Tantalus Systems Holding Inc. announced that the United Illuminating Company (UI) will deploy a pilot program that includes the TRUSense Gateway as part of the first round of the Innovative Energy Solutions (IES) Program designed and led by the Connecticut Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA). The pilot will be deployed across a distribution circuit in Bridgeport, Connecticut that delivers power to approximately 1,500 residential homes. Through the deployment, UI will be targeting to control up to 7 kilowatts of power per participating home while also delivering benefits to their customers.

The IES Program represents an ambitious effort to help utilities across Connecticut accelerate grid modernization and decarbonization efforts by delivering benefits to all ratepayers across the state. The program is providing a sandbox structure to focus on innovative electric grid pilots that, subject to demonstrated success, are invited to deploy at scale. The first cycle of the IES Program is centered on demand-side flexibility to shift or reduce electricity demand or consumption from a device's normal electricity profile, supporting advanced forecasting, providing automation, incorporating strategies to manage peak demand and integrating thermal storage.

In collaborating with UI to pursue the IES Program, Tantalus formed a consortium of technology providers, academic institutions and research centers, including GE Appliances, Savant, the University of Connecticut's Eversource Energy Center (UConn), the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and Threshold. The comprehensive project will center around Tantalus' TRUSense Gateway, GE Appliances' electric water heater and Savant's smart circuit breaker companion modules and smart thermostats that will be deployed behind the meter of homes on dedicated feeders and circuits within UI's distribution grid. UConn's Eversource Energy Center will provide grid visibility analytics that leverage data from the deployment while NREL will seek to optimize the use of distributed energy resources.

Under the program, water heaters from GE Appliances will be used as thermal storage devices by pre-heating water in advance of peak load profiles, extreme weather events or emergency situations to protect grid assets. Other loads tied to specific Savant smart circuit breaker companion modules will also be targeted for load management. The behind-the-meter command and control will be delivered to UI through the TRUSense Gateway and TRUSync Grid Data Management software, leveraging existing meter sockets and legacy automated electric meters.