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DOE partners with India in a $30M investment to push smart grid, energy storage research


By Robert Walton | August 12, 2016



Dive Brief:

• A partnership between the U.S. Department of Energy and the Indian Ministry of Science and Technology would result in total funding of $30 million for energy storage and smart grid research, the Economic Times reports.
• The partnership was announced this week; each country would commit $1.5 million annually for five years, an amount that would also be matched by private developers.
• U.S. Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz said the program aims to accelerate solutions and drive down technology costs, while boosting resiliency.

Dive Insight:

India has been in the international spotlight for its aggressive support of green energy. Now its partnership with the DOE to advance smart grid and energy storage research appears to cement that reputation.
The United States and India launched the Partnership to Advance Clean Energy in 2009, and in 2012 expanded with a combined $50 million research commitment focusing on solar energy, energy efficiency in buildings, and next-generation biofuels.
PACE is the "core mechanism" of energy research done jointly between the two countries, DOE said, with three main areas: research, deployment and access. The new funding announcement will still need to receive Congressional approval.
“Smart grid and storage technology will transform how we produce and consume electricity, which has the potential to decrease carbon pollution by scaling up renewable energy deployment,” Moniz said in a statement. “Working collaboratively with India will accelerate solutions to drive down technology costs and improve grid resilience and reliability in both countries.”
The new research consortium will focus on smart grid and energy storage for grid applications, and will be formally established when an award selection is made, which DOE anticipates for next year.
The announcement was made through DOE's Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability.

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