Power grid markets have been attracting investors, businesses and policymakers around the world, where the highly developed interest in the benefits of smart grid technologies and metering is growing. Although there is a great deal of confusion of what the smart grid field means, its current capabilities, and more importantly, the future possibilities – governments have been allocating billions of dollars into smart grid initiatives. 
A new report from Lux Research predicts that this market will grow from $4.5 billion currently to $15.8 billion by 2015.
Lux Research is an independent research and advisory firm providing strategic advice and ongoing intelligence for emerging technologies. Lux Research advises corporations, investors, and governments on science-driven innovation, with practices in solar, energy storage, water, nanomaterials, and biosciences.
For more information, refer to Lux Research Analyst Blog – Lux Populi and Lux Research website.
What are the current and future opportunities in the smart grid fast-growing field?
The Lux Research report looked at the companies involved in the smart grid today and organized them into three sections:
• Measurement and communication
• Analysis and services
• Local management
The researchers defined subsegments, measured, categorized and forecasted the growth of each of the smart grid submarkets. Then, they ranked the 25 leading companies according to several factors: maturity, technical value, and business execution.
While the measurement and communication segment had the early drive, smart meters and networking infrastructure technologies are expected to grow tremendously, as they enable better management of information across the grid. Both governments and utilities recognize that better management of the grids is essential and requires better capture and management of information.
With the requirement for demand response applications, this segment will grow exponentially. The researchers found that analysis and services revenues are poised to become the largest growing segment of the smart grid by 2015.
The Lux Research report and analysis provide a quantitative framework for evaluating the strongest opportunities in this fast-growing sector. Since most of the companies involved use similar technologies, the competitive advantage open to market participants is how well their technology scales. Many of the opportunities are fast-moving and the companies who can navigate this landscape and capitalize on opportunities before their competition, will succeed.
The bottom line: The smart grid field offers enormous opportunities for investors, companies and utilities.
Source: The Lux report ” The Smartest Opportunities in the $16 Billion Smart Grid.”
Image: flickr.com.photos/susan_w
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