www.dailyadvance.com/news/content/gen/ap/NC_Bottom_Line -
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Published on: 1/23/2008
Last Visited: 1/23/2008
Improving the efficiency of power grids prevents blackouts and keeps a utility from having to build a power plant to meet growing customer demand for energy, said Optimal Technologies chief executive Roland Schoettle.
Eliminating the need for a power plant is a major draw in an era of rising energy costs and global warming concerns.
"If you're looking for results, we have no equal in the world anywhere," Schoettle said this week during an interview in the company's still-empty office in Raleigh."The hard part is convincing customers."
The company's secret sauce , and Achilles' heel , is a proprietary algorithm that can perform complex calculations in seconds, rather than the hours or days it can take to perform the functions manually, Schoettle said.
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Goldman Sachs vetted Optimal Technologies for six months, Schoettle said, commissioning a 20-page report from consulting firm of Frost & Sullivan.
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Progress Energy, an electric utility with customers in three states, would be an ideal client for Optimal Technologies, Schoettle said.
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Schoettle said the software is particularly good at managing electricity flow during times of peak demand, when utilities are paying the highest prices to generate or buy power.The product can also be used to control pollution emissions, maximize reliability and achieve other goals.
"This is not a one-trick-pony software," Schoettle said."Imagine giving every car on the freeway tonight a tuneup.Imagine doing all those cars simultaneously, the complexity of doing that."