Overview

Access to reliable, cost-effective electricity is critical for economic growth and continued American prosperity.  But our electric infrastructure is facing new stresses as a result of aging assets, environmental sustainability requirements, consumers adding energy back into the electric system, increasing global temperatures, extreme weather events, and growing cybersecurity concerns.

We are moving towards a more digitized economy with a growing dependence on electricity and a lower tolerance for disruptions and outages.  As grid assets near or exceed their end-of-life estimates, the nation is presented with opportunities for modernizing the electric power system with newer, more advanced technologies to increase the reliability and resiliency of the grid.

The Grid Tech Team (GTT) was established by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) in recognition of the challenges and critical issues facing our grid.  The complex, pervasive, and interdependent nature of the electric power system means that no single entity will be able to overcome the numerous challenges of grid modernization.  Focused, collaborative discussions are needed to identify priorities, national goals, specific targets, and stakeholder roles, and to develop a stronger and more extensive network of effective public-private partnerships needed to ease the transition to a more modern grid.

Through outreach and engagement with stakeholders, the GTT has developed a vision of the future electric grid and a strategy to address national and regional grid modernization issues.  This vision recognizes the diversity and uncertainty in future energy demands and energy generation options, and recognizes inherent regional differences in needs, goals, and available resources.

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<p><strong>Caitlin Callaghan</strong><br>U.S. Department of Energy<br>1000 Independence Avenue, SW<br>Washington, DC 20585<br><a href="mailto:gridtechteam@hq.doe.gov">gridtechteam@hq.doe.gov</a></p&gt;