Report: What was Hot in Cleantech in Q2? Smart Grid, Plug-Ins
Written by Michael Wolf1 Comment Posted July 20th, 2009 at 4:00 pm in Green IT,smart grid
Here at Earth2Tech, Katie, Josie and the rest of the contributing writers do their best to provide you with a daily glimpse into the big news and trends in the world of cleantech. But we know it can sometimes be hard to see the forest for the trees: Smart grid investment and continuing woes for the U.S. automakers were clearly headline news this quarter, but from the dozens of product launches, funding announcements, and policy shenanigans, what’s worth revisiting? Over at GigaOM Pro (subscription required), we’ve reviewed and compiled the important news and analysis of the last three months to help identify the big themes from second quarter 2009.
As the first federal stimulus funds began to make their way across the country, second quarter saw a slight thawing of investor pocketbooks when it came to cleantech.
Smart Grid
The smart grid, in particular, continued to attract both media buzz and venture capital investors (who couldn’t seem to contain their excitement over finding cleantech investments that looked just like traditional IT plays: low capital, quick return, little to no technology risk). In fact, there was so much interest in the consumer-facing software component of the smart grid — home energy management systems — that there is already talk of a “bubble” in that space. Which was not enough to keep software giant Microsoft from making noise in the home-energy realm.
On the networking and utility-facing software fronts, infotech leaders Cisco and Oracle also threw their sizeable hats into the smart-grid ring in second quarter, both with solutions aimed at utilities: Cisco on the networking and communications front and Oracle with a software package to help utilities integrate with smart meters, balance system loads, respond to outages, manage customer billing and offer time-of-use pricing.
The two primary issues hanging over the smart grid space continue to be energy storage and a lack of standards for interoperability. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is so far on-track to meet its ambitious September 2009 deadline to resolve the standards issue, and many industry watchers were relieved to see that the first batch of standards (released in second quarter) mirrored those that already dominate the industry. The energy storage problem is farther from a resolution, but a few promising startups emerged this quarter with potential solutions.
Plug-In Vehicles
Meanwhile, second quarter saw more leaps forward in the plug-in vehicle space, including several corporate fleet agreement announcements and a number of funding announcements for battery startups. Tesla also (finally) secured a much-needed Department of Energy loan plus a “double-digit million-dollar” investment from Daimler, while Ford and Nissan both banked DOE loans for electric vehicle programs, and Chrysler teamed up with A123 Systems after GM canceled its deal with the battery startup in favor of a deal with rival Sakti3.
Clean Power
Solar and wind picked up slightly from first quarter, and while both sectors continue to struggle in the face of massive decreases in capital investments, as well as valuations and deal volume, analysts predict a better year ahead in 2010. Biofuels are still on a downward spiral, with more bankruptcy announcements crossing the wire in second quarter as Congress debated the merits of holding biofuel producers accountable for their carbon emissions, but there may be light at the end of the tunnel for next-generation biofuels thanks to federal mandates.
Policy
On that note, the United States got closer than it ever has been to putting a price on carbon — a hugely important policy in terms of support for the cleantech industry — when the Waxman-Markey bill passed the House of Representatives late in second quarter. Though historic, the House passage doesn’t guarantee a U.S. carbon law or market — not by a long shot. There remains a Senate vote on that chamber’s version of the bill; passage there would be followed by discussion between the chambers on what the final bill will be, and then decisions from various federal organizations about how to interpret climate legislation.
The full report, which examines these themes in more depth, is available to subscribers of GigaOM Pro, along with Quarterly Wrap-ups in our other focus areas: Mobile, Connected Consumer and Infrastructure. GigaOM Pro subscribers also get access to dozens of detailed research briefings on specific topics.
Showing posts with label Smart Grid. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Smart Grid. Show all posts
Monday, July 20, 2009
Monday, May 18, 2009
Cisco Enters Smart Grid Arena
Cisco Is the Next Big Player in Smart Grid Scene
by Jaymi Heimbuch, San Francisco, California on 05.18.09
Science & Technology
Cisco Systems has announced plans to be a heavy hitter in the smart grid scene, outlining its end-to-end, highly secure network infrastructure solution that aims to assist utilities and consumers with power management.
A Cisco press release from this morning states:
Cisco has already begun sharing its networking expertise with leading utility providers around the world and is building innovative network solutions for them and their customers to monitor electricity utilization, optimize energy delivery, reduce energy usage and cost, improve system security, and lessen their impact on the environment. In the months to come, Cisco plans to deliver products and additional services to support this initiative - one that is aimed squarely at addressing the growing Smart Grid communications infrastructure market projected by Cisco to reach $20 billion annually over five years.
In other words, everyone get out of the way - Cisco is doing a cannonball into the pool.
"Networking technology will serve as the platform of a smart, more secure energy grid for the 21st century. Cisco is uniquely positioned to provide a converged Smart Grid communications fabric and to assist our utility customers with the kind of business transformation that will enable the efficient, effective transmission of energy and deliver entirely new, environmentally-friendly services to consumers," says John Chambers, chairman and CEO, Cisco.
Other big players in the scene include Silver Spring Networks, a start-up that has made it big so far. With Cisco moving in, it'll be more difficult for start-ups to get a word in edgewise. However, with the technology being so new and quickly advancing, it's an ideal situation for agile start-ups to find a niche and dig in.
GreenTechMedia writes:
Cisco already has a big footprint: big utilities and large corporations already own its equipment and a lot of consumers have wireless Internet gateways in their homes.
Just as important, Cisco has shown an uncanny knack for corporate diplomacy, with one of the best track records for buying companies and actually incorporating their technologies into their own product lines...
...Cisco also participates and often guides standards bodies and interest groups. Many expect Cisco to do the same here, particularly as it moves from managing energy in things it knows well, such as phones and networking equipment, into trying to manage power in buildings or between homes.
One thing is for sure: We need a smarter grid, and we need it fast. With an established company like Cisco making big moves like this, we have high hopes of seeing that grid put into place sooner, rather than later.
by Jaymi Heimbuch, San Francisco, California on 05.18.09
Science & Technology
Cisco Systems has announced plans to be a heavy hitter in the smart grid scene, outlining its end-to-end, highly secure network infrastructure solution that aims to assist utilities and consumers with power management.
A Cisco press release from this morning states:
Cisco has already begun sharing its networking expertise with leading utility providers around the world and is building innovative network solutions for them and their customers to monitor electricity utilization, optimize energy delivery, reduce energy usage and cost, improve system security, and lessen their impact on the environment. In the months to come, Cisco plans to deliver products and additional services to support this initiative - one that is aimed squarely at addressing the growing Smart Grid communications infrastructure market projected by Cisco to reach $20 billion annually over five years.
In other words, everyone get out of the way - Cisco is doing a cannonball into the pool.
"Networking technology will serve as the platform of a smart, more secure energy grid for the 21st century. Cisco is uniquely positioned to provide a converged Smart Grid communications fabric and to assist our utility customers with the kind of business transformation that will enable the efficient, effective transmission of energy and deliver entirely new, environmentally-friendly services to consumers," says John Chambers, chairman and CEO, Cisco.
Other big players in the scene include Silver Spring Networks, a start-up that has made it big so far. With Cisco moving in, it'll be more difficult for start-ups to get a word in edgewise. However, with the technology being so new and quickly advancing, it's an ideal situation for agile start-ups to find a niche and dig in.
GreenTechMedia writes:
Cisco already has a big footprint: big utilities and large corporations already own its equipment and a lot of consumers have wireless Internet gateways in their homes.
Just as important, Cisco has shown an uncanny knack for corporate diplomacy, with one of the best track records for buying companies and actually incorporating their technologies into their own product lines...
...Cisco also participates and often guides standards bodies and interest groups. Many expect Cisco to do the same here, particularly as it moves from managing energy in things it knows well, such as phones and networking equipment, into trying to manage power in buildings or between homes.
One thing is for sure: We need a smarter grid, and we need it fast. With an established company like Cisco making big moves like this, we have high hopes of seeing that grid put into place sooner, rather than later.
Monday, May 11, 2009
How Will Thw Smart Grid Work ?
How's it going to work with the Smart Grid, cars plugged in everywhere, and little mom and pop energy producers all over the grid, just tryin' to make a buck? There's a growing concern that it is a little more sinister than the affable scarecrow on the wires is singing it to us. An article in Business Week notes that consumers are worried that the Smart Grid, and the fluid pricing it implies, creates an opening for utilities to enrich themselves at the expense of the consumer: "they're leery of giving utilities the ability to change electricity prices on the fly, jacking rates up on hot summer days, for instance." Utilities, on the other hand, may be leery of giving up their warm, safe fixed rates, which give predictability to their business modeling and forecasting.
And yet, the Smart Grid promises to do so much: rationalize and reduce energy use, lower the overall cost of energy, foster renewables, and create the conditions to allow widespread use of the electric automobile. If the Smart Grid is worth having, but there are concerns about how it works, we are at the beginning. Why not establish rules, or ways of going about this, that make it a fair and transparent and attractive place for all participants?
Maybe there is something akin to a stock broker or mutual fund manager (call it an Energy Broker) that gets the best deal on behalf of the power consumer. Maybe the current day aggregator evolves into this energy broker, using sharpened wits and algorithms to scour the Smart Grid marketplace for the best deals in this decidedly more fluid environment. Fear not, Mr. or Mrs. Consumer, your broker is watching out for your interests, and if he isn't, you fire him and get one who is.
If the Smart Grid really can address some of our larger challenges, and at the same time drive down the cost of energy, we have an incumbent opportunity to establish a playing field that fulfills the promise of the Smart Grid and a new energy order.
Photo: Christopher Sweeney on flickr
And yet, the Smart Grid promises to do so much: rationalize and reduce energy use, lower the overall cost of energy, foster renewables, and create the conditions to allow widespread use of the electric automobile. If the Smart Grid is worth having, but there are concerns about how it works, we are at the beginning. Why not establish rules, or ways of going about this, that make it a fair and transparent and attractive place for all participants?
Maybe there is something akin to a stock broker or mutual fund manager (call it an Energy Broker) that gets the best deal on behalf of the power consumer. Maybe the current day aggregator evolves into this energy broker, using sharpened wits and algorithms to scour the Smart Grid marketplace for the best deals in this decidedly more fluid environment. Fear not, Mr. or Mrs. Consumer, your broker is watching out for your interests, and if he isn't, you fire him and get one who is.
If the Smart Grid really can address some of our larger challenges, and at the same time drive down the cost of energy, we have an incumbent opportunity to establish a playing field that fulfills the promise of the Smart Grid and a new energy order.
Photo: Christopher Sweeney on flickr
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