2009-09-16 - Grid reliability, security on the agenda for world’s largest power system supplier’s third year at preeminent smart grid event
Cary, North Carolina, September 15, 2009 – ABB, the leading power and automation technology group, will be a Platinum sponsor at GridWeek, the power industry’s major annual smart grid conference, which will be held at the Ronald Reagan building in Washington DC, September 21 - 24. The company has supported the event since its inception in 2007.
“This year the buzz surrounding smart grid in general and this event in particular is noticeably greater,” said Enrique Santacana, President and CEO of ABB Inc. and head of the company’s North American operations. “Money from the stimulus package and elsewhere is beginning to flow into pilot programs, and there is a real sense that smart grid has moved from the laboratory to the field.”
Santacana, one of last year’s premiere keynote speakers at GridWeek 2008, will join fellow executives from CISCO, Elster, EEI, and Xcel Energy, as well as other power grid systems suppliers for the opening plenary session on Wednesday entitled “State of the Grid.” ABB will also lead a panel discussion on “Grid Reliability: Hardening our Critical Energy Infrastructure” at 1:30pm on Wednesday.
ABB will participate in several media briefings over the course of the event. Topics include: cyber security issues, grid standards and infrastructure, and international smart grid developments.
ABB is expected to announce several new projects at GridWeek covering a wide range of smart grid applications.
About GridWeek 2009
A year of technology advances, dramatic economic necessity, policy transition, and energy and environmental imperatives culminates at GridWeek 2009 where attendees will explore how the smart grid can energize the economy and build a future of sustainable and reliable energy.
GridWeek 2009 (www.gridweek.com), produced by Clasma Events Inc., brings together U.S. and international energy and environmental leaders; policy makers and regulators; utility and smart grid technology companies; the venture community and consumer advocacy stakeholders for a four-day forum from Sept. 21-24 in Washington, D.C.
About ABB
ABB (www.abb.com) is a leader in power and automation technologies that enable utility and industry customers to improve performance while lowering environmental impact. The ABB Group of companies operates in around 100 countries and employs about 120,000 people. The company's North American operations, headquartered in Cary, North Carolina, employ about 15,000 people in 20 manufacturing and other major facilities.