Dive Summary:
- In a response to an article in the Economist proclaiming the imminent stagnation of new ideas and innovation, Peter Kelly-Detwiler, in a piece for Forbes, argues that while stagnation might be expected in many sectors, the energy industry is set for radical change.
- While many technology-intensive have seen radical changes over the past couple decades due to forward-thinking entrepreneurs and creative business leaders, the utilities industry has remained largely unchanged due to a risk-averse approach, stable market conditions and the lag between innovation, implementation and results.
- While the utilities industry has remained largely unchanged for the past 60 years, recent and imminent technological breakthroughs from outside the industry are forcing utilities to face the swiftly growing demand for a smarter and cleaner grid.
From the article:
"... Unlike other areas identified by the Economist, where technological process has indeed slowed, and economic growth has gone along with it, there may be tremendous potential remaining in the electric energy industry precisely because it has remained relatively bottled up and stagnant for most of the last 100 years. The game-changing technology has not developed from within the industry, but outside of it, and is now moving into the industry, largely ignoring the utilities – with a focus largely on the customer.
The transition may happen even faster if the utilities and regulatory entities continue to let the grid fall apart, and continue to let depreciation exceed new investment for much of the past two decades. On an average day, 500,000 Americans suffer some sort of power outage. It is precisely that lack of power quality and reliability that will force some customers to search for better and more reliable behind-the-meter solutions. And the high cost of remedying the problem will result in higher rates, providing an even more competitive environment for new technologies. ..."
