Boulder to enjoy benefits of being Xcel’s first ‘smart grid’ city

Xcel Energy has chosen the city of Boulder in which to launch its first “smart grid.” It sounds like it will fit in with Boulder’s ‘green’ efforts, but not everyone is sure what a smart grid is and how it will affect Boulder residents.

Tom Henley, Xcel Energy spokesman, said behind the scenes, the smart grid would give Xcel Energy instant access to what’s happening between the power stations and homes. Instead of having to examine an entire circuit to determine what’s wrong when the power goes out, workers will have that information immediately available, saving time and money. For customers, that means when their lights go out, it won’t be out for as long, he said.

Xcel Energy will install “black boxes” in homes of customers who choose to actively participate in the project, allowing them to access and control their smart appliances via the Internet and to track their energy use, Henley said. Through that connection, customers can turn smart appliances on or off and adjust furnace and air conditioner temperatures so they are drawing minimal power during peak usage times.

Workers with Xcel Energy could potentially use remote access to adjust furnaces or air conditioning units with customers’ permission or in an emergency to lessen the drain on power, he said. The black box also will tell customers who choose to purchase renewable energy when it’s windy so they can run the dishwasher or do their laundry as wind power is available, Henley said.

Xcel Energy is footing $15 million of the cost to install the grid, and its partners within the Smart Grid Consortium will invest the remaining $85 million, Henley said. Xcel Energy officials expect to have the first phase of Smart Grid City in place as early as August, placing the new applications at substations and installing about 15,000 new meters at homes. Implementation of the grid components throughout the city will continue through 2009, resulting in 50,000 smart meters affecting about 100,000 people, he said.

“This is an attempt to create a more modern and efficient electrical grid for customers, that will ultimately allow them to reap the benefits at, hopefully, a lower rate with more efficiency and choice,” Henley said. “If the theories prove to be as effective as we anticipate them to be, we’ll be taking it to other parts of our service territory.”

Ken Hotard, senior vice president of public affairs for the Boulder Area Realtor Association, said it’s no surprise that Xcel Energy would choose a community known for its green efforts to install the first smart grid. “Can you make it (Boulder) more attractive? I think it basically adds to the existing cache of the community, clearly seen as a leader in environmentalism, energy, conservationism.”

However, Hotard said it’s too early to tell how the grid will affect home values, but lower utility costs are always attractive to potential homebuyers. “I doubt that it would have a direct impact on home prices. Any buyer looks at energy costs for a home, but they’re more likely to consider a home that has reasonable energy costs.”

Xcel Energy Energy Chief Executive Officer Dick Kelly will talk more about the Smart Grid City at the 2008 Boulder Economic Summit 7:15 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. Thursday, May 15 at the University of Colorado at Boulder’s University Memorial Center, Broadway and Euclid.