Department of Energy Smart Grid Data Access Grant
TO: The Honorable Mayor and City Council Members
FROM: Michael C. Van Milligen, City Manager
SUBJECT: Acceptance of DOE Smart Grid Data Access Grant
DATE: September 12, 2012
Sustainable Community Coordinator Cori Burbach is recommending acceptance of a
Smart Grid Data Access Grant from the U.S. Department of Energy in the amount of
$500,000 for the Smarter Electricity Iowa Project.
I concur with the recommendation and respectfully request Mayor and City Council
approval.
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Michael C. Van Milligen
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Attachment
cc: Barry Lindahl, City Attorney
Cindy Steinhauser, Assistant City Manager
Teri Goodmann, Assistant City Manager
Cori Burbach, Sustainable Community Coordinator
THE CITY OF
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Masterpiece on the Mississippi
TO: Michael Van Milligen, City Manager
FROM: Cori Burbach, Sustainable Community Coordinator
DATE: September 12,2012
SUBJECT: Acceptance of DOE Smart Grid Data Access Grant
Dubuque
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INTRODUCTION
The purpose of this memo is to recommend that the City accept a Smart Grid Data Access Grant from the US Department of
Energy in the amount of $500,000 for the Smarter Electricity Iowa project.
BACKGROUND
In March 2012, the City of Dubuque, Alliant Energy and IBM Research partnered with the Iowa Association of Municipal
Utilities, Cedar Falls Utility, and Algona Municipal Utility to submit an application to the Smart Grid Data Access grant
program. The purpose of the Smarter Electricity Iowa project is to pilot and test how Smart Grid - enabled technologies can
help consumers to better monitor their electric energy consumption and make more informed choices about the energy they
are using. This project builds upon Dubuque's Smarter Water and Smarter Electricity pilots, continuing access to the portal to
existing Smarter Electricity pilot households and expanding it to include a total of up to 1 300 households in Dubuque, Cedar
Falls and Algona.
DISCUSSION
The Smart Grid Data Access Grant has the goal of empowering residential consumers to better manage their electricity use
by enabling access to consumption data by residential customers and their authorized third parties, and providing or
supporting the use of third -party tools and software products that utilize the available data to deliver a value -added service to
the customer. The grant objectives closely support the objectives set by the Smarter Electricity partnership with IBM as part
of the Smarter Sustainable Dubuque project.
In this grant the City of Dubuque is partnering with Alliant Energy, Algona Municipal Utilities, Cedar Falls Utilities, the Iowa
Association of Municipal Utilities (IAMU), and IBM on this Smarter Electricity Iowa project to pilot and test how Smart Grid -
enabled technologies can help consumers to better monitor their electric energy consumption and make more informed
choices about the energy they are using. Because of the constraints created by a finite number of smart meters installed by
Alliant Energy in Dubuque, the City reached out to Cedar Falls and Algona to complete this application. Both municipal
utilities are in the process of installing smart meters in their service areas currently. The implementation period for the grant is
one year, at which time the partners will have the opportunity to apply for a Phase II grant in the same program which would
expand the pilot study.
The $500,000 requested will be spent as follows:
• $67 920 in personnel and fringe costs, including a portion of the Dubuque Sustainable Community Coordinator
position as well as a part -time Smarter Sustainable Dubuque Communications Assistant
• $42 ,080 in supplies, including outreach materials and funds to host community cafes in all three communities
• $340,000 in consulting costs, including $310,000 to be paid to IBM for Smarter Electricity portal services and $30,000
to be paid to Harmonic Mix for intermediary data services to all three communities
• $50 ,000 in engagement incentives and implementation costs, including the purchase of incentives for pilot participants
and the development and testing of alternative communication strategies, including social media,
A$500,000 match is required and will be provided through in -kind services, products and staff time from the City of Dubuque,
IBM, Cedar Falls Utilities, and Algona Municipal Utilities.
RECOMMENDATION
I respectfully recommend Council approval to accept the DOE Smart Grid Data Access grant in the amount of $500,000.
cc:
David Lyons, Smarter Sustainable Dubuque Project Manager