Smart Grid Consumer Collaborative Head to Address Consumer Benefits at 2011 National Electricity Forum Panel

ATLANTA, Feb. 15, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- "How will consumers benefit from smart grid initiatives?" Smart Grid Consumer Collaborative (SGCC) Executive Director Patty Durand will join a panel discussing this question on the final day of the 2011 National Electricity Forum in Washington, D.C.  The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability and the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) jointly sponsor this annual forum.

Following a closing keynote at 12:30 p.m. by DOE Secretary Stephen Chu, the panel will talk over issues affecting consumers, including data privacy and cost/benefit realities.

Durand will be joined by fellow panelists Robert Kenney, Commissioner of the Missouri Public Service Commission, Bill Kevis, Consumer Counsel for the Colorado Office of Consumer Counsel, and Joseph Rigby, Chairman of the Board, President and CEO of PEPCO Holdings, Inc.  Joe Paladino, DOE Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability Senior Advisor, will moderate the panel.

Durand, who became SGCC executive director in January 2011, brings consumer-facing service perspective from her role as past Sierra Club of Georgia director and advanced technology knowledge from her work at the Georgia Institute of Technology's Smart Grid and Energy Research Institute.  Durand also brings insights from the SGCC's "2011 State of the Consumer Report," an analysis of 80+ sources of residential consumers' views.

Study findings indicate that consumer segmentation along personal values and priorities may result in improved consumer adoption of smart energy practices than traditional demographics such as age or income.  "The study shows that consumers with an interest in technology or the environment want to know more, and could become energy champions," says Executive Director Patty Durand.

For more on the 2011 National Electricity Forum: http://www.nationalelectricityforum.org/.

About the Smart Grid Consumer Collaborative (SGCC)

The SGCC is a consumer focused non-profit organization aiming to promote the understanding and benefits of modernized electrical systems among all stakeholders in the United States.  Membership is open to all consumer and environmental advocates, technology vendors, research scientists, and electric utilities for sharing in research, best practices, and collaborative efforts of the group.  Join @ www.smartgridcc.org.

SOURCE Smart Grid Consumer Collaborative

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