Mercury Consortium Launched to Boost Adoption of Clean Energy Tech
More than two dozen founding companies aim to accelerate integration of low-carbon technology into the smart grid
Shared guidelines and best practices to assist in the integration of 200 million consumer devices globally by 2030
Membership now open to organizations across the global energy value chain
Palo Alto / London – 5th December 2024 – More than two dozen companies from across the global energy value chain have today launched the public-private Mercury Consortium.
Conceived by Kraken, drawing inspiration from Ericsson’s pivotal role in the development of the Bluetooth connectivity standards, the consortium will be managed by EPRI, an independent, non-profit R&D organization dedicated to advancing clean, affordable, and reliable energy.
This groundbreaking initiative aims to establish guidelines and best practices to accelerate the adoption and impact of clean energy technologies, such as EV chargers, heat pumps, solar panels, smart thermostats, and residential batteries. It also focuses on enabling utilities to leverage these technologies to make grids more resilient and efficient to operate, driving the transition to a sustainable energy future.
The consortium will work to define common functional behaviors for low-carbon devices, ensuring they work seamlessly with the grid, regardless of brand, boosting consumer confidence in the energy transition.
The Mercury Consortium is open to electric utilities, manufacturers, technology providers, regulators, and others. See below for a full list of founding members.
In 2023, consumers throughout the world invested $184 billion in low-carbon technology, outpacing government spending two-fold, and by 2030, consumers are anticipated to purchase more than 200 million devices like EV chargers, solar panels, batteries, and heat pumps. If managed inefficiently, this surge could drive peak electricity demand beyond grid capacity, requiring extensive investment in transmission.
The ability to seamlessly exchange actionable information between two or more systems, referred to as interoperability, could allow for new solutions to better manage the flow of energy from generation to consumption. However, there is no universal approach to interoperability in energy systems. Consumer devices that have the capability to operate with utilities’ requirements, integrate into energy systems, and participate in demand-response programs and markets could help the energy system be more responsive and flexible.
Arshad Mansoor, EPRI President and CEO, said: “The ability for technologies to seamlessly integrate, effectively communicate, and undertake tasks is critical for a modern energy system. Developing best practices to better integrate cutting-edge technologies could help increase the use of low-carbon energy, build a more sustainable future, and accelerate the pace of net-zero emissions by mid-century.”
Devrim Celal, Chief Marketing and Flexibility Officer at Kraken, said: “The need for rapid electrification is urgent, and requires the entire energy system to pull together in the same direction. That’s why we’re uniting partners across the sector to develop universal standards—like Bluetooth for low-carbon tech— to accelerate electrification and together build a sustainable energy future."
Amir Orad, CEO of Kraken, said: “The caliber of partners joining us in the Mercury Consortium underscores the importance of the mission ahead of us. This is a call to innovators globally — let's work together to accelerate the energy transition. Technologies and smart devices already make our lives wonderful, let’s help them all talk to each other to do the same for our energy system to make it more available and affordable.”
Founding Members:
Utilities: Ausgrid, Con Edison, CPS Energy, E.ON Next, EDF Energy, Elia Group, Essential Energy, New York Power Authority, Octopus Energy, Pacific Gas & Electric, PPL Corporation, Southern California Edison, Tokyo Gas, UK Power Networks
Manufacturers: Easee, Enphase Energy, Hypervolt, Ideal Heating, Mobilize (Renault Group), myenergi, Solis (Ginlong Technologies)
Technology Providers: Amazon Web Services, gridX, Kraken, Lunar Energy, Oracle, SolarEdge
Regulatory & Associations: EPRI
Mercury logo material is available here.
Media Contact
Samantha Gilman
Communications Manager
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About EPRI
Founded in 1972, EPRI is the world's preeminent independent, non-profit energy research and development organization, with offices around the world. EPRI's trusted experts collaborate with more than 450 companies in 45 countries, driving innovation to ensure the public has clean, safe, reliable, affordable, and equitable access to electricity across the globe. Together…shaping the future of energy.®
About Kraken
Kraken is the world’s only proven, end-to-end platform for utilities’ digitalization and transformation, trusted by global energy giants like EDF Energy, E.ON Next, Octopus Energy, Origin and Tokyo Gas.
Headquartered in London and New York, Kraken manages over 50 million accounts, over 40 GW of power – from off-shore wind to grid-scale batteries – and over 250,000 consumer devices such as electric cars and charging stations.
The platform’s advanced data, AI and machine learning capabilities automate much of the energy supply chain to allow outstanding service and efficiency. These advances have redefined the utilities sector, driving a 30-fold increase in new product innovations for partners, top consumer rankings and hundreds of millions of dollars in operational savings.
Kraken’s cloud-based architecture is uniquely adaptable and scalable, proven by an unparalleled track record in seamless, extremely fast on-time migrations and enabling its successful expansion into water and other verticals.