Honeywell and Hawaiian Electric to use Demand Response to Integrate Renewables and Reduce Fossil Fuel Dependence

Pilot Project Will Help Maintain Grid Reliability and Reduce Costs as More Renewable Energy is Added to Island Grids

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Feb 02, 2012, 08:00 ET

MINNEAPOLIS, Feb. 2, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Honeywell (NYSE: HON) today announced a pilot program with Hawaiian Electric Co. in Honolulu to demonstrate how demand response technology can help integrate more intermittent renewable energy to the electric grid. During the two-year pilot, the utility will connect with commercial and industrial customers to temporarily reduce the need for electricity — critical to maintaining grid reliability as Hawaii reduces fossil fuel dependence.

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Hawaiian Electric will conduct a test of "fast demand response" (Fast DR) technology, which gives the utility and facilities the tools to reduce demand within 10 minutes of notification of a pending imbalance between supply and demand. Companies receive an incentive to participate and when Fast DR events are triggered they receive an additional per-kilowatt-hour incentive credit. This can translate into thousands of dollars in annual savings.

The pilot will validate the technical design and tariffs for a full-scale demand response program to support Hawaii's renewable energy goals. It will also contribute to a broader state-wide effort to increase energy independence, security and sustainability.

"Increasing renewable energy requires new and more advanced methods of managing reliability, especially given the variable nature of wind and solar. Our demand response strategy engages our customers in the total solution," said Scott Seu, Hawaiian Electric vice president for energy resources. "This project will lay the groundwork for new programs to advance a clean energy future for Hawaii."

Currently, Hawaiian Electric has to rely on fossil fuel generation to manage the inherent intermittency associated with certain types of renewable energy and other interruptions in grid stability. Fast DR has the potential to reduce the use of fossil fuels to balance the increased integration of renewable energy in Hawaii.

"Generating 'negawatts' — or reducing demand — is the cheapest and greenest way to meet electricity needs," said Paul Orzeske, president of Honeywell Building Solutions. "This project will validate that demand response can deliver negawatts in an accelerated timeframe. Utilities across the globe have ambitious renewable energy goals, and Hawaiian Electric's groundbreaking work will provide a template for solving the challenge of intermittency."

The pilot will help Hawaiian Electric create direct connections to loads at commercial and industrial facilities. For the first phase, Honeywell will work with Hawaiian Electric to enroll and connect customers to a regional operating center (ROC). If demand outpaces supply, Hawaiian Electric will trigger a notice for customers to reduce demand within 10 minutes, providing more than 6 megawatts of semi-automated load control when the program is fully subscribed.

A second phase will feature the use of automated demand response (Auto DR) tools from Honeywell, including Akuacom and Tridium technologies. Hawaiian Electric will use the Demand Response Automation Server (DRAS) software from Akuacom to manage its resources and events. At each customer facility, a Tridium smart grid controller will poll the DRAS for event signals. When the utility triggers an event, the controller will receive the signal and communicate with the site's building management system to automatically execute load-shed measures the customer sets in advance, such as cycling air conditioners, and turning off non-essential lights, pumps and motors.

The smart grid controller also sends data from the facility's electricity meter back to the DRAS every 5 minutes so the utility has immediate feedback on the decrease in demand.

The Akuacom and Tridium technologies are based on open, industry-accepted standards so they can interact with virtually any building system to enable highly reliable machine-to-machine communication and rapid load reductions.

Hawaii and Clean Energy

The Hawaiian Electric companies, working with the state of Hawaii and the U.S. Department of Energy, have committed to reach a 70 percent clean energy goal by 2030, with at least 40 percent of electricity sold by Hawaiian Electric coming from renewable sources and 30 percent from energy efficiency. The challenge is to rapidly accommodate changes in renewable generation including solar and wind to ensure reliable and economic operation of its grid.

Honeywell and the Smart Grid

Honeywell has a legacy of working with utilities and their customers, giving it a unique perspective on how to quickly realize the benefits of the evolving grid. With controls in more than 150 million homes, 10 million buildings and thousands of industrial sites, and experience managing demand response and energy efficiency programs for more than 100 utilities, Honeywell has the offerings and experience to empower smart energy users.

Honeywell International (www.honeywell.com) is a Fortune 100 diversified technology and manufacturing leader, serving customers worldwide with aerospace products and services; control technologies for buildings, homes and industry; automotive products; turbochargers; and specialty materials. Based in Morris Township, N.J., Honeywell's shares are traded on the New York, London, and Chicago Stock Exchanges. For more news and information on Honeywell, please visit www.honeywellnow.com. Honeywell Building Solutions is part of the Honeywell Automation and Control Solutions business group, a global leader in providing product and service solutions that improve efficiency and profitability, support regulatory compliance, and maintain safe, comfortable environments in homes, buildings and industry. For more information about Building Solutions: www.honeywell.com/buildingsolutions.

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