Energy Biz - September/October 2008 - (Page 78) » Guidebook time to Get moving NOSBAUM CHALLENgES STATUS QUO By MARTiN ROSENBERg leroy nosbauM belieVes his company is part of the solution. Nosbaum, the chairman and chief executive officer of Itron, this summer stood before state utility regulators meeting in Portland, Ore., and declared, “We will all take risks. The greater risk is doing nothing. We’ve waited too long.” He believes smart meters will be the key to unlocking energy efficiency and bringing the power industry into the 21st century. Nosbaum elaborated on his thinking in an interview, which has been edited for style and length. EnErgyBiz There is a new sense of urgency about national energy policy. How does that affect Itron? nOsBauM I don’t think it particularly makes a material change in our business plans going forward. EnErgyBiz What about the increased importance of energy efficiency? Do you think that’s going to speed deployment of smart meters? nOsBauM It certainly supports a deployment of smart two-way meters for many utilities that are already in the process. For others that aren’t, I think it causes some pressure on them to look at smart two-way meters, grid efficiency and energy usage efficiency. We continue to see utilities being pressured by public utility commissions and what is occurring in the press every day. For other utilities that are already moving forward, their confidence in the direction they’re moving clearly is bolstered. (MeterinG and data ManaGeMent) LeRoy Nosbaum PhOTO cOurTEsy OF iTrOn building more infrastructure. That concept has been turned on its head by a number of factors such as the difficulty of building supply, the cost of energy and environmental concerns. Our challenge of the status quo has been to bring to market products and services that we believe help utilities and increasingly help their customers, to work on the effectiveness and the efficiency of supply and delivery. EnErgyBiz Give me a quick-and-dirty snapshot of the U.S. market broken down three ways: conventional meters, meters that allow for automated meter remote reading, and meters that are capable of two-way communication and sophisticated response to price signal changes. nOsBauM If you look across the whole spectrum of electric, water and gas utilities, about 35 percent have been automated with one-way automatic meter reading or AMR. Two-way capability is in its infancy. Where are the new meter technologies being deployed most rapidly? nOsBauM Any part of the country that has either existing supply shortfall or projected supply shortfall is going to move forward with smart metering sooner than maybe others. Clearly California falls into that camp, and Texas. In addition, many utilities are fighting the pressure of ever-increasing energy prices and what to do about it. EnErgyBiz EnErgyBiz On your Web site one of your core belief statements is challenge the status quo. What is your view of the status quo in the industry today and how do you intend to challenge it? nOsBauM Utilities have been builders of infrastructure. All questions were fundamentally answered by What is your market share of electric meters in North America? nOsBauM In the last 10 years, we have averaged around 50 percent. EnErgyBiz EnErgyBiz Do you have any estimates of the magnitude of energy savings that could be achieved in 78 E n E rgyB i z September/October 2008
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