Elster's EnergyAxis(R) Provides Smart Grid Backbone to Burlington Hydro Electric Vehicle Project

BURLINGTON, Ontario, and RALEIGH, N.C., April 21 /PRNewswire/ -- Elster and Burlington Hydro announced today that Elster's EnergyAxis® Smart Grid solution will power the electric vehicle (EV) fleet for GridSmartCity™, Burlington Hydro Inc.'s dynamic renewable energy and Smart Grid modernization initiative.

The GridSmartCity project will utilize EnergyAxis to integrate the first all-electric vehicle to be used in a commercial fleet in Canada. The project will study potential broad-scale vehicle electrification in commercial fleet applications.

Elster's EnergyAxis will enable Burlington Hydro to remotely monitor and control electricity consumption patterns at a vehicle charging station in Burlington, and to better understand how to develop an optimal recharging infrastructure and integrate EVs onto the Smart Grid.

"With GridSmartCity, we are working to better serve the customer by providing charging station infrastructure that will encourage rapid acceptance of electric vehicles, which are better for the environment," said Gerry Smallegange, president and CEO of Burlington Hydro Inc.

"Elster's EnergyAxis is the backbone of our Smart Grid deployment. We believe hub-and-spoke fleets represent the best opportunity for widespread vehicle electrification and, with Elster, we are able to accurately measure and monitor critical information on electricity consumption at the hub location," he added.  

For the GridSmartCity project, Burlington Hydro plans to incorporate the all-electric vehicle into its working fleet for a collaborative one-year study and demonstration project with the University of Waterloo, Transport Canada, Elster and other industry innovators, including Eaton and Pioneer Petroleum. Pioneer Petroleum will operate an EV charging station at one of its retail gas stations.

"Burlington Hydro's GridSmartCity is a key initiative for converting today's electricity and transportation systems into tomorrow's Smart Grid, and Elster is proud to be an integral part of this innovative EV project," said Mark Munday, president and CEO, Elster Solutions. 

"Development of the Smart Grid and the market for all-electric vehicles are interdependent. The electrification of vehicles will rely on an electricity grid infrastructure capable of meeting the needs of vehicle users in a practical, efficient and cost competitive way, and this project could serve as an important step in the wider adoption of electric vehicles," Munday added.

Commercial vehicle fleets operating from a centralized hub offer great potential for rapid adoption of EVs with an efficient recharging infrastructure. The GridSmartCity project will assess peak versus off-peak electricity demands and the potential to use vehicle batteries to store supplemental power, which could be made available to reduce peak loads on the electricity grid.

About Elster

Elster is one of the world's largest providers of electricity, gas and water meters and related communications, networking and software solutions, which are key components for enabling energy efficiency and conservation. Its products and solutions are widely used by customers in the manual-read meter and Smart Grid markets.

Elster has one of the most extensive installed meter bases in the world, with more than 200 million metering devices deployed over the course of the last 10 years. It sells its products and services in more than 130 countries across electricity, gas, water and multi-utility applications for both residential and commercial and industrial customers.

With a heritage of more than 170 years of providing metering solutions, Elster enjoys a reputation as a leading innovator and has played, and continues to play, an important role in shaping industry standards with respect to performance, reliability, accuracy and functionality.

Elster was acquired by funds advised by CVC Capital Partners in September 2005. In 2008, Elster generated revenues of euro 1.3 billion or $1.9 billion.

For more information about Elster, please visit www.elster.com.

About Burlington Hydro Inc.

Burlington Hydro Inc., established in 1945 as the Burlington Public Utilities Commission, is an energy services based company in the power distribution business. The company serves over 63,000 residential, commercial and industrial customers. Visit www.burlingtonhydro.com.

GridSmartCity™ is Burlington Hydro's future-focused initiative to begin transforming today's electricity system into the Smart Grid of tomorrow. The initiative will lead to further advancements in Burlington's self-healing grid and the emergence of renewable energy. GridSmartCity™ introduces exciting new opportunities for economic development, while enriching green lifestyles in the Region of Halton. Visit www.gridsmartcity.com.

SOURCE Elster