Clients and Friends,
 
It's been a tough year for a lot of us. Our hearts go out to those impacted by storms and disasters. We could all use something to give us hope and confidence. There is good news.
 
Organizations are beginning to take prudent and cost-effective action in clean energy, efficiency, and sustainability. 
 
Despite retrenchment at the federal level, organizations of all sizes are recognizing that clean energy, efficiency, and sustainability are also expected by stakeholders, financially viable and prudent.  AKA, The Triple Bottom Line, (People, Profit, Planet).  Sustainability is a core strategic value. 
 
A wide swath of technological innovation will continue to dramatically reduce costs of clean renewable energy with high tech jobs and opportunities that will drive our future economy.  We are at the start of monumental transformation in renewable energy and smart grid technology.  Energy transition will be disruptive and bumpy but the outcomes will be beneficial for generations and the entire world.  
 
At this point denying mega trends of energy transition is like denying the smart phone and siding with the black rotary dial party-line or preferring the room sized computer mainframe with stacks of punch-cards to today's tablet. There are incredible challenges in transition, but trends and ultimate benefits are undeniable and unstoppable. Tremendous opportunities await in smart grid, EVs, wind, solar, distributed energy, storage and demand management. 
 
There is significant risk of environmental damage and loss of technological leadership by not acting quickly enough.  As an organization, or as individuals, we don't want to be on the wrong side of this transformation. Our nation's ability to lead in these technologies will define our future. 
 
At THG, we tell our co-workers "Don't wait for the posse, we are the posse!"  Don't be deterred, and don't wait for government to help. Use the clarity of your own actions to lead your organization forward so as not to lose momentum. 
 
THG's piece of this puzzle is to help our clients and partners with cost effective energy, sustainability, and demand management data and technology. We help you measure, manage, and respond. Over the past year, we have seen a big uptick in interest and engagement. We are excited to work collectively with our clients and roll up our sleeves together to address these challenges and opportunities. 
 
Daniel Frey,  President
THG Energy Solutions
Cash-In on Market Blow-Outs
Be Ready When The Time Comes 

Nobody likes blowouts. Tires. Parachutes. Diapers. It happens. Blowouts can get ugly, even in electricity markets. When they happen, you better be ready if you want to avoid a costly mess.
Electricity trades in real-time, 5 and 15 minute intervals. So the price is changing throughout the day.  This happens behinds the scenes on the wholesale market, where generators, utility companies and retail suppliers are working to get you a stable price.  The wholesale electricity price can swing 2,000% within the hour due to many factors, including demand (kW).  When demand is high, the power grid becomes constrained and prices soar.
You - the electricity consumer - can profit handsomely by receiving the same price for your unused power as the large generators would've received if they had to produce it.  And oh, by the way -- help the regional grid by reducing consumption when it's needed the most.

The image below illustrates a market blowout in PJM that occurred in the middle of the day and only for a couple of brief periods - most likely, when facility and property managers were out for lunch.  If they had been onsite, pricing signals are invisible. Even with text notification, without automation, folks must stop what they're doing to respond. Hope isn't a strategy!
Two Ways to Participate

1) The old, traditional method, aka "The Hard Way":  Manual, cumbersome way of running around last-minute, turning things off and on again, must be present to win; or

2) The new, automated, efficient, THG way: connecting your controllable building assets (HVAC, pumps, fans, lights, and refrigeration) to the wholesale market through THG's Automated Demand Response Technology, no need to be present to win - we set it so you can forget it.

THG's Automated Demand Response technology connects select building assets to the wholesale power market by interfacing with your building automation system and other ways.

How It Works

When prices spike, the wholesale market sends a signal to our device, which relays simple instructions to your building automation system.  Typical pre-set strategies to cash in on brief events:
  • Automatically bump up your AC temperature set point 2 degrees
  • Turn down non-essential lights
  • Turn down variable speed fans, heat pumps, etc.
  • Turn off battery chargers and non essential equipment
All of this happens automatically, without any human intervention, giving you the ability to participate as many times a day as you want

When prices fall back to "normal" levels, the wholesale market sends another signal to our device, relaying to your building automation the "event" is over and all assets can be returned to pre-event operations. THG's technology provides you with a flexible way to generate cash payments and savings through demand response.

Additional Features
  • Text and email event notification
  • Push-button override
  • Real-time event reporting via the web
  • Full accounting of dollars saved and dollars earned
Key Takeaway: Actions taken during less than one percent of the year can reduce electricity costs by more than 10%.

To learn more about opportunities in PJM Interconnection, or other markets across the US, contact THG's Charlie Galvin: [email protected]  or  586.630.8222.   

The Next Energy Revolution is Here
Renewables, Cloud Computing Lead Innovation in Electricity Industry  

Over the period of one decade, the capitalized cost of generating solar energy in 2015 has decreased to as low as one sixth the cost in 2005, and it will not take long for solar energy generation to be economically cheaper than thermal power generation worldwide.
 
Looking back at the history of human civilization, for a long time, firewood was the primary source of energy; however, back then, energy utilization was low and as such air pollution emissions were also low.
 
The invention of the steam engine in the 18th century marked the beginning of the industrial revolution, which led to the mining and consumption of coal on a large scale. In 1920, coal accounted for 62% of primary energy consumption, indicating that the world had entered the Coal Age.
 
In 1965, petroleum replaced coal as the most consumed energy, which led the world into the "petroleum age". In 1979, petroleum contributed 54% of the world energy consumption, marking the second energy revolution from coal to petroleum. Up until now, fossil fuels have continued to dominate as our energy resource.
 
With each new age, the use and efficiency of energy increases but so does environmental pollination.  Our future energy system must therefore be clean and low-carbon to ensure the sustainable development of human civilization. There has never been a solar spill!
 
We are now embarking on a new era of energy revolution. The energy system of the future should have the following three features:
 
Low carbon energy production . Fossil fuels have to be burned to release energy, which caused emissions and environmental pollution. The existing intensive industrial usage of fossil fuels has significantly harmed the environment. Meanwhile, for most economically under-developed countries around the world, the cost of clean energy is too high to be affordable.
 
Solar power, however, is one of the best solutions. Not only is solar energy production clean, it may also soon become a much more affordable source of energy, as technology development and innovation continues to reduce the cost of solar power generation.
 
Energy independence and connectivity . The energy system of the future, dominated by renewables, will be built based on regions. Each region will have its own energy supply system. Thus, forming a new system with a regional power network which would also be interconnected with networks in other regions to balance the system and ensure a consistent energy supply. An energy system like this would be far more optimized than our existing one.
 
Energy sharing. The direction of new energy revolution is to build an energy-sharing system, based on a large database and a smart-energy connection platform. Such a vision has already been realized in Germany, where many households are equipped with solar panels on their rooftops. If one family produces more electricity more than they use, they share the extra power with other families via regional grid. Establishing an energy-sharing system can further decrease the cost of adopting clean energy. It can be a new model of shared energy and a shared economy.
 
Promoting the new model of energy consumption in less-developed regions. While developed countries are changing their energy structure from fossil fuels to renewables, many less-developed regions are still short of any kind of energy supply models. Those countries could skip the traditional power system, and directly adopt new clean energy.
 
Throughout the history of humanity, industrial revolutions have also been energy revolutions. Every change of a dominant energy source has been a revolution. Each time, a change had resulted in industrial and social developments. The next energy revolution is now at accelerating in pace, propelled by technology development and innovation. Consequently, the connection to grid of PV (solar) energy at a fair price will become a reality faster than we expect.

 
The U.S. electricity industry is experiencing unprecedented innovation and change. The grid is getting smarter and customers can play a more active role in how their electricity is made, moved, and used. Data will also play an increasing important role in our grid's transformation. With the deployment of smart meters across the U.S. and powerful cloud computing, there are enormous quantities of energy-use data at our fingertips for the first time ever. This data can revolutionize the grid, but only if people have access to data, as well as to the tools needed to control their energy use and electricity bills. THG Energy Solutions is making that vision a reality for more than 65,000 accounts per month, behind more than 1,000 utilities.  

Special On-boarding Promotion In Progress! 
Friends, PLPs, Customers: Lend Us Your Meters

From now until the end of the year, THG is offering deep discounts for onboarding accounts in bulk quantities.  For the rest of the year, THG has excess capacity to onboard new utility accounts and we're extending that surplus to our customers.
 
The on-boarding process is one of the most laborious and time-consuming aspects of our SaaS-based Energy Intelligence Suite.  It includes building each account, acquiring/loading 24-months of historical data, integrating weather data, square footage, tax information, rates, and many other items on a checklist.  It's the reason we normally charge $20 per account to on-board - competitors charge more.
 
If THG can fully on-board, test, and deliver in 2017 orders of:
  • +250 accounts, special offer:  $3 per account
  • +100 accounts, special offer:  $5 per account
  • +75 accounts, we'll offer: $10 per account 

If you use THG to manage natural gas, now is the time to add electricity - or vice versa.  If you already track your energy accounts in the Energy Intelligence Suite, now is the time to give the CEO an early 2018 surprise and kick-start a holistic sustainability plan by adding water, recycling and waste.  Our monthly rates are low, so if you've ever wanted to add a new commodity type or benchmark your entire building portfolio, there's never been a better time! 
 
September and October is the best time to push a bulk order through, but we can squeeze one into November too. After that, it gets tougher.  Remember, this discount is valid only if the accounts are fully on-boarded in 2017! Verbal commitments or in-progress meters do not qualify. 

Contact your dedicated Account Rep, Business Development Manager or [email protected] for more information.  Please refer to this promotion to claim the temporary discount.    
THG Harvey Relief Effort

THG's Austin crew spent Sept 7-9 in Victoria, TX with faith-based non-profit Samaritan's Purse to help distribute water, remove waste, remove damaged drywall and insulation, tarp roofs, and clear debris from fallen vegetation. Massive effort!  

Below, from left to right: Max Frey, Todd Sobocinski, John Greene, Jordan Wheeler, Cory Kowal, Alex Weidensee, and Alex Pettigrew.  




THG's Energy Intelligence Suite
No Matter Your Energy Management Goals, You Have Options