E-Enabled Energy Services: B2B in the Energy Sector.(e-commerce)

The Internet has created new markets, new ways of doing business

E-commerce has already made a deep impact on business and leisure. Forrester Research, a Cambridge, MA, firm that tracks technology markets, projects that e-commerce transactions in the United States will reach $1.3 trillion by 2003. They project that electricity sales alone will account for $250 billion by 2004, meaning that the energy sector will likely see the rapid introduction of new electronic (e)-enabled technology.

Given the projected size of the e-enabled energy market, it is time to ask two questions: (1) How will e-commerce change how electricity is bought and sold? and (2) What new services to manage energy will be offered over the Web?

Expect e-commerce to blur the line between energy and telecommunications. Guatham Chandra, president of Smartenergy.com, has dedicated that company to making residential energy sales so simple that consumers will be able to buy power from cable television or cellular telephone providers. The added convenience and control should appeal to consumers.

Utilities have already started to develop new services by consolidated billings. Customers have expressed an overwhelming desire to receive one bill for all utility services (electric, gas, telephone, and water) whether or not one company provides all the services. For commercial, industrial, and other large users, however, more complex service delivery issues make it likely that procurement solutions will be very different. At the same time, deregulation in the electricity business allows energy providers to combine distribution with other offerings, such as energy services and HVAC maintenance, so the door is open for massive change in the energy business through e-enabled services.

Other Developments

A recent article in EUN (Energy Mangement.com, July 2000) suggested that energy procurement is one of the most rapidly developing e-commerce areas in states where electricity is now deregulated. Technical sessions and exhibits at the World Energy Engineering Congress (WEEC) held in October in Atlanta seemed to confirm this idea.