Should we care about a $7B energy contract?
By
Nick Wakeman
Is energy about to live up to its promise as an important niche in the government market? Share your thoughts with Editor Nick Wakeman.
Lots of stuff flows through my e-mail inbox everyday and most of the time hitting the delete key is the easiest decision I make.
But a few times a day, I have to stop and really think about it.
For the last couple of years, I’ve heard a lot of executives talk about how energy is an emerging market for companies in the IT and professional services sector. So when I saw the postings about the Army NetZero contract on GovWin, I had to pause and dig a little deeper.
According to an article on Alabama Live, which serves up news from the Birmingham News, Huntsville Times and Mobile Press-Register, the Army Corps of Engineers is planning a group of contracts to buy renewable and alternative energy to the tune of $7 billion.
The Washington Post also wrote about the group of contracts.
The Washington Business Journal also has a story about the Defense Department developing a plan for energy reduction.
Maybe the budget crisis and the need to save money is going to finally energize this long-talked about segment of the market. The threat of global warming and the reliance on non-U.S. sources of oil certainly hasn’t.
But what still has me scratching my head is where is the opportunity for the companies we cover. What’s the IT/engineering/professional services play here?
I don’t think we’ll see CACI International running a wind farm to supply electricity to Fort Bragg or will we?
The question in my headline really is: where is the sweet spot? What will the business opportunity look like?
Let me know if this is something we should be writing more about.