What has been essentially the same industry for 100 years is now being turned on its head. Chaos rules in the energy industry today. And that’s a good thing, because it’s enabling a much-needed sustainable transformation.
“Digitizing” the grid is a somewhat recent step that started with the widespread introduction of smart meters. While utilities brought them in to primarily automate meter reading and customer billing, these meters and other digital grid technologies have actually unleashed ideas and companies that are shaking the very core of what it means to be a utility company. Other influences, like the Clean Power Plan by President Obama and EPA, will impact utility business models, industry standards, regulations and policy.
There is chaos, but within the disorder comes great opportunity. ETS16 will explore the critical challenges facing the energy industry across a handful of important themes: