Smart Grid software company OPower announced the closing of a $50 million strategic round of financing.
The round was co-led by Accel Partners and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, with participation from New Enterprise Associates (NEA), OPower’s largest investor.
The investment will support OPower’s expansion and product development efforts in order to add new products and features to its Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) platform in 2011. The platform helps electric and gas utilities engage their customers to increase gains in energy efficiency.
OPower’s prior financing was in 2008, with capital raised from NEA and early-stage fund MHS Capital.
OPower’s SaaS platform has gained popularity in the utility industry as an information-based energy efficiency program, as well as a front-end for Smart Grid deployments. The platform uses data analytics to evaluate a household’s energy usage patterns–without the need for hardware to be installed inside the home–and applies behavioral science techniques and a multi-channel communication strategy to motivate energy saving actions.
Currently deployed to more than two million homes, OPower is delivering enough energy savings to power nearly 50,000 homes on an ongoing basis, the company said.
The company expects its deployed customer base to more than quadruple in 2011. The company is currently working with 45 utilities throughout the U.S., including seven of the country’s ten largest energy providers.
“OPower is an elegant and proven solution for utilities to cost-effectively reach energy efficiency goals,” said Ray Lane of Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers. “It is a straight forward value for customers – clearly measuring savings on their energy bills.”
Founded in 2007, OPOWER is headquartered in Arlington, VA.
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