-year, $15 million project, USF and Progress Energy Florida will incorporate alternative energy sources such as solar power and biodiesel fuel into the electrical power supply for the neighborhoods. Incorporating cutting-edge technology, the program will aim to develop a system that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions, create a power supply that better adapts to energy demands and one which serves customers with better reliability and efficiency.

According to a USF press release, the university's proposal was chosen from a field of 140 applicants. The project will be funded in collaboration between the Governor’s Energy Office, Progress Energy Florida, Publix, and HD Supply. Development of the system is slated to begin in April.

In the announcement, Alex Domijan, principal investigator on the project and the director of the Power Center for Utility Explorations, said that the grid is a culmination of more than two decades of research into building power systems that are flexible in their use, more friendly to the environment and which incorporate power from different sources, including sustainable energy like solar and battery power. It is hoped that this project may open the door to a larger, more expansive smart grid in the Tampa Bay region.

Once developed, the smart grid will be the first in Florida and one of the largest in the nation delivering power to homes and businesses. Unlike systems in other cities that implement elements of smart grid technology, Domijan said the USF project will be a fully integrated system of renewable energy sources, advanced sensors, communication and control technologies and two-way communication between utilities and customers while producing a more reliable and higher-quality power system.