Energy management company Tendril announced last week it has acquired energy analytics provider EEme, adding non-intrusive load monitoring capabilities to its data analytics platform. EEme's model uses a set of algorithms that follow patterns in the data from meter readings. Combined with Tendril's existing Home Energy Management platform, the technology could identify new EV owners and recommend a TOU rate.

When given the choice, more people are choosing to use renewable energy and most are making an effort to be efficient in saving electricity. Increasingly, affordable technologies and the growing availability of smart meter data are making it easier for customers to make a range of unprecedented energy choices. The question is, are these innovations reaching all energy customers?

Duke Energy has teamed up with Avista Development, a subsidiary of Avista Corp., to develop open source software for grid edge technology solutions through an investment in Open Energy Solutions Inc. “The software will use interoperability concepts and distributed intelligence, allowing utilities to more efficiently integrate, coordinate and optimize diverse assets,” the companies said in a statement. “This includes the energy grid, traditional and renewable generation, customer assets and more.”

The New Hampshire PUC last Thursday issued an order to launch the state's first customer-sited battery storage program and time-of-use rate pilot. The proposal, developed by the PUC, Liberty Utilities and other stakeholders, will add up to 1,000 batteries to New Hampshire homes. Liberty Utilities will install 500 Tesla Powerwall 2 batteries and private companies will install the rest, after the utility compromised on its original December 2017 plan to allow third-party installers.

With states increasingly looking to provide low- and moderate-income customers with access to community solar, the Department of Energy’s NREL issued a report outlining program options for utilities and policymakers. Community solar allows multiple customers to participate in off-site solar facilities, often by making an upfront payment or monthly payments.

A recent report from the U.S. EIA predicts that renewable energy will grow at the fastest rate of all energy sources in the U.S. over the next two years. The report expects solar to grow by 10 percent during the coming year, followed by another 17 percent growth in 2020, with wind generation keeping close pace at 12 percent and 14 percent, respectively.