PRESS RELEASE

Elster to Offer Advanced Smart Grid Solutions Using Cisco Technology

Cisco's Connected Grid Endpoint reference design SDK to be used with Elster's EnergyAxis® System

SAN JOSE, CA and RALEIGH, NC – Sep. 18, 2012 – Cisco and Elster announced today that Elster will offer smart grid solutions for field area networks using Cisco's technology. The solutions will integrate the Cisco Connected Grid Endpoint reference design with Elster's EnergyAxis System, and will showcase the power and flexibility of Elster's Universal technology while demonstrating support for Cisco's expertise in standards-based and interoperable communication solutions.

Through this integration of communication functions into advanced meters, utility customers will be provided with an even more flexible, secure, and economical Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) communications infrastructure. The combined solution will integrate the Elster EnergyAxis architecture within the Cisco IPv6 RF Mesh reference design.

Cisco has developed a complete suite of communications solutions for the smart grid. These include the Connected Grid Endpoint reference design as well as a full suite of switching, routing, network management and security products for the Field Area Network, Transmission & Substations, and Grid Operations. Plus Connected Grid Services to architect and optimize Smart Grid communications systems.

In addition to providing a comprehensive suite of AMI capabilities, Elster's EnergyAxis architecture enables smart meters to act as sensors for Distribution Automation and Asset Management applications such as Outage Notification, Voltage Monitoring, Asset Monitoring, and Loss Detection.  These advanced solutions enable utilities to extract even more value from their AMI investments. Elster is licensing the Cisco Connected Grid Endpoint reference design and software development kit (SDK).The addition of the Connected Grid Endpoint reference design further expands the EnergyAxis System interoperability and standards-based optimization.

With its innovative Software-Defined Radio and advanced software based metrology, Elster's REXUniversal meter platform offers utilities the flexibility to deploy this device with the Cisco GridBlocks^TM Solution Architecture, the Landis+Gyr GridStream^TM architecture (previously announced), as well as the Elster EnergyAxis Architecture.

Elster intends to develop EnergyAxis communications firmware that will operate within Cisco's 1000 Series Connected Grid Routers, and leverage application programming interfaces from the Cisco Connected Grid Network Management System.

"Cisco is committed to supporting our customers' need for interoperable vendor solutions," said Lionel Chocron, Vice President, Connected Energy Networks at Cisco. "By licensing the reference design to industry leaders such as Elster, we are enabling utilities to combine AMI communications over a common, reliable and secure communications infrastructure."

"As a Smart Grid solutions industry leader, Elster is committed to true interoperability and innovation," said Ed Myszka, President of Elster Solutions. "This announcement builds on Elster's track record of collaboration and integration to deliver the next generation of interoperability needed by utilities as they deploy Smart Grid solutions."

About Cisco

Cisco, the worldwide leader in networking, is helping the energy industry modernize the electrical grid from generation to distribution to consumption - with highly secure, reliable and scalable communications solutions. The Cisco Connected Grid solutions include: Transmission and Substation, Field Area Network, Grid Security, Data Center and Grid Operations. To learn more, please visit www.cisco.com/go/utilities.

About Elster

Elster is one of the world's largest electricity, gas and water measurement and control providers. Its offerings include distribution monitoring and control, advanced smart metering, demand response, networking and software solutions, and numerous related communications and services – key components for enabling consumer choice, operational efficiency and conservation. Its products and solutions are widely used by utilities in the traditional and emerging Smart Grid markets. 

Elster has one of the most extensive installed revenue measurement bases in the world, with more than 200 million metering devices deployed over the course of the last 10 years. It sells its products and services in more than 130 countries across electricity, gas, water and multi-utility applications for residential, commercial and industrial, and transmission and distribution applications.

For more information about Elster, please visit www.elster.com.

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Scarcity Solutions: Apple's Solar Solution

CNBC's Jane Wells reports Apple's plan to "green" its image by building a powerful data center that could potentially draw 10-15 per cent of its power from solar energy.  To see the video, click the link below:

http://video.cnbc.com/gallery/?video=3000081552

Lee County Electric Cooperative Selects Oracle Utilities Solutions to Support Smart Grid Initiatives

Redwood Shores, California – March 27, 2012

News Facts

Lee County Electric Cooperative (LCEC) www.lcec.net , a not-for-profit electric distribution cooperative serving a five-county area in Southwest Florida, selected Oracle Utilities Meter Data Management, Oracle Utilities Smart Grid Gateway, Oracle SOA Suite, and plans to upgrade its existing Oracle Utilities Customer Care and Billing application, to support its customer experience initiatives. The utility is working with Oracle Consulting on the implementation and upgrade. 

Using Oracle Utilities Meter Data Management and Oracle Utilities Customer Care and Billing, LCEC plans to improve the information it presents to its 200,000 customers on monthly bills and through its Web self-service offering. The Oracle applications enable the utility to consolidate storage of interval metering data, allowing it to provide near real time usage and cost information to customers. The utility hopes to see a decrease in customer call volume through Web self-service adoption growth.

The utility will leverage the integration of Oracle Utilities Meter Data Management and Oracle Utilities Customer Care and Billing to improve its meter-to-cash process – enhancing master data synchronization, batch billing, bill cancel/re-bill and online billing. The integration will help LCEC reduce costs and accelerate time to revenue.

Additionally, LCEC selected Oracle Utilities Smart Grid Gateway to provide a single point of connection between existing and future smart grid devices and applications. The utility plans to use the solution to handle common advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) processes, including remote connect/disconnect and meter status. The solution will also enable efficient and timely flow of data to appropriate applications.

Further, using its existing Oracle Business Intelligence Enterprise Edition solution, LCEC can easily organize consistent, relevant and timely data from across the organization to rationalize consumption and payment collection trends into integrated reports. These reports provide LCEC management with a holistic view of the current status of customers, payment collections and workload to improve decision making.

Supporting Quotes

“We are expanding our relationship with Oracle as we continue to invest in the company's technology stack to support our long term strategic roadmap and the LCEC business direction.  The software’s interoperability should give us the scalability and functionality we need to improve our operational efficiency, streamline our processes, and enhance service delivery while empowering our customers with information to understand their usage,” said Frederic Kunzi, chief information officer, Lee County Electric Cooperative.

“We are pleased to support Lee County Electric Cooperative as it embarks on its smart grid initiatives.  With Oracle, LCEC can organize vast quantities of consumption data generated by automated meters and turn it into intelligence that helps them run their business more effectively across every department,” said Rodger Smith, senior vice president and general manager, Oracle Utilities.

Supporting Resources

Oracle Utilities

Oracle Utilities on Facebook

Oracle Utilities on Twitter

Oracle Utilities on LinkedIn

Oracle Utilities on Diigo

Oracle Utilities YouTube Channel

About Oracle Utilities

Oracle Utilities delivers proven software applications that help utilities of all types and sizes achieve competitive advantage, business performance excellence and a lower total cost of technology ownership. Oracle Utilities integrates industry-specific customer care and billing, network management, work and asset management, mobile workforce management and meter data management applications with the capabilities of Oracle's industry-leading enterprise applications, business intelligence tools, middleware, database technologies, as well as servers and storage. The software enables customers to adapt more nimbly to market deregulation, meet ever-evolving customer demands and deliver on environmental conservation commitments. Additionally, Oracle Utilities helps utilities prepare for smart metering and smart grid initiatives that enhance efficiency and provide critical intelligence metrics that can help drive more-informed energy and water usage decisions for consumers and businesses. For more information, visit www.oracle.com/goto/utilities.

About Oracle

Oracle engineers hardware and software to work together in the cloud and in your data center.  For more information about Oracle (NASDAQ:ORCL), visit www.oracle.com.

About LCEC

Established in 1940, LCEC is a not-for-profit electric distribution cooperative serving Cape Coral, North Fort Myers, Marco Island, Sanibel and Captiva Islands, Pine Island, Everglades City, Immokalee, Ave Maria, and parts of Lehigh Acres. LCEC is committed to providing reliable, cost-competitive electric distribution services and quality customer service. LCEC is a major contributor to the local economy as one of the largest employers in Lee County and through its support of many local agencies through charitable giving and volunteerism programs, including the United Way, American Heart Association, Habitat for Humanity, Junior Achievement and local school districts. Visit www.lcec.net for more information.

About Oracle in Industries

Oracle industry solutions leverage the company's best-in-class portfolio of products to address complex business processes relevant to utilities, helping speed time to market, reduce costs, and gain a competitive edge.

News Release from GE - Consumer Energy Savings

06 March 2012

GE unveils more Brillion™ ideas for consumer energy savings

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•  View Details

• Brillion™ suite of home-energy solutions expands in 2012 to lay the foundation for a true energy-saving “connected home”
• GE adds a Whole-Home Sensor that provides consumers with continuous energy consumption data – without needing a smart meter
• New GE Smart Plugs provide consumers with even more data, convenience and insight into their home’s energy usage

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — March 6, 2012 — (NYSE:GE) — From the company that brought you the first full line of smart grid-enabled appliances, GE is now launching additions and enhancements to its innovative suite of Brillion™ home-energy solutions and laying the foundation for an energy-saving “connected home.”

“We’ve leveled the playing field by providing a product that communicates a home’s continuous real-time energy consumption to consumers without a smart meter,” said William Paul, product manager, home energy, GE Appliances. “Our new Whole-Home Sensor connects to the consumer’s electrical panel and allows them to understand their energy consumption without waiting for their electricity provider to install a smart meter.”

Whole-Home Sensor: The new Whole-Home Sensor, an integral part of home-energy solutions, is being used in several utility test pilots, including test homes in Warner Robins, Ga., as part of Flint Energies’ recently announced pilot project. It will be available broadly in the second quarter of this year.

The sensor sends consumption data from large 240-volt applications, such as a panel box or pool pump, to the home’s Nucleus™ energy manager, which then communicates that data to a consumer’s existing smartphones or personal computers – helping them make smarter energy choices.

Knowledge of whole-home energy consumption provides consumers with insights into their electricity costs before the bill arrives; offers them feedback on electricity-intensive activities, such as water heating; and allows them to quantify the benefits of their personal energy-efficiency efforts.

Smart-Plug Controls: On a more granular level, GE is also adding Brillion-enabled Smart Plugs, which act as sensors for electronics and non-smart devices that plug into standard 120-volt outlets. These sensor plugs communicate with the Nucleus energy manager, enabling consumers to track electrical usage by the outlet for most 120-volt appliances and devices.

These sensors turn any standard 120-volt consumer good into a ‘smart home’ capable device. The sensors can be moved from device to device, enabling the consumer to perform an audit of their electrical appliances and electronics or to monitor them continuously for ongoing feedback – providing critical insights to help consumers reduce energy consumption.

“Energy data and energy monitoring are GE’s first steps toward a fully connected home,” Paul said. “We fully expect to expand our products beyond energy, bringing more convenience and control elements to the consumer. The beauty of having built-in communications features in our products means that we can also add functionality that makes people's lives easier.”

More Connected Communications Features: GE’s Brillion-enabled thermostats help consumers easily adjust heating and cooling schedules from their Nucleus software interface and alter household temperatures and operating modes remotely from their iPhone.

GE’s new GeoSpring™ hybrid water heater has connected capabilities and features that will allow consumers to more easily and more efficiently provide hot water to their families. Other Brillion-enabled appliances will undergo similar communication enhancements over the coming months.

“We started by exchanging energy information with local utilities via the smart grid, and now we’re expanding our solutions to communicate more and more with consumers directly,” Paul said. “ We also envision a day when these devices and appliances will communicate not just to the utility or to the consumer, but with each other for optimal consumer convenience and efficiency. At GE, we are developing the technologies that enable consumers to begin building their smart homes today.”

GE’s Brillion set of home-energy solutions also includes an in-home display and a full suite of appliances comprised of refrigerators, cooking products, dishwashers, laundry pairs and water heaters. For more information on Brillion home energy management (HEM) solutions, please visit:www.geappliances.com/home-energy-manager/.

About GE AppliancesGE Appliances is at the forefront of building innovative, energy-efficient appliances that improve people’s lives. GE Appliances’ products include refrigerators, freezers, cooking products, dishwashers, washers, dryers, air conditioners, water filtration systems and water heaters. General Electric (NYSE: GE) works on things that matter to build a world that works better. For more information on GE Appliances, visit www.ge.com/appliances. 

Post from Dept. of Energy Blog

Taking a Tour of Wilmington's Energy-Efficient Spaces

February 28, 2012 - 11:30am

Roya Stanley (left) on a tour of the Snipes Academy of Arts and Design with the building's architect -- Thomas Hughes. Through interactive real-time energy data tools, Snipes students incorporate energy use data in their classroom projects and studies. | Photo Courtesy of the Cape Fear Green Building Alliance.

Roya Stanley

Director, Policy and Technical Assistance

I
n Wilmington, North Carolina, local institutions are leading the way in building efficiency and sustainability. From the WAVE Transit Forden Station to the Wilmington Convention Center to the city’s street sweeper complex, Wilmington is saving money by saving energy and supporting job growth in energy efficiency technologies. 
 


Last week, I experienced first-hand how Wilmington public buildings are leveraging energy efficiency and clean energy technologies to save money and reduce energy waste. I joined Representative Mike McIntyre, Mayor Bill Saffo and Joy Allen, executive director of the Cape Fear Green Building Alliance, on a tour of the city’s energy efficient buildings. 
 


At the Forden Station -- the first LEED Gold registered public building to break ground in the state of North Carolina -- on-site geothermal heating and cooling systems have helped reduce energy consumption by 45 percent. Snipes Academy of Arts and Design utilizes a water source heat pump system and outside air system for the school’s heating and cooling. Through interactive real-time energy data tools, Snipes students incorporate energy use data in their classroom projects and studies. 
 


Reducing energy waste in buildings is an important element for a sustainable energy future. In the United States, buildings consume about 40 percent of all U.S. energy, contributing a significant amount to overall energy costs. In Wilmington, the Cape Fear Green Building Alliance is helping train local energy auditors and building analysts to conduct energy efficiency upgrades and capture the savings. 
 


Nationally, through the Better Buildings Challenge, more than 60 companies, cities, universities, hospitals and other partners have committed to upgrading more than 1.6 billion square feet of building space across the country -- which will jobs, eliminate waste and help make our commercial and industrial buildings 20 percent more efficient by 2020. 



Check out more on the Better Buildings Challenge HERE.

Making Energy Data More Accessible

From the blog of the U.S. Dept. of Energy:

Taking Steps to Make Energy Data More Accessible

February 7, 2012 

Matthew Loveless

Data Integration Specialist, Office of Public Affairs

What does this mean for me?

• Energy data is becoming more open and accessible, and that means better data access for software developers.

From economic projections and fuel costs to renewable energy potential estimates and power outage reports, the Energy Department produces vast amounts of data. These data are most valuable when they are being used to produce reports, analyses, tools, and applications, and so it is no surprise that we are always looking for ways to make energy data more accessible.

That is why we’re excited about the growth of tools for making energy data available via Application Programming Interfaces (APIs). APIs allow web and mobile applications to access updated energy data in a variety of formats, and often simplify the process of developing a data-driven application.

The Socrata Open Data API (SODA) is one of these new tools. Data.gov makes this service available to federal agencies, providing a platform for interacting with data online and connecting that data to applications via the API. We’re just getting started with hosting energy data on SODA, but one example is the Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) State Energy Data System. You can access the SODA version here, and you should also check out the extensive analysis and documentation provided by EIA on their website.

OpenEI is another example of Energy Department web services, this one sponsored by the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. OpenEI hosts a variety of U.S. and international energy data, with a focus on renewables. In particular, OpenEI contains a database of incentives and policies that encourage renewable energy generation and energy efficiency, and this database is available to developers.  For example, the team at DSIRE collects this information, but it also appears on Energy.gov via OpenEI’s data services.

The national labs are also involved in efforts to make Energy Department data more accessible. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has launched their Developer Network to help software developers access and use renewable energy and alternative fuel data. Any aspiring coder can sign up for an API key and start using NREL’s first-rate data on electricity, solar energy, or alternative fuels.

As the year goes on, we’ll be making more and more data sets available via these services, continuing our mission to make Energy Department data as open, and as useful, as possible.

Smart Grid Implementation Rises 25% in Past Year

News release from Microsoft:

News Press Release

Smart Grid Implementation Rises 25 Percent in the Past Year, According to Utilities Industry Survey

Third annual survey uncovers critical need for business intelligence solutions that manage massive amounts of data for business insight.

SAN ANTONIO — Jan. 24, 2012 — The Microsoft/OSIsoft Worldwide Utility Industry Survey 2012, released today at the DistribuTECH Conference & Exhibition, shows a 25 percent increase over last year in the number of utilities companies that have implemented smart-grid technology. The survey also shows that 28 percent of companies surveyed are in the planning phase, but 24 percent still have not started adopting any smart-grid technology. However, 63 percent of participants expect their budgets for these technologies to increase over the next two or three years. The survey, which was a collaboration between Microsoft Corp. and OSIsoft LLC, polled 216 professionals within electric, gas and water utility industries around the world and highlights the challenges utilities face as they move from planning to actual smart-grid implementation. Nearly 20 percent of those surveyed said technical issues kept them from moving forward, which was a larger group than in last year’s survey. “This year’s survey shows that more and more utilities companies are adding new devices to the grid and incorporating new data sets into their operational capabilities,” said Jon C. Arnold, managing director for the Worldwide Power and Utilities Industry at Microsoft and a member of the Smart Grid Advisory Committee to the National Institute of Standards and Technology. “However, many of these same organizations are encountering significant interoperability and integration challenges. Leveraging technology and architectures that are adaptable removes many of the technology risks. Fortunately, the Microsoft Smart Energy Reference Architecture (SERA) provides an infrastructure that protects current technology investments while enabling the implementation of forward-thinking smart-grid solutions.” The survey indicated that 72 percent of respondents do not have an enterprisewide scalable architecture in place to support current and future smart-grid deployments. SERA provides a detailed framework for existing technologies that will enable bidirectional power and information flows around the grid, with particular attention to standards, interoperability and reduced costs. SERA also provides the first conceptual framework for adding cloud services to the development of the smart-energy ecosystem. Business Intelligence Helps Realize Vision of Smart Grid Smart-grid technologies provide access to large amounts of smart data, which can inundate organizational systems. When asked how they are addressing the big data challenge to the smart grid, nearly one quarter of surveyed companies referenced the importance of business intelligence solutions. Business intelligence tools and systems are critical to managing and analyzing large amounts of data, which in turn enables companies to make smarter and more proactive business decisions based on actionable information. OSIsoft’s PI System, an enterprise infrastructure designed for Microsoft SharePoint 2010, Microsoft SQL Server, Power View, PowerPivot, Microsoft Lync and Microsoft Office 2010, offers a familiar and easy-to-use interface that allows users to access and manipulate real-time data and events for enhanced business insight. The PI System can absorb massive amounts of streaming data and events, analyze it, and help the end user put it into context and use it. “The PI System supports utilities organizations in efficient, reliable and safe smart-grid implementation,” said Jon Peterson, vice president of Marketing at OSIsoft. “Our products and services help utilities transform their transmission networks into robust, two-way communications grids that provide real-time visibility into electricity and water usage from their customers to the control center. Utilities can make informed decisions that increase efficiencies and lower costs.” More information about Microsoft Power and Utilities is available at http://www.microsoft.com/utilities, as well as on the Microsoft Power and Utilities blog at http://blogs.msdn.com/mspowerutilities. More information about OSIsoft and Microsoft strategic collaboration can be found at http://www.osisoft.com/Microsoft. About OSIsoft OSIsoft (www.osisoft.com) delivers the PI System, the industry standard in enterprise infrastructure, for management of real-time data and events. With installations in 110 countries spanning the globe, the OSIsoft PI System is used in manufacturing, energy, utilities, life sciences, datacenters, facilities, and the process industries. This global installed base relies upon the OSIsoft PI System to safeguard data and deliver enterprise-wide visibility into operational, manufacturing and business data. The PI System enables users to manage assets, mitigate risks, comply with regulations, improve processes, drive innovation, make business decisions in real time, and to identify competitive business and market opportunities. Founded in 1980, OSIsoft, LLC is headquartered in San Leandro, CA, with operations worldwide and is privately held. Learn more about OSIsoft and the PI System at www.osisoft.com. About Microsoft Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

2010 Greenhouse Gas Emissions Data Available

News Release form U.S. EPA:

2010 Greenhouse Gas Emissions Data from Large Facilities Now Available / First release of data through the national GHG reporting program

Release Date: 01/11/2012
Contact Information: Cathy Milbourn (News Media Only), Milbourn.cathy@epa.gov, 202-564-7849, 202-564-4355



WASHINGTON – For the first time, comprehensive greenhouse gas (GHG) data reported directly from large facilities and suppliers across the country are now easily accessible to the public through EPA’s GHG Reporting Program. The 2010 GHG data released today includes public information from facilities in nine industry groups that directly emit large quantities of GHGs, as well as suppliers of certain fossil fuels.

“Thanks to strong collaboration and feedback from industry, states and other organizations, today we have a transparent, powerful data resource available to the public,” said Gina McCarthy, assistant administrator for EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation. “The GHG Reporting Program data provides a critical tool for businesses and other innovators to find cost- and fuel-saving efficiencies that reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and foster technologies to protect public health and the environment.”

EPA’s online data publication tool allows users to view and sort GHG data for calendar year 2010 from over 6,700 facilities in a variety of ways—including by facility, location, industrial sector, and the type of GHG emitted. This information can be used by communities to identify nearby sources of GHGs, help businesses compare and track emissions, and provide information to state and local governments.

GHG data for direct emitters show that in 2010:

•Power plants were the largest stationary sources of direct emissions with 2,324 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (mmtCO2e), followed by petroleum refineries with emissions of 183 mmtCO2e.

•CO₂ accounted for the largest share of direct GHG emissions with 95 percent, followed by methane with 4 percent, and nitrous oxide and fluorinated gases accounting for the remaining 1 percent.

•100 facilities each reported emissions over 7 mmtCO2e, including 96 power plants, two iron and steel mills and two refineries.

Mandated by the FY2008 Consolidated Appropriations Act, EPA launched the GHG Reporting Program in October 2009, requiring the reporting of GHG data from large emission sources across a range of industry sectors, as well as suppliers of products that would emit GHGs if released or combusted. Most reporting entities submitted data for calendar year 2010. However, an additional 12 source categories will begin reporting their 2011 GHG data this year.

Access EPA’s GHG Reporting Program Data and Data Publication Tool: http://epa.gov/climatechange/emissions/ghgdata/

Information on the GHG Reporting Program: http://epa.gov/climatechange/emissions/ghgrulemaking.html

Information on the U.S. Inventory of Greenhouse Gas Emissions Sources and Sinks: http://epa.gov/climatechange/emissions/usinventoryreport.html

News Release from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory:

Electronic Atlas Maps U.S. Renewable Energy Resources

Friday, January 06, 2012

A new geospatial application developed by the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) allows users to easily and accurately map potential renewable energy resources in the United States.

The interactive tool, RE Atlas, is free to use and available online at http://maps.nrel.gov/re_atlas.

"Ease of use and breadth of data make RE Atlas an excellent tool for policymakers, planners, energy developers, and others who need to better understand the renewable resources available in the United States," said Dan Getman, whose team in NREL's Strategic Energy Analysis Center developed the tool. "RE Atlas is an important addition to NREL's suite of geospatial tools, because it brings together so many renewable energy datasets in one easy-to-use tool."

RE Atlas is designed to facilitate energy policy development, investment, and education by making high quality data accessible and easy to understand. The tool creates dynamic maps of renewable resources, including biomass, geothermal, hydropower, solar, and wind. RE Atlas can display resources individually or in a composite fashion.

NREL is the U.S. Department of Energy's primary national laboratory for renewable energy and energy efficiency research and development. NREL is operated for DOE by the Alliance for Sustainable Energy, LLC.