PowerGEM, LLC Acquires Astrapé Consulting

PowerGEM, LLC, a leading provider of transmission reliability modeling, market analysis software and technical services for the electric power industry, has acquired Astrapé Consulting, a leader in resource adequacy for reliably managing the transition to clean energy. PowerGEM also recently welcomed a new CEO, Joe DeMatteo, to lead the combined organization and work closely with its founders, Boris Gisin and Manos Obessis, who continue to hold executive leadership positions.

This acquisition combines two successful businesses with decades of industry experience. Together, they will serve the numerous customer segments responsible for meeting the rapidly evolving operational and planning needs of the North American power grid and related markets, including the expanded and sustainable use of renewable energy resources.

Through its software, technical services and expert training, PowerGEM provides more than 230 system operators, utilities, consultants and developers with robust modeling and analytical capabilities to optimize grid reliability and market efficiency. Its two primary software suites are:

• TARA (Transmission Adequacy & Reliability Assessment) to model, assess and plan power transmission for reliable grid operation. Its modeling capabilities and analytical applications extend beyond traditional tools for power-flow planning.

• PROBE (Portfolio Ownership & Bid Evaluation) for production cost-modeling to simulate and predict day-ahead and locational pricing. Using a full transmission model, the end-to-end simulation software enables wholesale electricity market optimization.

Astrapé also works with some of the largest power system operators and utilities. Its SERVM (Strategic Energy and Risk Valuation Model) software is used for resource adequacy studies, resource capacity accreditation, renewable integration assessments, and resource planning studies. SERVM is unique because of its approach to assessing resource adequacy, which entails full economic modeling, allowing users to select expansion plans that properly weight reliability and economic attributes. The firm also offers consulting services and regulatory support, using SERVM as the basis for resource adequacy requirements, ELCC (effective load carrying capability) for both conventional and renewable resources, and other resource planning decisions.

"Operating the electric power grid today and planning for its expansion to meet future demand is becoming increasingly complex due to a convergence of factors, including aging infrastructure, extreme weather, the proliferation of renewables, and increasing load for computing and transportation," explained Joe DeMatteo, PowerGEM's CEO. "The software and services of PowerGEM and Astrapé will help customers analyze and plan for all these factors to deliver reliable, clean and affordable power for future generations. I'm honored to join this team and am excited to work with our customers to address industry challenges and meet end-user needs."

In the near-term, Astrapé and all its employees will operate as part of PowerGEM, with Astrapé Founder and CEO Kevin Carden and Astrapé Principal Nick Wintermantel joining the PowerGEM executive leadership team. While both companies share some customers, this acquisition creates an immediate opportunity to bring additional value to their combined customer base by offering complementary solutions and services.

"The complexity of power generation and transmission, including managing the expanded use of renewables, is driving demand for more advanced software with sophisticated modeling capabilities," said Astrapé Founder and CEO Kevin Carden. "With PowerGEM, we can offer a comprehensive software platform and associated services to ensure system operators and planners collaborate easily across functions to meet current and future operational and planning needs. Together, I'm confident we can help the industry transform its approach to decision-making to optimize power generation and transmission."

PowerGEM was represented by Goodwin Procter LLP as legal counsel and Kroll, LLC as financial advisor. Astrapé was represented by Maynard Nexsen as legal counsel and Way Ray Shelton as financial advisor.

The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

About PowerGEM

PowerGEM provides transmission reliability modeling and market analysis software and technical services for the electric power industry in North America. The company's robust tools for power-flow planning and production-cost simulation are used by system operators, utilities, consultants and energy infrastructure developers to support electrical grid operations and expansion planning. It was founded in 2000 and is a remote-based organization. More information about PowerGEM is available at www.power-gem.com.

About Astrapé Consulting

Astrapé provides software and related consulting services to help system planners keep the lights on while transitioning from traditional power generation to clean energy resources. Used by some of the largest system operators and utilities, Astrapé's SERVM (Strategic Energy and Risk Valuation Model) has become a leading risk modeling solution for resource adequacy studies, resource capacity accreditation, renewable integration assessments, and resource expansion planning studies. The company was founded in 2005 and is based in Hoover, Alabama, near Birmingham. For more information, please visit www.astrape.com.