Google is aligning its computer programming acumen with GE to promote a "smart" electric power grid and clean energy, according to U.S. media reports Thursday.
They will work together on green energy technologies and lobby U.S. political leaders to support "visionary policies" on renewable energy, the U.S. firms said in a joint release.
During the past two years, Google has launched a series of clean energy initiatives that include investing in geothermal, solar and wind-generated electricity.
Google has a team of engineers working on a "renewable energy cheaper than coal" project with a goal of making energy from earth-friendly sources more affordable than electricity made by burning carbon-spewing fossil fuel.
The benefits of renewable electricity can't fully be realized without updating U.S. power transmission lines into a "smart grid" that lets people track and control what types of power they use and when, according to Google.
The U.S. network of electricity transmission lines needs to be upgraded from a "dumb" system that simply routes power from massive generation plants to users, said Google.org director of climate change and energy initiatives Dan Reicher.
Smart power grids would allow people to conduct tasks such as recharging electric cars at times of day when demand is not high, and enable them to sell solar or other renewable energy back to utility companies.
Google has a fleet of plug-in vehicles that has been testing and invested in the technology.
The U.S. power grid needs a computer-age upgrade if plug-in vehicles are going to be "a benefit instead of a detriment" to the electric system, Reicher said.
Source:Xinhua/Agencies
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