Tantalus Systems announces grid modernisation initiatives across three US states

Grid modernisation tech company Tantalus Systems has announced two grid modernisation initiatives across three US states. The Canadian tech company will deploy for Bolivar Energy Authority (BEA) on the Tennessee and Massachusetts distribution grids and will test its tech in a separate Connecticut pilot programme.

The first initiative sees BEA, which serves counties in Tennessee and Massachusetts in the US, select Tantalus Systems after a competitive evaluation process to use the Tantalus Grid Modernization Platform (TGMP) for their distribution grids.

Specifically, the utility company will use Tantalus’ TRUSense Fiber Gateway to harness the capabilities of BEA’s advanced fiber network deployed in partnership with Irby Utilities.

The TGMP will also replace an existing AMI solution in support of BEA’s grid modernisation initiative and includes their grid data management solution, TRUSync, which automates the integration of data across devices, systems and vendors.

The second initiative, announced a week prior to BEA’s deployment, sees United Illuminating, a subsidiary of Avangrid operating in Connecticut, deploy a pilot programme that includes Tantalus’ TRUSense Gateway and TRUSync solution.

BEA’s grid modernisation

“We were looking for a way to capitalise on the investment BEA made in our Fiber to the Home Project,” said Steve Herriman, purchasing and IT Manager for Bolivar Energy Authority, in a release.

“We wanted to have a stronger, faster and more reliable AMI network and an ability to adopt advanced applications through the life of this deployment. With the TRUSense Gateway, Tantalus was the only vendor we found that could fully leverage our fiber network, at and behind the meter, to provide us with the best opportunity to improve the support we provide to our community.”

“We are thrilled Bolivar Energy Authority is joining our user community alongside the growing number of Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) local distribution companies,” added Tantalus president and CEO Peter Londa.

“We continue to witness an increasing number of utilities that are harnessing the power of data to accelerate their grid modernisation efforts. TGMP and the TRUSense Gateway are purpose-built not only to help with near-term needs, like enhanced resiliency and advanced applications, but also to provide a flexible and expandable platform to support long-term requirements, such as those outlined as part of TVA’s Regional Grid Transformation initiative.”

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According to Tantalus, the TRUSense Gateway is a multi-purpose socket-based device that accelerates the modernisation of the distribution grid for utilities.

It delivers interoperable integration of behind-the-meter DERs onto the distribution system while capturing and analysing granular power quality data to enhance grid resiliency.

The Gateway itself forms part of the company’s TGMP and is hoped to enable BEA to leverage their community’s investment in an advanced fiber deployment to improve operations of the distribution grid through the delivery of interoperable, grid-edge data.

TGMP, officially launched earlier this year, forming Tantalus’ technology architecture that they state provides a secure, flexible and affordable path to grid modernisation.

A pilot in Connecticut

BEA’s selection of Tantalus Systems came on the heels of an announcement from Tantalus and United Illuminating, to deploy a pilot programme.

The pilot is part of the first round of the Innovative Energy Solutions (IES) Program designed and led by the Connecticut Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA) and will be deployed across a distribution circuit in Bridgeport, Connecticut. Through the deployment, United Illuminating will be targetting to control up to 7KWh of power per participating home.

According to Tantalus Systems, the programme provides a sandbox structure to focus on innovative electric grid pilots that, subject to demonstrated success, are invited to deploy at scale.

The first cycle of the IES Program is centred on demand-side flexibility to shift or reduce electricity demand or consumption from a device’s normal electricity profile, supporting advanced forecasting, providing automation, incorporating strategies to manage peak demand and integrating thermal storage.

In the programme, Tantalus forms part of a consortium of tech providers, academic institutions and research centers, including GE Appliances, Savant, the University of Connecticut’s Eversource Energy Center (UConn), the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and Threshold.

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The project will centre around Tantalus’ TRUSense Gateway, GE Appliances’ electric water heater and Savant’s smart circuit breaker companion modules and smart thermostats that will be deployed behind the meter of homes on dedicated feeders and circuits within the distribution grid.

UConn’s Eversource Energy Center will provide grid visibility analytics that leverage data from the deployment while NREL will seek to optimise the use of distributed energy resources.

Under the programme, water heaters from GE Appliances will be used as thermal storage devices by pre-heating water in advance of peak load profiles, extreme weather events or emergency situations to protect grid assets.

Other loads tied to specific Savant smart circuit breaker companion modules will also be targeted for load management.

The behind-the-meter command and control will be delivered to United Illuminating through the TRUSense Gateway and TRUSync Grid Data Management software, leveraging existing meter sockets and legacy automated electric meters.

“We’re proud to have been selected as part of the initial cycle of the competitive IES Program in its mission to help investor-owned utilities in the state of Connecticut accelerate their grid modernisation efforts,” commented Londa in a release.

“Having the opportunity to facilitate a consortium of leading companies and partner alongside United Illuminating to deliver the necessary command and control of targeted appliances located behind the meter provides our team with an excellent opportunity to demonstrate a new approach for demand-side flexibility programmes through our TRUSense Gateway.”