The City of Pittsburgh and the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) entered into a partnership in July 2015 to upgrade the city’s energy system and implement a microgrids concept spanning nine energy districts.
The city gave NETL five years to demonstrate how advanced fossil energy technologies can support the safe, efficient use of energy.
To achieve this goal, the partners collaborated with Duquesne Light Co., Carnegie Mellon University, the University of Pittsburgh’s Center for Energy, local foundations, non-governmental organizations, and private businesses.
The collaboration can serve as a model for other collaborations between the Department of Energy National Laboratories and cities, NETL said.
The partnership has resulted in numerous accomplishments, including creating a network of small-scale distributed energy systems throughout the city that can supply residents with clean, reliable, and cost-effective power; studying geothermal energy extraction in Pittsburgh’s Hazelwood Green district to discover potential alternatives to fossil fuels; studying consumption data from the Pittsburgh 2013 Energy Baseline report to discover new opportunities for reducing energy usage and emissions in the city; investigating how advanced fossil energy technologies could help the city meet environmental, energy security and economic development goals; and collaborating with the Danish Ministry of Energy on smart city technologies.