Athens Utility Project
ORNL led the development of the first integrated smart grid demonstration project. Through the DOE Office of Energy Storage and Distribution from 1982-88, ORNL in partnership with Athens Utilities Board, TVA, EPRI and Baltimore Gas & Electric established the Athens Automation Control experiment. The purpose of the Athens Automation Control Experiment was to develop and test load control options, voltage and reactive power control options, and distribution system reconfiguration capabilities on an electric distribution system from the transmission substation transformer to individual residential appliances.
Athens Utilities Board (1985) is a municipal utility for the city of Athens, Tennessee with 10,000 electric customers and a 90-MW peak load. As part of the demonstration over 200 customers had advanced meters installed at their homes to control loads. More details are documented in the full report (PDF 10.46MB).
