Power Engineering - Energy utility industry has increased spending on security and wholesale market restructuring

STAMFORD, Conn., Sept. 9, 2003 -- META Group Inc., announced initial findings from its 2003 Energy Utility IT Spending Study, a comprehensive survey of the current spending habits within the energy utility industry.

According to the results, while overall IT spending as a percent of revenue in the energy utility market was down 13% from last year, there are certain areas showing an increase in budgetary dollars.

"Overall, IT spending in energy utilities has decreased slightly over the past year, but there are some areas experiencing high rates of change that CIOs simply cannot afford to cut back on," said Rick Nicholson, vice president and director of META Group's Energy Information Strategies. "We are seeing an increase in spending on applications supporting wholesale power market restructuring such as energy trading and risk management systems, energy management systems and metering systems, and security."

In fact, 81% of energy companies increased security spending this year, while only 4% spent less. Budgets for energy trading and risk management systems increased 44%, while 30% of surveyed companies kept their spending flat and 11% spent less. Metering systems saw a spending increase of 33%, while 52% kept budgets flat and only 7% spent less. Of respondents, 33% increased spending on energy management systems (EMS/SCADA), while 48% spent the same and 4% spent less.

"These numbers validate our previous forecasts, which assumed that critical infrastructure protection and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's proposal to restructure electric transmission would be top drivers for technology investment," said Nicholson. "At this point, we expect IT spending in the energy utility industry to remain flat next year and return to growth in 2005."

The full report will be released at META Group's Energy Conference, which will be held in Broomfield, Colorado, September 8-10, 2003.

This year's conference will take place September 8-10 at the Omni Interlocken Resort in Broomfield, Colorado, 30 minutes from Denver. Hosted by our Energy Information Strategies (EIS) service, this seventh annual conference will utilize META Group's world-class research and real-world experience to provide participants with the business and IT knowledge necessary to build the real-time energy enterprise of the future. Panel topics include energy CIO challenges, regional perspectives on restructuring, and outsourcing.

META Group is a provider of information technology research, advisory services, and strategic consulting. Delivering objective and actionable guidance, META Group's experienced analysts and consultants are trusted advisors to IT and business executives around the world. Our unique collaborative models and dedicated customer service help clients be more efficient, effective, and timely in their use of IT to achieve their business goals. Visit metagroup.com for more details on our high-value approach.

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