Grid Net (www.grid-net.com),
a global leader of real-time Smart Grid and Smart Home software
platforms for utilities, their partners and their customers, announced
that it has appointed Andres Carvallo as executive vice president and
chief strategy officer. Andres will work closely with Grid Net chief
executive officer Ray Bell to help shape and drive the company’s product
strategies, and will work closely with Ray and the rest of the
leadership team to propel the already rapid and successful establishment
of Grid Net and its products and solutions into new customer engagements
and markets. Andres will be responsible for the company’s branding,
messaging, partnerships, marketing, commercialization, support and
solutions efforts, worldwide.

“Grid Net is at an exciting inflection point: we have launched what our
partners acknowledge is the leading Smart Grid solution with
unprecedented capabilities, and we welcome the addition of Andres
Carvallo, a highly regarded, well-respected Smart Grid thought leader
with deep industry expertise,” said Ray Bell, Grid Net founder and chief
executive officer. “Andres’ insights and stature in this industry, along
with his expertise, experience, and background, make him the perfect
chief strategy officer for Grid Net.”

Andres brings to Grid Net more than 24 years of experience in the
energy, telecommunications, computer, and software industries. Having
held executive management positions since 1992, he has been responsible
for the successful development and commercialization of over 40
products, in companies ranging from start-ups to market leaders such as
Philips Electronics, Digital Equipment Corporation, Borland, and
Microsoft.

Most recently, Andres was the chief information officer at Austin
Energy, the 9th largest public power utility in the nation
providing low cost reliable power to the capital city of Texas, with
annual revenues over $1.3 billion, servicing 410,000 premises
representing approximately 43,000 businesses and 1.2 million consumers.
At Austin Energy, he was responsible for the utility’s technology
vision, planning, development and operations, and a member of both the
eight-person executive team and the Innovation and Opportunity
Development executive board. While at Austin Energy, Andres defined and
promoted the term “Smart Grid”, was the chief architect of the first
Smart Grid to be fully deployed in the U.S., became the premier Smart
Grid industry thought leader, and led a comprehensive, highly lauded
technology transformation of the utility.

“I am excited to join the Grid Net team: it’s one of the easiest career
decisions I’ve ever made,” said Andres Carvallo. “Deriving meaningful
returns from Smart Grid deployments goes far beyond smart metering. Grid
Net is the only company that addresses the end-to-end integration
of my visions of ‘Smart Grid 1.0’ and ‘Smart Grid 2.0’: a secure,
reliable, scalable, open standards-based, real-time solution for
substation automation, distribution automation, smart metering, demand
response, distributed generation, energy storage, electric vehicles and
smart building and home applications. Moreover, Grid Net has the
critical strategic partnerships with both technology and industry
leaders to deliver this solution reliably and cost-effectively to
utilities today. I look forward to working with Ray and the rest of the
team to propel Grid Net to the next level and to help my friends across
the utility industry realize their own real-time, all-IP Smart Grid
implementations.”

During his seven-year tenure at Austin Energy, Andres has also made many
industry-wide contributions: he was a contributor to the 2007 Energy
Independence and Security Act’s Title XIII Smart Grid: Sections 1301
-1309; he served as a key advisor and contributor to NIST and EPRI in
the creation of the Smart Grid Interoperability Standards; and he has
advised the DOE, FCC, EPA, and NERC in their Smart Grid policy
initiatives. Andres also continues as an advisor to GE Energy, AT&T,
Cisco, Oracle, The University of Texas, The University of Kansas, UCLA
and several start-ups.

“Andres’ entire career has been characterized by involvement in
high-impact technology innovation,” said Scott DePasquale, partner at
Braemar Energy Ventures. “After an incredible experience at Austin
Energy building the Utility of the Future, and a storied career at
leading technology companies, we welcome Andres’ passion, knowledge and
deep experience to help shape Grid Net’s strategy, and to drive industry
awareness and adoption of Grid Net’s solutions.”

Andres is a requested speaker at industry events featuring Smart Grid,
Clean-Tech, Service-Oriented Architecture, Wireless, and Running IT as a
Business. He is the recipient of many awards, including IT Executive of
the Year by the Association of Information Technology Professionals in
2005, Premier 100 IT Leader by Computerworld in 2006, Best in Class of
Premier 100 by Computerworld in 2006, CIO 100 Award by CIO Magazine in
2006, InformationWeek 500 by InformationWeek Magazine in 2007, 2008, and
2009, Computerworld’s Top 12 Green IT Companies in 2008 and 2009,
Hispanic Information Technology Council’s HITEC 100 in 2008 and 2009,
UTC Apex Finalist in 2009, Computerworld Honors Laureate, Finalist, and
21st Century Award Winner in 2009, Top 100 Influential by
Hispanic Business in 2009, CIO Hall of Fame Finalist by CIO Magazine in
2009, and CIO of the Year by Energy Central in 2009.

Andres received a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of
Kansas with a concentration in Robotics and Control Systems. Andres has
also completed executive management programs at the University of Idaho,
Stanford University, and The Wharton School of the University of
Pennsylvania.
About Grid Net
Grid Net is a leading global real-time Smart Grid and Smart Home
software platforms provider for utilities, partners, and customers. The
Grid Net platform is designed to integrate substation automation,
distribution automation, smart meters, demand response, load management,
and home automation capabilities to increase grid reliability, energy
efficiency, renewable energy use, and customer satisfaction while
reducing operating costs. Grid Net’s all-IP platform is utility-grade
reliable, scalable and built to meet regulatory and governmental Smart
Grid interoperability and cyber-security standards. Headquartered in San
Francisco, California, with offices in Sydney, Australia, Grid Net is
backed by world class investors Braemar Energy Ventures, Catamount
Ventures, GE Energy Financial Services and Intel Capital. To learn more,
visit www.grid-net.com.

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