WASHINGTON — The Demand Response and Smart Grid Coalition (DRSG) announced that seven more companies have joined the group to help it in its efforts to raise awareness among policymakers, utilities, and stakeholders of how demand response and smart grid technologies and practices will help modernize the national electricity system and optimize the way that customers use electricity. DRSG is the trade association for companies that provide products and services in the demand response and smart grid area.

The new members are Oracle, Enspiria Solutions, Energy Capital Partners, CalAmp, KMC Controls (a manufacturer of building automation and HVAC controls), Lutron, and PCN Technology.

Dan Delurey, executive director of DRSG, welcomed the new members and said that the expansion and increased diversity of the organization would help DRSG’s efforts to educate policymakers on the many ways that demand response and smart grid technologies can help lead the nation towards economic recovery. “There is now widespread recognition that an effort to modernize our electricity system will pay enormous dividends in terms of job creation, lower energy bills, increased reliability and security of the grid, and decreased emissions of greenhouse gases,” said Delurey. “What we as an organization are now working to do is to help policymakers, utilities, and stakeholders find specific ways to deploy the smart grid today and use it to address our economic challenges.”

Delurey also took the opportunity of the announcement to comment on the many different policy efforts underway in Washington. “There are opportunities on multiple fronts for policymakers to support demand response and smart grid technologies,” said Delurey. “At present we are working with DOE [U.S. Department of Energy] to ensure that the Smart Grid Grants funded by the recent Stimulus Act help address both economic recovery and the acceleration of smart grid deployment. We also are preparing to support FERC [Federal Energy Regulatory Commission] as it works to develop a National Action Plan on Demand Response, as required by the Energy Independence Act of 2007. At the same time, we are working to be a resource to Congress as it develops new energy legislation as well as new policy on global climate change. We are particularly excited about recognition by many Congressional leaders of what organizations like the North American Electricity Reliability Corporation (NERC) have said about there being a need for increased deployment of demand response and smart grid technologies to allow the large and rapid expansion of intermittent renewable energy sources to come onto the grid.”

For more information on the Demand Response and Smart Grid Coalition, visit www.drsgcoalition.org.

Publication date: 04/06/2009