AT&T Announces Smart Grid Agreement With CURRENT Group to Deliver Grid Optimization Solutions to North American Utilities

DALLAS, June 28 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- AT&T* today announced it is extending its reach with smart grid solutions for utilities throughout the United States with a new agreement with CURRENT Group, a leading provider of distribution Smart Grid solutions.

AT&T will offer CURRENT Smart Grid ®Distribution Solutions, which help utilities increase grid efficiency and system capacity by managing demand dynamically and reducing power delivery losses. CURRENT's solutions includes intelligent sensors and analytical software that monitor distribution grid performance; its OpenGrid™ utility element management system; and its System Optimization and Reliability analytical software solutions. AT&T's suite of M2M pricing plans designed specifically for the smart grid market makes this solution an economical choice for utilities.

The agreement between AT&T and CURRENT provides utilities with an integrated solution that includes the breadth of AT&T's managed and network services, combined with AT&T's mobile broadband network. Having an integrated solution helps utilities to streamline deployment and reduces equipment and maintenance costs.

"Our new relationship with CURRENT will help utilities move from their traditional distribution infrastructure into a truly smart grid model that provides centralized real-time data collection and analysis – without touching the end customer and without relying on meters," said Michael Antieri, President, Advanced Enterprise Mobility Solutions, AT&T Business Solutions. "We continue to focus on broadening our capabilities with smart grid technology, helping businesses and organizations to use wireless technology to streamline their processes and provide real-time monitoring of energy assets."

"CURRENT offers its utility customers a broad range of communications technologies with the world's most trusted providers. This allows utilities to implement their Smart Grid programs quickly, affordably and reliably. Our alliance with AT&T provides utilities with the advanced and secure infrastructure to enable real-time data, which allows CURRENT to offer utilities the advanced sensing and control needed to reduce power consumption, increase reliability and improve distribution grid operations," said CURRENT CEO Tom Casey.

AT&T offers a range of strategic mobility products and services to the utility industry, including wireless solutions for field service workers, outage detection and remote monitoring for automated metering infrastructure. AT&T's dedicated team of industry specialists understands the business process from end to end and translates technical solutions into meaningful business value for customers.

CURRENT's innovative and industry-leading solutions deliver consumer-less energy efficiency through load reduction, improved grid operations, and helps speed the integration and management of renewable energy sources. These solutions can be deployed cost-effectively without large capital expenditures and no retrofitting. Through its dynamic measurement and verification capabilities, CURRENT's solutions enable utilities to prove energy savings and carbon emission reductions, critical for regulatory compliance and proof of value.

The joint solution offered by AT&T and CURRENT is immediately available throughout North America.

For more information on AT&T's smart grid solutions, visit www.att.com/utilities. To find out more about CURRENT please go to www.currentgroup.com.

*AT&T products and services are provided or offered by subsidiaries and affiliates of AT&T Inc. under the AT&T brand and not by AT&T Inc.

About AT&T

AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) is a premier communications holding company. Its subsidiaries and affiliates – AT&T operating companies – are the providers of AT&T services in the United States and around the world. With a powerful array of network resources that includes the nation's fastest 3G network, AT&T is a leading provider of wireless, Wi-Fi, high speed Internet and voice services. A leader in mobile broadband, AT&T also offers the best wireless coverage worldwide, offering the most wireless phones that work in the most countries.  It also offers advanced TV services under the AT&T U-verse(SM) and AT&T | DIRECTV(SM) brands. The company's suite of IP-based business communications services is one of the most advanced in the world. In domestic markets, AT&T Advertising Solutions and AT&T Interactive are known for their leadership in local search and advertising. In 2010, AT&T again ranked among the 50 Most Admired Companies by FORTUNE® magazine. 

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About CURRENT Group

CURRENT Group, LLC delivers innovative and industry-leading intelligent solutions that optimize the distribution system and offer utilities new ways to monitor and manage the health of the grid. Through CURRENT's distributed sensing, monitoring, and analytical technologies, utilities are better able to understand, predict and respond to system disturbances and faults, identify where inefficiencies are, and enable the smartest possible sourcing and distribution of power.

CURRENT's state-of-the-art technologies are being implemented by utilities around the globe and are being utilized in the largest and most advanced demonstration projects in the world. CURRENT is engaged in European Union-sponsored projects in partnership with Iberdrola, the world's 4th largest electric utility, among others, to expand the use of Smart Grid technology in the European Union. This year, CURRENT was selected for the second year in a row as one of GoingGreen East's Top 50 Private GreenTech companies. In 2009 alone, CURRENT was honored by the World Economic Forum as a 2009 Technology Pioneer, selected by Venture Beat as one of the World's Top 10 Most Innovative Smart Grid companies, and selected by Dow Jones as one of the Top 10 most Innovative Clean Technology companies in Europe.

CURRENT is a private company founded in 2000 that is backed by leading investors including Liberty Associated Partners, EnerTech Capital, Google, Inc., and Goldman Sachs & Co.

CURRENT is headquartered outside of Washington, DC, with offices throughout the United States and Switzerland and Singapore, and has representation in Australia, France and the United Kingdom. For more information, visit http://www.currentgroup.com

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SOURCE AT&T Inc.