The Research Triangle is home to the largest cluster of companies and organizations with a smart grid interest. This is due to the grid and related research undertaken by North Carolina State University, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Duke University, which make of the universities of Research Triangle Park. A 2016 study found more than 100 smart grid related companies are located in the Research Triangle alone; many with headquarter operations there.
Companies and organizations in this cluster include those engaged in advanced transmission, distribution and energy consumption management, advanced metering technologies, grid hardware and software manufacturing, their supply chain members, universities and institutes engaged in research supporting this technology, organizations training skilled workers for the cluster and financial, legal, accounting and strategic service providers to these companies.
E4 Carolinas will facilitate growth of the Energy Storage Cluster through inventorying and mapping, cluster member engagement, creation of a plan to apply cluster assets to new opportunity and plan implementation to attract companies, start new companies and grow existing companies which are cluster members