NB Power plans smart grid research project

The four-year research project will see a total investment of $32 million, of which $15.9 million with come from the federal Clean Energy Fund and $2 million will be paid for by the New Brunswick government.

The project will study the changing patterns of power consumption and help electricity companies alter energy production to reduce their share of greenhouse gas emissions.

With the push to put more wind power onto transmission grids, utilities are studying how to balance their power loads when the wind isn't blowing.

Gaetan Thomas, the president and chief executive officer of NB Power, said that is one issue that will be studied in the research project.

"We will be able to minimize the impact on heavy fuel oil that needs to replace when the wind is down," Thomas said.

"And the customers will benefit from cleaner energy and also we'll be able to do it without interrupting the benefits of their electricity."

Smart grids track all electricity in a given system and they increase efficiency by shifting energy use from peak times to reduce demand. This could mean using a dishwasher or dryer when demand for electricity is lower.

NB Power will be joined by Nova Scotia Power and the University of New Brunswick in the research project.

Liuchen Chang, a professor at the University of New Brunswick and the project's lead researcher, said the intent of the initiative is to make renewable energy resources, such as wind, which are unpredictable, more economically viable.

"This project is all about shifting the residential and commercial loads, to facilitate the variation of generation," Chang said.

If the project is successful, NB Power's president said that could pay off for customers.

"If we can reduce our dependence on heavy fuel oil, it has the potential impact to reduce rate increases," Thomas said.

The project is being led by a consortium of companies known as PowerShift Atlantic.

Alan Richardson, the vice-president of integrated customer service at Nova Scotia Power, will be the chairman of PowerShift Atlantic.

National Revenue Minister Keith Ashfield, the minister of the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, said the investment in the smart grid will create job opportunities in the region.

"Our government is investing in this smart grid project to encourage clean energy innovation and to help create high-quality jobs for Atlantic Canadians," Ashfield said in a statement.