GE, Google to collaborate on smart grid
The two companies, saying that existing U.S. infrastructure has not kept pace with the digital economy and the hundreds of technology opportunities that are ready for market, will focus on improving power generation, transmission, and distribution of energy;
GE and Google are joining forces (PDF file) to use technology, information, and corporate resources to drive the changes necessary to give consumers better energy choices. The two companies will focus on improving power generation, transmission, and distribution — a combination of technologies which is referred to as the “smart grid” (Google’s press release says that it would be fair to refer to the current grid as a “grid of only average intelligence.”)
The companies say that existing U.S. infrastructure has not kept pace with the digital economy and the hundreds of technology opportunities that are ready for market. In fact, the way the United States generates and distributes electricity today is essentially the same as when Thomas Edison built the first power plant more than one hundred years ago. Just as Americans now have the choice to drive more fuel efficient cars, or even electric cars, they should have the option of managing their home energy use to reduce costs, and of buying power from cleaner sources, or even generating their own power for sale to the grid.
“We all receive an electricity bill once a month that encourages little except prompt payment,” the companies say. “What if, instead, we had access to real-time information about home energy use? What if our flat screen TVs, electronic equipment, lights and appliances were programmed to automatically adjust to save money and cut energy use? What if we could push a button and switch the source of our homes’ electricity from fossil fuels to renewable energy? What if the car sitting in our garage ran on electricity - the equivalent of $1 per gallon gasoline — and was programmed to charge at night when electricity is cheapest?”
It is this vision which drives Google and GE in this venture. The companies will start by working together in Washington, D.C. to mount a major policy effort to enable large-scale deployment of renewable energy generation in the United States. Tey will also work on development and deployment of the “smart” electricity grid that will empower consumers, utilities, and technology innovators to manage electricity more efficiently and lower their carbon footprint. Finally, the two companies will collaborate on advanced energy technologies, including technologies to enable the large-scale integration of plug-in vehicles into the grid and new geothermal energy technologies known as enhanced geothermal systems (EGS).
