Charlotte Leads One Of America’s Newest NSF Regional Innovation Engines
The U.S. National Science Foundation has selected the NSF Grid Modernization Engine in the Carolinas (Carolinas Grid Engine) as one of America’s newest NSF Regional Innovation Engines(NSF Engines). The engine is led by UNC Charlotte and supported by more than 100 partners across North Carolina and South Carolina.
The selection positions the Carolinas as a nationally significant innovation cluster for developing, testing, commercializing and deploying technologies to address one of the nation’s most pressing infrastructure challenges: modernizing the electric grid.
The engine will accelerate adoption of solutions that improve grid reliability, strengthen domestic supply chains and help the United States meet rapidly growing electricity demand driven by artificial intelligence, advanced manufacturing, data centers and population growth.
The award includes an initial $15 million investment over two years, with the potential for up to $160 million over the next decade based on performance milestones.
Spanning a 36-county region, the NSF Grid Modernization Engine in the Carolinas brings together partners including universities, utilities, manufacturers, entrepreneurs, workforce organizations, state and local governments, research institutions, investors and economic development partners.
“This award reflects what is possible when the public and private sectors and communities come together around a shared challenge and shared opportunity,” said Charlotte Chancellor Sharon L. Gaber.
“The Carolinas have built the partnerships, research capability and infrastructure needed to move grid technologies from concept to deployment, and few regions are better positioned to lead that work than Charlotte, where connections across North and South Carolina create a natural gateway for collaboration and innovation. UNC Charlotte is proud to help bring those efforts together.”
The NSF Engines program supports large-scale regional partnerships focused on accelerating the development and deployment of critical technologies, growing regional economies and strengthening America’s global competitiveness.
“This federal investment will allow UNC Charlotte to continue to bring together partners from across the Carolinas and ensure North Carolina remains a leader in research, manufacturing and industry partnerships critical to advancing the next generation of grid technologies,” said U.S. Congressman Richard Hudson.
The late U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham joined Hudson as a longtime advocate for the engine.
“We are grateful to Congressman Hudson and the late Senator Graham for their support of this effort from its earliest stages,” said Chancellor Gaber. “Their confidence in our partners and in the potential of the Carolinas helped make this achievement possible.”
John Daniels, vice chancellor for research at UNC Charlotte and principal investigator for the initiative, said the engine was designed to bring together the partners needed to move promising technologies from the laboratory into widespread use at unprecedented speed.
“Grid modernization cannot happen through isolated efforts,” said Vice Chancellor Daniels “The challenge is not simply developing new technologies. It is moving them from research to testing, commercialization and adoption quickly enough to meet rising demand.
You can look across the country and ask, ‘Where is the highest concentration of expertise, infrastructure and partnerships to accelerate grid modernization?’ The answer is clear; it’s here.”