Smart Grid Investment Grant Analysis Points To $1.3B Comm & IT, Zpryme Reports

New Zpryme Smart Grid Insights report, U.S. Smart Grid Investment Grant Analysis, points to $1.3B in communications network and IT related spending.

Austin, TX – With the global Smart Grid market value approaching $220B by 2020 (see market data preview here), Zpryme views the U.S. Smart Grid Investment Grant (SGIG) program as a major catalyst to worldwide Smart Grid development. In fact, many major utilities from Europe and Asia are already seeking out smart grid implementation guidance from progressive U.S. utilities such as Duke, FPL, PG&E, and SCE. The Smart Grid Investment Grant (SGIG) program is a $3.4B initiative that seeks to accelerate the transformation of the nation’s electric grid by deploying smart grid technologies and systems. The $3.4B in federal Recovery Act funds are matched on at least one‐to‐one with private sector resources. The total investment in SGIG projects is therefore approximately $8B.

"With communication network and IT related spending totaling $1.3B it will still take investment of hundreds of billions of dollars over the next several decades to fully modernize the grid," said Jason Rodriguez, Zpryme CEO and Director of Research. "The realization of the vision -- shared by many players in the electrical grid value chain -- of a highly intelligent grid will clearly require a sustained commitment and careful coordination and collaboration by industry, government, states, and other stakeholders. Initiatives will be needed to tackle the policy, market, and institutional barriers that currently inhibit investments by the private sector."

This report provides a summary of the SGIG program’s progress, an educated estimate as to the extent of its impact on the overall development of a smart grid in the U.S. and an outlook regarding the extent to which, in Zpryme’s opinion, the SGIG program’s overall goals will be achieved by the estimated completion date of the program.