A Roundtable with ComEd and the Illinois Commerce Commission on the Opportunities, Barriers, and Hurdles of Connecting a New Technology to the Electric Grid.
This event has ended.
After demonstrating a technology’s ability to provide an innovative solution to the electric grid, entrepreneurs face a new space of regulation, utility partnerships, and policy that differs significantly from the space in which startups operate. Taking a technology from a good idea to widespread deployment in the electricity space requires a strong understanding of how different policy and key stakeholders shape that technology’s market potential. In this roundtable discussion with the Illinois Commerce Commission and ComEd, mHUB members will have the opportunity to hear how entrepreneurs can work with utilities to scale their technologies and gain a better understanding of the regulatory space in which utilities operate.
Participant Bios:
Carrie Zalewski
Chairman at the Illinois Commerce Commission
Carrie serves as a utility regulator, energy attorney with an engineering background with over 15 years of experience in environmental and energy regulation and led the Commission through the implementation of the first round of the State’s historic Climate and Equitable Jobs Act. She served on the Board of Directors of the Organization of MISO States and currently serves on the Board of the Organization of PJM States.
Honghao Zheng
Manager of Grid Strategy & Analytics in Smart Grid Emerging Technology at ComEd
Honghao Zheng supports new technology ideation, industrial R&D, and complex project execution. Currently he is leading Smart Grid DOE portfolio, Microgrid Deployment, Distributed Intelligence, Quantum Computing and several other strategic initiatives. Prior to ComEd, he worked as a technical lead of Spectrum Power Operator Training Simulator and Transmission Network Applications modules for Siemens Industry. Zheng received his Ph.D. in electrical engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2015 and he is a registered professional engineer.
Paul Pabst
Senior Manager of Emerging Technologies at ComEd’s Smart Grid Department
Paul Pabst, P.E., PMP has 15 years of power system project experience ranging from voltage optimization, renewable energy, microgrids, Phasor Measurement Units, distribution automation, and traditional medium voltage power systems. He has published papers on his work and has been a power system design instructor at conferences and seminars. He has received U.S. patents while serving as the engineer of record on multiple award-winning utility-scale microgrid projects. He has held multiple executive roles within the IEEE PES Chicago chapter and is the current IEEE PES Chapters Awards Chair.
