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Bridging the Gaps on Prepaid Utility Service

Sept. 15, 2015

U.S. Department of Energy

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A modern electric grid offers utilities and consumers wide-ranging new opportunities. Investments made through The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act) helped catalyze the transition to a modern grid by providing the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) with $4.5 billion to advance the deployment of smart grid technologies. This investment, leveraged with equivalent funding from the electricity industry, has helped utilities acquire and deploy technologies that enable a more intelligent electricity delivery system, including more than 15 million smart meters, 20,000 substation monitors, and 1,000 new synchrophasors.

The large-scale deployment of smart meters and supporting technology through these projects is now enabling utilities to explore new consumer-facing programs and service offerings. Consumers, in turn, have many more choices about how they purchase electricity and manage their energy use. Prepaid utility service - which allows consumers to pay in advance for their electricity - is one area where these changes converge.

The Department of Energy's Office of Electricity (OE) recognizes that our nation's sustained economic prosperity, quality of life, and global competitiveness depends on an abundance of secure, reliable, and affordable energy resources. OE leads the Department of Energy's efforts to ensure a resilient, and flexible electricity system in the United States. Learn more about OE >>

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