IBM’s water tech threefold effect

Armonk, N.Y.-based IBM said today it has secured three deals for its smart water technologies in Australia, Japan, and Texas.

In Sydney, the northern territory's multi-utility provider Power and Water, which serves about 80,000 customers, selected IBM (NYSE:IBM) in a $14.5 million deal for an asset management program.

The four-year project is expected to deliver electricity, water, and sewage services to customers more efficiently. The contract announced today was signed in September.

In Fukuoka, Japan, where water is scarce in urban areas, the Fukuoka District Waterworks Agency is expected to use IBM’s software for a new system to increase the availability of usable water supply and improve water quality. Financial details were not disclosed.

And in central and south Texas, the utility Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA), which serves more than 2.2 million residents, is using IBM’s software to improve its resources and offerings. Financial details were also not released.

LCRA supplies electricity to central Texas, develops water and wastewater utilities, and regulates water discharges to manage floods, among other services. The software is to allow LCRA to address issues before outages occur, predict resource needs, and generate timely reports.

"IBM is helping the Lower Colorado River Authority develop a smarter and more dynamic water and energy management system so they can respond quickly and successfully to changes as they occur,” said Sharon Nunes, vice president for Big Green Innovations at IBM, in a news release.

The Big Green Innovations initiative is focused on water management, alternative energy, and carbon management (see Cleantech panel: The days of cheap water are over and IBM rides third wave of cleantech).

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