Reportlinker Adds Industry Dynamics: 2010 Guide to Technology in the Utilities Industry

NEW YORK, June 10 /PRNewswire/ -- Reportlinker.com announces that a new market research report is available in its catalogue:

Industry Dynamics: 2010 Guide to Technology in the Utilities Industry

http://www.reportlinker.com/p0204819/Industry-Dynamics-2010-Guide-to-Technology-in-the-Utilities-Industry.html

Introduction

This brief provides an overview of the opportunities and challenges that vendors are likely to encounter in the utilities industry, outlining the key structures and developments, and the effect they have on decision makers and end-users.

Scope

*Provides an overview of how utilities have implemented technology to mange unprecedented pressures in the industry.

*Ovum's take on the technology priorities of utilities

*Provides recommendations to vendors navigating the IT market in utilities

Highlights

The technologies that underpin utilities' business processes are typically kept separate from each other, are often based around proprietary standards, and have low interoperability with other systems in other parts of the business

The pace of change in the utilities industry is increasing rapidly, driven by environmental concerns, aging and inadequate delivery networks, market liberalization, scarcity of resources, increasing fuel costs, a rapidly aging workforce, and increasing payment defaults

As these business processes change, so does the technology that supports them. The traditional model of siloed technologies will slowly give way to more interoperable systems, providing an enterprise-wide view of a utility's business

Reasons to Purchase

*Learn about the priorities facing utilities

*Understand the drivers and inhibitors behind the adoption of technology in utilities

*Identify strategies which vendors should adopt for future success in winning utility business

SUMMARY 1

Catalyst 1

Ovum View 1

Key Messages 2

FAR FROM HOMOGENEOUS, THE UTILITIES INDUSTRY IS SURPRISINGLY DIVERSE 2

The utilities industry principally provides electricity, gas and water 2

There are numerous divisions within a utility business 3

The upstream division of a utility business is centered around 'Plan, Build, Operate and Maintain' 4

T&D is again focused principally on asset strategy 5

Downstream is concerned with recovering payment from consumers 7

Commodity trading and risk management 8

The structure and size of individual utilities is diverse and varies by geography 9

Europe is characterized by large investor-owned utilities, and markets that are heading toward liberalization at varying speeds 9

The US market is fragmented with varying degrees of liberalization 10

Utilities serve both mass residential and commercial & industrial customers 12

utilities' business requirements HAVE Historically BEEN SUPPORTED by siloed technology 13

Operation technology (generation and T&D) 13

Meter-to-cash technology 15

CTRM technology 16

EXTRANEOUS PRESSURES ARE FORCING UTILITIES TO CHANGE DECADES-OLD BUSINESS PROCESSES 16

Environmental concerns have led governments and regulators to reduce carbon emissions 17

Future capital expenditure in infrastructure is vast 17

Market liberalization is coming, albeit slowly 18

Utilities are facing an unprecedented demand on resources, particularly in electricity and water 19

The high cost of fuel has put pressure on utility retail prices and has forced cuts in operating costs 20

An aging workforce will see a large proportion of utility staff retire over the next 10 years 21

The economic downturn has led to an increase in payment defaults 22

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR VENDORS 22

An endless pot of cash does not exist, therefore, utilities will be discerning about their investments 22

Conservatism is still a barrier to technology investment and outsourcing 22

APPENDIX 24

Ask the analyst 24

Definitions 24

Further reading 25

Disclaimer 25

List of Figures

Figure 1: The utility business value chain 3

Figure 2: The business processes of upstream utilities are dominated by asset management 5

Figure 3: While still asset-focused, there is a greater emphasis on regulatory reporting in the midstream 7

Figure 4: Downstream business processes are essentially meter-to-cash 8

Figure 5: The responsibilities of the CTRM function 9

Figure 6: The restructuring of the US market has largely stalled 11

Figure 7: Major applications supporting upstream and midstream 14

Figure 8: Major applications supporting the retail business 15

Figure 9: Major applications supporting CTRM 16

Figure 10: Breakdown of predicted investments in UK electricity infrastructure 18

Figure 11: Price regulation in the EU, 2010 19

Figure 12: US utilities have a far older workforce than other industries 21

To order this report:

IT Services Industry: Industry Dynamics: 2010 Guide to Technology in the Utilities Industry

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