Advanced Energy Perspectives

In this day and age where information is always at our fingertips and we are constantly connected, the lack of customer engagement in the electric utility industry - on which all our smart electronic devices depend - is mind-blowing. In 2014 alone, the electric utility industry in the United States had revenue of over $389 billion from end use customers. In spite of that level of outlay, it is estimated that the average residential customer only spends about nine minutes a year engaging with an electric utility. Smart meters can change all that. These sophisticated meters have the potential to transform how customers and utilities manage electricity delivery and use. Whether they will, however, depends on how they get put to use - and both utilities and their regulators have a role in that.

It’s not news that electric vehicles (EVs) are changing the trajectory of the transportation industry. Although they make up a small share of the total vehicles currently on the market, EVs are pushing innovation and expanding their reach into almost every segment of the industry. EVs aren’t just changing the game. They’re changing the rules.

NREL says that wind could become the country’s “dominant” source of electricity with “near-future” technology. Slate, the online magazine, likens the present-day need for more long-distance transmission lines to the need for transcontinental railroads more than 150 years ago. And do you know which sector GTM Research has identified as the “most significant solar growth market in the U.S.,” growing 5X this year alone? Hint: it’s not utility-scale, and it’s not rooftop. These are some recent developments in renewable energy, and we’ve been taking notes.

The White House announcement last week, on the day of President Obama’s clean energy speech in Las Vegas, resolved two issues that have been dogging the Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) market over the past several years. Namely, it clarified how PACE loans could be paired with federally guaranteed mortgages, as well as how those loans could be transferred to new owners, rather than paid off, at the time of the property’s sale.

Even considering the turmoil in the overall stock market this week, advanced energy is on a bit of a Wall Street rollercoaster. Specifically, wind is riding a wave, while solar shares are in the doldrums – even though both advanced energy technologies are on a roll.