The Telecommunications Economy: Energy 

According to September 2003 U.S. Department of Energy calculations, in the next 16 years
$80 billion can be saved through rapid adoption of smart-energy technologies that utilize
real-time communications networks to adjust power demand at peak times.

The espWatcher system, developed by oilfield services company Schlumberger, allows for remote detection of oil and gas well flow problems by using sensors to send alerts via mobile phones when problems arise. This technology can help to boost overall production by 70%.

The Bently Nevada Corporation's new wind turbine monitoring solution uses remote detection to prevent costly service outages. According to a 2nd quarter 2004 ORBIT profile, early detection and repair of the failure of a $5,000 bearing can prevent $235,000 in total damage.

ITT Industries' Airborne Natural Gas Emission Lidar (ANGEL) uses a highly-sensitive remote sensing gas detection technology, to find, quantify, image, and map leaks in natural gas pipelines. Per flyover, planes equipped with ANGEL are able to inspect an area 30 times larger than current leak survey methods. According to a June 2004 Pipeline & Gas Journal profile, ANGEL is 100-times faster than traditional inspection methods, collecting up to 180,000 laser measurements and sampling more than 500 million cubic feet of atmosphere per minute.

Argonne National Laboratory's GTMax Model allows utilities to update power forecasts and economic impacts in real-time. It ensures that market transactions and operations remain within the power system's physical, institutional, and environmental limitations. According to 2003 Center for Energy, Environmental and Economic Systems Analysis simulations, GTMax will also help southeast European power markets implement deregulation and full energy grid integration with the European Union by 2020.

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