Quick News: ‘Energy Internet of Things’ Company Scores $14M; Connecticut Reaches $1B in Energy Savings
A lot of people are still trying to figure out exactly what the ‘energy Internet of Things’ is, but apparently not the investors in Maryland-based Blue Pillar.
The software company scored $14 million in financing this week in a deal led by EnerTech Capital, a private investment firm that looks for innovation in the energy and power industries.
Blue Pillar intends to use the financing to scale its Aurora product, a digital energy Internet of Things platform that connects, controls, and collects data from equipment in a building. The company also will use the new backing to push its Avise Foresite, an application that allows centralized energy management of building fleets. Both products can be used with Blue Pillar’s real-time analytics.
Bill Kingsley of EnerTech Capita said that his company was impressed by how quickly customers are adopting Blue Pillar technology.
Blue Pillar surpassed its 2014 sales record in just the first two months of 2015, according to Tom Willie, CEO. About 255 of facilities in healthcare, government, higher education, and other industries now use Blue Pillar to manage their energy and power systems
This round of financing also included the Maryland Venture Fund and existing investors Allos Ventures, Arsenal Venture Partners and Claremont Creek Ventures.
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Meanwhile, the state of Connecticut is expected to save consumers nearly $1 billion as a result of its 2014 investments in energy efficiency, according to the Acadia Center.
The savings, from efficiency installations for natural gas and electricity, will accumulate over the life of the measures.
“One of the best benefits of these programs is that they help consumers with the challenge of high winter energy costs,” said William Dornbos, senior attorney at the Acadia Center and chair of the Connecticut Energy Efficiency Board, which advises the utilities on the state’s energy efficiency plan.
Connecticut has faced some rough winters in recent years. The Energy Efficiency Board has been working with utilities to ease the impact with LED lighting options, helping big facilities cut energy loads, and getting the word out to continue to increase participation in the programs.
The Acadia Center says that Connecticut invested over $220 million in electric and natural gas efficiency in 2014. This is year two in a three-year efficiency plan (2013-15).
Consumers are expected to save $630 million from the state’s 2013 investment in energy efficiency and $978.3 million from the 2014 investments. Over three years the energy savings is equivalent to a 143 MW power plant.
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