Investing in Smart Grid, Obama Calls Energy Super Highway

Many investors are looking for that next incredible opportunity, life changing profits in stocks that could potentially bring 20-fold in the next 5 to 10 years. Just look at the top 10 performing
stocks from 2000-2010.

There are many investors who believe that the next opportunity can be found in the alternative energy. However, what people fail to realize is by what means can the alternative energy be transferred to everyday use as electric power? The current electric grid that is more than 250,000 miles long is 100 years old and is antique. Integrating new solar and wind power into current electric grid is not only extremely dangerous but also increases the blackouts, which could bring our economy to a complete halt.

So you may be wondering why am I talking about the electric grid? Because this area is slowly turning into a great opportunity for investors as politicians and corporations are trying hard to come up with a plan to replace our outdated electrical grid. This effort is highly specialized work and only a select few companies have resources and knowledge to deliver this new grid. This new grid is known as “an energy superhighway” by the president. He said, “I’m pleased to announce that we are making the largest-ever investment in a smarter stronger, and more secure electric grid.” President Barack Obama followed up with his statement by allocating $3.4 billion down payment on the new smart grid and billions of dollars in tax cuts for small businesses looking to join this endeavor.

What are your thought on this new smart electric grid? Can our investment in this sector really bring great wealth in 10 years? 10 years is a long time to wait and it would be very difficult to hold on to a stock for that long. I found that there definitely is some activities in the new smart grid by many well know companies such as GE, CISCO, IBM and SIEMENS. Instead of investing in these large companies, I searched for much smaller companies in this sector. I found one company in my research that I am really excited about. The big question would be if I can hold onto this stock for 5-10 years.

EnergyConnect Group (ECNG) provides services in the electric power industry and responds to electric grid emergencies. Currently, ECNG is just below $17 million market capitalization. Below is a one year chart. It has been trading between $0.05 - $0.14 and recently, it made a breakout. Since I am recommending to hold onto this stock for at least 5 years, technical analysis really does not apply here.