AHAM’s Director of Energy Analysis, Charlotte Skidmore, will be attending the Asia- Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC’s) Regulatory Cooperation Advancement Mechanism (ARCAM) Dialogue on Smart Grid Interoperability Standards on May 12-13 in Montana, where the world’s policy makers will discuss the deployment of the Smart Grid.   

Smart grid is at a critical juncture, and APEC economies now face choices with respect to policies on smart grid technologies that will impact trade and investment opportunities to include harmonization of standards. As such, the US will be presenting a proposal to initiate discussions in ARCAM on interoperability standards to lay out a vision to enable free and open trade in smart grid products.

The goal of the ARCAM meeting on smart grid is to develop a shared understanding of this issue, increase transparency and promote better alignment of technical requirements and standards for smart grid and related devices.  The Dialogue will enable policy makers in APEC economies to better understand the close relationship between decisions on interoperability standards and trade and investment in key sectors in the Asia-Pacific.