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FSU Events FSU's Center for Advanced Power Systems to host major workshop on electric power reliablity More Information
The Energy Policy Act of 2005: Electric Transmission and Distribution R&D Needs
WHEN: Wednesday, February 1 and Thursday, February 2 CONTACT: Steinar Dale, (850) 645-1183, dale@caps.fsu.edu or Rick Meeker, (850) 645-1711, meeker@caps.fsu.edu On Wednesday, Feb. 1, a national delegation of power industry leaders will convene in Tallahassee to engage in the important work of defining the future research and development needs for the nation's electric power infrastructure. Florida State University's Center for Advanced Power Systems (CAPS), in conjunction with the U.S. Department of Energy, will host a workshop, "The Energy Policy Act of 2005: Electric Transmission and Distribution R&D Needs," on Wednesday and Thursday, Feb. 1-2, at the Ramada Hotel and Conference Center, 2900 N. Monroe St., in Tallahassee. The Energy Policy Act of 2005, passed by Congress on July 29, 2005, and signed into law by President Bush on Aug. 8, 2005, is a comprehensive blueprint for the nation's energy policy. The law includes key sections that deal with the electric transmission and distribution system. It requires the U.S. Secretary of Energy to establish a comprehensive research, development and demonstration program to ensure the reliability, efficiency and environmental integrity of electrical transmission and distribution, and to prepare and submit to Congress no later than a year after enactment a five-year program plan to guide the activities in this area. "Grid modernization—targeting reliability, resiliency and restoration—is a major key to U.S. competitiveness over the next century," said Bill Parks, deputy director for research and development of the Department of Energy's Office of Electricity. In addition, innovation and advances in technology to modernize the grid will be the product of focused research and development. "The R&D challenges now are to make the system more intelligent and robust, merging advances in power electronics, networking and telecommunications, and software development into the traditional power system infrastructure," said Steinar Dale, director of CAPS. CAPS, in collaboration with the Department of Energy, has organized the workshop as a forum to provide input and guidance to the Secretary of Energy on the five-year program plan to guide research, development and demonstration of technology needs in the electric transmission and distribution grid. The workshop is formatted to seek input through six expert panels, as well as through input from workshop participants. Panelists and participants from across the nation, representing electric utilities, research organizations, government agencies and other important stakeholders, will be present. Speakers will include Kevin Kolevar, director of the Department of Energy's Office of Electricity; David Nevius, senior vice president of the North American Electric Reliability Council; and Nora Brownell, a member of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Registration and additional program information are available online at www.caps.fsu.edu/EPAct05_doe_workshop.asp. For more information on the workshop, please call CAPS Director Dale at (850) 645-1183, or Rick Meeker, the center's program development manager, at (850) 645-1711. For lodging information, please call the Ramada Hotel and Conference Center at (850) 386-1027 and refer to the CAPS Energy Workshop. Florida State University's Center for Advanced Power Systems is focused on power and energy systems research, development, demonstration and education for defense, electric utility and transportation applications. The center features a five-megawatt, advanced prototype test facility integrated with one of the most powerful real-time dynamic power-system simulators in the world. CAPS is located in Tallahassee's Innovation Park, adjacent to the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory and the Florida A&M University-FSU College of Engineering.
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