Erika Lovley Erika Lovley Wed Mar 4, 4:24 am ET
Move over, Big Oil. There’s a new VIP guest in the White House: Silicon Valley.
Employees from some of the nation’s biggest high-tech companies bet heavily last year that famously tech-savvy Barack Obama would be good news for their bottom lines.
And it seems their wager paid off. Obama’s $787 billion economic stimulus bill includes $4.5 billion in funding for the so-called Smart Grid, an ambitious plan to modernize the country’s electric grid that many Obama contributors are helping to shape.
Among the companies with significant stakes in the Smart Grid are technology giants Google, Microsoft and IBM, whose employees were top donors — and, in some cases, advisers — to Obama’s campaign last year.
Workers at Microsoft, along with family members and other associates, gave more than $800,000 to Obama, while people connected to Google contributed nearly $784,000, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. And those with ties to IBM gave more than $517,000.
Executives at some of the companies also helped line Obama’s coffers. Google Senior Vice President and Chief Legal Officer David Drummond gave $4,600, and so did Robert Alan Eustace, senior vice president of engineering and research. At IBM, three senior officials gave either $2,300 or $4,600, and at Microsoft, two senior officials each gave $4,600. IBM’s Michael Parham also was an Obama campaign bundler, committing to raise $200,000.
In contrast, Republican presidential nominee John McCain received well under $100,000 from people associated with Google, IBM and Microsoft, the most notable sum being $21,500 from Googlers.
Now most companies can only speculate how they’ll fit into the picture, since the Energy Department still has weeks to determine how the stimulus funding will be distributed. But thanks to a warm relationship with the Obama administration — and high-level interest in developing the Smart Grid, which would exploit technology to make producing and distributing electricity cheaper, greener and more efficient — none anticipate being left out in the cold.
Technology experts say they expect the money to be doled out to electric utilities rather than to technology developers. So Silicon Valley giants are moving quickly to secure long-term partnerships with power distributors, which will allow them to share in the proceeds and deploy technology they’ve peddled on Capitol Hill for years.
“We definitely expect to be working with clients that will be applying for stimulus funds,” said Allan Schurr, IBM’s energy and utilities vice president, who recently testified before the House Select Global Warming Committee. “We’ve been speaking with the Obama administration quite a bit.”
Amid the competition to partner up, Google is blazing its own trail, aiming to make itself indispensable not only to utilities but also to appliance manufacturers.
The company is shopping around Google PowerMeter, a developing online application that tracks home energy use online. But the application can’t be used without new meters and other infrastructure updates, so Google has partnered some of its efforts with General Electric, which is poised to sell millions of Smart Meters in the budding market.
“This will be something on the Web for people to use for free. It may create more traffic for us, and if that happens, that’s fine with us,” said one Google official.
Months before Obama was inaugurated, technology companies say they were talking to his transition team, paving the way for a stimulus package that would employ a revolution of energy transmission.
IBM was asked by the transition team to provide recommendations to develop jobs and national infrastructure — including the Smart Grid, which IBM estimated could create as many as 477,000 jobs with a $10 billion investment.
Schurr said that after nearly a decade of educational pushes on Capitol Hill, IBM finally saw serious headway when its ideas were echoed in Obama’s policy statements on the campaign trail.
“There has always been a low level of interest in this topic,” said Schurr. “But what really tipped the scale is when commodity prices started getting high, utility prices and pump prices went up. It really got people thinking about economic values.”
Google — a regular participant in White House tech talks — was particularly well-positioned to capitalize on the administration’s interest in the Smart Grid. The company’s climate change director, Dan Reicher, was a member of the Obama transition team and reportedly was on Obama’s shortlist for energy secretary. And he helped with the campaign’s Cleantech for Obama committee, which raised about $2 million. During the Clinton administration, Reicher was assistant secretary for energy efficiency and renewable energy.
Google CEO Eric Schmidt campaigned for Obama, has attended economic summits with the president and reportedly turned down an opportunity to be considered for the White House technology czar job.
Long before the stimulus became law, many of the companies had begun to forge private-sector relationships to deploy their technology, spurred by the increasing growth of the renewable energy industry.
IBM is already providing Smart Meter technology to CenterPoint Energy, a Houston-based utility that is planning to deploy 2.4 million meters using IBM software over the next five years.
“If our wishes come true, we would look to apply for stimulus money that would allow us to accelerate the program we have under way,” said Tom Standish, operations president at CenterPoint, who estimated that his company could add as many as 2,000 new jobs per year with the additional funds.
“We could take a five-year project and accelerate it to a two- or three-year program,” he said. “We can immediately put people to work.”
Officials say the rush to join forces is partially because companies don’t have an entirely clear idea of what the Smart Grid revolution will look like — or where the Energy Department might steer future funding.
“We are trying to partner up,” said Shawn Cooper, spokesman for Pacific Gas and Electric Co., which hopes to provide 9.3 million new meters in California in the coming years. “We’re not sure what kind of conditions the stimulus will have. But with or without it, we’re moving forward with Smart Grid.”
Thursday, March 05, 2009
'Smart Grid' Would Empower Consumers
'Smart Grid' Would Empower Consumers
* ByEileen Gunn, Special to TheStreet.com
* Thursday March 5, 2009, 11:26 am EST
There has been a lot of talk about improving the nation's aging power infrastructure, some stemming from President Barack Obama's plan to provide incentives for energy upgrades and "smart-grid" technology to boost the economy.
So, what's a smart grid and what does it mean for you?
A smart grid would turn our energy system into an interactive network connecting power stations, meters and home appliances. Utility companies would be able to collect real-time information about demand and supply to avoid blackouts, repair problems and get consumers to conserve. Companies are already on board.
Electricity providers have been installing meters they can read remotely. Exelon uses them to spot outages before angry customers start calling.
Whirlpool is developing appliances that can exchange information with power companies. Utilities could use that data in a Web site that would show consumers the devices using the most juice in their homes.
Companies ranging from Google to little-known Comverge are developing tools to help consumers track their power usage. The idea is that if we know how much it costs to run energy-guzzling appliances, we'll use air conditioners less and wash clothes in cold water.
Demand is expected to grow twice as fast as capacity in the coming years, according to the North American Electric Reliability Corp. Our consumption already outpaces that of other western nations on a per capita basis. Studies show that being able to track power usage typically leads consumers to cut back by 5% to 15%.
Consolidation Edison's handling of New York's outages last summer reveals the "dumb" state of our grid. The utility provided an online map that showed the locations of outages and repairs. But the clumsy map was updated every half-hour based on phone calls from customers and Con Ed workers.
A smart grid would use a wired and wireless network to help utilities identify the source of the biggest power drains. This would help them stave off blackouts during heat waves and keep the current flowing when they need to shut down a plant for maintenance.
After remotely spotting the outages, they might be able to reroute power and even fix broken lines remotely. All this means better service and fewer involuntary candlelight dinners.
The next step would be to allow utility companies to ratchet down customers' power use during critical periods. For example, they would be able to send a signal to your dryer to spin without heat to avoid brownouts during the summer.
The Pacific Northwest National Laboratory tested this smart-grid scenario in Washington and Oregon in 2006 and 2007. The group brought dryers and water heaters online using technology developed by IBM and General Electric . Consumers in the study didn't notice when their energy flow was reduced, the lab said.
Still, it might seem intrusive, or at least inconvenient, to allow a company to reach into one's home that way. I expect utilities to provide incentives like rebates and lower rates to entice customers to sign on.
We use electricity without much thought about how much we need, where it comes from or how much it costs. If a smart grid makes it easier for us to wise up, I'm all for it.
* ByEileen Gunn, Special to TheStreet.com
* Thursday March 5, 2009, 11:26 am EST
There has been a lot of talk about improving the nation's aging power infrastructure, some stemming from President Barack Obama's plan to provide incentives for energy upgrades and "smart-grid" technology to boost the economy.
So, what's a smart grid and what does it mean for you?
A smart grid would turn our energy system into an interactive network connecting power stations, meters and home appliances. Utility companies would be able to collect real-time information about demand and supply to avoid blackouts, repair problems and get consumers to conserve. Companies are already on board.
Electricity providers have been installing meters they can read remotely. Exelon uses them to spot outages before angry customers start calling.
Whirlpool is developing appliances that can exchange information with power companies. Utilities could use that data in a Web site that would show consumers the devices using the most juice in their homes.
Companies ranging from Google to little-known Comverge are developing tools to help consumers track their power usage. The idea is that if we know how much it costs to run energy-guzzling appliances, we'll use air conditioners less and wash clothes in cold water.
Demand is expected to grow twice as fast as capacity in the coming years, according to the North American Electric Reliability Corp. Our consumption already outpaces that of other western nations on a per capita basis. Studies show that being able to track power usage typically leads consumers to cut back by 5% to 15%.
Consolidation Edison's handling of New York's outages last summer reveals the "dumb" state of our grid. The utility provided an online map that showed the locations of outages and repairs. But the clumsy map was updated every half-hour based on phone calls from customers and Con Ed workers.
A smart grid would use a wired and wireless network to help utilities identify the source of the biggest power drains. This would help them stave off blackouts during heat waves and keep the current flowing when they need to shut down a plant for maintenance.
After remotely spotting the outages, they might be able to reroute power and even fix broken lines remotely. All this means better service and fewer involuntary candlelight dinners.
The next step would be to allow utility companies to ratchet down customers' power use during critical periods. For example, they would be able to send a signal to your dryer to spin without heat to avoid brownouts during the summer.
The Pacific Northwest National Laboratory tested this smart-grid scenario in Washington and Oregon in 2006 and 2007. The group brought dryers and water heaters online using technology developed by IBM and General Electric . Consumers in the study didn't notice when their energy flow was reduced, the lab said.
Still, it might seem intrusive, or at least inconvenient, to allow a company to reach into one's home that way. I expect utilities to provide incentives like rebates and lower rates to entice customers to sign on.
We use electricity without much thought about how much we need, where it comes from or how much it costs. If a smart grid makes it easier for us to wise up, I'm all for it.
Verizon Wireless and Ambient Corporation Join Forces to Offer Utilities Smart Grid Communications Solution
Verizon Wireless and Ambient Corporation Join Forces to Offer Utilities Smart Grid Communications Solution
* Wednesday March 4, 2009, 8:30 am EST
Smart Grid Projects to Use the Network to Read Residential and Commercial Meters and Transmit Data
BASKING RIDGE, N.J., and BOSTON, March 4 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Verizon Wireless and Ambient Corporation (OTC Bulletin Board: ABTG - News) today announced a joint marketing agreement intended to facilitate the deployment of a host of smart grid projects around the country. The projects will allow utilities to transmit data from both residential and commercial meters over the nation's most reliable network to the utility companies' in-house systems.
Significant to the utility industry's move to the more efficient open standards-based technologies necessary for smart grid applications is access to a robust communications platform. According to Mark Bartolomeo, vice president enterprise data sales for Verizon Wireless, the company's Evolution-Data Optimized (EV-DO) 3G network provides a secure, high-speed path for carrying data today and as the demand increases in the future.
"We've seen significant interest and growth in the utility sector for smart technologies," Bartolomeo added. "This joint marketing agreement helps us provide utility customers with a solution designed to aid them in planning for long-term growth and profitability. This comprehensive platform holds great promise for extending smart grid applications nationwide."
Ambient's X-3000 node, running on Verizon Wireless' network, provides the communications platform that enables data from residential and commercial smart meters, appliances and other applications to be transported via IP-based technologies over a utility's smart grid system. This platform allows for two-way efficient collection, analysis and management of energy data to promote more reliable, affordable and environmentally friendly operations.
"As the demand for smart grid applications and bandwidth expands and becomes part of the nation's energy infrastructure, having the opportunity to offer a solution that allows for such growth in demand should significantly enhance the utilities' ability to more efficiently serve their customers and reduce their carbon footprint," said John J. Joyce, president and chief executive officer of Ambient Corporation.
The Verizon Wireless network provides Ambient's X-3000 with a ubiquitous, reliable and secure data communications backhaul for the Ambient Smart Grid(TM) platform, which is designed to support such services as advanced metering infrastructure (AMI), energy management, real-time pricing, demand side management (DSM) / direct load control, and system monitoring.
In January, the X-3000 was certified to run on the Verizon Wireless network through its open development program. Verizon Wireless' open development program is driven by the company's desire to encourage innovation, give businesses new wireless choices, and quickly address opportunities to expand the wireless market.
* Wednesday March 4, 2009, 8:30 am EST
Smart Grid Projects to Use the Network to Read Residential and Commercial Meters and Transmit Data
BASKING RIDGE, N.J., and BOSTON, March 4 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Verizon Wireless and Ambient Corporation (OTC Bulletin Board: ABTG - News) today announced a joint marketing agreement intended to facilitate the deployment of a host of smart grid projects around the country. The projects will allow utilities to transmit data from both residential and commercial meters over the nation's most reliable network to the utility companies' in-house systems.
Significant to the utility industry's move to the more efficient open standards-based technologies necessary for smart grid applications is access to a robust communications platform. According to Mark Bartolomeo, vice president enterprise data sales for Verizon Wireless, the company's Evolution-Data Optimized (EV-DO) 3G network provides a secure, high-speed path for carrying data today and as the demand increases in the future.
"We've seen significant interest and growth in the utility sector for smart technologies," Bartolomeo added. "This joint marketing agreement helps us provide utility customers with a solution designed to aid them in planning for long-term growth and profitability. This comprehensive platform holds great promise for extending smart grid applications nationwide."
Ambient's X-3000 node, running on Verizon Wireless' network, provides the communications platform that enables data from residential and commercial smart meters, appliances and other applications to be transported via IP-based technologies over a utility's smart grid system. This platform allows for two-way efficient collection, analysis and management of energy data to promote more reliable, affordable and environmentally friendly operations.
"As the demand for smart grid applications and bandwidth expands and becomes part of the nation's energy infrastructure, having the opportunity to offer a solution that allows for such growth in demand should significantly enhance the utilities' ability to more efficiently serve their customers and reduce their carbon footprint," said John J. Joyce, president and chief executive officer of Ambient Corporation.
The Verizon Wireless network provides Ambient's X-3000 with a ubiquitous, reliable and secure data communications backhaul for the Ambient Smart Grid(TM) platform, which is designed to support such services as advanced metering infrastructure (AMI), energy management, real-time pricing, demand side management (DSM) / direct load control, and system monitoring.
In January, the X-3000 was certified to run on the Verizon Wireless network through its open development program. Verizon Wireless' open development program is driven by the company's desire to encourage innovation, give businesses new wireless choices, and quickly address opportunities to expand the wireless market.
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