IEEE PES T&D Conference and Exposition

IEEE PES T&D Conference and Exposition
Name	IEEE PES T&D Conference and Exposition
Abbreviation	T&D
Discipline	Power engineering
Established	1980s
Frequency	Annual
Venue	Various (rotating)
Organizer	IEEE Power & Energy Society
Country	United States (primary), international venues

Contents

IEEE PES T&D Conference and Exposition

The IEEE PES T&D Conference and Exposition is an annual gathering where professionals from General Electric, Siemens, ABB, Schneider Electric, and Eaton Corporation converge with researchers from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford University, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, University of Texas at Austin, and University of Cambridge to present advances in transmission, distribution, and grid integration. Delegates include engineers from National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Argonne National Laboratory, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, and utilities such as Pacific Gas and Electric Company, Southern Company, Duke Energy, National Grid (United Kingdom), and Iberdrola. The event features technical sessions, panel discussions, tutorials, workshops, and an exposition hall where vendors like Hitachi Energy, Mitsubishi Electric, Toshiba, Rockwell Automation, and Honeywell display equipment, software, and services.

Overview

Origins of the conference trace back to industry exchanges among entities like Westinghouse Electric Corporation, Edison Electric Institute, Bell Laboratories, and university consortia including Cornell University and University of Michigan. Over time, participation expanded to include multinational corporations such as Siemens AG, General Electric Company (GE), and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, along with research organizations like Sandia National Laboratories and National Institute of Standards and Technology. Milestones include thematic shifts toward deregulation debates involving Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, large-scale grid modernization initiatives tied to U.S. Department of Energy, and international collaboration with European Commission funded projects. The conference evolved alongside major events in electric power history such as the Northeast blackout of 2003 and policy frameworks influenced by Kyoto Protocol and Paris Agreement discussions.

Program tracks cover smart grid deployments referenced by GridWise Architecture Council, renewable integration exemplified by projects at National Renewable Energy Laboratory, high-voltage direct current systems as developed by Siemens Energy and ABB, and cybersecurity topics aligned with work from NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology), ENISA, and CERT. Sessions include papers from authors affiliated with Imperial College London, ETH Zurich, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, and Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, and case studies from utilities like Tokyo Electric Power Company and Southern California Edison. Workshops often partner with organizations such as CIGRE, IEEE Standards Association, IEC, and American Society of Mechanical Engineers. Tutorials are provided by experts connected to IEEE Power & Energy Society committees, industry labs, and corporate R&D centers at Hitachi Energy and GE Research.

The exposition hall hosts equipment demonstrations from Toshiba Corporation, Hitachi, Siemens Energy, Schneider Electric, ABB, and Mitsubishi Electric, plus software vendors including OSIsoft, Schneider Electric Software, and GE Digital. Startups backed by accelerators like Plug and Play Tech Center and research spinouts from MIT Lincoln Laboratory and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory present prototypes in energy storage, microgrids, and power electronics. Utilities such as American Electric Power and Con Edison coordinate booths and outreach, while government agencies—including U.S. Department of Energy, European Commission, and Japan METI—host policy panels. Standards organizations like IEEE Standards Association and IEC hold joint sessions on interoperability and conformance testing.

The conference has showcased landmark studies and pilot projects such as large battery storage demonstrations tied to Tesla, Inc. equipment, HVDC interconnection projects involving Siemens Energy and ABB, microgrid deployments referenced by Sandia National Laboratories, and offshore wind grid integration work involving Ørsted and Vestas Wind Systems. Award-winning papers have come from teams at MIT, Stanford University, Imperial College London, and Tsinghua University addressing topics later incorporated into standards by IEEE Standards Association and policy adopted by FERC (Federal Energy Regulatory Commission). Notable presentations have influenced regional projects led by PJM Interconnection, California ISO, and National Grid.

The event is organized by IEEE Power & Energy Society with sponsorship from corporations such as General Electric, Siemens, Schneider Electric, Hitachi Energy, and ABB. Attendance draws engineers, researchers, policymakers, and vendors from institutions like NREL, Argonne National Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratories, Pacific Gas and Electric Company, and multinational utilities including Enel and Iberdrola. Host cities have included metropolitan centers with convention facilities used by events like Consumer Electronics Show and Hannover Messe, engaging local industry clusters and academic partners.

The conference functions as a catalyst for technology transfer among GE Vernova, Siemens Energy, Schneider Electric SE, Hitachi Energy, and research institutions such as MIT, Stanford University, and Tsinghua University. Proceedings influence standards development at IEEE Standards Association, IEC, and reliability guidelines at NERC, while informing regulatory discussions with FERC and infrastructure programs from U.S. Department of Energy and European Commission. Its role in advancing HVDC, converter technologies, energy storage, microgrids, and interoperability has affected deployments by PJM Interconnection, California ISO, National Grid, and global utilities.