I have never understood the ESCO Technologies brand as being a
serious energy management firm. I don't believe they are very
focused on energy management at all in fact. If you look at the
resources they have in filtration, sound dampening, and water AMR
solutions, one would think the are only fiddling with the idea of being
a firm in the market. Itron and EnerNOC have a clearer management vision of where they are taking their companies.
Energy management software maker EnerNOC is continuing its buying spree, this time adding demand response solution provider Global Energy Partners to its roster. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.
“Our utility customers and prospects view demand-side resources as an integral component of their overall strategies,” Tim Healy, Chairman and CEO of EnerNOC, said in a prepared statement.
EnerNOC is planning to target utilities with both turnkey and customized solutions, as well as the automated demand response market.
Some of its recent acquisitions include Cogent Energy, eQuilibrium Solutions, MDEnergy, SmallFoot, and South River Consulting. No doubt there will be further consolidation as its clients continue to roll out their smart grid solutions.
While it is not the largest firm in the market, EnerNOC has a market cap of $648.15M. Competitors include ESCO Technologies and Itron.
EnerNOC is much more vertical than many smart grid start-ups — providing specialized services and expertise – but nonetheless, its growth underscores how software is an integral part of the smart grid story.
I made many industry contacts through my years as a journalist, and people ranging from developers who work with “big data” at well known Internet companies, to entrepreneurs, are viewing the energy market as a 10X opportunity. This is a market to watch.
