Cagayan power co-op receives US grant

November 18, 2015 8:48 pm by RITCHIE A. HORARIO
http://www.manilatimes.net/cagayan-power-co-op-receives-us-grant/229897/

THE United States Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) on Wednesday awarded a grant to the Cagayan Electric Power and Light Company, Inc. (Cepalco) to support the utilization of smart grid technologies.

The grant aims to help Cepalco to manage, monitor and distribute electricity more efficiently, USDA said.

Leocadia I. Zak, USTDA director, said innovative technology solutions are needed to ensure the effective and efficient distribution of electricity.

“It is vital to ensure that energy resources are distributed and consumed as effectively as possible, and that requires innovative technology solutions,” Zak said in a statement.

The agreement was signed by Zak and Cepalco chief executive officer Ed Bautista.

“As smart grids are one of the most effective solutions for distributing and consuming power, USTDA is pleased to support Cepalco’s smart grid goals,” Zak said.

Under the agreement, USTDA will fund a feasibility study that will help Cepalco develop a technical scope and implementation plan for an advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) pilot project.

The study will consider the preliminary analyses – including technical, economic and financial – needed to develop the pilot project.

The pilot project aims to install 2,000 smart meters and the supporting communications infrastructure in Cepalco’s franchise area.

Cepalco’s ultimate goal is to implement smart grid technologies that can optimize its distribution services, increase power reliability and reduce electricity losses.

The opportunity to conduct the USTDA-sponsored feasibility study will be completed through Federal Business Opportunities (FBO) program.