This Technology Is Ruining the Holidays for Utilities

Recently SolarCity announced that it will back up solar power with Tesla Motors batteries. The question beckons, could this type of disruptive move cause utilities to fear EV battery makers or view them as potential partners? If the latter happens, could China's BYD Company , which Warren Buffett is an investor in through MidAmerican Energy Holdings, be in a position to enter uncharted territory with utilities? There are opportunities to fend off carbon issues, boost resiliency by using batteries to store power during excess demand, and avoid outages that may or may not come from weather (their batteries retain over 80% after three years of use).

Other than batteries manufactured originally for autos and now finding a dual role in commercial/residential buildings, another area of interest is companies simply focused on energy storage solutions such as Stem, which recently completed a $15 million Series B funding round from General Electric and Iberdrola.

How does Buffett do it?
Warren Buffett has made billions through his investing and he wants you to be able to invest like him. Through the years, Buffett has offered up investing tips to shareholders of Berkshire Hathaway. Now you can tap into the best of Warren Buffett's wisdom in a new special report from The Motley Fool. Click here now for a free copy of this invaluable report.

The article This Technology Is Ruining the Holidays for Utilities originally appeared on Fool.com.

John Licata has no position in any stocks mentioned. You can follow John on Twitter @bluephoenixinc. The Motley Fool recommends SolarCity and Tesla Motors. The Motley Fool owns shares of General Electric Company, SolarCity, and Tesla Motors. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Copyright © 1995 - 2013 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.