Rolf Adam from Cisco – speaker at Smart Grid session in Sofia

Feb. 18, 2011 - PRLog -- Venture capital (VC) funding in the Smart Grid sector was at its highest in 2010 compared to the previous three years!

The director of Cisco Smart Grid Europe will speak about the ICT architecture approach to Smart Grid investments as well as the regulatory & financial implications. The 7th South East European Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Congress & Exhibition will be held 13-15 of April in Sofia, Bulgaria.

Traditional energy networks contain disparate systems that lack efficiency, introduce risk, and increase costs. At the heart of the smart grid is integration of the data communications networks of the generation, transmission, distribution, and customer components of the electrical grid. Increased connectivity presents many benefits, including giving distribution and transmission grid operators more visibility and control over power supply, source, quality, and costs. The network operators must find a way how to prevent, detect, and mitigate threats to the energy grid.

According Mercom the Smart Grid sector had a banner year in 2010, both in terms of funding and also merger and acquisition (M&A activity). Venture capital (VC) funding in the Smart Grid sector was at its highest compared to the previous three years. While the numbers are nowhere close to Solar ($1.67 billion), it is interesting to note the uptick in Smart Grid funding activity as Solar trended down, especially in the second half of 2010. Analysts have been predicting that Smart Grid is a much better fit for the traditional VC model compared to Solar and we may be seeing some of that trend materialize.

The event is supported by many international branch organizations as EPIA, REEEP, RCC, ESTIF, World Alliance for Decentralized Energy (WADE), ICLEI, etc.

The three days full of events include

   * 96  high-level presentations of  speakers from  28  countries
   * 1st b2b  Solar Balkan Forum
   * 1st Waste-to-Energy Forum
   * 5 exciting panel discussions
   * Company on-booth presentations
   * Live transmissions of panel discussions and interviews with key actors by SolarPV.TV

For more details contact Via Expo – office@viaexpo.com or 00359 32 945459 - Maya Kristeva
Additional Information

  * See the Congress program http://www2.viaexpo.com/index.php?option=com_content&view...
  * Early Bird Registration (till 13 March) http://reg.viaexpo.com/en/congress_eeres2011_registration
* How to register?  http://www2.viaexpo.com/index.php?option=com_content&view...

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Via Expo is an organizer of high level specialized international exhibitions, conferences, training seminars, business events in Bulgaria in different branches - Food, Packaging, Construction, Energy and Environment, Gifts and luxury items, etc.