IBM Launches Renewable Energy Asset Management Solution

IBM announced the general availability of IBM Maximo Renewables, a new solution aimed at enabling companies to manage and maximize the efficiency of their renewable energy assets, including tracking and monitoring renewable asset performance, identify causes and recommend actions for efficiency losses, and plan and manage maintenance work.

According to Kendra DeKeyrel VP, ESG & Asset Management Products Leader at IBM, the new solution as companies face a series of challenges as they increasingly rely on renewable energy, including managing the high volume and complexity of assets, which can be affected by a wide range of external factors, high costs for routine inspections, and high operating and maintenance costs, with Maximo Renewables aimed at addressing these issues by offering a predictive maintenance solution and by enabling operators to monitor and analyze renewable energy assets, gain insights on performance issues, and receive recommendations to maximize return on investment.

DeKeyrel said:

“Companies are increasingly relying on renewable energy for on-site operational generation and to support grid reliability. According to the International Energy Agency, in 2023, renewable electricity capacity reached an estimated 507 gigawatts, almost 50% higher than 2022. Not only that, but renewable power capacity additions is expected to increase in the next five years. I foresee asset lifecycle management (ALM) for renewable assets being a top priority for organizations across multiple industries.”

The launch of the new solution follows the recent acquisition by IBM of renewables-focused asset performance management (APM) software provider Prescinto, which IBM said would  enhance its asset lifecycle management platform, IBM Maximo Application Suite. The Maximo suite uses AI, IoT, and analytics to help users across the water, natural gas, oil, nuclear, and other energy and utility sectors to optimize performance, extend the life of assets, and reduce operational downtime and costs.

Key features of the new solution highlighted by IBM include a Map View which provides a single view of an organization’s renewable asset portfolio to quickly understand performance for each plant and highlight need for attention, the ability to provide operations and site managers with custom dashboards and analytics, and automation of workflows such as identifying underperformance, recommending actions, and generating work orders.

DeKeyrel added:

“With the growth of renewable energy adoption accelerating, there is a need for actionable intelligence and automated workflows to help improve asset efficiency and operational productivity for renewable energy generation and storage. IBM Maximo Renewables is designed to help enterprises manage these challenges by optimizing renewable asset efficiency and providing insights from potential root-cause identification, on which to base their operational and maintenance decisions. This technology can ultimately help extend the health of their assets and increase energy output.”