The Smart Grid in 2010: Market Segments, Applications and Industry Players

A confluence of concerns including national energy security, climate change and grid reliability has ushered in a period of rapid investment and increased political will to develop and deploy Smart Grid technologies around the globe. The race to be the solution provider for one of the multitude of challenges/opportunities – from advanced metering, demand response, the integration of distributed generation and storage, advanced utility control systems, and home/building area networks is speeding up, as major North American and European utilities now transition from the pilot stage to full-scale deployment mode.

The electric power industry is in the early stages of a sea change. From the growing addition of intermittent, often distributed, renewable energy sources to new and efficient ways that residential, commercial and industrial users are consuming electricity, the underpinning grid infrastructure is transforming on an epic scale. The relatively static, slow-changing power transmission and distribution market is finding itself at the confluence of energy, telecommunications and information technology (IT) markets, driving necessary change and innovation in support of a 21st century intelligent utility network. A “Smart Grid.”

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