The Côte d’Azur is engaging itself in energy transition by supporting the regional candidacy of “FLEXGRID”, which aims to make the region of Provence Côte d’Azur a living lab for experimentation in the field of smart electrical networks, or smart grids, on a grand scale. Regional communities, industry actors, competitive clusters, and Regional Clusters for Innovation and United Economic Development (PRIDES) are united in a regional dynamic that brings together regional industrial leaders (EDF, Orange, Alstom, ST Microelectronics, and the CEA technology transfer accelerator) and innovative SMEs. The territory chosen by the government will receive up to 80 million euros in investments to deploy a smart grid comprised of more than 150,000 Linky connected electric meters developed by ERDF.
The communal candidacy of the Smart Campus Nice Sophia Antipolis, led by the University of Nice Côte d’Azur, MINES ParisTech, ERDF, and ALSTOM, with the technical support of Capenergies and the Pole SCS as part of the national industrial plan, “Réseaux électriques intelligents” (Smart electrical networks), soon to be labelled by the Minister of the Economy.
The project plans for the deployment of an experimental smart electrical network, first on the campus of SophiaTech in Sophia Antipolis, and later on the future Eco-Campus that is to be constructed in Nice Méridia. The objective is to equip the University of the Côte d’Azur with an innovation platform that unites industrial actors and academics in the field of Smart Grids, as well as to make these two campuses references in terms of smart electrical networks and the optimization of energy resources.
“Smart Campus Sophia Antipolis” will mobilize all of the Smart Grid actors on the Côte d’Azur, a pioneering region in the field that recently created a Smart Grids Club at the initiative of the CCI Nice Côte d’Azur. Events and regular meetups will be organized by the club to unite the actors in this strategic industry that has already mobilized more than 50 million euros in investments in R&D projects on the Côte d’Azur (CCI Nice Côte d’Azur, 2014). [>] To learn more (article in French)
