PowerSecure International, a rapidly expanding energy services company in Wake Forest, is on track to add 100 employees this year in the Triangle and out of state.
The company now stands at 536 employees, most of them local, with four design and manufacturing sites in Raleigh and Morrisville. PowerSecure recently reported its strongest quarter financially, a dramatic turnaround from 2009 when it laid off 30 people and pared its workforce to 179.
Today, the company is sitting on $26 million in cash, and Wall Street analysts expect continued growth in electric utility contracting and energy consulting services. The work ranges from dispatching work crews to making heavy equipment and energy-saving technologies.
"They're aligned with very strong underlying trends in energy efficiency and the modernization of the U.S. electric power grid," said analyst Mark Tobin with Roth Capital Partners in Newport Beach, Calif.
Even before the recession, PowerSecure was focused on proving to investors that it could break its dependence on what was then its dominant but limited business line: leasing and selling backup electric generators to grocery stores. PowerSecure builds its own generator and has expanded that business line to hospitals, data centers and industrial facilities.
The generators, which run on diesel and natural gas, are designed for use during emergencies and as a main source of power during periods when large customers are charged a premium.
The company has also branched out to energy-efficient illumination that uses light-emitting diodes, the glowing chips that are commonly known as LED lights. PowerSecure makes refrigerator case lights, shelf lights, street lights and is developing a parking lot light that uses LED chips.
In addition to its corporate headquarters in Wake Forest, the company has three locations in Morrisville that develop and manufacture LED light products and utility switch gear.
Its North Raleigh office focuses on utility engineering and consulting services for power transmission and distribution systems.
Utility problem-solvers
As its orders increase, PowerSecure is hiring engineers as well as field technicians who install and do maintenance on its LED lighting and power-management products. The jobs pay between $40,000 and $120,000 a year, said chief financial officer Chris Hutter.
"It's a utility-centric business," Hutter said. "It's all about problem-solving the energy needs of utilities and their large customers."
Key to the company's success is its relationships within the utility industry, analysts say. PowerSecure hires senior managers and engineers with well-placed contacts essential for pitching and selling its contracting, consulting and energy-management services. PowerSecure's CEO, Sidney Hinton, has logged time with electric utilities Carolina Power & Light (since renamed Progress Energy), Southern Co., Georgia Power and in private equity.
"They're utilizing those relationships to open up the doors and expand what they could potentially sell, not only to the utility but also to the utility's customer base," said analyst William Bremer of the Maxim Group in New York.
The company hit a wall during the recession, when sales fell from about $135 million in 2008 to $85 million in 2009. PowerSecure reports 2011 sales on March 8, but analysts expect the company to exceed $125 million in revenue for the year.
The company's stock closed up 25 cents at $6.05 on Wednesday. The shares are down 26 percent over the past year.
