A smart grid is a transactive grid.
- Lynne Kiesling
US Announces $3.5B To Strengthen Electric Grid, Bolster Resilience

Via Quartz, a report on a recent Biden administration announcement of $3.5 billion for 58 projects across the country to strengthen electric grid resilience as extreme weather events such as the deadly Maui and California wildfires continue to strain the nation’s aging transmission systems: The Biden administration on Wednesday announced $3.5 billion for 58 projects across […]

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IEA: World Must Add 50,000 Miles of Power Lines by 2040 To Hit Climate Goals

Via Energy Daily, a new IEA report forecasting that the world must add 50,000 miles of power lines by 2040 to hit climate targets: The world must double existing power grid networks to 100,000 miles globally by 2040 to avoid missing the internationally agreed 1.5 degrees Celsius temperature rise target and eroding energy security, the […]

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You Can Now Get Solar Power With a Netflix-Style Subscription

Courtesy of The Washington Post, a look at how you can now get solar power with a Netflix-style subscription: No roof, no solar power. That has been the dispiriting equation shutting out roughly half of all Americans from plugging into the sun. But signing up for solar soon might be as easy as subscribing to Netflix. […]

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Virtual Power Plants And Demand Flexibility

Via Energy Central, a look at virtual power plants and demand flexibility: The rapid growth of distributed energy resources (DERs) plus digitalization of devices and artificial intelligence (AI) is leading to increased interest in virtual power plants (VPPs). The fundamentals are straightforward: aggregate large numbers of smart devices such as rooftop solar panels, smart thermostats, […]

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The SunZia Transmission Project and Carbon Tunnel Vision

Via The Land Desk, commentary on the SunZia transmission project and carbon tunnel vision: This May the Biden Administration gave the final go-ahead for the SunZia transmission line, which is designed to carry power from wind facilities in New Mexico to a major grid hub in the Phoenix area. The approval — which came after 17 years of […]

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Is Your Fleet Ready for Vehicle-To-Grid?

Via GreenBiz, an article on how – before pursuing the reduced costs and environmental benefits promised by vehicle-to-grid tech – people should make these careful considerations: Fleets of electric vehicles that not only plug into a charger to sip power but also to feed power back to an electric grid or building are mostly a thing […]

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About This Blog And Its Authors
Grid Unlocked is powered by two eco-preneurs who analyze and reference articles, reports, and interviews that can help unlock the nascent, complex and expanding linkages between smart meters, smart grids, and above all: smart markets.

Based on decades of experience and interest in conservation, Monty Simus believes that a truly “smart” grid must be a “transactive” grid, unshackled from its current status as a so-called “natural monopoly.”

In short, an unlocked grid must adopt and harness the power of markets to incentivize individual users, linked to each other on a large scale, who change consumptive behavior in creative ways that drive efficiency and bring equity to use of the planet's finite and increasingly scarce resources.