In a new paper, technology and energy leaders put forth “guiding principles” for increased data sharing between industry stakeholders
— To foster innovation and realize the promise of a modern, reliable electric grid, industry stakeholders need transparent access to and exchange of relevant grid data. The underlying data associated with the grid must be standardized and made available to market participants.
That is the key takeaway from, a new paper that was released today by TechNet, the national, bipartisan network of innovation economy CEOs and senior executives; SunSpec Alliance, an industry alliance dedicated to developing and promoting energy information standards; and DBL Partners, a double bottom line venture capital firm.
The paper puts forth a set of guiding principles and detailed recommendations to advance the data access and transparency needed to increase innovation in grid design, planning, and customer engagement. Additionally, to foster competition and reduce costs, it explains why regulators should require the availability of holistic grid data developed from integrated planning processes in an open machine-readable standard data format. said Andrea Deveau, vice president of state policy and politics at TechNet.
The paper outlines several foundational reasons to actively promote grid data transparency:
- Data transparency informs customer choice and economic development
- Data transparency supports industry innovation
- Data transparency enables accurate auditing of grid infrastructure investment
- Data transparency improves the safe and reliable operation of the electric grid
The paper explains the need for data transparency and provides details on the specific grid data that should be transparent and accessible. Additionally, the paper addresses commonly raised concerns regarding grid data access, and provides potential approaches to addressing these issues. said Nancy Pfund, Founder & Managing Partner at DBL Partners.