October 31, 2009|By Liz F. Kay | Liz F. Kay,liz.kay@baltsun.com
Members of the Maryland congressional delegation and the U.S. secretary of housing and urban development joined Friday to congratulate Baltimore Gas and Electric Co. for receiving $200 million in federal stimulus grants to support efforts to modernize the electricity grid in Maryland.
The U.S. Department of Energy announced this week that BGE received among the largest subsidies to help provide about 2 million "smart meters" and other technology to display real-time data about consumers' energy usage in homes and businesses. The data could help consumers make choices to reduce energy use.
The smart grid proposal must be approved by the Maryland Public Service Commission, and hearings are to begin next month. If the plan is approved, BGE officials say consumers could save billions of dollars by reducing energy use during peak periods.
BGE customers would benefit from being able to use the technology to lower their energy use - and therefore their bills, said Mayo A. Shattuck III, Constellation Energy Group's president and CEO, at a news conference at BGE's facility in Woodlawn.
And the utility could use the data to better manage its electricity grid, lowering operational costs. That savings would also be passed along to consumers, he said.
Maryland Sen. Benjamin L. Cardin and Reps. Elijah E. Cummings and John Sarbanes, along with HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan, praised the smart grid proposal.
The smart grid effort is going to save a lot of fuel, which would benefit both the environment and national security, Cardin said.
"That means less oil and coal is going to be burned in America," he said. "That means we're going to be more energy independent, and we're going to be friendlier toward our environment."
Spending less money on energy would free up money for consumers and business leaders to invest elsewhere, officials said.
"This is an easy decision, the smart grid," Cardin said. "We know that we can enhance our economy and help our environment and become more energy-secure by these kinds of investments."
Donovan praised what he described as a partnership between government and the private sector.
"When we think about 'smart government' rather than 'big government' or 'small government,' a lot of that is really about putting power into the hands of people across this country to make their own decisions," Donovan said.
"If we can put information into the hands of homeowners, they will help to drive us toward a lower-cost, more energy-efficient future that reduces our dependence on foreign oil," he said.
If the plan is approved by state regulators, the $200 million grant, part of $3.4 billion awarded nationwide, would enable BGE to reduce its monthly surcharges to consumers to recoup the $500 million cost of the equipment.
The fees, originally estimated to average $1.24 per month for electric customers and $1.52 per month for gas customers over 18 years, could be cut by up to 80 percent as a result of the federal grant, Mark D. Case, BGE's senior vice president for regulatory affairs, said Friday.
