Georgia utility Southern Company is teaming up with Georgia Tech and Smart Wires to roll out a US Department of Energy (DOE)-backed project aimed at boosting Georgia’s electric grid.
The initiative, which kicks off in 2025, will bring advanced power flow control (APFC) and dynamic line rating (DLR) technologies to the grid, making it easier to integrate renewable energy and more rapidly accommodate new demand.
Georgia Tech’s Center for Distributed Energy is heading up the project. The DOE chose it in November 2021 as one of four projects for grid-enhancing technology (GET) funding. GET is designed to improve grid reliability, maximize existing infrastructure, and speed up the connection of renewable power.
The project will use Smart Wires’ APFC, called SmartValve, alongside its DLR software, known as SUMO. Together, they’ll develop control algorithms to optimize grid usage and help these solutions work better in tandem.
Tim Lieuwen, interim executive vice president for research at Georgia Tech, called the project “an important step toward more efficient and reliable integration of cleaner energy sources.” He highlighted the collaboration’s potential to test innovative ways to manage the grid in Georgia by combining APFC and DLR technologies.
This will be the first large-scale deployment that combines both APFC and DLR, and the project will assess how they work together to improve efficiency. Basically, SUMO monitors real-time weather conditions to identify when power lines have extra capacity, while SmartValve can redirect power to those lines to take advantage of that extra space. On the flip side, if it’s a hot day and lines are strained, SmartValve can shift power to circuits with more room, reducing the risk of issues and keeping operations running smoothly.
What’s more, SmartValves are mobile and can be installed in just a week. That means they can be moved around to meet changing system needs, without long outages.
The project includes a one-year performance period to give Southern Company hands-on experience that could help other utilities adopt similar solutions and expand the use of grid-enhancing tech across the US.
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Hyundai is about to launch a new electric SUV in China. With its big debut coming up, Hyundai just dropped a sneak peek, and it looks like it could be the IONIQ 4. Check it out for yourself in the video below.
Is Hyundai teasing the IONIQ 4?
We caught our first glimpse of the new EV model last month after Beijing Hyundai released a few official “spy” photos.
Despite the camouflage, you can see a few design elements, like a light bar across the front, slim LED headlights, and a closed-off grille. At first, it almost looks like a smaller version of the IONIQ 9, Hyundai’s first three-row electric SUV, but with a much sportier, shaped profile.
Beijing Hyundai released a new teaser for the upcoming electric SUV this week. The video shows “a wave of high-end operations” as the vehicle dances across the snow.
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The video highlights features like real-time torque control, high-speed cornering, and the SUV’s impressive body control while driving around cones.
Hyundai’s new electric SUV is being called “OE” internally, according to The Korean Car Blog, suggesting it could be an IONIQ model.
All other Hyundai IONIQ EV models were also codenamed with an “E” internally, which is raising speculation that this could be the IONIQ 4.
Like most global OEMs, Hyundai is fighting to compete in an intense Chinese EV market, which is dominated by domestic automakers like BYD.
Hyundai teases new electric SUV in China (Source: Beijing Hyundai)
Hyundai opened its first overseas R&D center last year in China to spearhead its comeback. It will work with local suppliers and tech companies to develop EVs designed for Chinese buyers. The new electric SUV is expected to launch in China later this year, followed by three new energy vehicles, including EVs and EREVs.
Beijing Hyundai will release more information on April 16, with the electric SUV set to “challenge the limit of driving performance.”
What do you think of Hyundai’s new electric SUV? Is this the IONIQ 4? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
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Charge point provider char.gy has secured a £130 million contract to install 6,000 curbside EV chargers for Brighton and Hove City Council (BHCC) – the UK’s largest installation of its kind.
London-based char.gy has also been awarded a 15-year contract to operate and maintain the charging network.
Installing Level 2 chargers curbside, where most drivers in the UK park, will enable more people to take advantage of cheaper charging rates while juicing up their EVs overnight. (charg.gy’s pay as you go night tariff, between midnight and 7 am, is £0.39/kWh, compared to its £0.59/kWh day tariff.)
John Lewis, chief executive of char.gy, said the project is “a huge moment for the UK and its EV ambitions. This partnership alone will empower thousands of residents to confidently make the switch to electric vehicles, knowing they have easy access to chargers.”
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Brighton and Hove City Council is among the first to tap into the government’s Local EV Infrastructure (LEVI) Fund, designed to help English local authorities roll out charging solutions for residents without off-street parking. Future of Roads Minister Lilian Greenwood said making EV charging as accessible as possible is “crucial to making the switch to electric a success.”
The UK now has over 75,000 public EV chargers, according to the Department for Transport—and it looks like the country’s on pace to hit its 2030 target. Back in December, the National Audit Office said the rollout is “on track” to meet the DfT’s estimate that at least 300,000 chargers will be needed by the end of the decade.
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