This is an excerpt from EERE Network News, a weekly electronic newsletter.
October 31, 2012
IBM Founds Smarter Energy Research Institute to Advance Future Utilities
IBM on October 25 announced the launch of the Smarter Energy Research Institute, a new industrial research collaboration aimed at accelerating innovation across the global energy and utilities market. The first three members to join are DTE, a Detroit-based company that operates an electric utility in Southeastern Michigan; Hydro-Quebec, a large Canadian hydroelectric power producer; and Alliander, a Dutch energy producer specializing in renewable energy.
The new organization is a collaboration between corporate research and the energy and utilities industries to transform energy companies through the use of predictive analytics, system optimization, and advanced computation. In the area of renewable and distributed energy resources, which are prone to variability, members can leverage predictive and optimization technologies, increasing the accuracy of their forecasts to balance the supply and demand of electricity, thereby ensuring system reliability. Among other things, the effort will focus on renewable and distributed energy in order to help utilities meet renewable targets while ensuring system stability. See the IBM press release.
