Washington, D.C. – On June 13, CTC Global Corporation, TS Conductor, and VEIR Inc. announced the formation of the Advancing Modern Powerlines (AMP) Coalition.
The coalition will be focused on promoting the use of high-capacity conductors as a tool for increasing grid capacity, resilience, reliability, and energy efficiency.
High-capacity conductors include two types of modern electric conductors: Advanced Conductors and High Temperature Superconductors. With the passage of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act and current FERC proceedings on transmission planning and generator interconnection, demands on the grid will accelerate in coming years.
The coalition believes now is a key moment for the conductor industry to work together and with other clean energy organizations to advance the clean energy transition by promoting reconductoring, replacement, and “right-sizing” of new and existing transmission infrastructure.
The group says a dedicated coalition will be a valuable tool for creating a bigger market in the US for high-capacity conductors and can provide greater access and legitimacy in regulatory discussions than a single company.
The US grid is currently based on century-old technology, with an estimated 70 per cent of transmission and distribution lines approaching 50 years in age. There have also been numerous studies finding the US will need to roughly double its grid capacity by the middle of the 2030s.
Utilities and regulators can utilize high-capacity conductors to increase existing grid capacity through reconductoring or rebuilding. This “right-sizing” process will allow more clean resources to interconnect, replace older assets with more efficient technology, increase grid capacity, and create a more reliable and resilient grid.
The coalition will be focused on shifting the current electric industry regulatory framework from “least cost requirements” to use of a net benefits framework. This shift can accelerate grid modernization and technology deployment, offset the risk to ratepayers associated with the higher initial costs, and avoid diminishing investor-owned utilities’ financial incentive to invest and participate in “right-sizing” projects.
J.D. Sitton, CTC Global’s CEO said “Modern conductor technologies are game-changers in reducing the carbon intensity of the grid. They can be deployed quickly and can reduce the cost and improve the reliability of moving to a renewables-based energy system.”
Creating a modernized U.S. power grid capable of keeping up with current challenges and innovations is an urgent priority. “We believe that the AMP Coalition and the technology of its members can jumpstart the rapid change required for a better-performing grid,” said Jason Huang, PhD, CEO of TS Conductor. “TS Conductor technology has much to contribute to a secure energy future; not only can it handle three times the capacity of traditional wires, moving more power where it’s needed, but it can also come online quickly as a drop-in reconductoring replacement, as well as an option for new transmission and distribution buildout.”
Tim Heidel, CEO of VEIR Inc., said “VEIR AC overhead superconducting transmission lines offer up to a fivefold increase in power flow capacity relative to copper- and aluminum-based conductors, at a given voltage level. This means that VEIR can add much-needed transfer capacity to the grid without triggering as many or as onerous and time-consuming siting and permitting requirements as projects that require new or expanded corridors.”
The coalition will be run out of Grid Strategies LLC, an economic, engineering, and policy consulting firm located in the Washington DC area and focused on the bulk transmission network.
Be the first to comment