Leaders of seven national smart grid organizations have officially launched the Global Smart Grid Federation, an international organization to promote best practices and to help accelerate the deployment of smart grid around the world.

Founding members of GSGF are national smart grid policy or advocacy organizations, represented by their respective chairman, president or equivalent officer on the Board of Directors. The members include: GridWise Alliance (U.S.); India Smart Grid Forum; Japan Smart Community Alliance; Korean Smart Grid Association; Smart Grid Australia; SmartGridIreland; and SmartGrid Canada.

“Through the mutual exchange of ideas and the sharing of knowledge about smart grid deployment in our respective countries and industries, we can help overcome barriers to smart grid deployment,” said Guido Bartels, the new chairman of the GSGF and chairman of the GridWise Alliance. “GSGF will facilitate within the international community an unparalleled level of communication and collaboration that will advance the smart grid across the globe – improving efficiency, stimulating economic growth, integrating renewable and reducing CO2 emissions.”

“GSGF will be dedicated to the development of advanced smart grid solutions around the globe by encouraging each nation’s smart grid related technologies.” said Ja-Kyun Koo, the new vice-chairman of GSGF and chairman of Korea Smart Grid Association. “As the world’s leading organization for the spread of smart grid, we are also fully committed to obtaining participation by other nations that are investing in smart grid.”

In addition to working to provide solutions to the most challenging obstacles to global smart grid implementation, GSGF will work with government policymakers to execute a national agenda on smart grid, helping governments understand these challenges, including consumer engagement, innovation and capacity building.

The need for an organization such as GSGF was identified after leaders of the 17 partners of the Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate (MEF) developed a Technical Action Plan (TAP) in December 2009 to encourage coordinated smart grid development and deployment. Based on bilateral collaboration agreements previously in place between the GridWise Alliance and other national smart grid organizations, the GridWise Alliance invited the six other organizations to join in creating GSGF to formalize a global partnership to execute actions in accordance with the Smart Grid TAP.

The GSGF was established in the US as a 501(c)(3) corporation. The Board of Directors, lead by Chairman Guido Bartels, will direct all activities of the GSGF. The representative from the Korea Smart Grid Association will serve as Vice-Chair, assuming the Chair position at the end of Bartels’s two-year term.