E NABLING D ISTRIBUTED G ENERATION AND D EMAND RESPONSE WITH E NTER- PRISE E NERGY M ANAGEMENT S YSTEMS

Abstract

An escalating demand for power has created two challenges for the
energy industry: today, the problem is lack of generation; five years from
now, it will be bottlenecks in the transmission and distribution infrastruc-
ture. Although demand response can solve the short-term problem, only
distributed generation can solve both.
Demand response and distributed generation programs are becom-
ing reality thanks to breakthroughs in enterprise energy management
(EEM) and alternative generation technologies. These tools can deliver the
quantity, quality and cost of power mandated by an expanding digital
economy, growing environmental concerns and deregulation.
As greater numbers of power producers enter the picture and energy
traders ask for more real-time information, the decentralized monitoring
and control of energy and power quality is becoming a critical require-
ment. Information about every aspect of the power system is being shared
at lightning-fast speeds and all players have to react just as quickly.