The U.S. Department office of Energy and Efficiency and Renewable Energy’s (EERE) is dedicated to moving America towards clean, affordable and secure energy. To accomplish its mission, EERE relies, in part, on open source projects. The organization’s documented Open Source Strategy is indicative of the energy sector’s reliance on open source software solutions.

In addition, renewable energy is the fastest-growing global energy source, according to the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions. In 2015, 24% of the world’s energy came from such sources as biomass, geothermal, solar, hydro, wind and biofuels. Economists predict the industry will increase to 31% by 2040. A number of energy companies and Open Invention Network members — including Hitachi, Johnson Controls, Yaskawa Electric Corporation and Pepperl+Fuchs are currently building solutions, which rely on open source tools to optimize their operations and reduce costs.