The smart grid predictions for 2012

Every year IDC Energy Insights predicts the trend for the upcoming year. IDC Energy Insights is one of the top global research firm providing predictive analytical information to the energy industry. At this year webinar the focus was on North American utility and energy industry, where, according to HorizonWatching, the  following top 10 trends were identified. "The industry is entering in post stimulus period. While funding has dried up, there are areas where investment spending is growing, such as solar PV installation, smart grid, smart buildings, electric vehicles, and energy storage", says IDC Energy Insights. 

The Top 10 List

1) Smart Meter: The growth will peak in 2012, which will usher demand response growth

2) Distribution Automation: It will grow at 13% CAGR in 2012

3) Smart Buildings: The investment in this area will gain more traction

4) Electric Vehicles: Around 120,000 EVs will be sold in North America in 2012

5) Lithium Batteries: The  Li-ion batteries price will drop to $600 per KWH by the end of 2012

6) Solar PV Installations: It will grow more than 25% despite the expiring of 1063 treasury grant

7) Commercial PV: Micro-inverters or DC optimizers will be incorporated in > 60 MW plants

8) Security & Risk: It will be the key concern for decision makers,prompting them to invest more

9) Big Data Analytics: Utilities will increase their investment to derive business value out of this

10) IT Spending: The IT spending bu utilities will grow by 4.5% over the next four years

Jesse Burst, the founder of SmartGridNews and one of the foremost expert in Smart Grid, identified 9 trends out of the same IDC Energy Insights webinar. Except following few most of them are similar to the top 10 official prediction listed above.

1) Utilities mergers and acquisition will accelerate

2) Demand will flatten or even fall

3) Municipal and Co-ops will drive new AMI deployments 

4) 2012 will be make or break for Electric Vehicle

India to be third largest smart grid market after China and the US

IEEE- Standards Association (IEEE -SA), the standards development body of IEEE predicts that India is set to become the third largest smart grid market in the world. IEEE-SA is looking forward to collaborate with Indian academics, standards bodies, experts, industry leaders, and government to develop India-specific standards to meets it unique and specific needs. “Without proper standards, the realization of smart grid would be difficult. IEEE-SA is investing in creating awareness and bringing multiple stakeholders together to transfer best practices and knowledge from Smart Grid markets and perspectives,” Mr Srikanth Chandrasekaran, Chairperson of IEEE-SA India SIG (Standards Interest Group), said. “IEEE-SA has taken a lead role in the identification and development of standards for the smart grid.” Earlier this year,IEEE-SA launched Smart Grid Interoperability standards project in India  under the India Standards Interest Group, which will closely work with their global parent group IEEE P2030 to introduce the Interoperability standards enabling faster Smart Grid Implementation.

According to recent ZPRYME report, Indian smart grid market is going to reach $1.9 billion by 2015 growing at CAGR rate of 16.3%. During the initial years, the smart grid growth may be normal, however it is set to explode towards the end of the decade as India plans to invest $900 billion in electrical infrastructure by 2020. During the same period, India plans to install 20,000 MW of solar power. The successful integration of various power sources and efficient utilization of this energy can only happen through smart intelligent grid. To meet these objectives, the country plans to install 130 million smart meters by 2021 providing huge opportunity for smart grid companies.

International Smart Grid Leaders to Gather at GridWeek Asia

Government and Smart Grid industry leaders from both India and the U.S. will gather at GridWeek Asia Jan. 16-18, 2012 in Mumbai, India to cover topics ranging from standards and interoperability to smart meters and consumer engagement in a content-rich agenda featuring keynote addresses, roundtable discussions, and breakout sessions.

No other event in the region will deliver such an esteemed group of international technology companies, standards organizations, government entities, and utilities.

Feathured speakers include:

George Arnold Suresh Prabhu Eric Dresselhuys R.N. Nayak

P Uma Shankar Bernard Delpech Mark Gabriel Reji Kumar

Sam Pitroda Chris Hickman Narendra Singh Sodha Ronald Binz

Share Best Practices - Insights from Robust Agenda and Top Speakers

Only the combination of GridWeek Asia and ELECRAMA 2012 offers the opportunity to learn from, and network with, these global Smart Grid leaders in two days of conference and exhibition.
This content-rich conference will cover critical topics, including:

• Building Smart Grid capabilities in a developing region;
• Supplying electricity to meet rapidly increasing demand;
• Driving efficiency and demand response programs;
• Integrating renewable power;
• Facilitating economic and open trade -- understanding opportunities to export Indian and Asian Smart Grid solutions to other parts of the world;
• And more. 

For more details check the GridWeek Asia webpage

The Smart Meters market to be worth $49 billion in emerging economies

The growth of smart meters is gaining momentum across the world. The developed economies, the USA, Germany, Japan, Canada, the UK, France, and Italy are leading the smart meters growth worldwide, however, the next stage growth is going to come from emerging economies like countries from Eastern Europe, North Africa, Middle East, South Africa, Southeast Asia, and Latin America. The recent report from Northeast group covers 25 such emerging countries where Smart Meters is going to become worth $27 to $49 billion markets in the coming decade. 

"Smart grid offers emerging markets a number of potential benefits. Countries can improve overall electric utility reliability, reduce electricity theft rates, manage surging demand and incorporate new sources of renewable energy. Modernizing the electricity infrastructure will be increasingly important as these economies grow quickly over the next several years. The 25 countries in the study are forecast to see average annual GDP growth of 4.3% over the next five years, compared with 1.7% in the developed world," according to Northeast Group, LLC

The 11 of the 25 countries, which includes Brazil, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Mexico, Hungary, Poland Romania, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, and the United Arab Emirates, are well-positioned to implement smart meters deployment in next 1-3 years. Brazil, which is set to implement almost 65 million smart meters over  the next decade will be the biggest growth market among all the studied countries. India and China are not studied in this report. 

Key questions addressed in this report:

• Which emerging market countries have the most developed smart grid regulatory frameworks?
• Which emerging market countries have the potential to reap the most direct benefits from smart meter deployments?
• Which international and local vendors are best placed to take advantage of growth in emerging markets smart grid?
• How will regional bodies such as the EU, ASEAN, and GCC expedite deployments?
• What other smart grid projects such as distribution automation, substation automation and home energy management are also evolving?

This 5 types of energy consumers are impacting smart grid growth

1) This 5 types of energy consumers are impacting smart grid growth

Smart Grid Consumer Collaborative (SGCC) recently conducted telephone survey of 1200 US resident to understand the customer segmentation.  With the increase of Smart Meters and Smart Grid installation, it has become essential for utilities to understand their behavior so they can target the customer for their active participation in demand side energy management. According to SGCC, the whole group fall in five broad categories; 1) Concerned Green (31%), 2) Young America(23%),  3) Easy Street (20%), 4) DIY & Save (16%) and 5) Traditional(11%).

2) Jeju Smart Grid Pilot celebrates 2nd Anniversary

Jeju (South Korea) Smart Grid Pilot commemorated 2nd anniversary of the project by hosting a two-day event, which was attended by experts from Japan, China, and Denmark.  "The second commemoration is meaningful because we established a stronger bond with leading Smart Grid testing cities in Korea, China, and Japan,” said  Jang Won-Guk, Director of Jeju Technopark Digital Convergence Center.  Dr. Suzuki of Nagasaki EV & ITS was so impressed with the Smart Grid development in Jeju  island that he expressed keen interest of forging partnership between Nagasaki and Jeju.


3) Renewable Energy Transforming Power Grids

Speakers of Clean Energy expo Asia expressed that companies across the world are facing steep learning curve when it comes to adapting the Grid for future energy scenario especially for mixing the volatile  renewable energy. Dr Wojszczyk, global director of GE smart grid technologies section said, " Another major issue with integrating wind power into electricity grids is the limited operating capacity of wind turbines, which on average generate only 40 per cent of their maximum capacity. Transmission lines need to be built for full capacity, and grid operators need to justify their investment in the infrastructure".

4) South Korea passes smart grid network law

President Lee Myung Bak passed the legislation in a cabinet meeting today for electric-car recharging services and power distributors who will be adopting smart grid network according to ministry of knowledge and economy, thus making it a first country in the world to have smart grid law. The law will come into effect from November 25th. South Korea has pledged to reduce carbon emission by 30% from the current level by the year 2020. The fourth largest Asian economy is going to spend around $24 billion in smart grid technologies by 2030. 


5) Energy revolution necessary to meet Europe's 2050 low carbon economy
A recent report published by Oracle suggests that to achieve Europe's 2050 vision of low carbon economy, which envisions of reducing greenhouse gas emission by 80 -95% of pre 1990 level , Smart Grid development is necessary. Smart Grid will enhance energy efficiency and help manage demand side management , as well as integrated renewable and variable energy sources, thus playing critical role in achieving the goals. In 2007, European Council committed to reduce greenhouse gas emission by 20%,  increase renewable energy share by 20%, and increase energy efficiency by 20% by 2020. The 20:20:20  goals are the first step towards the larger vision of 2050. 

What's up at Smart Energy International India, 2011

Smart Energy India- the premier energy conference in India, which echos the development of Smart Grid is all set to debut on November 14th, 2011 with a theme "Today's inter-operable solution for tomorrow's integrated grid." According to organizers, "Smart Energy International - India forms part of a global series of events that provides one of the most effective experiential forums available to the electricity utilities industry. Events take place in Australia, Middle East, USA, Canada, Asia and now India. They are an asset that presents you to international markets by connecting global buyers to sellers and people to people in the connected future worldwide! The conference presents Smart Energy India and World Meter Design Congress, which—together with the pre-conference on Smart Cities-will form a unique gathering of international and national experts and market leaders." 

The premier event will be attended by who's who of the industry including Sam Pitroda, adivsor to Prime Minister and convener, Smart Grid India Forum.  The two keynote speakers will present their views on following topics.

 India: Technological advancements and future goals

 By Honorable Mr. P. Umashankar, Secretary, Ministry of Power, Government of India

Interoperability: Tomorrow’s answer today

Mr. Sam Pitroda, Advisor to the Prime Minister and Convener, The Smart Grid India Forum

   Featured Speakers

• Mr. G. V. Balram, Chief General Manager, BESCOM
• Mr. R. K. Goyal, Principal Consultant, Tetratech
• Dr. M. V. Krishna Rao, Director, GECE
• Mr. Harsh Sharma, Vice President - Meters, BSES
• Dr. Rahul Tongia, Director, C-Step

   Key Sessions

• The current state of the Indian Grid – an insight into the transmission and distribution scenarios
• Green Power - Renewable energy Integration in the Smart Grid
• Interoperability in the smart grid – an introduction
• ICT for Smart Distribution Systems – an introduction
• Smart consumer policies for a smarter grid

Apart from the above key highlights, the additional and probably the most exciting thing this year has is Smart Grid technical study tour which will visit Mumbai, Delhi, and Bangalore providing participants a broader insights of Smart Energy opportunities in India. India intends to provide electricity to every household by 2012, which will require over $100 billion investment in new transmission , distribution, and other related infrastructure representing huge opportunity for investors, companies, and other stakeholders. 

For more program details, use the following links

Website: http://www.smartenergy-india.com

Event Brochure

Smart Grid in Asia Pacific: Potential,Opportunities, and Growth

Asia-Pacific is consider one of the most dynamic and the fastest growing region in the world. With over quarter of the world population located in this part, and most of the countries still in development stages, there is huge growth potential in almost all segments. The hyper- growth is fueling the demand for more energy, which in turn is creating significant market opportunities for clean-tech market. According recent report, published by the leading clean tech market intelligence firm PikeResearch, Smart Grid investment in Asia Pacific is set to reach $171.3 billion by 2017. The report notes that for every country the drivers for Smart Grid implementation are significantly different.

According to senior analyst, Andy Bai, "Chinese market players believe that the construction of a smart grid is a key part of economic growth and enhancing the ability to optimize energy allocation, including the integration of new generation capacity from both renewable and fossil fuel sources.  Japan’s electric utilities have been investing huge amounts of capital in power infrastructure, resulting in advanced capabilities in transmission infrastructure and power delivery services; however, the tragic March 2011 earthquake, tsunami, and resulting Fukushima nuclear accident are likely to redefine not only Japan’s smart grid planning, but perhaps the direction of the nation’s utility industry.  Korea seeks to leverage its technology leadership in the IT and communications space to form an advanced smart grid infrastructure within the country, as well as an opportunity to export smart grid technologies around the world.  Significant and influential smart grid projects are also underway in Australia, India, and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region.” The analyst further adds, the transmission upgrades, Distribution Automation, and Advanced Metering Infrastructure will capture majority of the market with each segment having share of 54%, 18%, and 15% respectively". 

The report provides in-depth analysis for market drivers, business models and applications, technology issues,  and government policy within Asia-Pacific Region. The study covers detailed forecast by application for China, India, Korea, Australia, Japan, and the ASEAN region. Overall, the study addresses following key questions. 

Key Questions Addressed

• What are the key market drivers for smart grid development in each Asia Pacific market?
• Which business models are being employed for APAC smart grid deployments? How are these similar to other models found around the world, and how do they differ?
• Who are the key industry players influencing the development of APAC smart grid initiatives? Are there opportunities for additional participants to enter the market?
• For each country, what is the size of the market opportunity within each smart grid application segment?
• What are the key technology issues facing smart grid industry players in each market?

What is In Store for Grids?

23 billion dollars! This will be the estimated cost of electricity distribution losses in India by 2014. The improvements that our electricity distribution grids need to put in — administrative and technological— cannot be underestimated. Elsewhere on our grids, problems like congestion persist. As the appetite of the country to consume more electricity increases and the trend for interstate open access increases, there will be increased pressure on our grid infrastructure in future.

There will be new challenges to which the electricity grids in future will have to live up. India aspires to generate a sixth of its electricity from renewable sources by 2020. Major renewable energy sources like wind power generates infirm power and therefore introduces variations in the electricity grid. Currently, since the generation of electricity from renewable sources, primarily wind energy is very low- around 5 per cent therefore it poses no challenge. But in future when this share increases, it will gradually start posing challenges of grid management.

And I must also mention some other possible scenarios which can further pose more challenges to our grid infrastructure- Electric Cars. If electric cars do penetrate sizably by the end of the next decade they will require our grid to be even smarter. India has announced policy mission for electric cars All these challenges not only require more investments into our electricity grid, to add more capacity but more importantly we need to make this capacity Smart grid is currently a term used to describe a number of new features that are being envisaged in future grids to cope up with the various future challenges.Yet it is important to see in one new interesting way in which the grids of future may transform- energy storage. The grids currently do not store energy through their networks. Power storage currently is a very costly option and it makes little sense for power storage, as both the losses involved in the power storage and the capital cost of power storage is significant But can the bets that are currently placed on innovations in power storage technology change that? If breakthrough storage technologies emerge then yes and the dice is probably loaded for that outcome.A majority of cleantech industry believes that battery is perhaps the most important opportunity area based on a recent survey. From thin film batteries next generation batteries. All those early signs of progress are out there already. In that case the grids of future will not only transmit power but they will also store power intermittently or provide extensive interface to power storage devices. Advances in the energy storage technology will advance many other clean technologies like electric vehicles and even allow renewable energy sources to supply energy more reliably. But what that will do to our grid is even more exciting. It is very likely that new grid management technologies that store power within the distribution networks will come up. This will allow distribution companies great flexibility in power distribution. For example it is possible that distribution companies may draw power during the afternoon slot and store the power within their distribution grid... .. Continue

Courtesy : Yash Saxena (www.businessworld.in)

ADB provides $759 million loans for Smart Grid development in India

The Asian Development Bank will invest $750 million in India for Smart Grid development. The project will enable bulk transfer of 3,000 MW of electricity from independent power producers of Chhatisgarh state to the areas of north India, including national capitol region Delhi, where the demand is high.  For this, 1300 km inter-regional transmission line will be established using 800 KV High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) line, which is key driver for Smart Grid development. 

"Strengthening the inter-regional HVDC transmission network will promote open access to power supply, increase investment in both generation and distribution, help integrate the electricity market and encourage power trading and competitive electricity prices," said Kaoru Ogino, Senior Energy Specialist in ADB's South Asia Department. 

The ADB funds will be available to Government owned PowerGrid Corporation India Ltd (PGCIL), which is India's largest power transmission and distribution company. PowerGrid plans to invest $22 by 2017 to double its transmission network. The energy infrastructure is unable to match India's growing energy demands, according to 2010 data, in India there is 12% peak power shortage. Some state are able generate more power,however due to lack of inter-regional transmission link are unable to move electricity to power deficient regions. ADB is going to provide $500 million as sovereign-guaranteed  loans and $ 250 million as non-sovereign corporate loans. The total project cost is $2.25 billion and is expected to be completed by 2017. 

ZTE Corp plans to enter in Indian Smart Grid Market

Chinese telecom major ZTE corp recently announced they will be providing range of Smart Grid solutions to address the needs of  power sector in India. It is well know fact that India has acute shortage of power, there are more than 100,000 + villages yet to be electrified, furthermore, brown-out & black-outs are common and T & D losses are high. To address this issues, Government has taken series of measures, one among them is implementation of Smart Grid technologies. Which represent huge market opportunities for both Indian as well as foreign companies. The Smart grid solution market in India is set to reach $10 billion in next 5 years.

ZTE corp is in advance negotiation with Power Grid Corporation India (PGCIL) to offer its range of Smart Grid solutions. The second largest Chinese telecom equipment maker plans to offer end-to-end smart gird solutions like smart meters, transmission networks, cloud computing solutions, video conferencing, video surveillance, along with next generation contact center, which will enhance power efficiency. "The demand for power in India is far outstripping supply and a significant percentage of power generated is lost during transmission due to which power generation & distribution companies are focusing on adopting efficiency enhancement solutions," ZTE India CEO Cui Liangjun said. The company headquartered in Shenzhen, China, has entered in partnership with system integrators and infrastructure vendors like Dongfang Electronics and TCIL to jointly offer this solution to power distribution and power generation companies.

Mahindra Satyam announces development of Smart Grid Research & Innovation Center at University of Waterloo

Mahindra Satyam, a leading global consulting and IT services provider, today announced the development of Ontario's first Smart Grid Research and Innovation Center (RIC) on the University of Waterloo Campus in Ontario, Canada. The RIC will provide students, teachers and IT professionals the tools to foster and evaluate innovative developments of next generation smart grid technology. The Center development is part of an ongoing strategic memorandum of understanding (MOU) between Mahindra Satyam and the University of Waterloo. "We are eager to work with the University of Waterloo as it takes a leadership role in the academic and technology communities by investing in smart grid initiatives and technologies," said Arvind Malhotra, Senior Vice President at Mahindra Satyam. "The Center will showcase the benefits of the ongoing smart grid technological revolution and will allow students, faculty and industry professionals to conduct cutting edge research with real world implications."

The RIC, developed in collaboration with the University of Waterloo's Institute for Sustainable Energy (WISE), will draw upon the collective expertise of University faculty members from areas including mathematics, chemistry, mechanical, computer, electrical and systems engineering. Mahindra Satyam's institutional expertise in smart grid data analytics, renewable systems integration, electric vehicles and integration with the distribution grid and micro-grids for rural and remote applications, will help to safely and responsibly develop innovative solutions for the Canadian and global community. The objective of the RIC will be to develop a curriculum and related training programs at the University for highly qualified professionals in the smart grid sector, validate and test innovative products and technologies before large scale implementation and provide facilities to University faculty and industry leaders for collaborative work in the sector. "Ontario is now a leading global jurisdiction in the Smart Grid sector. This has been achieved through a judicious combination of far reaching Government policy initiatives and legislation. The next steps are to convert this advantage to provide Ontario companies a leg up to capture the opportunities in the global market place for solutions that are Ontario innovations," said Dr. Jatin Nathwani, Professor and Ontario Research Chair in Public Policy for Sustainable Energy Management. Mahindra Satyam is uniquely positioned to deliver comprehensive services for the RIC by collaborating internally with the Mahindra Group: Bridge Strategy Group for Advisory and Strategy Consulting, Tech Mahindra for Communication and Security services, Mahindra Reva for EV technologies and Mahindra Solar for Renewable Energy technologies. The company recently announced the completion of its Smart Grid Customer Demonstration Center (CDC) in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh. The announcement also reflects Mahindra Satyam's ongoing momentum and investment in the Canadian market. Most recently, through its sister company, Tech Mahindra, the company established the Innovation Center for Mobility Solutions in, Ontario in June 2011.

Mahindra Satyam 

Mahindra Satyam is a leading global business and information technology services company that leverages deep industry and functional expertise, leading technology practices, and an advanced, global delivery model to help clients transform their highest-value business processes and improve their business performance.

The company's professionals excel in enterprise solutions, supply chain management, client relationship management, business intelligence, business process quality, engineering and product lifecycle management, and infrastructure services, among other key capabilities. Mahindra Satyam is part of the $12.5 billion Mahindra Group, a global federation of companies and one of the top 10 business houses based in India. The Group's interests span automotive products, aviation, components, farm equipment, financial services, hospitality, information technology, logistics, real estate and retail. Mahindra Satyam development and delivery centers in the US, Canada, Brazil, the UK, Hungary, Egypt, UAE, India, China, Malaysia, Singapore, and Australia serve numerous clients, including many Fortune 500 organizations.For more information, see www.mahindrasatyam.com For clarifications, write to us at:MediaRelations@mahindrasatyam.com

University of Waterloo

The University of Waterloo, located at the heart of Canada's Technology Triangle, is one of Canada's leading comprehensive universities. Waterloo is home to 30,000 full- and part-time undergraduate and graduate students who are dedicated to making the future better and brighter. Waterloo, known for the largest post- secondary co-operative education program in the world, supports enterprising partnerships in learning, research and discovery. For more information about Waterloo, visit www.uwaterloo.ca.

Contribution: Mithun Bhaskar

ZPRYME : Indian Smart Grid market to reach $1.9 billion by 2015

Recently, P. Uma Shankar the Secretary of Power Ministry India said at GridWeek 2011, "Smart Grid is not a luxury, but a necessity for India." Which is indeed true for developing countries like India, where more than 400 million people do not have access to electricity, and so, even miniscule efficiency can make a difference in having electricity or not.  ZPRYME, the leading research and consultancy services organization, in its latest report predicts that Indian Smart Grid market will touch $1.9 billions by 2015. The Indian government has embarked on $900 billion investment in Electrical Infrastructure by 2020 that includes building new transmission and distribution lines, and power generation plants. The research further mentioned that the basic electric infrastructure market will reach to $5.9 billion in the year of 2015. At present, Smart Grid market in India is $1.1 billion and 16.3% CAGR growth is forecasted between 2011 and 2015.

The communication and wireless segment, which in 2011 constitutes $137 millions,  is set to grow fastest  cloaking on average 24.9% CAGR between 2011 and 2015. The Smart metering will grow from $286.6 to $445.5 millions, Sensors from $137 to $236 millions, software & hardware from $247 to $339  millions, and Smart T&D equipment from $234 to $392 millions during the same period.

According to P. Uma Shankar, Indian Smart Grid will have following 6 guiding principles. 

1) Smart Grid will be based on Indian model and will be indigenous 

2) Focused towards Power Shortages

3) Prevent theft and other losses

4) Provides power in rural areas

5) Development of alternative power sources

6) Affordable and enables sustainable production of power

Although, the Smart Grid in India has huge growth potential, there are numerous challenges confronting the modernization of Grid. The Peak demand is outstripping the supply by 7 to 11%; ZPRYME predicts demand to grow 6.0% annually from 885 billion kwh to 1147 billion kwh between 2010 to 2015. Sanjay Seth, Country Manager, Itron India notes, " Currently there are pockets in India that have surplus power, but are unable to sell to deficient regions creating an artificial shortage scenario, Smart Grid technologies can enable utilities demand response mechanism that can curtail power during shortages and avoid blackouts." Apart from shortages, if theft is included, T&D losses amount close to 50%;  the coal power plants, which together with gas supplies 65% of the total energy needs, lags at 27% efficiency compare to western level of 37% efficiency. Electric Infrastructure is not consistent across the nation, and due to local factors, electrical monitoring is imprecise, furthermore, 50 % of the rural area is lacking electricity.  All this results into frequent power outages, heavy losses, and unreliability of grid. Such challenges also provide an opportunity for unique and innovative solution and as India is yet to build large part of the grid, it will have an  opportunity to design and build Smart Grid from scratch, notes Vimal Mahendru, President IEEMA.

Full Report

Grid2020 & Taurus Infoworld Collaborates for Broadband over Power Line (BPL) in India

Taurus Infoworld Pvt. Ltd. and GRID2020, Inc. today announced they have entered into a multi-year strategic alliance to deliver valuable Smart Grid solutions within the fast growing Indian innovation-driven marketplace via the Broadband over Power Line (BPL) route. These market leaders from India and the United States combine practical experience, innovative technologies, and the ability to properly understand the infrastructure needs of a region that is rapidly embracing and deploying cleantech technologies.

Taurus Infoworld Pvt. Ltd. of Pune is an OGALE Group company based out of India. The Group, with its flagship companies, OCB Engineers and INPAC Projects, is a respected engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) group in the power sector and is an infrastructure contractor in India. GRID2020, Inc. is a leading energy management, control, and communications solutions company based in Richmond, Virginia (USA).

Chandrashekhar Ogale, Director of Taurus Infoworld, stated, “From the first day we visited their corporate headquarters in 2010, we knew IBEC Global/GRID2020’s product line and tremendous level of expertise in the Broadband over Power Line market would be an excellent match for our company. Our vision of bringing life-changing services and solutions such as high-speed broadband and Smart Grid capabilities to the fast growing Indian market, electrical utilities, and urban and rural underserved populations in India, will be achieved as a result of our strategic alliance.”

In the past year, GRID2020 has secured licensing agreements to use IBEC Global’s ground-breaking Broadband over Power Lines (BPL) technology and platform.

“GRID2020 is extremely excited to formalize an agreement with Taurus Infoworld,” said Alan Snook, President of GRID2020. “This strategic alliance sets the stage for strong growth and market leadership within India. We feel our two companies represent a leading-edge team that possesses vision, flexibility, quickness, and efficiency to successfully deliver a viable Smart Grid solution in the Indian marketplace. Clearly, the fine people of India realize the tremendous value in embracing technologies that will advance their society in many ways.”

Using GRID2020’s solutions and technology, utilities will have a two-way, real-time Smart Grid communications network that will improve their internal energy system efficiencies, identify pilferage, reduce operating and capital costs, and remotely monitor, control, and capture real-time data on energy usage. With this BPL communications technology in place, utilities and communities will then have the ability to provide high-speed Internet services. Snook remarked, “We are convinced that by leveraging the existing infrastructure presented by utility grids, Taurus InfoWorld and GRID2020 will rapidly deploy cost effective solutions in many developing and emerging countries like India.”

The newly formalized strategic alliance will assist utilities and communities across India and yield an advancement of communications services to heighten the quality of life for citizens, and maximize the efficiencies of utilities by using the same FCC-approved BPL technology that has been successfully deployed in rural America (25,000 line miles) through $60 million in U.S. Government loans. Ogale added, “We have invested tremendous energies and resources into properly understanding the needs of this market space, and we are now poised to commence with proofs of concept and commercial deployments which will solve our customer’s needs. We will add to India’s progress, and attract positive national attention in pursuit of nationwide rural deployment to serve the underserved, and empower the farmers and rural populace—which constitutes 70 percent of the Indian population—by bringing the Information Highway to their doorstep.”

Smart Grid development in Asian countries Japan and Korea

In our continuous serious of profiling the Smart Grid development in the world, we are covering Asian powerhouse Japan and Korea in this segment


Japan: The largest Asian and the third largest economy in the world is gearing up itself to transform into low-carbon economy by adopting Smart Grid technologies. Japan has set aggressive target to cut Greenhouse Gas (GHG) . The Prime Minister of Japan has committed to reduce carbon emission by 25% to pre-1990 level by 2020. In 2010, Japan invested around $849 million in Smart Grid becoming the third highest Smart Grid investment making country in the world. The government also has plan to install smart meters across the country by 2020. Just like any other country, Japan has its own priority for investing in Smart Grids. The country has reliable grid and is not planning to overhaul the grid infrastructure, its priority is to reduce carbon emission by investing in renewable energy and integrating it into the grid. Japan's core objectives are: 1) Generate more renewable energy; use it effectively by programs like demand response. 2). Develop EV charging infrastructure at parking lots, 3) Develop new services using ICT and Smart Metering technologies.

Key Developments

• Three Smart Grid projects, 1) Remote Island Smart Grid Project 2) Smart Charge Project and 3) Smart House Project are being developed as part of the prototype for Community Grid System by Ministry of   Economy Trade and Industry (METI).
• Under the aegis of Japan Smart Community Alliance, four working groups viz. 1) International Strategy Working Group, 2) International Standardization Working Group, 3) Roadmap Working Group, 4) Smart Housing Working Group have been established.
• Four Cities, Toyota City, Kansai Science City, Yokohama, and Kitakyushu have pledged to reduce carbon emission up to 40% by 2030 using Smart Grid technologies.
• Toyota, Japan Wind Development Co, Hitachi, and Panasonic Electric Works are working on Smart Grid pilot project at Rokkasho Village, Aomori Prefecture to test the grid that is completely CO2 free and dependent only on renewable energy.
• The Smart Networks Project is aimed at developing common communications standards for Smart Grid, networked Home Appliances, and Electric Vehicles. NTT DoCoMo, NEC, Sekisui House, and NAMCO BANDAI Games are key participant for this project.

Republic of Korea (South Korea): When it comes to technology, South Korea is matching step by step with its western counterparts. The Korean government plans to invest $24 billion (27.5 trillion won) by 2030 to build Smart Grid across the nation. Korea is one of the top 5 OECD oil importer and one of the fastest growing carbon polluter in the world. However, it has made strong commitment towards environment; it is planning to reduce greenhouse gas emission by 41 million ton and oil imports by 300 million ton by 2030 through Smart Grid Initiatives. The Korean Smart Grid is a comprehensive program which includes Smart Power Grid, Smart Transportation, Smart Renewables, Smart Electricity Services, and Smart Consumers.

                                  Korea Smart Grid Vision

Key Developments

• The Government has launched $ 65 million Smart Grid pilot project at Jeju island along with major industry players like LG, SK telecom, and KT. The project will test integrated Smart Grid for 6000 households, wind power and four different power lines and will be completed by 2013.
• The Government of Korea and  State of Illinois, USA have inked a packet to jointly test and develop Smart Grid technologies. The Korea Electrotechnology Research Institute, other local centers from Korea,Argonne National Laboratory, and Chicago University from USA will work together. 
• Established Organization like Smart Grid Korea Association , Korea Smart Grid Institute
•  Through National Power IT, South Korea is focusing on 10 development objectives, which will an intelligent and environment friendly electric and energy systems.
• The country  plans to invest  approximately $24 billion ($18 billion on Smart Grid Infrastructure and $6 billion on Smart Grid ) by 2030 to achieve vision established in the Smart Grid Roadmap.

Part -1, Part -2, Part -3, Part -4, Part -5

Movers & Shakers of Smart Grid to attend GridWeek 2011

GridWeek, the biggest gathering of Smart Grid industry in the world is again set to attract the worlds Who's Who of the industry. The event, which is going to be organized at Washington DC on 12-15th September is covering broadest range of topics, issues, companies, people, and governments. Under the theme "The Way Forward - strategies for energy business, policy, and solutions", GridWeek is going to be attended by 60+ utilities from across the world, where more than 200+ speakers are going to present their experiences, vision, solutions, and obstacles for the future path.

"The Who’s Who: In addition to utility speakers, GridWeek is bringing together the Smart Grid elite:

• Regulators and consumer advocates: With representation from NARUC and FERC, as well as a variety of advocacy organizations, GridWeek is bringing consumer and regulatory topics to the forefront.
• Analysts: With eight major analyst partners, GridWeek attendees can expect fresh research and perspectives.
• International delegates: From senior vice presidents of utilities in Europe, to the highest energy officials and utility chief executives in India, GridWeek is gathering dozens of international delegates to deliver a broad global perspective."

The StarCast of the event includes :

Aneesh Chopra: Chief Technology Officer, United States of America

Daniel Ponman: Deputy Secretary of Energy, U.S Department of Energy

Nicole Lamb-Hale: Assistant Secretary of Manufacturing and Services, U.S. Department of Commerce


Patt Hoffman: Assistant Secretary, U.S. Department of Energy

K.Venugopal: Minister of State for Power, Government of India

P Uma shankar: Secretary of  Power, Ministry of Power, Government of India


The event covers topics like Electric Vehicles, Demand Response, Cyber Security, Energy Storage, Distributed Energy Resources, Renewable Integration, and Climate Change.

Check more about the event at GridWeek

One Billion Smart Meter by 2020

1) Smart Meter installation to reach 1 billion by 2020

As reported by Greenbiz, smart meters installation will rise to 963 million by 2020 thanks to China, which is aggressively pursuing Smart Meter/Smart Grid technology implementation in the country. Smart meters, which provides two-way communication between utilities and customer and helps track energy usage is going to play a significant role for emerging sectors like electric vehicles, information, energy, and buildings. 

2)  The Advanced Smart Grid - Experts Opinion

Andres Carvallo, Executive VP of Proximity provides deep insights of his 25 yrs experience in Energy, Telecommunication, and Information Technology in the new upcoming book "The Advanced Smart Grid." It details the importance of Smart Grid, network security, interoperability, and design architecture to successfully realize the investment made in Smart Grid technologies. It is recognized the per-eminent book by industry leaders, companies like Cisco, organization like pecan streets, IDC, Global Smart Grid Federation, Utilities Telecom council,  as wells as universities like University of California, LA, University of Kansas, and University of Texas, Austin for understanding, architecting, and deploying functional Smart Grid.

3) Why PV for EV makes sense 
Recently, EV makers, GE, Mitsubishi, and Nissan made announcement about installing PVs on delearship for Customer who purchase EVs, which probably may not be financially beneficial to companies, but will definitely increase their GQ (green quotient) to environmental minded consumers. Ford went one step furthers, along with SunPower, it announced that it will provide solar roof to the consumers who buys Ford EV. Which indeed is an interesting proposition for consumers.   

4) Smart Grid to become € 6.8 billion industry in Europe by 2016

Europe is set to experience considerable growth in Smart Grid development over the next five years, A recent report published by GTM predicts that the Smart Grid  market will reach over €6.8 billion by 2016. Europe is leading the Green Technology movement and is very focused in reducing carbon emission to considerable level, to meet the aggresive targets set by the countries, utilities across the region are rigorously working on implementing Smart Grid technologies. The 130 page reports provides analytical insight about technologies, economics, competition, and comparison of smart grid deployment with regions like the U.S., China, and Japan

5) Why Smart Grid Analytics are Big Deal?

According to Pike Research, Smart Grid is going to generate petabytes of data, these huge tsunami of data will need to be analyze in order extract useful information from the energy exchange and usage. Pike Research predicts this will create market worth of $11.6 billion by 2015. Beyond the obvious application like consumer and grid management, data analytics will create values that are yet to be discovered.

NDPL receives $0.6 million grant from USTDA for smart grid project

US Trade and Development Agency today announced that NDPL is choosen for $686,447 grant for implentation of Smart Grid technology project in its distribution network of North & West Delhi. The agreement was signed between USTDA and NDPL at US - India Business Council(USIBC) organized  roundtable in New Delhi. Sunil Wadha, MD of NDPL welcomed the USTDA association in this regard. NDPL is one of the pioneer in Smart Grid technology implementation in India.

North Delhi Power Ltd, which is jointly owned by New Delhi government and Tata Power, has partnered with GE for various smart grid solutions. Smart Grid technologies are going to enhance efficiency and reliability of energy distribution, additionally consumer will have ability to manage their energy usage. NDPL expects the technology will help them reduce power outages and thus increase reliability. The company has taken many initiatives in this regard that will reduce network losses and has pioneered substation and distribution automation in India. It is working on many smart grid initiatives, including deployment of smart metering infrastructure that will automated meter reading and help manage metering services using two-way communication with consumers.

Tackling Smart Grid Challenges under India Context

The world’s leading technology giants in smart grid, Microsoft, HP, Wipro, SAS, UL, Intergraph, Cisco, Ericsson, Huawei, IBM, Digi International, Capgemini and SAP announce to support this year’s largest and most important India smart grid event World Smart Grid Conference Series-India Week 2011.

IBM, one of the world’s leading IT companies and smart grid solutions leaders is planning to offer its services to Indian utilities over the next few years. IBM’s General Manager of Global Energy and Utilities said that his company sees tremendous potential for growth in the Indian market as it expands to provide electricity to more consumers.

Manu Rishi Puri，Sr Managing Consultant of IBM – Global Business Services will present on “Weather Forecasting for Renewables”. As tone of the association sponsor of the event, IBM shows sufficient confidence in this upcoming important event. “We are looking forward to sharing IBM’s global smart grid implementation experiences with India industrial leaders”.Said IBM’s senior representatives.

Capgemini, who won the first smart meter order in India; will attend the World Smart Grid Conference Series-India Week 2011 as Bronze Sponsor. Capgemini is amongst the world's foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services that caters to a wide spectrum of industries like energy, manufacturing, retail and distribution, telecom, media and entertainment, financial services, etc. Somnath Chatterjee, Head of Energy, Utilities & Chemicals, Capgemini India, provides keen insights into evolving concepts like Smart Meters and Smart Grid. He explains that India is indeed making a "smart" move in its endeavour of ensuring efficient energy consumption and curbing energy losses. SAP, the world's leading provider of business software, is confirmed to sponsor the industry award dinner of World Smart Grid Conference Series-India Week 2011.

World Smart Grid Conference Series-India Week 2011, to be held on September 13th to 16th in Mumbai, is a unique event for you to attain deep understandings on India’s smart grid initiatives, roadmap, regulatory environment, ongoing pilots of local utilities, network local and international smart grid industry executives and share insights on the future market developments.

The conference is vendor-neutral, product-neutral, and platform-neutral with highly intense interaction between delegates, and allows for real discussion and debate, not simply a series of “product presentations”.

Eminent Speakers Confirmed:

Sam Pitroda, Chair, India Smart Grid Task Force

R V Shahi, Ex-Secretary (Power), MoP

Pramod Deo, Chairman, Central Electricity Regulatory Commission

Narendra Singh Sodha, Executive Director, Power Grid Corporation of India

R P Singh, Executive Vice Chairman, Jindal Power Limited

V. K. Shah, Executive Director (APDRP), Power Finance Corporation 

Ramesh Narayanan, CEO, BSES Yamuna Power Limited 

Arup Ghosh, Managing Director, NDPL 

Ajoy Rajani, Senior Vice President, Reliance Infrastructure 

Abhijit Roy, Head – New Technology Initiatives, Reliance Infrastructure 

Jayant Deo, CEO and managing Director, India Energy Exchange

Vijay L Sonavane, Member, Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission

Claudio Lima, Vice Chair, IEEE P2030 Smart Grid Architecture

Pradeep Monga, Chief, Renewable and Rural Energy Branch, United Nations

Ashish Khanna, Senior Energy Specialist, South Asia Sustainable Development, World Bank

Monali Zeya Hazra, Program Management Specialist, USAID

Norbert Karl, Global Sales & Business Development Smart Grid, Siemens

Manu Rishi Puri, Senior Managing Consultant, IBM 

David Coldrey, Utilities Lead for Asia Pacific /Japan, SAP

Larry Kraft，Vice President，Digi International 

Girish Kadam, Vice President and Head of Managed Services, Ericsson

Details 

Time: Sep. 13th- 16th

Location: Mumbai, India

Hosting Organization: SZ&W Group

Event Website: http://www.szwgroup.com/smartgrid/

Contact: Miss Viola Yan

Tel: +86 21 5830 0710

Fax: +86 21 5831 1668

E-mail: info@szwgroup.com

Hot Summer, Power Stress, and Demand Response

1. Hot Summer, Power Stress, and Demand Response

The continuous sweltering heat across New England is increasing the demand for energy, which in-turn, is posing challenge for utility companies to generate more power increasing the cost and global warming. At the same time,  power line operators also have to manage the peak load on the already aging infrastructure, increasing the possibility of brown-outs and black-outs. That's where Demand Response and companies like EnerNOC steps in, which already have businesses on their roll for cutting their demands as per their pre-agreed terms during peak load time period.

2. Electric Cars are Cheaper to Drive : Power Companies

In Automobile sector, Electric car is the new buzz word. Companies like Tesla, Nissan, and Ford are leading the charge, whereas, Toyota, GM, and Mitsubishi are closely following them. Naturally, a question arises in one's mind, are these cars worth the hype?, how much it will cost to drive? According to survey conducted by Washington D.C based research group, it will cost $40 per month to drive EVs that is hardly a week's drive using gasoline.

3. The Rise of Information based Cleantech

So far, clean technologies had  majority investment geared towards solar panels, bio-fuels, wind-energy, and other green energies where heavy capital, efforts, and time were needed to bring the product into market. With the advent of Smart Grid these seems to be changing , it seems the internet of clean-tech is emerging now. Three information based segment, Disintermediation, Data as a service, and Automation are emerging as the next hot thing for CleanTech VCs.

4. How the Smart Grid will Change your life

 In the era of information age, where most of the information is just your finger-tip away, Energy is exception tot the rule. The old grid, which was designed way back in 20th century has not evolved with the change of time. With increasing population, growth in emerging market, scarce resources, and growing demand for energy is making a way for Smart Grid through which an average user will be able to access their energy usage on their finger-tips.

5. What Smart Grid means and doesn't mean for India

Smart Grid, which is amalgamation of many technologies, has diverse application and can drastically vary from one country to another. In the case for India, curtailing load, or managing peak load  and reducing theft is the primary driver. For example, Electric Vehicals are not scheme of things for Indian Smart Grid, Similarly theft is non-concern for developed countries. Green Energy, though a national strategic priority for India, may not be a top priority for Smart Grid Implementation. In India, where many parts of the country yet haven't had electricity, optimizing the usage at low cost is a strong driver. 

Eight Smart Grid Pilots to be implemented all over India

Sam Pitroda, Advisor to Prime Minister on Public Information Infrastructure and Innovation and Chairman of India Smart Grid Task Force, recently announced at the press conference that Eight Smart Grid Pilots will be taken up in next 18 months all over India. India Smart Grid Task Force (ISGTF), Which is the government advisory task force, has suggested that Burea of Indian Standards (BIS) develop Smart Grid Standards. The working committee also suggested that more towns should be covered with metering under the Prime Minister Flagship program RAPDRP (Restructured Accelerated Power Development and Reform Program), furthermore it added, low cost Smart Metering solution should be developed, so that, distribution companies can carry out 100% installation. ISGTF is working on low cost Smart Meter and during next 18 months, it will come out with preliminary frame work for Smart Grid.

Smart Grid, which is vulnerable to cyber attacks, has to be developed by considering full-proof cyber security, which required new security technologies, standards, and law. Critical cyber security assets will be identified and will audited and monitored on regular basis.

At the press release, Sam Pitroda stressed on following six points, which will be taken into consideration for Smart Grid pilots.

• Develop an indigenous smart grid model, complete with required hardware equipments local production and skill development.
• Focus on addressing the problem of power shortage.
• Focus on theft prevention and loss reduction
• Access of power to rural areas to the poor
• Develop alternative sources of power and enhance reliability of power to urban areas
• Affordable and sustainable power production

Out of the Eight  projects which includes automated metering, six will be smaller projects, and total of Rs. 600 crore will be utilized.

Peak load management one of the key driver for Smart Grid in India

According to Central Electricity Authority, India will face 10.3% shortage and 12.3 % peak shortage of power in 2011-12.  Looking at China, which added 100,000 MW of power this year, 10 times more than India, still had a shortage of power, the country not only need more power but needs smart power. Dr. Tongia, principal scientist at Center for Study of Science, Technology, and Policy, a non-profit research organization, provided very compelling and interesting analysis about the need of Smart Grid India in the recent article of Business Standard.

The key takings from the articles are:

 

Smart Grid, which is driven by need has different priority for each country, In the west, It is driven by labor cost, renewables, and EV to reduce carbon footprint. For India, managing peak load will be key driver as energy  cannot be stored for longer duration in large scale it has to be increased or demand needs to be reduced. At present, In the west, it is managed by increasing supply through peaker plants, which are managed at high cost and it is priced in the present cost to consumer, which is going to change with the implementation of Smart Grid. If India follows the west model, the price of electricity will rise to 35%, a very expensive proposition for developing country like India. 

The alternative option is reducing demand through demand -side management and variable pricing for peak and off-peak hours, which can be achieved only through Smart Grid. 

At present, load is controlled at feeder level and it is involuntary. According to Dr. Tongia, with Smart Grid, that can be ended, furthermore, utilities can provide power in limited quantity, say 300 -500 watts to households to meet their critical needs in the event of power shortage, whereas important, institutions like Hospitals, Colleges, Schools, government bodies can receive un-interrupted supply. Such dynamic control of power supply will provide win-win situation for everybody an help avoid brown-outs and black-outs.It was demonstrated through a small pilot in Mangalore by Dr.Tongia and  MESCOM. 

With Smart Grid, the future benefits include, increased integration of renewables, load management, better reliability and better service. Hence, Smart Grid is not an option but the only option, which the country needs to march on. Just like any other technology, adoption and transformation of Smart Grid won't be easy and overnight, it will have its own share of  excitements, challenges, failure, success, and roadblocks. It will help realize India's 21st Century power dream, in which energy is essential commodity for growth, success, reliability, and security.

India launches its first Smart Mini-Grid System

Renewable Energy Based Smart Mini-Grid System Commissioned Minister of New & Renewable Energy, Dr. Farooq Abdullah and Minister of Power, Shri Sushilkumar Shinde jointly commissioned the India’s first of its kind Renewable Energy Based Smart Mini-Grid System at TERI Retreat in Gurgaon today. The system has been developed with the support from the Ministry of New & Renewable Energy. Speaking on the occasion Dr. Farooq Abdullah said that India needs to tap all sources of energy in order to meet its growing demand for power. He said that the country must have strong safeguards so that it gets the best technology and also develops it indigenously. Shri Sushilkumar Shinde said that renewable energy is important as it reaches unreachable areas. He said that smart mini-grids will be very useful for stand-alone projects in villages and inaccessible areas. Secretary, Ministry of New & Renewable Energy Shri Deepak Gupta and Director General, TERI Dr. R.K. Pachauri were also present on the occasion.

A Smart Mini-Grid (SMG), or Micro-Grid, is an intelligent electricity distribution network, operating at or below 11 KV, where the energy demand is effectively and intelligently managed by diverse range of Distributed Energy Resources (DERs) such as solar PV, micro-hydro power plants, wind turbines, biomass, small conventional generators such as diesel gensets etc in combination with each other through smart control techniques.

Globally, managing existing energy resources and demand in an optimal and efficient manner has become the need of the hour. Enhancing energy-security and energy-access, particularly in emerging economies is one of the major challenges that one has to deal with. Smart grid has been evolved as one of the solutions to tackle these challenges. Advanced sensing, communication and control technologies are used in smart grids these days for not only generation and transmission of power but also distribution and utilization of electricity in a more intelligent and effective manner.

Such an application will not only foster the effective inter-connection and utilization of multiple renewable energy resources but would also help in advancing access to energy to the last mile in the most optimum way by improving the efficiency of the overall system. The Smart Mini-Grid system has a great potential in large commercial and industrial complexes, hospitals, shopping malls/ complexes, apartments, residential complexes, educational institutions, remote un-electrified as well as electrified locations to ensure maximum flexibility, reliability and safety.

The project was sanctioned to TERI under the aegis of Asia-Pacific Partnership on Clean Development and Climate (APPCDC) in March, 2009 with the contribution of Rs.87 lakhs from the Ministry of New & Renewable Energy. The project was completed with the technical collaboration of the Solar Energy centre under the Ministry of New & Renewable Energy. The smart mini grid has been deployed at TERI Retreat building in which 3.2 kW wind generator, 10.5 kW solar PV power, 1 kW thin film, 2 kW SPV systems, 100kW biomass gasifier and diesel generator have been integrated to demonstrate optimal evacuation of renewable power. 

-- Press Release 

Why Google Power Meter failed and other stories

1) Unified Security approach needed for Smart Grid - Study

The new report published by the Energy Network Association (ENA) and conducted by KEMA, urged Department of Energy and Climate Change of British Government to utilize more coherent approach for Smart Grid standards in order to effectively protect the Smart Grid assets.

2) Five reasons why Google Power Meter didn't take off?

Google Power Meter, which was launched two years ago by Google Philanthropy arm Google.org was recently shut down as it couldn't found enough usage of the service. Earth2Tech, the leading clean tech website, blamed these five reasons for the failure of the Google Power Meter.

1) Too Early
2) Opt -In, Not Opt-Out
3) Utility Friend or Foe?
4) Direct to Consumer
5) Not an energy company

3) The role of Cloud in the Smart Grid 

What role cloud computing will play in the management of Smart Grid data, The article provides perspective of various leaders, who discussed this topic at length. Smart Grid is going to add billions of devices in homes, at EV charging stations, on distribution networks, and in EV cars. The massive data generated by these  devices will need to be connected, communicated, scaled, secured, and analyzed, which seem to be better managed by two letter word "Cloud Computing"

4) Smart Meter companies joins forces, launch new advocacy group

Over the Past years, Smart Meters have received mixed response from consumers, state regulators, and public utility commissions alike. The six major manufacturers, Landys + Gyr, Itron, Elster, Echelon, GE, and Sensus,  have launched Smart Meter Manufacturer's Association (SMAA) to address the broad challenges representing the industry today. "The immediate goal or the mantra of the group will be fast and focused on Smart Metering", said SMAA president Dave Elve.

5) IBM signs Smart Grid Deals in Korea and Brazil 

IBM stuck deal with CPFL Energia in Brazil to develop communication and operational strategy to deploy
25,000 Smart Meter by 2012. In Korea, it is partnering with Korea Electric Power Company to construct "Total Operation Center", which is elaborately known as "Jeju Smart Grid Test-Be Demonstration Complex".

Smart Grid marketspace heating up with recent acquisitions

Recent acquisition of Landys+Gyr by Toshiba, and of Telvent by Schneider Electric signals that Smart Grid market is gaining momentum. Though it all started in 2007,  last year and this year can be considered the peak years in terms of acquisitions, so far.Toshiba, which was not a mainstream smart grid company, after the acquisition of Swiss giant Landys +Gyr,  has become one of top Smart Grid player directly competing with GE, ABB, Siemens, and Schneider Electric.

According Pike Research, Smart Grid represents $200 billion market opportunity by 2015,  providing a lucrative business proposition for multinationals. Since 2007, more than 40 companies have been acquired or merged in North America and Europe. Apart from acquisition, companies like GE and Siemens are using Smart Grid competition to fund early startup and identify potential business ideas. Siemens started the Smart Grid competition idea this year, whereas, GE is running its ecoimagination challenge since 2010, which is set to expand in other countries like China in the coming years.

As the years roll on, Smart Grid competition will accelerate that is set to increase the acquisition and mergers activity across the globe. Early startups and new business ideas have promising future in the coming years as big fish of other domains also would like to have pie of the growing market.

Smart Grid Acquisition list

GE ecoimagination Challenge

Siemens Smart Grid Contest