Thanksgiving is over, the holiday season is upon us and the new year is just around the corner.
All goes to show that time moves fast—even at the relatively glacial pace of the utility industry.
Utilities always have to be thinking 10 years ahead in order to secure power supply and plan grid projects. But right now, a whirlwind of disruptive forces—low load growth, a changing resource mix and the very real threat of distributed generation—cloud any attempts to gaze into the proverbial crystal ball.
While we can clearly see renewables, energy efficiency and high-ceiling technologies like energy storage are on the rise, we don't yet know what this all means for utilities. But the new year awaits and the future will, inevitably, sort itself out.
For now, we can take comfort that Christmas comes early—in the form of this week's most read stories.
- 8 disruptive companies that utilities should watch in 2014: These companies are leading the way on DSM, renewables, storage and lighting.
- Why utilities are betting on wind: Here's a hint: it's not renewable mandates.
- How Opower sells energy efficiency to utilities: Utility Dive's Davide Savenije spoke to CEO Dan Yates about Opower's business model and utilities' reluctance to embrace energy efficiency.
- Energy startup culture: A look inside Opower HQ: Utility Dive took photos of Opower's offices during a recent visit to their headquarters. There are puppies and a keg refrigerator.
- GE, Iberdrola invest in battery storage startup: Stem plans to increase production with new funds.
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