​Washington D.C. (May 13, 2021) – Pepco and the District Department of Energy and Environment (DOEE) have announced a collaborative effort to deliver on the District's vision for an inclusive clean energy future that leverages innovation, creates connections and advances new and emerging technologies. Together, DOEE and Pepco, with community input, will design a Connected Community Roadmap for the Mount Vernon community and surrounding Shaw, Northwest One, and NoMa neighborhoods in the District of Columbia. 

This project comes as a result of the Public Service Commission of the District of Columbia's approval of Pepco's request to construct a new substation to meet the growing energy needs of the Mount Vernon community. As part of the Commission's approval of the substation, Pepco will construct a new substation to include three transformers and will work with DOEE and the local community on an innovative approach to identify non-wires solutions that can defer the installation of a fourth transformer at the substation. 

"As we work to provide safe, affordable, reliable and sustainable service to our customers, we continuously strive to find innovative ways to meet customer needs and identify new energy solutions," said Donna Cooper, Pepco region president. "The first step in this exciting partnership with DOEE is to design a holistic and inclusive Connected Community Roadmap for the Mount Vernon community to meet both existing and future energy needs that is informed by community input. This collaborative effort with DOEE is an example of our full support of the District's clean energy, climate change and inclusivity goals - while meeting our commitment to provide the level of service our customers expect and that we are committed to delivering."

Pepco and DOEE will undertake a collaborative effort, working closely with the community by evaluating the use of technologies like battery storage, solar photovoltaic arrays, energy efficiency measures, Wi-Fi kiosks, and other technologies that will address community priorities such as enhanced resilience, system reliability, affordable energy service, improved air quality, greenhouse gas emission reductions, and helping to close the digital divide.

"DOEE supports innovative ideas from the private sector to accelerate the achievement of Mayor Bowser's ambitious clean energy and sustainability goals, and to pioneer replicable, scalable solutions for mitigating the impacts of climate change," said Tommy Wells, DOEE Director.  "Modernizing the electric distribution system relies on comprehensive and innovative solutions that are designed to benefit the public and the ratepayers. We look forward to working with Pepco to develop a framework that prioritizes the health and wellbeing of our residents, and to develop additional tools other jurisdictions could replicate to help meet their own climate change goals."

DOEE and Pepco have collaboratively developed a preliminary statement of purpose for the Connected Community Roadmap project to ensure that the goals are clear, focused and aligned with the District's policy goals and reflect the important priorities of the surrounding community. DOEE and Pepco are planning a series of stakeholder and community workshops to review, receive input, and help generate ideas for inclusion in the project's design phase. The final Roadmap will be designed based on input from the previous phases, which will include extensive community outreach and engagement. The Roadmap-design process should take approximately 12 months.

The Connected Community Roadmap will continue to advance Pepco's commitment to provide safe, reliable, affordable and sustainable electric service to its valued customers and modernize the energy grid to serve as a platform to meet the District's clean energy and inclusive innovation goals. This demonstration project recognizes the changing future of energy and the need to transform today's grid into the platform that facilitates varied energy transactions and customer experiences of the future.

Based on the project timeline, Pepco's new Mount Vernon substation is scheduled to be in service by 2023 to serve existing and future energy needs in the Mount Vernon, Shaw, Northwest One, and NoMa neighborhoods.