Fort Collins Builds a Smarter Electric Grid FORT COLLINS, CO (KUNC) - The city of Boulder, Colo., has made plenty of headlines by implementing so-called smart grid technology. Now Fort Collins is following suit.

The city received more than $15 million in stimulus money last month. It's one of 100 federal grants aimed at bringing the electric grid into the 21st century.

Basically, a smart grid would add a sort of IT-type infrastructure on top of Fort Collins' existing electrical system. And city senior electrical engineer Dennis Sumner says that means for information.

"With the smart grid we'll see at the micro level, at the customer delivery level, is the power on? What's the voltage of the customer? Are there any other higher level communications going on back and forth?" he says.

Fort Collins plans to spend more than $30 million updating its electrical grid over the next two to three years. This means installing so-called smart meters for every electric customer.

Steve Catanach, light and power manager for the city of Fort Collins, says the new technology will improve the reliability of the existing system.

"We're also very concerned with the security of the grid overall, and ensuring it's operating efficiently and safely," he says.

And, Catanach says, customers can save money--up to 15 percent on electricity.

But upfront there will be a cost--up to $15 million. That's because the city of Fort Collins owns and operates its own utility system.

"Doing It Right"

Miles Keogh thinks the investment will be worth it. He's with the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners.

"I think the magic eight ball looks pretty good for Fort Collins," he says.

Keogh says states likes Colorado, New York, and California are ideally situated for smart grid projects. All three of these states have favorable laws for this. And, he says, in Colorado a voter-approved renewable energy amendment has pushed utility companies to try new things.

"There will be states that may leap frog ahead and do things more quickly," he says. "But we really want to see things done right. So I think Colorado is in a great situation to do it right the first time."

Overcoming Obstacles
Steve Catanach from the city of Fort Collins admits there will be obstacles to overcome. He says customers won't automatically start saving money once their smart meters are installed. They'll have to monitor their power usage to be able to take advantage of peak and off-peak power rates.

"Educating our customers on how to utilize the information we're giving them so they can use it to their advantage is going to be key to the success of this program," he says.

Catanach says the smart grid will also pave the way for creating Fort Zed, the town's goal of a district that will run completely off renewable power.

But customers won't see this kind of result for years. Fort Collins has its first meeting next week with the federal government to establish basic rules for the grant. Catanach says he hopes to deliver a more detailed plan to city council at the beginning of next year. © Copyright 2012, KUNC