Mitsui Teams up with Viridity Energy to Bring Smart Grid Technology To Asia

Mitsui and Co have made a massive investment in order to bring Smartgrid technology to the Asia Pacific region. The IT and engineering giant Mitsui & Co have teamed up with a US-based energy demand management specialist Viridity Energy, investing $15 million.

Japan based Mitsui said that the deal still requires approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. If approved, it will secure the company an undisclosed equity stake in Viridity and a seat on the company’s board of directors.

The firms said the partnership would “combine Viridity Energy’s expertise in storage optimization with Mitsui’s financing expertise to support the development of distributed energy projects that feature storage as a significant component”. The deal is a commitment for the companies to work together to offer Viridity’s VPower smart grid management technology in the Asia-Pacific region.
Viridity specializes in ‘demand-side management technologies’. It works by using smart grid technologies to dynamically reduce demand for energy during peak periods, minimizing the need for energy suppliers to fire up costly and carbon intensive back-up capacity.

This approach is becoming increasingly popular in the US and is gaining traction in other markets around the world as energy suppliers look to better balance supply and demand, while curbing the need for new investment.

“Viridity Energy and Mitsui & Co share the view that customer load has the potential to serve as a dynamic and reliable grid resource that is less expensive and more sustainable to society,” said Audrey Zibelman, chair and chief executive of Viridity Energy in a statement.

“We look forward to partnering with Mitsui to expand the availability of dynamic load management in global markets to strengthen the ability for all resources, including consumption, to work seamlessly together to provide reliable power in the most economical, efficient, and sustainable manner possible.”