US DOE helps Entergy plan reconstruction of storm-damaged system

Washington (Platts)--12Oct2005

The US Energy Dept is developing recommendations to help Entergy Corp
incorporate the best available technology as it rebuilds its electricity
infrastructure in the New Orleans area, a company official said Wednesday. 
     At Entergy's request, DOE held a meeting Monday with representatives of
Entergy, other electric utilities and the department's national laboratories
to discuss technologies that would enable the company to replace generation
and distribution facilities ruined by Hurricane Katrina as quickly as
possible, while putting together the most resilient system possible, Floyd
Galvan, a senior project research and development manager with Entergy, said
in an interview.
     "We're not only rebuilding but also implementing new technologies," he
said. "It's important to us to have the community understand what the deal is
with us so they can help us as we go forward." 
     DOE's Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability will prepare
recommendations based on the discussions Monday, Galvan said. 
     Among others participating in the meeting were representatives of
American Electric Power, Exelon Corp and the Tennessee Valley Authority as
well as the Lawrence Berkeley, Oak Ridge, Pacific Northwest and Sandia
national laboratories, he said. 
     The topics discussed included new technologies for managing loads,
sensing disruptions and building modular substations. The group also talked
about distributed-energy systems that Galvan said could help provide
electricity to temporary mobile-home developments. 
     Galvan said DOE plans to convene another meeting that would also include
representatives of state and local governments with a say in utility matters.
     Earlier this week, Kevin Kolevar, the director of the DOE office, said
the department would promote collaborations involving industry and governments
at various levels to help rebuild energy infrastructure in the Gulf Coast
region. Kolevar declined, however, to discuss the meeting with Entergy.

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