Joins with EnerNOC, FirstFuel and C3 Energy to Help Utilities Better
Engage Consumers and Manage Grid
Opower (NYSE: OPWR) joined with EnerNOC, FirstFuel and C3 Energy today
to congratulate the US House of Representatives for passing Section 1107
(21) of HR 8, which encourages utilities to deploy advanced energy
analytics technology and requires state regulators to consider allowing
utilities to earn a rate of return on their investments in such
technology. This technology helps energy consumers reduce their bills
and helps utilities better manage the grid, all of which improves the
safety, reliability, efficiency, affordability, and emissions profile of
the electricity and gas sectors.
“Energy intelligence software empowers consumers with the tools and
understanding to lower their energy costs, and enables utilities to
engage their customers to achieve improved grid outcomes,” said Tim
Healy, Chairman and CEO of EnerNOC. “I commend Chairman Fred Upton and
the many supporters of this provision for taking action to ensure more
Americans benefit from this cutting-edge technology.”
"It's vitally important that our regulatory policies reward utilities
for investments that deliver the best outcomes for their customers and
for the advancement of the grid," said Alex Laskey, President and
Co-Founder of Opower. "Congressional leaders have sent an important
message: that the regulatory policies of yesterday shouldn't stand in
the way of utilities that are making the transition to a cleaner and
more customer-centric energy future."
“Utilities around the country have been innovating and planning
investments in customer energy intelligence,” said Swapnil Shah, CEO of
FirstFuel. “This provision will enable their investments to be realized
appropriately by their shareholders, as well as their customers.”
“State of the art technology leveraging big data, cloud computing, and
machine learning is now available to optimize the power generation and
distribution value chain,” said Ed Abbo, C3 Energy President and CTO.
“Section 1107 (21) will help states accelerate the technology adoption
curve and the transition to a smarter, more efficient, and more
sustainable energy system.”
By passing this provision, the House has taken a critical step toward
addressing an outdated regulatory barrier that stands in the way of
large-scale adoption of this technology and, in turn, increased economic
benefits for all Americans.
While the software industry has evolved significantly in recent years,
and software solutions are now predominantly cloud-based, or delivered
through web browsers as Software-as-a-Service (SaaS), regulatory
accounting practices have lagged. Utilities are allowed to earn a rate
of return on “on-premise” software, or software that can be physically
possessed and used on a CD-ROM or a disk, but they cannot earn a rate of
return on SaaS. This creates a misguided incentive for utilities to take
physical ownership of software that needs to run on expensive hardware,
instead of using SaaS. SaaS solutions reduce maintenance and overall
costs, facilitate the ongoing installation of software upgrades by
vendors, and simplify operations for users.
This legislation also recognizes that new poles and wires—for which
utilities can earn a rate of return— are not always the solution, and
that challenges faced by our modern electric grid can be increasingly
solved by software. Allowing utilities to earn a similar rate of return
on SaaS to pole-and-wire investments will level the playing field, and
ensure that the most cost-effective investment is made.
About Opower
Opower (NYSE: OPWR)
is an enterprise software company that is transforming the way utilities
engage with their customers. Opower’s customer engagement platform
enables utilities to reach their customers at moments that matter
through proactive and digitized communications that drive energy
savings, increase customer engagement and satisfaction, and lower
customer operation costs. Opower’s software has been deployed to more
than 95 utility partners around the world and reaches more than 57
million households and businesses. For more information, please visit
www.opower.com and follow us on Twitter at @Opower.
Forward-looking Statements
This release contains forward-looking statements, including
statements regarding benefits from the use of Opower’s solutions. Any
statements in this press release about future expectations, plans and
prospects for Opower represent Opower’s views as of the date of this
press release. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number
of risks, uncertainties and assumptions. While Opower may elect to
update these statements at some point in the future, Opower specifically
disclaims any obligation to do so.
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