E2Tech Council: Planning the Grid of the Future

Tuesday, June 22, 2021 | 8:00 a.m. | Zoom webinar

Meeting the state’s climate goals will likely add significant load to the state’s electrical grid, as drivers switch to electric cars and building owners seek alternatives to fossil fuels for heating.

Recently, The Nature Conservancy convened, in conjunction with the Great Plains Institute, a group including renewable energy developers, clean energy and consumer advocates, state government officials and representatives from both of Maine’s investor-owned utilities, for a series of meetings to discuss how to advance grid modernization efforts in the state.  

Hosted by the Environmental & Energy Technology Council of Maine (E2Tech), this forum will explore the nine broad recommendations of the group; examine how other states and regions have approached grid planning; and consider next steps we can take here. Among the questions to be explored are:

• How can we in Maine better plan for the integration of renewable energy?
• How do we account for increased electric load and two-way power flows?
  
• What role do “edge users” play?
  

 
The event’s speakers include:

• Rob Wood, director of government relations and climate policy at The Nature Conservancy in Maine;
  
• Doug Scott, vice president of electricity and efficiency for the Great Plains Institute;
  
• Kay Aikin, CEO of Introspective Systems;
  
• Marissa Paslick-Gillett, chairman of the Connecticut Public Utilities Regulatory Authority; and,
  
• Ian Burnes, director of strategic initiatives for the Efficiency Maine Trust.
  

 
Sponsored by Central Maine Power, this virtual forum is planned for Tuesday, June 22, beginning at 8:00 a.m. For more  information and to register, visit e2tech.org.