US-based smart grid infrastructure firm Sensus has invested £5 million in Navetas, a technology spin-off from research first performed at Oxford University, in exchange for a 15 percent stake in the UK business. The funding is the latest in a series of rounds in which Navetas previously secured backing from Oxford, Swarraton Partners, and Naxos Capital. In announcing the deal, Sensus, which is based in Raleigh, North Carolina, said it was eager to deploy Navestas' patented energy management software in the US market. Utilities currently deploying the licensed wireless Sensus FlexNet™ advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) system will now be able to leverage the Navetas software as an optional service that provides residential and commercial customers with an online portal or mobile app showing precise electricity consumption data from various appliances. The system will also afford consumers with access to detailed information about daily usage patterns and the cost associated with each device, allowing them to manage consumption and save money. “Many utilities offer online portals that allow customers to see their aggregate electricity consumption,” said Matt Zafuto, Sensus' vice president of corporate strategy and business development. “Our technology allows the customer to see disaggregated data such as the electricity consumed by a water heater in the basement or a toaster oven in the kitchen and know how much each device costs them to operate.” Zafuto went on to describe the partnership as a "game changer" as utilities will be able to offer Navetas' service through the AMI system without their customers having to purchase or install equipment in the premises to gather and present the data. Navetas was founded in 2008 to productize the load disaggregating concept from the University of Oxford that can uniquely monitor, from a single point, how much energy is being used by different appliances in the home. Navetas has successfully launched the technology in the U.K. and across Europe. “The pace of change in the global energy market is rapid and this partnership will allow Navetas to develop internationally, specifically in the U.S., and to deliver new and innovative technologies that will address the emerging market dynamics,” said Navetas Energy Management CEO Chris Saunders. “Participation by a major global player such as Sensus is testament to the value our technology brings to the energy market.” Source: Renewable Energy Magazine
