GridFWD 2022

Join the Grid Forward community for our big annual event in Denver, October 24-26 at Empower Field.

With the focus “Ensuring a Resilient 21st Century Energy System,” GridFWD 2022 will bring together a wide range of energy leaders to explore and advance federal resources and regional developments to harden the grid from disruptions and facilitate a smooth energy transition.

 

Why Grid Resiliency?

The past couple years have been unprecedented for the electric grid: from historic and devastating wildfires, record heat levels, ice storms and much more. The federal commitment to advanced grid deployments has reached a new level with the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. Let’s join together to use federal investment for the greatest impact for all segments of society.

GridFWD 2022
Empower Field, Denver, CO
October 24-26

Download the program summary >

Themes Within Our Focus on Grid Resiliency

These themes align with the testimony Grid Forward provided in the grid resiliency Senate Hearing last fall. There will be cross-cutting conversations in areas including wildfire mitigation, cyber security, regional market developments and others.

Day 1 session topics include:

  • How Innovation Can Drive Critical Resiliency Capabilities Ahead
  • Federal Programs & Industry Plans to Rethink Resiliency
  • Tracking and Creating the Case for Grid Resiliency Investments
  • Community Resiliency: What Role Does the Grid Play
  • Innovation in Undergrounding
  • Optimizing Distribution Grid Operations with Advanced Forecasting
  • Pathways to an Organized Western Electricity System
  • Moving Forward Securely: Threats and Risks to the Modern Grid
  • Steps to Grid Resiliency by Engaging and Empowering EV Owners

Day 2 session topics include:

  • Putting Grid Resiliency Plans into Action
  • State Resiliency Plans
  • Aligning Analytics with Grid Modernization Strategies
  • Managing the Grid in Extreme Weather Conditions
  • Best Practices of Applying Telemetry for Grid Resiliency
  • Advancing Interconnection to Meet Grid Needs
  • Policy to Unlock the Value of Microgrids for More Communities
Adrian Tuck CEO Uplight

“With today’s pressures and threats, it is more critical than ever to advance the capabilities of a cleaner grid. National and regional resources are in motion to progress grid resiliency but the best minds need to come together to quickly accelerate these solutions. The GridFWD community brings these leading voices together and we would welcome them into the great state of Colorado for this meeting.”

— Adrian Tuck, CEO, Uplight

GridFWD 2022 will happen in the expansive Empower Field facility on October 24-26. Join us for an unforgettable experience together with the grid modernization community.

A Dynamic Balance of Presentation and Personal Connection

As we did in our sold-out GridFWD Seattle event this past April, Grid Forward is planning a range of sessions and activities over two days to help attendees achieve their goals for building connections and driving new initiatives.

  • Featured Panels: As always, GridFWD 2022 in Denver will host some of our industry’s leading minds to explore new ideas and proven successes in grid modernization.
  • Unconference Breakouts: Attendees will have the chance to define the topics they want, on the spot, and gather with experts and peers to dig in.
  • Huddles: With so many industry issues and opportunities, GridFWD 2022 will offer a wide range of small-group discussions for sharing best practices and answering questions.
  • Virtual Sessions: We recognize that not everyone will be able to come to Denver for GridFWD 2022, so we will make select sessions available online as well.
  • Grid Innovation Pitch Contest: Hear exciting, fast-paced summaries on the solutions that are driving grid innovation ahead. Join to vote for the winner.
  • Extended breaks and social time: Grid Forward plans for an equal balance of structured and unstructured time during the event, to help our community regroup and move forward.
  • Site Tours: While in Denver we will plan a few site tours to see innovative and interesting energy resources deployed in the local community.

Join our Tours

We have selected tours for the afternoon before the event for those coming into town before. Space for these will fillup fast so confirm your place in registration by mid September to ensure a place.

NREL Research Facilities

The national lab facilities at NREL host industry leading capabilities for advanced grid research. The tour will takeplace at NREL’s Golden, CO campus and will focus on research capabilities for grid modernization and resilience. Attendees will tour multiple labs in the Energy Systems Integration Facility (ESIF) with active research on power system integration, buildings, electric vehicles, energy storage, and hydrogen. 

Colorado State Powerhouse

A retired coal plant has been turned into a leading engines and advanced energy research facility at the CO State
Campus in Fort Collins. Over 100K sq feet of spaces makes it one of the largest universities facilities in the country. After the university tour, the group will walk over to near by New Belgium Brewery to see some of the advanced energy operations they have in place for powering their operations with clean energy.

Panasonic / Xcel Microgrid

This tour is located at the Panasonic smart mobility campus in east Denver. The location is where Panasonic is
developing new products to make transportation smarter, safer and cleaner. The Pena Station off the light rail hosts a solar carport, charging for EVs, batteries and advanced controls. Meet professionals from Panasonic and Xcel to hear about the Microgrid project, how its being used, and where similar efforts like it are heading.

The Grid Innovation Pitch Competition

Grid Forward is hosting the 2022 Grid Innovation Pitch Contest to feature early companies with breakthrough solutions to advance grid resiliency. Our expert judges will pick the winner but attendees get to vote for their favorites as well. Thank you to our pitch contest supporters AWS and Accurant.

Confirmed Pitch Competition Judges:
  • Xing Wang, Amazon
  • Elta Kolo, Huck Capital
  • Drew Robinson, Evergy Ventures
  • Enrique Ruiz, NextEra Energy

Exodigo is the Winner of the Grid Innovation Pitch Contest

Exodigo, a non-intrusive subsurface imaging platform, is announced as the winner of the 2022 Grid Innovation Pitch Competition during GridFWD 2022 at Denver’s Empower Field at Mile High. During the two-day event, eight carefully vetted startups with breakthrough technology or services for advancing grid resiliency participated in a fast-paced pitch hosted by Grid Forward, supported by Amazon Web Services and Accurant.

Headquartered in Tel Aviv and the San Francisco Bay Area, Exodigo provides a new standard for non-intrusive underground discovery. Combining multi-sensor fusion and artificial intelligence, the imaging platform enables users to improve accuracy and time to map, ensuring its partners can design and build with confidence. As the winner, Exodigo claimed $100K in AWS credits, better strengthening the company’s computing processing capacity.

Get a special rate at nearby hotels

We have arrangements at downtown hotels. Contact them directly to confirm your stay:

  • Hotel Curtis (full, no longer available)
  • Magnolia Hotel 
  • Oxford Hotel – Contact Directly august.ridley@sagehospitalitygroup.com

 Grid Forward is Grateful for These Initial Supporters

Want to become a sponsor of GridFWD 2022? Download our prospectus >

Publitek provides marketing, social media and event support to Grid Forward and GridFWD 2022.

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