BGE has been selected for up to $50 million in grant funding from the U.S. Department of Energy's Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnerships (GRIP) Program to support infrastructure and advanced technology investments in the electric distribution system that will improve service for customers and help progress the state of Maryland toward its ambitious climate goals. The funding opportunity, made available through the Biden-Harris Administration's Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, would also support community resiliency initiatives and workforce development programs.

The proposed BGE Interconnection Readiness and Deployment of Storage (BIRDS) program endeavors to build an industry-leading grid modernization blueprint by deploying an anticipated 11 MW of scalable battery energy storage solutions across BGE's distribution system, amplifying foundational monitoring and control through substation upgrades, and enabling through BGE's subrecipients up to 3 MW of customer-owned solar + storage and electric vehicle charging stations.

"The improved system capacity and flexibility provided by BIRDS will be a vital step in meeting state and local climate goals while maintaining a focus on community needs and resilience," said Mark Case, vice president of Regulatory Policy and Strategy at BGE. "With support from policy makers to community partners, this project affirms the shared commitment of a broad, diverse group of stakeholders to investing in the energy transformation with intention ensuring opportunities and benefits created by this important work are equitable and accessible."

Individual BIRDS initiatives will work in concert to benefit the grid, customers, and communities.

Deploying battery storage
BIRDS will add distributed battery energy storage capacity to the BGE system and help the state of Maryland reach its goal of 3,000 MW of new battery energy storage by 2033. The project includes accelerated deployment of battery energy storage systems (BESS) along select distribution feeders throughout BGE's service area to address distribution system needs.

Preparing substations for distributed energy resources
Electric vehicles, rooftop solar installations, and other distributed energy resources (DER) are already playing an important role in the grid of the future, but coordinating and connecting these resources is expensive and extraordinarily complex. BIRDS expedites technology upgrades in BGE's substations to intelligently integrate DER capacity with the grid for substations that need it the most. The project's substation investments aim to shorten the interconnection process for customers and improve coordination of substation operations.

Unlocking more grid benefits with Distributed Energy Management Software
The increasing proliferation of DERs has introduced both challenges and opportunities for modern grid management. To address these challenges and maximize the potential of DERs, BIRDS advances BGE's Distributed Energy Resource Management Systems (DERMS) functionality, which is a crucial framework for effective coordination, optimization, and control of DERs. BIRDS will build on this foundation to develop new, innovative DERMS functionalities to achieve grid modernization by creating actionable, data-driven grid insights and promote increased penetration of non-wires grid solutions across BGE's service territory.

Encouraging DER adoption through community partnerships
BGE is partnering with Open Works, Howard County (Md.), and Civic Works to deploy community-owned DERs (battery, solar, and EV charging) to assess broad adoption and effectiveness of small-scale microgrids that can serve as resiliency hubs for neighborhoods. Resiliency hubs are community-trusted facilities that provide temporary shelter, backup power, and access to resources such as fresh water, food, medicine, and charging stations in the event of a prolonged emergency.

As subrecipients, Open Works, Civic Works, and Howard County will install DERs to support or create community resiliency hubs. Open Works, based in Baltimore City, provides tools, equipment, classes, and space for professionals and the community alike; Civic Works is a Baltimore-based non-profit that has over 20 years of experience providing job training, skills development, and community service.

"Since we unveiled our transformational Howard County Climate Forward: Climate Action and Resiliency Plan' last year, we have been hard at work implementing effective strategies and programs aimed at reducing our greenhouse gas emissions by 60 percent by 2030 and net-zero by 2045," said Howard County Executive Calvin Ball. "This innovative partnership with BGE will help us further advance our efforts toward a greener, more sustainable future by expanding our renewable energy sources, increasing our resiliency to climate impacts, and growing our electric vehicle charging infrastructure to further support electric vehicle adoption. Additionally, in increasing our on-site solar energy generation and adding solar battery storage, we are helping to improve the overall resiliency of our electric grid."

Promoting workforce development
BGE will amplify the positive impact of BIRDS by creating DER-focused workforce development training programs in collaboration with local community colleges, union training organizations, and local trade-focused non-profits. This work also helps address the critical trade shortage and seeds a new pipeline of workers who have family-sustaining jobs because they are capable of installing emerging DER technologies.

"Civic Works is proud to partner with BGE and thrilled to receive support to implement the project. This grant will strengthen energy grid resilience in local Baltimore communities and help address the critical need for skilled workers in battery storage installation and maintenance," said Eli Allen, senior program director with Civic Works.

Prospective GRIP program funding for BIRDS is part of nearly $2 billion DOE recently announced for 38 projects that will deploy new, innovative transmission and distribution infrastructure and technology upgrades to enable over 7.5 GW of grid capacity, speed up interconnection for new clean energy projects, support nearly 6,000 good-paying jobs, and catalyze over $4.2 billion in total public and private investment to bring reliable, affordable, clean energy to Americans.

Funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the GRIP program is investing $10.5 billion in communities across the country to enhance grid flexibility and improve the resilience of the power system against growing threats of extreme weather and climate change. In total, GRIP projects are expected to enable 55 GW of grid capacity, equivalent to powering more than 40 million homes each year.

"As extreme weather events continue to stress electric systems across the country, the Biden-Harris Administration is using every tool in the toolbox to make sure America's power grid can provide reliable, affordable power," said Maria Robinson, director, Grid Deployment Office, U.S. Department of Energy. "BGE's project will enhance grid resilience, support the integration of renewable energy, and support integrating state-of-the-art distribution system solutions and technologies, while also preparing for the future by supporting workforce development programs for Marylanders in the installation and maintenance of these new technologies." 

GRIP funding for BIRDS is subject to final agreement between BGE and DOE on terms and conditions.

Exelon's ADMS project application was also conditionally selected to enter the negotiation phase of a GRIP funding opportunity. Previously, BGE's sister Exelon utilities PECO and ComEd received GRIP funding.A full list of GRIP projects is available at energy.gov.