Chicago goes big with smart-grid improvements

The City of Big Shoulders will be doing some heavy smart-grid lifting in the near future, as its main utility company embarks on a 10-year, $2.6 billion upgrade to the electricity system.

Commonwealth Edison (ComEd) says the project will deliver something like a local economic stimulus to Chicago, generating up to 2,400 full-time equivalents jobs at the construction peak.

ComEd led a hard-fought battle to get its Infrastructure Investment Plan approved by the state, finally winning legislative approval last October despite vehement opposition from some, including Gov. Pat Quinn. The utility is now getting ready to roll out smart-grid improvements to nearly 4 million homes and businesses.

While ComEd awaits a final go-ahead from the Illinois Commerce Commission, the project is already generating new economic activity in Chicago. Smart-grid firm Silver Spring Networks, which will deploy its Smart Energy Platform to create a connected network of homes, businesses and distribution automation devices as part of the improvements, has announced plans to open a new office in the city. It also expects to establish a local network operations center to support the buildout.

ComEd is planning to open at least two new training facilities in the region as the program gets under way. It will also establish a smart-grid “test bed” to give innovative entrepreneurs a place to test their technologies and services in a utility-scale environment. The test bed is expected to be located along ComEd’s “Smart Grid Innovation Corridor,” which extends across parts of Chicago and nine suburbs.

ComEd president and COO Anne Pramaggiore calls the massive project a “road map for improved system reliability, enhanced customer service and a 21st century electric distribution system that will support the digital economy and the greener economy of the future.”