An independent, nonprofit organisation, brings together scientists and engineers as well as experts from academia and the industry to help address challenges in electricity. EPRI are the chief advisors to the President Obama Administration.
Each year the organisation holds an International Technology Innovation Summit which provides an opportunity for Chief Technology Officers to exchange information on the opportunities for technology to shape the future of the electricity system. This information will help participants to develop roadmaps for their own technology development and to inform critical stakeholders on the enabling policies that will be needed to go hand in hand with technology adoption.
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All the top utilities from Northern America as well as from Europe are attending this thought leadership event of the leading utilities. An international global study of utilities, carried out in 2010, ranked Ireland as having the third most advanced smart network in the world. ESB has invested €6bm in our electricity infrastructure, making us world leaders in wind energy, smart meters and the roll out of EV charging infrastructure. It was because of this that Ireland was selected to host this annual event and ESB is delighted to welcome delegates from the US, Europe, South Africa and Korea to Ireland.
The theme of EPRI's 3rd Summit is 'The Integrated Grid: Realizing the Full Value of Central and Distributed Energy Resources'. The electricity network has evolved by leveraging generation plants interconnected by transmission grids and feeding distribution networks that supply power to customers. This design is now beginning to change, rapidly in some locations, with the rise of distributed energy resources (DER) such as small natural gas-fueled generators, combined heat and power plants, electricity storage, and solar photovoltaics (PV) connected to the distribution system.
(CD/MH)
