GridWeek Kicks Off Today - Addressing the Way Forward for Smart Grid

WASHINGTON, Sept. 12, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Power outages in California have called mainstream attention to the need for a smarter grid. The fifth annual GridWeek kicked off today in Washington, D.C., with sessions to address the way forward for the modernization of our electric infrastructure -- to ensure a smarter, cleaner and more reliable power grid.

"Our electric infrastructure has been ignored and under-invested in for too long," said Chris Hickman, CEO of Innovari, Inc.  "Fortunately, many utilities have been able to forge ahead in these uncertain times and lead the way with innovative grid-modernizations efforts in the past several years. The GridWeek conference will hone in on how these best practices can be applied across our global electric infrastructure."

A panel of industry-leading speakers kicked off GridWeek discussions Monday morning, highlighting the Smart Grid's role in modernizing our electric infrastructure, as well as helping to solve many of the economic, business and environmental challenges we face today.

"The Smart Grid will transform the electric power industry, impacting national competitiveness by creating a platform for innovation, job creation and energy efficiency," said Anto Budiardjo, President, Clasma Events.

Monday's sessions will focus primarily on international collaboration and consumer engagement:

• The International Summit -- This summit will address the challenges of Smart Grid deployment in emerging markets, global standards, international trade and worldwide best-practice sharing.  
• The Consumer Symposium -- Co-hosted by the Institute for Electric Efficiency, the symposium will engage attendees in rich dialogue to identify solutions for innovations in energy literacy, for protecting vulnerable residents and for leaving no community behind.

From Tuesday through Thursday of this week, GridWeek will address these core themes:

• Looking Forward – The economic, societal and environmental realities for future Smart Grid applications.
• Strategic Solutions -- Technology drivers guiding grid-modernization strategies.
• State of Deployments – A virtual report card of Smart Grid deployments to date.

In the most internationally- and utility-focused GridWeek yet, 200+ speakers will drive dialogue in 40 unique sessions to set the agenda for Smart Grid advancement. Keynote speakers – including Aneesh Chopra, CTO of the United States; P. Uma Shankar, Secretary of Power for India's Ministry of Power; Nicole Y. Lamb-Hale, Assistant Secretary for Manufacturing and Services, U.S. Department of Commerce; and others – will lead these discussions.

GridWeek takes place Monday, Sept. 12, through Thursday, Sept. 15, 2011, at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C.

Clasma Events, Inc. specializes in strategic conferences at the center of the worldwide energy discussion. Clasma's major events include ConnectivityWeek, GridWeek and Grid-Interop.

Clasma, GridWeek, ConnectivityWeek and Grid-Interop are trademarks or registered trademarks of Clasma Events Inc. Other product or service names mentioned herein are the trademarks of their respective owners.

SOURCE Clasma Events, Inc.