Nov2023
MEMBER NEWS
Grupa Apator published good results for Q3 2023.
After three quarters of 2023, Grupa Apator significantly increases sales and improves profitability in the two largest segments of its operations - Electricity and Water and Heat. The Group is expanding its existing portfolio of measurement solutions, switching and control equipment, as well as systems supporting the operation of energy services. At the same time, it is active in the field of research and development, reaching customers with new technological solutions necessary for automation, network balancing and adaptation of dynamically growing renewable energy sources in the power system.
Domestic sales accounted for approximately 54% of the Group's turnover, and the main export direction remained the European Union countries (with the dominant share of the German, Czech, Romanian, Belgian, Spanish and Dutch markets) and Great Britain. Consolidated EBITDA amounted to PLN 90.4 million, and the net result adjusted for the write-off on tax assets (made in Q2 2023) amounted to PLN 28.2 million.
NES and Energy Transition: Leveraging smart meteirng investments beyond billing applications
A key component of the energy transition is to build on the foundation that some smart metering systems can provide. We are starting to see a trend toward leveraging smart metering investments beyond core billing applications where Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) Systems can also be utilized.
For two decades, the industry has been promoting the smart energy. However, most utilities, due to regulation, policy, and other business issues, have not appropriately acted and prepared for this. They are not ready for this transition, and unfortunately, this situation does not have a quick fix. Consumers, communities, and businesses in many countries have invested in distributed generation and renewables, such as solar or wind generation, but many distribution networks simply do not have the capacity and/or intelligence to manage integration with distributed generation. As a result, knowledge is key in driving the smart energy transition.
Replacement of smart meters in Wrocław
In Wrocław, over 360,000 TAURON customers have smart meters with remote reading installed. The first such devices were installed at customers' premises in 2014. Their 8-year legalization period is now expiring and therefore TAURON is now replacing entire batches of meters with new ones.
The process of replacing meters with remote reading meters (RRM) is one of the elements of fulfilling the company's obligation under the Energy Law. In total, over one million TAURON customers throughout the company's operating area already have RRM meters installed.
Yes, AI will improve energy efficiency – “Essentially all buildings can benefit from this technology“
AI has enormous potential to reduce energy consumption across society. Already, AI technology has reduced energy consumption in buildings by 20 percent and halved electricity usage for mobile networks. A decisive advantage is AI's ability to adapt and optimise energy use exactly where it is needed at any given moment.
How do you heat your home? Perhaps it's a bit warmer in the kitchen at night than it needs to be, and perhaps the heat rises quickly to unbearably hot levels on sunny days in rooms with large windows? Indeed, this is the case in many buildings, and collectively, vast amounts of energy are wasted.
Caruna's data: the electricity consumption of the people of Espoo has increased by almost 50 percent in a year, and the pace is accelerating
Energy revolution happens all the time in Finland: somewhere a solar power plant is connected to the electricity grid, somewhere else someone changes a petrol car to an electric one or an old boiler's heat pump. At the same time, electricity consumption increases. Espoo is the first city where the electricity grid becomes a bottleneck for a clean transition if the necessary investments in the electricity grid cannot be started soon.
In October 2023, 59% more electricity was consumed in Espoo than at the same time a year ago. Even when corrected for temperature, electricity consumption increased by 48 percent, so the colder autumn does not explain the increase. The growth is driven by an energy revolution, such as the electrification of district heating and transport.
Duke Energy Collaborates with Utilities to Raise Awareness about Utility Scams
Duke Energy, a leading energy company, has joined hands with utilities throughout North America to bring attention to Utility Scam Awareness Day. This annual event, established by Utilities United Against Scams (UUAS), an organization comprising over 150 electric, water, and natural gas companies and their trade associations, aims to educate the public about the prevalence of scams targeting utility customers.
The significance of this initiative has been highlighted by the recent surge in scam attempts. In Indiana alone, Duke Energy has received over 400 reports of scam attempts in 2023. To combat this issue, the company has launched the Scam Reporting Tool earlier this year. This tool enables customers to share their encounters with attempted scams, allowing Duke Energy to gather valuable information and protect others from falling victim to similar fraudulent activities.
MARKET NEWS
Greece: €150 million EIB backing to HEDNO to upgrade electricity distribution via roll out of smart meters
The European Investment Bank (EIB) signed an agreement to support a significant new investment in Greece to roll out the installation and use of electricity smart meters, which are essential for boosting the efficiency of electricity distribution and the future expansion of renewable energy.
EIB President Werner Hoyer and Chairman and CEO of the Hellenic Electricity Distribution Network Operator (HEDNO), Mr Anastasios Manos, signed the €150 million 15-year loan, which will help modernise and reinforce the Greek electricity distribution network.
DSO requirements for EU grid action plan
The DSO associations CEDEC, E.DSO and GEODE have set out a list of recommendations for the forthcoming EU grid action plan.
With the need for upgrading, reinforcement and expansion of the grids to deliver an increasingly clean energy powered energy system, the grid action plan, which was announced in the latest State of the Energy Union report, is set to be a key foundation and reflects the growing focus on the grids at the regional but also the global level.
Power Barometer 2023
War back on the European continent. Geopolitical tensions and global industrial competition on the rise. All the while facing the hottest year on record. The urgency for decarbonisation is growing but electrification is stagnating. Some encouraging progress has been made in the power sector, yet the climate clock is ticking faster and the need to ensure Europe’s security of supply has never been stronger. We must speed and scale decarbonisation, but the right conditions must be put in place.
In 2022, Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine and its subsequent energy blackmail levied against Europe yielded a massive disruption to the European power sector. The price of electricity skyrocketed on the back of gas supply shutoffs. Energy security soared to the top of the political agenda. Governments took matters into their own hands to keep people’s lights and heat on throughout the winter.
Energy suppliers pay a total of £10.8 million for not meeting smart meter installation targets for 2022
Energy suppliers British Gas, OVO, Bulb, E.ON, Scottish Power and SSE will pay out a total of £10.8 million after missing smart meter installation targets for 2022.
The firms fell short of the installation targets set for 2022, culminating in a shortfall to install a total of 1,026,628 smart meters by the required deadline.
RG&E continues installing smart meters in one of its biggest projects in decades
ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Technicians with Rochester Gas & Electric are hard at work installing approximately 80,000 smart meters across the area, so far.
RG&E anticipates every customer in its service areas will receive the new electric standard smart meter or natural gas module within the next two years.
Why AI and energy are the new power couple
Power systems are becoming vastly more complex as demand for electricity grows and decarbonisation efforts ramp up. In the past, grids directed energy from centralised power stations. Now, power systems increasingly need to support multi-directional flows of electricity between distributed generators, the grid and users. The rising number of grid-connected devices, from electric vehicle (EV) charging stations to residential solar installations, makes flows less predictable. Meanwhile, links are deepening between the power system and the transportation, industry, building and industrial sectors. The result is a vastly greater need for information exchange – and more powerful tools to plan and operate power systems as they keep evolving.
This need arrives just as the capabilities of artificial intelligence (AI) applications are rapidly progressing. As machine learning models have become more advanced, the computational power required to develop them has doubled every five to six months since 2010. AI models can now reliably provide language or image recognition, transform audio sounds into analysable data, power chatbots and automate simple tasks. AI mimics aspects of human intelligence by analysing data and inputs – generating outputs more quickly and at greater volume than a human operator could. Some AI algorithms are even able to self-programme and modify their own code.
Sandworm unveiled as October 2022 Ukraine infrastructure hackers
According to Google-owned US cybersecurity firm Mandiant, Russia-linked hacking group Sandworm were behind hacks on Ukraine energy infrastructure during the October 2022 blackouts.
According to Mandiant’s researchers, the attack represents “the latest evolution in Russia’s cyber physical attack capability,” which they state has been made increasingly visible since the start of the war in Ukraine.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Mission Net Zero India Summit 2023, New Delhi, India, 7-8 December 2023
DISTRIBUTECH International, Orlando, USA, 26-29 February 2024
Smart Energy Indonesia 2024, Jakarta, Indonesia, 6-8 March 2024
Power Europe 2024, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 13-15 March 2024
SGTech Week 2024, Noordwijk, The Netherlands, 18-22 March 2024
Future of Utilities: Energy Transition Summit 2024, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 20-21 March 2024
Oman Sustainability Week, Muscat, Sultanate of Oman, 28 April - 2 May 2024
SMARTGREENS 2024, Angers, France, 02-04 May 2024
POWERGEN India & Indian Utility Week 2024, New Delhi, India, 8-10 May 2024
Enlit Africa 2024, Cape Town, South Africa, 28-30 May 2024
MOVE 2024, London, United Kingdom, 19-20 June
Global Energy Transition Congress & Exhibition, Milan, Italy, 1-3 July 2024
2024 World Battery & Energy Storage Industry Expo (WBE), Guangzhou, China, 8-10 August 2024
Solar+Storage NX 2024, Istanbul, Turkey, 07-09 November 2024
Oct2023
MEMBER NEWS
Technology Trending: The metering edition – 100 million smart meters, smart meter data in Japan and Kaifa going OSGP
100 million smart meters and counting by Gridspertise, a new era for smart meter data in Japan and Kaifa going OSGP and Sigfox are on the week’s technology radar.
Kaifa, the electronics and metering solution provider, is expanding its offerings on two fronts with the choice of the OSGP architecture for its intelligent smart metering and the Sigfox 0G technology for advanced water metering solutions.
E.ON needs to increase investment to prepare for renewables, grid boss says
FRANKFURT, Oct 12 (Reuters) - Germany's E.ON (EONGn.DE) will have to expand its five-year investment plans for grid improvements to accommodate the roll-out and integration of renewable power, its board member in charge of networks, Thomas Koenig, said on Thursday.
Power grids have to become more efficient to facilitate the change from central fossil fuels-based generation to millions of decentralised low-carbon production units tapping into wind and sunshine, he said at a company event that was broadcast online.
Apator: Lack of standardization of smart meters is a threat to cybersecurity
The expert opinion prepared by Apator and ComCERT from the Asseco Group shows that the lack of a standard for electricity meters creates the risk of a cyber attack. More than half of the 4 million devices used in Poland are manufactured outside the European Union.
According to the president of Apator, Maciej Wyczesany, smart meters, apart from many advantages that facilitate the collection and reporting of data on electricity consumption, may have functions that will potentially lead to cutting off electricity, and in the event of a mass attack, they may potentially lead to the destabilization of the entire energy network.
Electricity grid under further pressure: government and grid operators are taking drastic measures
The increasingly rapid pace at which additional transmission capacity is required exceeds the speed at which grid operators can expand the electricity grid. Although work on the network is underway in all regions, the billions of investments and additional measures are unfortunately not sufficient. The grid operators signal that the Netherlands is entering a next phase, in which access to the electricity grid will come under further pressure. Without these drastic measures, housing construction, economic growth and sustainability in the Netherlands will slow down.
In more and more places, a new connection or reinforcement for a company or home is no longer self-evident. This requires a serious acceleration of the expansion of the electricity grid. In addition, grid operators and the government take additional measures to keep the electricity grid accessible and reliable. Examples of this include requiring smart charging stations, controllable heat pumps, and mandatory relief of the power grid at peak times. The changing energy system also requires different behavior, by mainly using the grid when the energy supply is large
There will be no transformation without a smart grid
The Tauron Group, as the largest distributor of electricity in Poland, puts emphasis on the development of networks to which renewable sources can be connected in a stable manner. Moreover, in just a few years, all customers will be able to take advantage of the opportunities offered by smart metering. The energy leader has a state-of-the-art distribution network located in a highly urbanized area of southern Poland, and the quality indicators of the supplied energy remain at the highest level in Poland. This includes: Due to the modern distribution network, large industrial investments by Intel and LG Chem have been located in southern Poland in recent years.
Currently, Tauron owns over 40%. wired medium voltage networks and this is the highest percentage level of cabling among large DSOs. Running power lines underground reduces the impact of weather conditions on network operation and improves the security of energy supplies to customers. By 2040, the Group wants to achieve 75 percent. medium voltage wired lines.
Electric vehicles and charging - time to cut the cord?
Induction is nothing new - this electromagnetic means of moving electric current without a wire or cable was discovered almost 200 years ago. And it is often used for mobile phones and electric toothbrushes. But where electric vehicles are concerned, so far, there hasn’t quite been a way around the bulky cord.
Wireless charging has long been a hot topic for both cars and heavy vehicles, but the technology was long facing a number of roadblocks. However, there are many indications signalling that perhaps the time has come to cut the cord. First and foremost are the huge leaps in the technology itself.
MARKET NEWS
Serbia’s DSO Elektrodistribucija Srbije selects suppliers for 470,000 smart meters
Serbia’s distribution system operator Elektrodistribucija Srbije will purchase smart meters from the consortium of Energotehnika – Južna Bačka and EWG.
In late April, Elektrodistribucija Srbije (EDS) launched a tender procedure for the procurement and installation of 470,000 smart electricity meters. The company valued the investment at RSD 13 billion (EUR 110.8 million), excluding value-added tax.
Overcoming accuracy anxiety: Smarter data to build EV response programmes
Electricity companies are taking varied approaches to charging and demand response programmes when it comes to supporting today’s electric vehicle (EV) revolution.
Some are focused on building charging infrastructure. Some are developing managed charging programmes. Others are focused on optimising existing grid structures by way of behavioural load shifting.
Lack of ambition and attention risks making electricity grids the weak link in clean energy transitions
First-of-its-kind global study finds the world must add or replace 80 million km of grids by 2040, equal to all grids globally today, to meet national climate targets and support energy security
Efforts to tackle climate change and ensure reliable supplies of electricity could be put at risk unless policy makers and companies quickly take action to improve and expand the world’s electricity grids, according to a special report released today by the IEA.
E.DSO Publishes Its Technology Radar
European Distribution System Operators (E.DSO) promotes and enables customer empowerment and the increase in the use of clean energy sources through electrification, the development of smart and digital grid technologies in real-life situations, new market designs and regulation. E.DSO and its members are committed to taking on the huge challenges associated with realising the Energy Union, built on the EU’s ambitious energy, climate, security of supply, jobs and growth objectives. This involves ensuring the reliability and security of Europe’s electricity supply to consumers while enabling them to take a more active part in our energy system.
The current technological landscape is very uncertain, marked by numerous and rapid developments
525,000 smart meter rollout planned for Rhode Island
Rhode Island Energy has got the go ahead for an almost 525,000 smart electricity meter rollout in the New England state.
Rhode Island Energy, a subsidiary of PPL and the largest energy company in the state, plans to implement the ‘advanced metering functionality’ as it styles it over the next three years, following the approval from the Rhode Island Public Utilities Commission.
AI and blockchain make smart grids more useful to renewables
The integration of artificial intelligence (AI) and blockchain will drive smart grids closer to providing and monitoring renewable energy solutions, according to a new report from GlobalData, Energy Monitor‘s parent company.
The Thematic Research: Smart Grid in Power report identifies technological trends and assesses benefits and threats to smart grids. GlobalData forecasts that, as automation, blockchain and AI are incorporated into smart grids, this will push the energy industry to be more reliable, efficient and sustainable as generation and demands for renewable energy will be able to be better monitored in real time. The report also highlights cybersecurity threats to energy supplies and the concerning political implications of such events.
PRESS RELEASE
Renewable Energy Takes Center Stage at the Africa Energy Indaba
Cape Town, 23 October 2024 — Africa Energy Indaba, the continent's leading energy decision-maker event, is proud to announce that renewable energy will be a major focus at its upcoming event. In response to the growing demand for sustainable solutions, Africa Energy Indaba is committed to advancing the renewable energy sector in Africa and fostering a greener, more prosperous future for the continent.
Africa faces a unique set of challenges and opportunities when it comes to meeting its energy needs. The adoption of renewable energy sources is pivotal.
UPCOMING EVENTS
THE GLOBAL ASSET MANAGEMENT FOR DSOS FORUM, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 02-03 November 2023
Smart City Expo World Congress 2023, Barcelona, Spain & online, 07-09 November 2023
Future of Utilities: Smart Energy 2023, London, United Kingdom, 8-9 November 2023
Enlit Asia 2023, Jakarta, Indonesia, 14-16 November 2023
Mission Net Zero India Summit 2023, New Delhi, India, 7-8 December 2023
Smart Energy Indonesia 2024, Jakarta, Indonesia, 6-8 March 2024
Power Europe 2024, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 13-15 March 2024
SGTech Week 2024, Noordwijk, The Netherlands, 18-22 March 2024
Future of Utilities: Energy Transition Summit 2024, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 20-21 March 2024
Oman Sustainability Week, Muscat, Sultanate of Oman, 28 April - 2 May 2024
SMARTGREENS 2024, Angers, France, 02-04 May 2024
POWERGEN India & Indian Utility Week 2024, New Delhi, India, 8-10 May 2024
MOVE 2024, London, United Kingdom, 19-20 June
Global Energy Transition Congress & Exhibition, Milan, Italy, 1-3 July 2024
2024 World Battery & Energy Storage Industry Expo (WBE), Guangzhou, China, 8-10 August 2024
Sep2023
MEMBER NEWS
Swedish Vattenfall accelerates power grid investments in coming years
Swedish utility Vattenfall is increasing investments in its power grid to 8-10 billion crowns ($722-902 million) annually through 2030 from 5 billion in 2022 to keep up with electrification, it said on Friday.
The state-owned group said the investments were necessary to be able to connect new production facilities, electrified industries and existing customers who switch to fossil-free and electrify their processes.
Better cooperation of micro-installations with the network. New activities of TAURON Dystrybucja
The reversal of energy flow, especially on sunny days due to the lack of self-consumption on the part of the producer, results in voltage problems that result in a significant increase in customer complaints. Customers report that their inverter often trips on sunny days. Therefore, in recent years, TAURON Dystrybucja has been carrying out investment and operational activities to improve the cooperation of micro-installations with the power grid.
The company constantly monitors the quality parameters of electricity and the load on individual network elements, and also undertakes investment and operational activities. Currently, the company also initiates formal and control activities regarding incorrect connections. Their goal is to ensure that micro-installations with excessive parameters or generating energy contrary to the contract do not cause inverters to be turned off by other prosumers.
E.ON successfully issues €1.5 billion of green bonds to prefund for 2024
Today, E.ON successfully issued two bond tranches with a combined volume of €1.5 billion backed by a combined peak orderbook of €4.3 billion
E.ON CFO Marc Spieker said, “The high demand from investors underlines again that we are on the right track with our strategy, which is focused on sustainability, digitalization and growth. E.ON is determined to drive forward the energy transition in Europe. We want to invest a total of €33 billion in the energy transition by 2027. Green bonds are an important financing instrument to do this, and we will continue to use them for our financing in the future.”
Field test of charging infrastructure shows solutions for smart energy supply
The Thüga public utility association and the Braunschweig energy service provider BS Energy have completed a 2.5-year field test in which the direct effects of the charging behavior of electric vehicles on the power grid were examined.
Am 13. September überreichten Oberbürgermeister Dr. Thorsten Kornblum, Dr. Volker Lang, Vorstandsmitglied BS Energy, und Dr. Christoph Ullmer, Leiter Innovationsplattform bei der Thüga, den Teilnehmern Brigitte und Gerhard Köhler als Stellvertreter für alle privaten Testhaushalte die Ergebnisse des Praxistests. Gesammelt wurden diese in zwei Testgebieten, in denen E-Mobilisten einer Steuerung ihrer Ladevorgänge zugestimmt hatten: in Dibbesdorf, einem gewachsenen Braunschweiger Stadtteil mit mehr als 1.000 Jahren Geschichte und altem Gebäudebestand sowie in einem Neubaugebiet in Waggum, in dem viele Wärmepumpen das Netz zusätzlich beanspruchen und PV-Anlagen Strom einspeisen.
LINZ STROM Sales awarded as top electricity provider
For the fifth time in a row, LINZ STROM Sales was able to secure a top ranking among Austria's electricity providers. In a representative survey by the Linz Market Institute, LINZ AG's electricity sales team emerged as the test winner in the "Recommendation" category and received the Market Quality Award 2023.
“Recommendation to friends and acquaintances is perhaps the best award a sales organization can receive. We are pleased that our efforts to be a reliable partner even in times of crisis are appreciated,” says Ing. Jürgen Leonfellner, Head of Sales for Private Customers.
Caruna Group 1 January – 30 June 2023: Caruna continued to invest in Finnish energy transition despite inflation and increasing costs in operating environment
Caruna is committed to investing and developing its electricity network to improve security of supply and enhance Finnish energy transition. However, due to cost increase in network construction and interest rates, Caruna had to monitor its investments more closely, which resulted in postponing some unprofitable investment projects.
Caruna Group's investments in January–June totalled EUR 63.5 (58.5) million, of which investments in the high-voltage distribution network accounted for 15 per cent.
MARKET NEWS
Distribution grid digitalization, smart meters crucial to scale-up prosumers in Serbia, region
The rapid increase in the number of solar power plants for self-consumption in Serbia and the region has delivered many benefits, but it has also triggered regulators’ response. Fearing their intermittent production could endanger the power system, regulators have limited their connection capacity, but such policies also limit the vast benefits offered by solar energy. Fortunately, there is a solution already implemented in Europe, which allows households and firms to harness cheap green electricity based on smart meters and flexibility services.
There are a variety of measures to enable prosumers to make their electricity consumption more flexible through the digitalization of distribution grids. Their main result is a reduced need to balance prosumers and a lower risk of jeopardizing power systems.
Smart metering progresses in Europe but 11 countries have barely started
Thirteen of the 27 EU countries have now reported completing their smart metering rollouts with penetration greater than 80% but eleven are lagging far behind.
Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Estonia, Spain, Norway, Luxembourg, Latvia, Italy, France, Malta, Slovenia and the Netherlands have reached the 80% penetration rate.
NTT Data: how half-hourly settlement will transform the renewable energy industry
Oliver Bridges, head of energy data at NTT DATA UK&I, has worked for British Gas, CGI, Smart DCC, and now NTT Data, giving him a broad overview of the use of data in the energy sector.
These roles have seen him work with data as part of the rollout of smart meters which are vital for informing energy companies how much energy is being used, and provides the basis for all kinds of new energy innovations. He talked to Current± about why the upcoming energy market reforms, in particular half hourly settlement, are a game changer for the industry.
Stronger international cooperation in high emissions sectors crucial to get on track for 1.5°C climate goal
Countries must supercharge international collaboration on technologies and markets for sectors such as power, transport, industry, buildings and agriculture, new report finds
Insufficient progress in transitions to clean technologies and sustainable solutions over the past year highlights the need for strong and targeted international collaboration in high emissions sectors to deliver transitions that are faster, easier and cheaper for all, according to the latest Breakthrough Agenda Report.
Urgent call for more electricity distribution grid capacity to enable Europe's energy transition
Europe’s energy transition heavily relies on ageing electricity grids. Today, the capacity of our copper cables to integrate mass electrification and meet higher decarbonisation targets is limited. It is high time legislators embrace an anticipatory approach to future-proof electricity networks. Eurelectric’s new grid report shows how the current electricity market design reform can put this approach into action by incentivising anticipatory investments, longer-term grid planning, digitalisation, flexibility and more advanced data exchange.
By 2030, Europe will see around 50 to 60 million heat pumps, 65 to 70 million electric vehicles (EVs) and over 600 gigawatts of additional renewable capacity as foreseen by REPowerEU. Around 70% of that capacity will be directly connected to distribution grids – those electric lines that travel across cities and villages and connect increasing windmills and solar installations. While becoming ever more critical to the continent’s decarbonisation, Europe’s distribution grids face scarce capacity, cumbersome permitting, and insufficient investments.
Europe Energy Research & Innovation Agenda 2025-28
Europe’s energy research and innovation agenda for the period 2025-2028 has been published with an estimated budget of almost €1 billion (US$1.1 billion) by ETIP SNET.
The implementation plan outlined comprises a total of 19 ‘priority project concepts’ (PPCs) slated for delivery beginning in 2024. Additionally, there are 13 more PPCs scheduled for initiation in the subsequent year. These PPCs are grouped under the existing ‘high-level use cases’ and are conceptualized as “families of projects.” They are not meant to be individually defined projects; this responsibility falls upon project funding applicants. The primary goal of this implementation plan is to outline the most pressing research and innovation (R&I) needs that must be addressed through collaborative efforts between the European Commission and national work programs. These endeavors aim to facilitate the realization of a carbon-neutral energy system by 2050.
PRESS RELEASE
OSGP Alliance Welcomes KAIFA as a New Member
Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 12 September 2023: Founded in 1985, Kaifa Group is a cutting-edge solution provider in the areas of IoT, AI, smart plant, IC packing and testing, PC and consumer electronics manufacturing. In 1995, as a result of the European smart metering business growth, KAIFA engaged into the business as a member of the Kaifa Group. Now, as a leading end-to-end AMI solution provider and utility business digitalization enabler, KAIFA has delivered more than 50 million smart meters to Europe, totaling over 84 million smart meters to 80 utilities in 40 countries worldwide.
In order to further expand its activities, KAIFA has chosen the OSGP architecture for its intelligent smart metering. KAIFA believes that interoperability standards are needed to guarantee innovation in terms of adopting new technologies and open standards as they become available. In addition, protocols must be secure in order to ensure flawless confidentiality of data from the energy users. The digital era brings new opportunities, and KAIFA is ready to take advantage of this with a key focus on the sustainable innovation in energy management.
UPCOMING EVENTS
ADIPEC, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, 2-5 October 2023
World Class Corporate Climate-Neutral Strategies & Resource Management 2023, Frankfurt, Germany, 10-11 October 2023
SGF-IEC Week 2023, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 16-20 October 2023
XV International Trade Fair ECOENERGY EXPO 2023, Kyiv, Ukraine, 17-19 October 2023
THE GLOBAL ASSET MANAGEMENT FOR DSOS FORUM, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 02-03 November 2023
Smart City Expo World Congress 2023, Barcelona, Spain & online, 07-09 November 2023
Future of Utilities: Smart Energy 2023, London, United Kingdom, 8-9 November 2023
Enlit Asia 2023, Jakarta, Indonesia, 14-16 November 2023
Mission Net Zero India Summit 2023, New Delhi, India, 7-8 December 2023
Smart Energy Indonesia 2024, Jakarta, Indonesia, 6-8 March 2024
Power Europe 2024, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 13-15 March 2024
SGTech Week 2024, Noordwijk, The Netherlands, 18-22 March 2024
Future of Utilities: Energy Transition Summit 2024, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 20-21 March 2024
Oman Sustainability Week, Muscat, Sultanate of Oman, 28 April - 2 May 2024
SMARTGREENS 2024, Angers, France, 02-04 May 2024
POWERGEN India & Indian Utility Week 2024, New Delhi, India, 8-10 May 2024
MOVE 2024, London, United Kingdom, 19-20 June
2024 World Battery & Energy Storage Industry Expo (WBE), Guangzhou, China, 8-10 August 2024
Aug2023
MEMBER NEWS
Alliander invests €641 million over first half 2023
In the first half of 2023, network company Alliander again invested a lot more in expanding the gas and electricity grids. Alliander invested over €60 million more in the power grid over the first six months of 2023 compared to the same period last year. Despite the substantial investments and the work being done, it is impossible to keep pace with the energy transition. Making flexible use of the electricity grid can, to some extent, relieve pressure on the grid.
The energy transition is in full swing. As early as in 2030 around 85% of electricity consumed will come from renewable sources like wind and solar. At the same time, business owners are rapidly making their businesses more sustainable. They are adapting their production processes, which often generates additional demand for electricity. This increasing demand for green electricity and the large supply of this sustainably generated power is placing increasing pressure on the grid and, consequently, more and more places on the grid are facing capacity scarcity.
Apator confirms DSOs have accelerated investments in new smart meters
According to the amendment to the Energy Law of 2021, 100% of end consumers of electricity in Poland must be equipped with remote reading meters. So far, the pace has been sluggish, but distribution grid operators (DSOs) have clearly accelerated, which is confirmed, among others, by Apator, a domestic manufacturer of such devices.
According to the regulations, by the end of 2023, distribution network operators will have to replace (cumulatively) at least 15% of all meters, two years later - 35%, while in 2027 it is to be 65%, and in 2028. meters are to be replaced in approx. 80% of recipients. The whole procedure is to be completed two years later.
Smart charging helps power grid
The grid does not seem to be able to cope with the amount of sustainable energy and the enormous demand for electrification. Tim Hoogvliet, Product Owner Smart Charging at Vattenfall, explains how Vattenfall InCharge thinks along with municipalities and governments about solutions.
Vattenfall InCharge's more than 40,000 charging points are located in the Netherlands, Germany and Sweden. Grid operators in all three countries are faced with the same question: what can we do about the overcrowded power grid? More and more solar parks, wind farms, heat pumps and electric (delivery) cars are being added. And the electrification of trucks and ships is not standing still either.
Tauron: we want to reduce emissions by 80% by 2030
In the perspective of 2030, our plans look very ambitious. We want to reduce emissions by 80%. by a stepwise increase in renewable sources in our mix and the gradual decarbonisation of the heating sector - said Paweł Szczeszek, president of the Tauron Group, in the weekly "Gazeta Polska".
"In the longer term, we are interested in getting involved in the construction of small SMR nuclear power plants, in hydrogen technologies and, above all, in wind energy in the Baltic Sea" - he pointed out.
RMS partners with BBEnergy
In a bold move towards a sustainable future, Remote Metering Solutions (RMS), the largest private utility service provider in South Africa, and BBEnergy, a renowned provider of state-of-the-art analytical tools for extracting meaningful insights from complex data sets, are excited to announce an innovative technology partnership.
This collaboration aims to drive transformative solutions for better energy, water, carbon and waste management.
E.ON continues to invest in the energy transition and remains on growth path
E.ON continues its growth path. The increasingly calming energy market environment had a positive impact on the Group's first-half results. Both segments – Energy Networks and Customer Solutions – delivered a strong operating performance. Against this backdrop, E.ON raised its earnings forecast for full-year 2023. At the same time, accelerated cross-sectoral decarbonization efforts are providing a tailwind for further business growth.
At the presentation of the company’s results for the first half of 2023 E.ON CEO Leonhard Birnbaum said, “After a long period of crisis, we sense that the headwinds for our business are diminishing. We see our markets increasingly recover. At the same time, the energy transition is becoming more tangible with every passing day, and the demand for our sustainable energy solutions and our infrastructure is increasing. We are therefore in an environment that presents us with a lot of work, but also offers tremendous growth potential.”
MARKET NEWS
Albany moving to automated utility meter-reading
ALBANY, Ga. (WALB) - Meter-reading for utility workers is about to become a thing of the past in Albany. The city is moving to a new system called AMI that does it all through a computer program.
Staff with Albany Utilities tell WALB they’re doing their best to make meter information more readily available to their customers. And in doing so, customers will be able to control their costs more efficiently.
Ukraine is bracing for its darkest hour as parts of the grid are damaged beyond repair
The upcoming heating season in Ukraine is anticipated with growing concerns, as a significant part of the country’s damaged energy grid appears to be beyond repair. Renewable energy could help, but only to a certain extent.
Ukraine’s preparations for the next winter are proceeding apace. Energy grid operator Ukrenergo has executed nearly 60% of its planned grid repair works, adding around 1.7 GW of capacity, Denys Shmyhal, Ukrainian prime minister, said in a statement on his social media channels on July 21.
City Power starts expansive smart meter rollout in Joburg
Electricity utility City Power has initiated a wide-scale project to introduce smart meters across Johannesburg.
In a statement, the utility says the project − at no cost to residents − is a strategic move to enhance efficiency and confront the energy challenges in the city.
Serbia to invest EUR 320 million in electricity distribution network
Minister of Mining and Energy of Serbia Dubravka Đedović said EUR 320 million would be invested to strengthen the power distribution grid. The country’s parliament is about to pass a law on guarantees for a EUR 50 million commercial loan for the purpose.
The stability of supply has been stabilized after interruptions in several areas in Serbia, caused by several violent storms, according to Minister of Mining and Energy Dubravka Đedović. She said the government would invest EUR 320 million in strengthening the distribution network.
HPL partners with WBSEDCL for advanced metering project
HPL Electric & Power has entered into a partnership with West Bengal State Electricity Distribution Company (WBSEDCL) to implement an advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) initiative. The project, valued at Rs 416.84 crore, will be backed by funding from the World Bank.
The AMI project is set to deploy smart meters across residential, commercial, and industrial sectors. Its capabilities include real-time data transmission, consumption tracking, accurate billing, and the potential to connect approximately five lakh consumers in Kolkata. The collaboration with WBSEDCL will oversee the AMI project's execution.
PSE&G Hits Key Milestone by Installing 1 Million Smart Meters
PSE&G reached a key milestone by installing its millionth smart meter as part of its Smart Meter Program. Through this multi-year effort, PSE&G will replace 2.3 million existing electric meters with new smart meters at PSE&G residential and commercial customer premises. PSE&G expects to complete the installations by the end of 2024.
“We are very excited to realize this important accomplishment, because it means that we are getting closer to our goal of making smart meters available to all of our electric customers,” said Dave Johnson, vice president customer care and chief customer officer. “There are already more than 110 million smart meters installed across the United States, so it’s great news that PSE&G electric customers will soon also have access to the benefits that smart meters provide.”
UPCOMING EVENTS
Eletrotec+EM-Power South America, São Paulo, Brazil, 29-31 August 2023
Digital Utilities Europe 2023, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, 13-14 September 2023
MOVE AMERICA, Austin, Texas, 26-27 September 2023
ADIPEC, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, 2-5 October 2023
Power Europe 2023, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 9-10 October 2023
World Class Corporate Climate-Neutral Strategies & Resource Management 2023, Frankfurt, Germany, 10-11 October 2023
SGF-IEC Week 2023, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 16-20 October 2023
XV International Trade Fair ECOENERGY EXPO 2023, Kyiv, Ukraine, 17-19 October 2023
THE GLOBAL ASSET MANAGEMENT FOR DSOS FORUM, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 02-03 November 2023
Smart City Expo World Congress 2023, Barcelona, Spain & online, 07-09 November 2023
Enlit Asia 2023, Jakarta, Indonesia, 14-16 November 2023
Oman Sustainability Week, Muscat, Sultanate of Oman, 28 April - 2 May 2024
SMARTGREENS 2024, Angers, France, 02-04 May 2024
MOVE 2024, London, United Kingdom, 19-20 June
Jul2023
MEMBER NEWS
Harnessing historic funding to benefit customers and communities
In listening to the concerns and needs of the communities we serve, our customers have been clear: they support a transition to cleaner energy but want to protect reliability and affordability. That’s why Duke Energy is making every effort to harness federal funding available through the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) and the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) to reduce customer costs.
Both the IIJA and IRA represent historic opportunities to invest in clean, innovative and resilient energy infrastructure and we’re leveraging these laws to reduce costs for customers as we transition to cleaner energy sources. We’re focused on opportunities closely aligned with our strategy including transportation electrification and grid resiliency and reliability.
The first dynamic electricity connection was connected to the grid at Suomenoja in Espoo
Finland's first dynamic electricity connection will start operating in Espoo's Suomenoja in the summer of 2023. The connection will bring electricity to Fortum's new Suomenoja heating plant, which produces carbon-neutral district heating for the people of Espoo.
Espoo is at the forefront of the energy revolution in many areas: the number of both solar panels and electric cars is the top in Finland, and the electrification of heating is well underway. The latest electrification milestone was reached at Suomenoja in Espoo, where field testing of the dynamic electric connection began at the beginning of June. The actual production cycle can begin after field testing.
Green alliance: Let the municipalities keep taxes from new green projects
Wind and solar energy on land is the fastest way to expand our renewable energy, which will ensure our energy independence and speed up the green transition. The municipalities that develop renewable energy must be allowed to keep a larger part of the tax revenue, believes the new, green alliance.
A new alliance for renewable energy consisting of Dansk Erhverv, Vestas, Green Power Denmark, Eurowind Energy, Landbrug & Fødevarer, Norlys, European Energy, NRGi and Andel is now calling for action to get more gigawatts of solar and wind energy installed on land.
Vattenfall Energy Savings Barometer: Energy saving continues to be a high priority among European consumers
To save money is what drives Europeans to reduce energy consumption. Right now, in the middle of the summer, electricity prices are lower compared to some months ago, but this does not stop Europeans. For more than eight out of ten people, reducing their own energy consumption in their daily lives continues to stay relevant. These are results from Vattenfall’s Energy Saving Barometer that is conducted for the second time.
On behalf of Vattenfall, research institute Statista surveyed a total of 5,000 representatively selected consumers in Germany, Finland, France, Sweden and the Netherlands between 15 and 25 May.
Revolutionary change in Poland's strategic infrastructure
The roll-out of energy meters in our country is an operation on a huge - logistical and financial - scale. This is the last moment to define the digital security requirements for devices installed in Poles' homes.
By 2028, 80% of consumers in Poland are to have smart energy meters installed. Today, this means the replacement of about 16 million meters for individual or business customers. The operation seems to be accelerating in recent months: probably about 3.8 million meters have already been installed. Due to the fact that each distribution system operator must carry out this operation on its own, the level and pace of large-scale meter replacement in Polish homes varies depending on local conditions. Verification practices of meters offered in tenders and their suppliers are also different.
METAS certification data security for FIRMWARE UPDATE
The OSGP PLC solution from NES (Networked Energy Services (NES) Corporation), established by VIVAVIS Schweiz AG in the Swiss market, was the FIRST company resp. Solution in Switzerland the official certificate of METAS (Swiss Federal Institute of Metrology) for a new FIRMWARE, the current version 4.8 of their already certified smart meters MTR3000 and MTR3500.
The certificate was issued by METAS for the NES MTR3000 and MTR3500 smart meters. This is a great success, as VIVAVIS Schweiz AG is the first company in Switzerland to have a FIRMWARE UPDATE certified by METAS.
MARKET NEWS
WHY EV CHARGING, INTEGRATED SOLUTIONS KEY TO SUCCESS FOR GREEN MOBILITY IN INDIA
Electric vehicles (EVs) are transforming how we commute. All of this is because of their lower operational costs, reduced maintenance requirements, and positive environmental impact compared to their internal combustion engine counterparts.
Most of all, EVs represent progress extending beyond the automotive industry, including renewable energy integration with smart grid systems and energy storage solutions.
Washington maps clean energy cybersecurity plan
The Biden-Harris Administration has announced an implementation plan to realise the National Cybersecurity Strategy, which aims to protect investments in rebuilding US infrastructure and develop the clean energy sector.
The newly announced National Cybersecurity Strategy Implementation Plan (NCSIP) – announced via a Washington-issued fact sheet – details over 65 Federal initiatives, from combatting cybercrimes to building a skilled cyber workforce.
Enhancing Efficiency: New and emerging technologies transforming the distribution segment
The power distribution segment in India is undergoing significant transformation, driven by advancements in technology and constant search for efficient and sustainable energy management solutions. Several new and emerging technologies are being adopted to improve the distribution infrastructure, enhance grid reliability, enable renewable energy integration and empower consumers with smart solutions. These include advanced metering infrastructure (AMI), distribution automation solutions, internet of things (IoT), analytics and artificial intelligence (AI).
These solutions aid in boosting the efficiency and productivity of the power sector in a big way. Earlier, the majority of operations and distribution processes in the power sector were manual, which led to poor control, lack of transparency and unreliable information, resulting in enormous power loss.
Belgian electrification is reaching a tipping point – Elia
According to a new study from Belgian TSO Elia, although policy measures in Belgium have been speeding up the country’s energy transition, electrification has been happening faster than expected and flexibility will need to be more readily tapped to balance supply and demand.
Elia’s 2024 – 2034 Adequacy and Flexibility Study for Belgium outlines how the expected spread of electrification across society is happening both earlier and at a faster speed than anticipated, namely in the mobility, heating and industrial sectors.
Estonia’s Energy Market: Lessons Learned and Best Practices for Other Countries
Estonia, a small Baltic nation, has made remarkable strides in transforming its energy market. Its journey, marked by innovation, sustainability, and resilience, offers valuable lessons and best practices for other countries seeking to revolutionize their energy sectors.
Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, Estonia found itself heavily reliant on oil shale, an energy-intensive and environmentally damaging resource. Recognizing the need for change, the country embarked on a path of energy reform. The first step was the liberalization of the energy market, which was accomplished by implementing the European Union’s Third Energy Package. This move allowed for increased competition, driving down prices and improving service quality.
Electricity storage a key target for Cyprus
Cyprus’ Ministe of Energy, Commerce and Industry George Papanastasiou has set the goal of having a solution to the issue of energy storage within the next 18-24 months, so that green energy is not rejected.
Addressing a press conference of the Green Energy Group in Nicosia, the minister noted that the energy system in Cyprus is undergoing a complete restructuring, with a focus on efforts to operate a competitive electricity market.
UPCOMING EVENTS
2023 World Battery Industry Expo (WBE), Guangzhou, China, 8-10 August 2023
Solar PV & Energy Storage World Expo 2023 (Formerly: PV Guangzhou 2023), Guangzhou, China, 8-10 August 2023
Sustainable Energy Technology Asia (SETA 2023) & Solar+Storage Asia (SSA 2023) – Executive Asian Energy Leadership Forum, Bangkok, Thailand, 17-18 August 2023
Digital Utilities Europe 2023, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, 13-14 September 2023
MOVE AMERICA, Austin, Texas, 26-27 September 2023
ADIPEC, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, 2-5 October 2023
Power Europe 2023, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 9-10 October 2023
World Class Corporate Climate-Neutral Strategies & Resource Management 2023, Frankfurt, Germany, 10-11 October 2023
SGF-IEC Week 2023, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 16-20 October 2023
XV International Trade Fair ECOENERGY EXPO 2023, Kyiv, Ukraine, 17-19 October 2023
THE GLOBAL ASSET MANAGEMENT FOR DSOS FORUM, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 02-03 November 2023
Smart City Expo World Congress 2023, Barcelona, Spain & online, 07-09 November 2023
Enlit Asia 2023, Jakarta, Indonesia, 14-16 November 2023
SMARTGREENS 2024, Angers, France, 02-04 May 2024
MOVE 2024, London, United Kingdom, 19-20 June
Jun2023
MEMBER NEWS
PLN 3 billion for network development. TAURON announces a large increase in investment expenditures
TAURON plans to increase capital expenditures on power grids to PLN 3 billion in 2024. This is a threefold increase compared to 2010. These funds will be used to connect new customers, including RES, and modernize and reconstruct power grids.
In the last eight years, TAUORON has invested PLN 16 billion in distribution networks. Completed projects, which consist of almost 60,000 investment tasks per year, allow for the development of grids at all voltage levels and throughout the entire area of the Group's operations.
Eltel to install additional 664,000 smart meters in Sweden for SEK 585 million, about EUR 51 million
Eltel's Smart Grids business in Sweden has signed a new contract with Vattenfall Eldistribution AB to install 664,000 new-generation smart electricity meters across the country. The contract is worth SEK 585 million, about EUR 51 million.
This contract is an extension of a previous agreement signed in February 2020, where Vattenfall Eldistribution AB decided to utilize the option to order remaining phases of smart electricity meter installations. As a result, throughout the project, Eltel will be installing a total of approximately 900,000 smart electricity meters and technology for about 40,000 secondary substations metering in Vattenfall's distribution network across Sweden.
Cutting the Gordian Infrastructure Knot: New principles to accelerate Europe’s energy transition
Inspired by Greek mythology, a new study proposes “cutting through” the complex knot of challenges currently hindering Europe’s progress towards a zero-carbon future.
A new study, published by E.ON Foresight, in collaboration with AFRY and Common Futures, proposes ways to slash through the complexities hindering Europe’s energy transition – inspired by the Greek myth of Alexander the Great.
A new type of energy community is being piloted in student housing in Joensuu
A new type of energy community is being piloted in Joensuu. The two student houses form a virtual energy community, where the energy produced by the solar panels of the other house can be used in both properties.
In Joensuu, the students will live in apartment buildings for the next couple of years, where a new type of energy community pilot is underway. On the roof of one house, energy is produced by 80 solar panels. The pilot will test whether the energy produced by the panels can be used in another student house in the area. The pilot will last until the end of 2025.
Improving Volt/VAR Control - NES Solution
Utilities today devote considerable attention to managing voltage levels and reactive power (VAR) throughout the power transmission and distribution systems. Loads that contain capacitors and inductors - electric motors, pool pumps, the power supplies in modern electronics - put additional strain on the grid, as the reactive portion of these loads causes them to draw more current than an otherwise comparable resistive load (such as a light bulb) would draw for the same amount of kilowatts transferred. This additional current results in heating of the transformer, which wastes energy and results in a reduced service lifetime. Uncorrected reactive power makes it more difficult to stabilize grid voltage. It also drives additional cost throughout the entire grid since everything - wires, transformers, and generators - must be sized to carry the total current.
There has been a dramatic rise in reactive loads in the last two decades, and the problem is accelerating. For example, in the United States before the 1980s, reactive loads from electronic devices were insignificant. In 2010, the load from electronic devices has increased to 40 percent, and by 2016 it is expected to exceed an astonishing 60 percent.
Renewable energies – the transmission and distribution enablers
Technologies and digitalisation are the two key enablers for the large-scale deployment and integration of renewable energies.
The large-scale rollout of utility and customer-sited low carbon generation and its enabling infrastructure across the grid to decarbonise sectors across the economy to meet net-zero targets is filled with numerous challenges.
Norlys wins municipal tender and expands the national charging network with more than 1,600 new charging points
Norlys is in the process of setting up charging points in large parts of the country, and towards the summer of next year, Norlys will set up, among other things, more than 1,600 new charging points in a number of municipalities.
Norlys has won all or parts of public tenders in 15 municipalities.
MARKET NEWS
Commission adopts new implementing act to improve access to metering and consumption data
New EU rules on access to electricity metering and consumption data have been adopted by the Commission today. They aimed to further protect consumers and empower them through digitalisation to be more active in the energy transition. The requirements and procedures implemented under this new secondary legislation will ensure that data on metering and consumption in EU countries use one common reference model.
Today’s implementing regulation is the first of a number of such regulations, which will be put in place in the next two years in order to facilitate the interoperability of energy consumer data, in compliance with Article 24 of the Electricity Directive (EU/2019/944), and one of the key deliverables of the Digitalisation of Energy Action Plan of last October. Subsequent regulations will focus on data relating to customer switching, demand response and other services.
DTEK intends to implement $145 mln Smart Grid project in Kyiv region – company CEO
DTEK Energy Holding intends to implement a $145 million Smart Grid project in Kyiv region, said its CEO Maksym Timchenko.
“We have developed a concept of how to build modern smart grids … We are presenting this project, which will cost us $145 million, here for discussion,” Timchenko said during a business table on reforming the Ukrainian energy sector as part of URC2023.
Power system digitalisation is crucial for clean energy transitions and security in developing markets, but investment is lagging
Report by the IEA 3DEN initiative details the high cost of delaying investments and lays out targeted actions to stimulate grid digitalisation
Digital technologies can greatly improve the functioning of power grids to help successfully integrate clean energy sources, but a lack of investment in these networks could slow down the energy transition and increase costs, particularly in emerging and developing economies.
How smart meters can contribute to carbon neutrality by 2050
As carbon emissions hit an all-time high, it is important to observe how smart meters are reducing energy use, increasing the usage of renewable energy and contributing to achieving net-zero emissions by 2050. In order to build a more flexible, decarbonized and decentralized environment, smart meters represent next-generation tools that can impact the way energy is used.
Smart meters have revolutionized the way consumers interact with energy by providing the ability to monitor and manage energy use in real-time. They provide customers with the option to switch energy providers at any time, allowing them to take advantage of competitive rates and special offers that can save money.
EU pays out EUR 1.4 billion to Bulgaria, Croatia, Romania for green transition
The European Union paid out EUR 2.4 billion from its Modernisation Fund in its largest joint disbursement so far, to boost green transition in seven member states including Bulgaria, Croatia, and Romania. The three countries have received EUR 1,385 billion in total.
The grants from the Modernisation Fund are for 31 projects for renewable electricity generation, modernization of energy networks, and energy efficiency. They will lead to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions in energy, industry, and transport, the European Commission said.
The Ministry of Energy starts installation of smart electricity meters, with the support of UNDP
The Ministry of Energy launched on 13 June 2023 a pilot programme to install smart meters to measure electricity. The pilot programme is part of the national plan for digitalization of the energy sector and is carried out with the support of the United Nations Development Programme in Moldova.
The first smart meter was installed in the Government building and will help measure and streamline real energy consumption.
The Advantages of Smart Meters in Distributed Energy Resource Management and Control
The Role of Smart Meters in Enhancing Distributed Energy Resource Management and Control
The growing adoption of distributed energy resources (DERs) such as solar panels, wind turbines, and energy storage systems has revolutionized the way electricity is generated, transmitted, and consumed. As a result, utilities and grid operators are increasingly seeking innovative solutions to effectively manage and control these resources to ensure grid stability, optimize energy consumption, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. One such solution is the deployment of smart meters, which play a critical role in enhancing distributed energy resource management and control.
PRESS RELEASE
The MKI Gathering and Grand Launching of the 78th National Electricity Day Enlit Asia 2023 Kicks Off
26 Jun 2023
Jakarta, May 29th, 2023 – MKI Gathering and ‘Grand Launching of the 78th National Electricity Day – Enlit Asia 2023’ kicked off today, marking its official opening. MKI Gathering is an annual event held by MKI to increase synergy with its members. In the event with the theme "Readiness of the Indonesian Electricity Sector in Achieving the NDC 2030 Target Through the Development of Renewable Energy, MKI also inaugurated the 78th National Electricity Day as well as announced the collaborated program with Enlit Asia 2023 event which will be held on 14-16 November 2023.
With the theme of "Indonesian Electricity Sector Readiness in Achieving 2030 NDC Targets through Renewable Energy Development," the event’s inauguration was led by Jisman P. Hutajulu, Electricity General Director at the Indonesian Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry. Notable figures such as Indonesian Electrical Power Society (Masyarakat Kelistrikan Indonesia/MKI) General Chairperson Evy Haryadi, the 78th National Electricity Day (Hari Listrik Nasional ke-78) General Chairperson Arsyadany G Akmalaputri, and representatives from sponsor organizations, were also attending the event.
Read more…
UPCOMING EVENTS
2023 World Battery Industry Expo (WBE), Guangzhou, China, 8-10 August 2023
Solar PV & Energy Storage World Expo 2023 (Formerly PV Guangzhou) Guangzhou, China, 8-10 Augustus 2023
Digital Utilities Europe 2023, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, 13-14 September 2023
ADIPEC, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, 2-5 October 2023
Power Europe 2023, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 9-10 October 2023
World Class Corporate Climat-Neutral Strategies & Energy Management 2023, Frankfurt, Germany, 10-11 October 2023
SGF-IEC Week 2023, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 16-20 October 2023 Power Europe 2023
XV International Trade Fair ECOENERGY EXPO 2023, Kyiv, Ukraine, 17-19 October 2023
THE GLOBAL ASSET MANAGEMENT FOR DSOS FORUM, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 02-03 November 2023
Smart City Expo World Congress 2023, Barcelona, Spain & online, 07-09 November 2023
Enlit Asia 2023, Jakarta, Indonesia, 14-16 November 2023
May2023
MEMBER NEWS
Networked Energy Services has announced that it will join the the OSGP Alliance as co-exhibitor at the EM-Power Europe 2023 Exhibition taking place in Munich, 14-16 June 2023.
EM-Power Europe Exhibition and Conference is part of The smarter E Europe, the continent’s largest platform for the energy industry, bringing together the four exhibitions Intersolar Europe, ees Europe, Power2Drive Europe and EM-Power Europe, with2,200+ exhibitors and expected 85.000+ visitors.
EM-Power Europe will serve as a great networking opportunity for both OSGP Alliance and NES’ representatives to interact and engage with global energy stakeholders in the smart energy value chain. Specialists and high-level executives from utilities, network operators, vendors, startups and system integrators all looking for innovative solutions to empower the grid and the prosumers will be attending the event.
Download the NES interview here…
New generation electricity meters will be installed at the new locations in Caruna's network - the meter enables a home automation connection
Caruna will install a new generation of electricity meters at new locations in its network starting in May 2023. The new type of meter brings the monitoring of electricity consumption or production to an even more accurate level with the help of a home automation connection. Among other things, some electric car charging solutions can make use of information obtained through the home automation interface.
The new type of meter sends information about consumption, production, current, voltage and power every 10 seconds. The meter has a home automation connection, which enables Caruna customers to monitor their own electricity consumption or production at a more precise level. A separate terminal is connected to the meter and after that monitoring is possible in real time.
Oracle’s meter data system to support El Paso’s smart meter rollout
Starting this month, Texan utility company El Paso Electric (EPE) is coordinating smart meter installations across its base of 460,000 customers with Oracle providing a meter data management system to support and process interval meter data.
EPE announced the partnership yesterday; they will use the Texas-based computer software company’s utilities customer cloud service to upgrade its customer information system.
BMW, E.ON develop ecosystem for smart charging
In a cooperation declared as strategic, BMW and energy provider E.ON intend to develop a charging ecosystem that will enable customers to link their electric car with the energy grid as part of a climate-neutral household.
The focus of the cooperation is on charging at home, which is currently the most important use case for charging electrified vehicles today and will continue to be so in the future. In addition, due to the longer standing times, charging processes in one’s own private garage can be controlled particularly well intelligently. The comprehensive ecosystem that E.ON and the BMW Group intend to build together is to be tailored precisely to this use case. The core element of the planned ecosystem is the creation of a common interface that connects three complex and previously separate systems: Firstly, BMW Group electric vehicles, which include BMW, Mini and Rolls Royce (although the latter is likely to be a rather unlikely participant in such a network); secondly, the customers’ smart home; and thirdly, the public energy grid.
Schneider Electric provides electrical solutions for the restoration of Notre Dame
France, Paris: Schneider Electric and the public institution Rebuilding Notre Dame de Paris have signed a sponsorship agreement.
Under the agreement, the company committed to contributing to the restoration of the cathedral, severely damaged in a fire on 15 April 2019, through in-kind donations and the transfer of skills. Schneider will supply all equipment needed to power the site: transformer station, electrical cabinet and breaker panels.
Energy savings for the house with the support of TAURON
Nearly 80 percent of the owners of micro-installations in TAURON installed it with the desire to generate savings, according to the company's research. Producing electricity from the sun, more effective home heating and repairing home appliances are the solutions of the energy leader that bring real savings in home budgets. Almost half of TAURON's customers use additional services and products offered by the company.
TAURON is launching a new campaign informing about solutions supporting both savings and home energy efficiency.
MARKET NEWS
Unleashing the benefits of data for energy systems
The number of smart power meters worldwide exceeded 1 billion last year, a 10-fold increase since 2010. Meanwhile, connected devices with automated controls and sensors are expected to reach 13 billion in 2023, up from less than a billion a decade ago. This number could reach more than 25 billion in 2030. And there are similar trends in power grids, with around 320 million distribution sensors deployed globally.
All these devices generate data: smart meters collect details on consumption, while sensors transmit real-time data from grids. Well-used, this data brings insights on consumption patterns, foresees grid tensions, and helps manage power systems better. But for that to happen, data needs to be collected, stored, analysed, and shared, while ensuring privacy and cybersecurity. This creates massive challenges for power systems, but also holds huge potential benefits.
METER&CONTROL to join OSGP Alliance booth at EM-Power Europe
METER&CONTROL has announced that it will join the the OSGP Alliance as co-exhibitor at the EM-Power Europe 2023 Exhibition taking place in Munich, 14-16 June 2023.
EM-Power Europe Exhibition and Conference is part of The smarter E Europe, the continent’s largest platform for the energy industry, with 2,200+ exhibitors and expected 85.000+ visitors. The EM-Power Europe Exhibition targets network operators, aggregators and new energy services providers and focuses on renewable energy grid integration, digitalization, energy management, data management and analysis, AMI, monitoring and control, flexibility management, DERMS, cybersecurity, consumer empowerment and related topics.
EM-Power Europe will serve as a great networking opportunity for both OSGP Alliance and METER&CONTROL’s representatives to interact and engage with global energy stakeholders in the smart energy value chain. Specialists and high-level executives from utilities, network operators, vendors, startups and system integrators all looking for innovative solutions to empower the grid and the prosumers will be attending the event.
Download the interview with METER&CONTROL here...
Smart grids help energy companies combat meter tampering, fraud
Meter tampering and bypassing plus uncollected revenue cost energy companies tens of billions of dollars annually.
These "non-technical losses" in the energy sector have proven to be crippling to energy providers, said Ahmed Ashour, CEO and co-founder, Pylon UMP, Egypt.
Smart Meters to revolutionise Kashmir Valley's power supply
The Power Development Department (PDD) stated on Monday that the complete deployment of smart meters would be carried out within the next two years across the Kashmir Valley.
Javed Yousuf Dar, Chief Engineer of PDD, remarked that the government was considering providing an uninterrupted electricity supply to consumers, and as part of this effort, full deployment of smart meters would be accomplished in the next two years across the Kashmir Valley.
The number of smart electricity meters in Latin America to triple by 2028
A new research report from the IoT analyst firm Berg Insight reveals that the penetration of smart electricity meters in Latin America* reached 6.2 percent in 2022.
The installed base of smart electricity meters is forecasted to grow at an impressive compound annual growth rate of 21.7 percent during 2022–2028 to reach a total of 38.4 million units at the end of the forecast period, up from around 11.7 million units in 2022.
Digitizing the Energy System with Digital Twins and Smart Grid Indicators
Europe aims to become climate-neutral by 2050. To achieve this, the transmission and distribution networks urgently need to be expanded and modernized in order to integrate the rapidly growing number of decentralized renewable energy ressources and exchange electricity across national borders. This is the only way to ensure a resilient, sustainable and affordable energy supply. Digital technologies play an important role in making the grid smarter and more efficient. A digital twin of the European power grid will help develop innovative solutions and coordinate investments.
How this works, Peter Vermaat - Secretary General - EU DSO Entity reveals to us in our The smarter E Podcast.
Streamlining situational awareness for electric utilities using smart meters
Reliable and safe electric power is the heartbeat of modern society. Anyone who has lost power for a significant amount of time knows how much it can upend life, from food spoiling without proper refrigeration to being unable to work because essential equipment can’t be powered on.
Mojdeh Khorsand Hedman, an assistant professor of electrical engineering in the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering at Arizona State University, and her doctoral student Zahra Soltani have developed an algorithm to reduce the impact of power outages and malfunction damage to devices connected to the power grid.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Lisbon Energy Summit & Exhibition 2023, Lisbon, Portugal, 30 May - 1 June, 2023
11th Caspian International Power and Green Energy Exhibition, Baku, Azerbaijan, 31 May - 02 June 2023
EM-Power Europe 2023, Munich, Germany, 14-16 June 2023 (exhibition), 13-14 June 2023 (conference)
Smart Energy World Summit, Lisbon, Portugal, 14-15 June 2023
2023 World Battery Industry Expo (WBE), Guangzhou, China, 8-10 August 2023
Digital Utilities Europe 2023, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, 13-14 September 2023
ADIPEC, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, 2-5 October 2023
Power Europe 2023, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 9-10 October 2023
THE GLOBAL ASSET MANAGEMENT FOR DSOS FORUMAmsterdam, The Netherlands, 02-03 November 2023
Enlit Asia 2023, Jakarta, Indonesia, 14-16 November 2023
Apr2023
MEMBER NEWS
OSGP Alliance exhibiting at EM-Power Europe in Munich, 14-16 June 2023
Following up on their previous successful participation, OSGP Alliance will join EM-Power Europe in Munich, (conference 13-14 June, Exhibition 14-16 June), part of The smarter E Europe, the continent’s largest platform for the energy industry, bringing together the four exhibitions Intersolar Europe, ees Europe, Power2Drive Europe and EM-Power Europe, with 2,200+ exhibitors and expected 85.000+ visitors.
OSGP Alliance is pleased to welcome Networked Energy Services (NES) and METER&CONTROL as co-exhibitors. The EM-Power Europe Exhibition targets grid operators, utilities, aggregators and new energy services providers. It focuses on modernizing and digitalizing the power grid into a smart grid, injecting flexibility and integrating prosumers, energy management, data management and analysis, AMI, and related topics.
EM-Power Europe will serve as a great networking opportunity for the OSGP Alliance, NES and METER&CONTROL to interact and engage with global energy stakeholders in the smart energy value chain - specialists and high-level executives from utilities, grid operators, vendors, startups and system integrators all looking for innovative solutions to empower the grids and the prosumers.
Visit us at B5.133!
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N1 intends to make a smart investment of DKK 2 billion in the electricity grid - every year
The task is enormous, and the future is already here. Every day, more wind turbines and solar cells as well as lots of new heat pumps and electric cars are connected to the grid in the great electrification of society. This is a huge transition, but Jutland's largest electricity company is in full control of its part of the task and is already investing large sums in the expansion of the grid.
The biggest challenge in the coming years will be to invest the money wisely and correctly.
Smart metering major component of Tauron’s updated research agenda
Polish DSO Tauron has announced a renewed research agenda, with numerous aspects focusing on developing smart metering technology and distribution.
The utility’s new research agenda follows the completion of their Strategic Research Agenda of 2018, which, according to the utility, saw several successful undertakings, such as the implementation of blockchain technology and the launching of a microgrid in Bytom.
Three-quarters of Dutch companies will soon be driving fully electrically
Three-quarters of Dutch companies plan to fully switch to electric vehicles within three years. This is the conclusion of an international study by Vattenfall among companies that have their own fleet or company cars. Most companies cite social responsibility and improving their CO2 balance as the main reason for moving away from vehicles with internal combustion engines.
The Netherlands and the EU have set ambitious goals to encourage the use of electric vehicles. The Netherlands has been at the forefront of this movement for some time: no other country in the EU has as many charging stations as here. It is therefore no surprise that 84 percent of Dutch companies are (very) open to a switch to electric transport for their employees.
A smarter electricity network limits power outages itself - Caruna's pilot will be implemented in 12 municipalities where the next storm will cause shorter outages
In the future, power outages will be shorter and supply reliability will improve when intelligence is added to the electricity grid in Caruna's new project. Experiments are carried out on the electricity network in stages. The spring 2023 pilot includes 12 substations from 12 municipalities.
Currently, the operators of the electricity distribution company return electricity to the grid manually. The pilot test examines whether the system can automatically locate and isolate the fault and restore electricity to customers outside of the fault.
The route to a climate-neutral 2050: these are the scenarios
Netbeheer Nederland today published the 'II3050' study. This gives network operators insight into how society can grow towards a climate-neutral energy system in 2050. Four scenarios emerge from the study, which respond to the necessary change in which we move from a 'demand-oriented' to a 'supply-oriented' energy system. There is work to be done. We must understand that today's political choices have a direct impact on how we prepare the energy system together for an energy-neutral Netherlands.
The transition from fossil to only sustainably generated energy means that we in the Netherlands have to coordinate energy supply and demand even better. And that society must be flexible in its use of energy. Due to a strongly increasing demand for network capacity, network operators must use their time, people and materials as efficiently as possible towards 2050 in order to maintain the level of security of supply and to achieve the climate objectives.
MARKET NEWS
New study: Identifying the best policy for energy market design
The objective to transform Europe’s economy towards net-zero by 2050 is a challenge which will require massive investments across the energy sector. While the ongoing energy crisis has demonstrated the benefits of an integrated European market, it has also revealed the necessity for comprehensive reforms of the current market design to provide future resilience and affordability.
A new study from Eurelectric, the European electricity industry association, is providing fresh, timely analysis on how the future electricity market design can successfully target net zero. Based on its findings, the expert study derives several policy recommendations for a quick, affordable, and efficient energy transition despite global challenges such as the war in Ukraine and climate change.
Sustainability vs energy security: Using one to achieve the other
The energy trilemma of energy security, affordability and sustainability guides the energy transition now more than ever.
However, frequently questioned is which corner of the trilemma needs to get priority, especially when it comes to security versus sustainability.
EU launches EUR 750 million call for energy infrastructure projects under CEF Energy
The European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency (CINEA) has launched a call for proposals for key cross-border EU energy infrastructure projects included on the fifth list of projects of common interest, to be co-financed through grants worth EUR 750 million from the EU budget.
he support was secured under the Connecting Europe Facility – Energy (CEF Energy).
Oman: Interlinking north-south power grids to strengthen renewable energy projects
Muscat: The electricity sector is one of the vital sectors that the Ministry of Energy and Minerals relies on in advancing the national economy, improving its performance and raising its efficiency.
Companies operating in the electricity sector pump large and continuous investments in the development of the infrastructure of the sector in order to maintain reliability of service and keep pace with the growth in demand for power in response to economic growth, and strive to introduce modern technology in line with best practices and emerging technologies in the world.
Engineering Cybersecurity into U.S. Critical Infrastructure
In its National Cybersecurity Strategy published on March 2, the Biden administration calls for major changes in how the United States prioritizes the security of software systems used in critical infrastructure. It acknowledges that the de facto approach — until now essentially “let the buyer beware” — leaves entities who are least able to assess or defend vulnerable software responsible for the impacts of designed-in weaknesses while the makers of the technology bear no liability. The strategy recommends a security-by-design approach that includes making software vendors liable for upholding a “duty of care” to consumers and for systems to be designed to “fail safely and recover quickly.”
For energy infrastructure, the strategy calls out the need to implement a “national cyber-informed engineering strategy” to achieve markedly more effective cybersecurity protections. This article provides a high-level overview of what that entails.
On The Horizon For Smart Cities: How AI And IoT Are Transforming Urban Living
As cities around the world become more crowded and complex, the need for innovative, efficient solutions has never been greater. Smart cities—what once felt like a futuristic pipedream—are emerging as an answer, leveraging advanced technology to optimize infrastructure, services and resources.
For those curious about what makes a city truly smart, look no further than the powerful duo of artificial intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things (IoT). This combination of innovative technology is transforming the way we live and interact with urban surroundings. As the founder of a company working closely with municipalities and organizations around the globe––from Taiwan to Mexico to the Philippines––I've had the opportunity to witness firsthand how powerful these technologies can be when working together.
UPCOMING EVENTS
World Utilities Congress, Abu Dhabi, UAE, 8-10 May, 2023
World Energy Storage Exhibition & Forum, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, 10-11 May, 2023
SGF-Cybersecurity Week 2023, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 15-19 May, 2023
Lisbon Energy Summit & Exhibition 2023, Lisbon, Portugal, 30 May-1 June, 2023
11th Caspian International Power and Green Energy Exhibition, Baku, Azerbaijan, 31 May - 02 June 2023
EM-Power Europe 2023, Munich, Germany, 14-16 June 2023 (exhibition), 13-14 June 2023 (conference)
Smart Energy World Summit, Lisbon, Portugal, 14-15 June 2023
2023 World Battery Industry Expo (WBE), Guangzhou, China, 8-10 August 2023
Digital Utilities Europe 2023, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, 13-14 September 2023
ADIPEC, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, 2-5 October 2023
Power Europe 2023, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 9-10 October 2023
The Global Asset Management For DSOs Forum, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 02-03 November 2023
Enlit Asia 2023, Jakarta, Indonesia, 14-16 November 2023
Mar2023
MEMBER NEWS
Vattenfall Energy Savings Barometer: Smart measures and investments against the energy crisis
Consumers in Europe are tackling the energy crisis by a mix of small behavioural changes in their everyday life, but also by investing in energy efficiency measures. Among age groups, younger people between 18-35 years have so far been least likely to change their behaviour in daily life to save energy. Compared to other countries, the French seem to have adapted most in their efforts to consume less energy while the most innovative consumers live in the Netherlands. These are some of the results in Vattenfall’s new energy savings barometer.
"The results show that customers perceive the energy crisis to be overcome by joint social efforts. It is the sum of small and big steps that will help to keep prices under control in the short run and transform our energy system towards a fossil free future," says Martijn Hagens, Head of Customers & Solutions and Heat at Vattenfall.
Prospects for waiting time at charging stations and higher electricity prices: The energy industry is tripping to expand the electricity grid
Denmark's electricity grid needs an upgrade in the billions range if we are to keep up with the not-so-distant future's increasing number of electric cars, energy parks and heat pumps. According to the industry, sluggish politics prevents the grid companies from advancing the green agenda.
Energy: We will see more electric cars, heat pumps and wind turbines in the Danish countryside in the coming years.
TAURON invests in education. Schools will receive 100,000 each. zloty
TAURON's Green Laboratories is a program under which four schools will be selected, and each of them will receive PLN 100,000 for the renovation and equipment of science labs. Details are available at laboratoria.tauron.pl. Primary and secondary schools from the south of Poland may participate in the programme. On March 21, TAURON announced the details of the program in the Secondary School Complex No. 14 in Gliwice, which was the beneficiary of last year's edition.
- TAURON is consistently developing the knowledge-based economy. Building a modern power industry based on renewable sources, we need professionals who will be ready to face new challenges. Therefore, thinking about the future of the company and the economy in the south of Poland, we invest in schools, because it is knowledge that gives the highest rate of return on invested capital - explains Paweł Szczeszek, President of the Management Board of TAURON Polska Energia.
E.ON ups spending to $35 billion on optimistic outlook
ESSEN, Germany/DUESSELDORF, March 15 (Reuters) - E.ON, Europe's biggest operator of energy networks, plans to boost core profit by 12% and raise investment in its grids and retail businesses by a fifth to 33 billion euros ($35 billion) by 2027, it said on Wednesday, sending its shares to a one-year high.
The investment, which is mostly directed towards the company's power and gas networks, foresees the group's adjusted core profit rising to around 9 billion euros by then, the company said, an increase of around 12% compared with 2023.
Linz AG invests 20 million euros in e-mobility
LINZ. Linz AG is planning a series of projects in the field of e-mobility. In the next three to five years, the charging points for this in residential complexes as well as fast charging options are to increase.
In the coming years, Linz Ag is planning investments of 20 million euros in the field of e-mobility. "Our ambitious goal is that by 2028 at least one new fast or high-quality charging option will be created every week on average," says LINZ AG General Director Erich Haider. By 2025, more than 150 residential complexes are to be e-ladefit.
The way the electricity network is built can reduce and shorten power outages - with new intelligence, electricity can be restored even in seconds
The security of electricity supply depends not only on the availability of energy, but also on the condition of the electricity network and continuous development work. In recent years, the development of Caruna's electricity network has received a lot of new intelligence, thanks to which there are fewer power outages than before, and they are also shorter in duration.
"A large part of grid disruptions is caused by weather conditions, which is why the construction method has been purposefully developed for over ten years. The cabling of the electrical network makes the electrical network weatherproof, and for example winter snow loads do not cause faults in the cables," says Elina Lehtomäki, Caruna's electrical network director.
Grupa Apator for the first time in history exceeded the level of PLN 1 billion in revenues
In 2022, consolidated sales revenues increased by 15% y/y. to PLN 1,081.6 million, mainly due to the continued trend of returning to high sales in Electricity (PLN 439.2 million, +17% y/y), record-breaking revenues in Water and Heat (PLN 360.9 million, +22%) y/y) and a slight increase in the Gas segment (PLN 281.5 million, +4% y/y). The consolidated financial results for Q1-Q4 2022, after adjusting for the impact of one-off events (write-down on the Gas segment of the British company GWi), amounted to: EBITDA: PLN 102.8 million, and net profit: PLN 20.4 million.
In the 4th quarter alone, Apator had PLN 12.6 million net profit of the parent company compared to approx. PLN 1 million net loss a year earlier. The consensus developed by PAP assumed a net profit in the range of PLN 5.4-8.5 million. The group's revenue in the fourth quarter amounted to PLN 306.6 million compared to PLN 238 million a year earlier, and the operating profit increased to PLN 17.9 million from PLN 5.2 million a year ago. As the company explains, financial results throughout 2022 were subject to external factors negatively affecting margins and the levels of generated profits.
MARKET NEWS
Smart metering to generate $60 Billion in revenue for vendors globally by 2027, according to Juniper Reseaarch
Hampshire, UK – 21st March 2023: A new study from Juniper Research, foremost experts in the sustainable technology market today, found that hardware, connectivity and service revenue from smart meter deployments, and in use, will exceed $60 billion in 2027; up from $41 billion in 2023.
This 44% growth reflects how smart meters are becoming critical to increasing the efficiency of energy grids via analytics; central to lowering costs to customers during the energy price crisis.
EVs for EV-eryone: new report unveils the essentials to scale e-mobility
Soaring energy prices and supply chain disturbances have not stopped EVs in Europe. Yet, as the EV industry gets ready to reach scale, consumers must be at the centre of this EV-olution. A new Eurelectric-EY study presents the six essentials to turn EVs into an affordable, reliable, user-friendly choice for every car owner across Europe.
2022 was a bumper year for e-mobility. EV sales won around 20% of the market, up from 17% in 2021, reaching 8 million units in Europe. Driving into the mainstream, however, will depend on the ability to convince the mass-market customer to take the EV-turn.
The power grid: Why a smart meter AMI system is the way to go
In today’s world, the power grid is becoming increasingly unstable and unreliable. To combat this problem, many utility companies are turning to a new technology: an Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) system. An AMI system utilizes smart meters that measure and record electricity usage, allowing for a more efficient and stable power grid. This blog post will discuss the benefits of having an AMI system, and why it is the best way to go for improving the power grid.
The power grid is a system solution that supplies electricity to homes and businesses. It is made up of generators, transmission lines, distribution networks, and transformers. The grid is managed by utility companies, who have the responsibility of ensuring that the electricity generated is distributed to all customers in an efficient and reliable manner.
E.DSO maps digitalised energy system transformation in new whitepaper
A roadmap on the metering value chain is among actions proposed by E.DSO in a new white paper for a decentralised and digitalised energy system in Europe.
Aspects that should be incorporated include the role of the existing smart meter, the use of relevant submeter data, the ability to communicate control signals, the distributed computing capacity and interoperable solutions and the ability to communicate with controlling equipment such as a home energy management system and other energy-relevant appliances.
Moldova: EIB Global invests $30 M to modernise electricity distribution grid
The $30 million in financing provided by EIB Global will help Moldova’s Premier Energy Distribution improve the quality and reliability of the electrical power network.
The financing aims at the modernisation, digitalisation and expansion of the electricity distribution grid in the central and southern parts of Moldova, including Chisinau.
Securing the EU’s electricity supply
At the beginning of February, the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK) released a report examining the future of Germany’s electricity supply from 2025 to 2030. The report found that the security of supply is ensured. To some, that might have been a puzzling conclusion, considering the country’s electricity consumption will increase significantly from the current 550 terawatt hours (TWh) per year. Meanwhile, nuclear power plants are due to be phased out by April 15, 2023, while the use of coal in electricity generation is due to end by 2030.
A closer look at the report, however, reveals that this conclusion is based on preconditions and best-case scenarios – both for sufficient generation capacity and grid expansion. As the report stated: “Now discipline and consistency are required. We are continuing to resolutely push ahead with the restructuring of our energy supply. This applies to the expansion of renewable energies, grid expansion and the modernization of the power plant fleet.” This achievement will require flexible loads and storage capacities for helping to regulate demand, as well as additional power plants built for the intermittent generation of wind and sun.
UPCOMING EVENTS
International SAP Conference for Utilities, Basel, Switzerland, 18-20 April, 2023
METERING China 2023 Conference & Exhibition, Qingdao, China, 25-28 April, 2023
SMARTGREENS 2023, Prague, Czech Republic, 26-28 April, 2023
Power Europe Congress 2023, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 26-28 April, 2023
World Utilities Congress, Abu Dhabi, UAE, 8-10 May, 2023
World Energy Storage Exhibition & Forum, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, 10-11 May, 2023
SGF-Cybersecurity Week 2023, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 15-19 May, 2023
Lisbon Energy Summit & Exhibition 2023, Lisbon, Portugal, 30 May -1 June, 2023
EM-Power Europe 2023, Munich, Germany, 14-16 June 2023 (exhibition), 13-14 June 2023 (conference)
2023 World Battery Industry Expo (WBE), Guangzhou, China, 8-10 August 2023
Digital Utilities Europe 2023, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, 13-14 September, 2023
ADIPEC, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, 2-5 October 2023
Enlit Asia 2023, Jakarta, Indonesia, 14-16 November, 2023
Feb2023
MEMBER NEWS
Addressing key issues in the low-voltage distribution market
This interview highlights the main problems in the low-voltage (LV) distribution energy market, especially regarding the DSO and resolutions, supported by the EU Clean Energy Package.
Senior Vice President of Networked Energy Services Corporation, Mark Ossel, explains how using OSGP protocol provides greater insight into the dynamics of the LV Grid.
Grupa Apator will perform a large contract for Tauron
Under the concluded contracts, Apator will provide smart meters in the OSGP standard, while FAP Pafal (subsidiary) will perform the service of installation and storage of electricity meters. The total value of the contract for Grupa Apator will be approx. PLN 60 million, with the possibility of increasing it to approx. PLN 66 million if the ordering party uses the option right.
Executive agreements are the result of the agreement signed on June 14, 2022 between TD and the consortium of Apator and Griffin Group SA Energy. The contract covers, apart from the supply of smart meters, installation and storage services, as well as clean-up works, which are the responsibility of Griffin Group SA Energy. The implementation of the tasks provided for in the contracts will start in the first quarter of 2023 and will last until the third quarter of 2025.
Visit OSGP Alliance at EM-Power Europe 2023
As official partner, the OSGP Alliance will exhibit at EM-Power Europe 2023 taking place in Munich, 14-16 June 2023.
EM-Power Europe, the international exhibition for energy management and integrated energy solutions is part of The smarter E Europe, the continent’s largest platform for the energy industry, bringing together the four exhibitions Intersolar Europe, ees Europe, Power2Drive Europe and EM-Power Europe, attended by 1.600 exhibitors and 65.000 visitors (in 2022).
EM-Power Europe presents innovative technologies and solutions for smart, flexible, responsive networks and markets that also empower consumers. The exhibition addresses exhibitor groups focusing on Grid infrastructure, digitalisation, advanced metering, energy management, monitoring & control, Virtual Power Plants, flexibility management, energy services and DERs.
We look forward to welcoming you to our stand in Munich!
Let the Smart Energy transition begin…
The smart energy transition is going to require more than a strong vision to achieve the ambitious goals and objectives defined in global directives and initiatives, such as the European Commission’s Clean Energy Package (CEP), US Green New Deal, the European Green Deal, and the Paris Climate Agreement.
While these initiatives do a great job of setting high-level objectives to address climate and energy concerns, we need investment, planning, infrastructure, and hard work to drive us forward in the smart energy transition.
Poland’s Tauron announces 1 million smart meters milestone
Polish TSO Tauron has announced the installation of 1 million modern remote reading meters (VOC) for their customers, with the aim of installing another 100,000 by the end of 2023 in the hopes of better coordinating electricity consumption.
TAURON Dystrybucja cites the installation as enabling them to automatically obtain data across grid operations, allowing for better control and planning of energy consumption.
Field test passed: Smart City applications make communities more livable
Less time required, less costs, but more security and more sustainability - Thüga and badenovaNETZE draw a positive balance for Smart City applications, which they have examined together in a real laboratory. The solutions increase the quality of life on site and are easy to implement, according to the feedback from the municipalities.
Five municipalities (Breisach am Rhein, Freiburg Gundelfingen, Kirchzarten, Lahr) took part in the real laboratory "Smart Region Südbaden" for two years under the leadership of Thüga and badenovaNETZE. The practical test dealt with four key questions: How can innovative smart city applications be technically implemented? What about their profitability? How do the citizens benefit in concrete terms? And how sustainable are the solutions? Among other things, the remote reading of water and heat meters, the occupancy detection of mobile home parking spaces and parking spaces for the disabled, soil moisture measurement, flood monitoring and the fill level sensors for used glass containers were examined.
Urbanization challenges our electricity system - there is no time to waste
Achieving climate goals and increasing electricity consumption is about something unprecedented. By waiting, we will not be able to respond to this change, writes Elina Lehtomäki, Caruna's electricity grid director.
The previous stable development has changed to a significantly faster pace. Now the strengthening and construction of networks must be done much more vigorously. Instead of historical data, various forecast models and analyzes are helpful.
MARKET NEWS
The smarter E Europe 2023: Start-Ups and Young Companies to the New Energy World Take Center Stage
Munich/Pforzheim, January 19, 2023: The smarter E Europe 2023, Europe’s largest platform for the energy industry, offers a comprehensive overview of the latest developments and trends in the areas of renewable energies, decentralization and digitalization of the energy industry and presents cross-sector solutions from the electricity, heat and transport sectors. From June 14–16, 2023, Messe München will be hosting the exhibition across 176,000 square meters in 16 halls. 85,000 visitors are being expected – a great stage for start-ups and newcomers with support from the German government or the exhibition organizers.
The area for start-ups and newcomers at the The smarter E Europe innovation hub has been extremely successful: In 2022, 78 start-ups from 15 countries showcased their products. Many of them have written success stories, such as Voltfang GmbH, for example: In 2022, the company received funding from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action to present a commercial storage device made from second-life car batteries at the joint booth “Innovation Made in Germany”. The green storage device received the innovation prize of the storage industry, the ees AWARD. This year, Voltfang GmbH will already have its own 90 square meter-booth at The smarter E Europe.
ESET Research: Russian APT groups, including Sandworm, continue their attacks against Ukraine with wipers and ransomware
BRATISLAVA, MONTREAL — January 31, 2023 — ESET Research today released its latest APT Activity Report, which summarizes discoveries about select advanced persistent threat (APT) groups that were observed, investigated, and analyzed by ESET researchers between September and the end of December (T3) 2022. During this period, Russia-aligned APT groups continued to be particularly involved in operations targeting Ukraine, deploying destructive wipers and ransomware. Goblin Panda, a China-aligned group, started to duplicate Mustang Panda’s interest in European countries. Iran-aligned groups continued to operate at a high volume, too.
In Ukraine, ESET detected the infamous Sandworm group using a previously unknown wiper against an energy sector company. Nation-state or state-sponsored actors usually operate APT groups; the described attack happened in October during the same period when Russian armed forces began
Gridlock: how the Netherlands hit capacity
What happens when there’s no give on the grid? Dutch utilities have found out, as Yusuf Latief reports.
The European energy transition is characterised by a plethora of buzzwords – sustainability, green energy, digital innovation, AI and automation, to name a few. But there are two words on the tip of utility tongues that might leave them a little afraid – at capacity.
Read more…
Digitalisation as a key enabler for a resilient and sustainable energy ecosystem
The EU should use the current energy crisis as an opportunity to increase collaboration between the digital and energy sectors. Digital technologies can help the EU transition away from a state of energy dependency – preventing Russia, for instance, from continuing its weaponisation of energy resources – and instead allow it to embrace energy sovereignty through accelerating the rollout of renewable energy, improving energy efficiency and saving costs for EU consumers and business.
As well as the energy crisis, digital is a ‘must-have’ in the fight to reduce emissions more broadly, and the EU has a collective responsibility to not only firmly acknowledge this fact, but to now actively work with digital to allow it to fulfil its enabling potential.
Smart Grid Evolution in 2023: The future of energy management
In 2023, Smart Meter Integration will continue to evolve. Communication technologies are continuing to change, making it easier for both customers and utilities to manage their energy use. As we move forward, there are a few things that we can expect.
In the next years, we will see more widespread use of smart meters in residential and commercial buildings in all regions of the world, combined with advanced integration software.
Union Budget 2023: Mainstreaming flexible and resilient grids
2023 is going to be a critical year for India, with the country taking up the G-20 presidency and this being the penultimate year for the next general elections. Thus, a slew of economic reforms could be expected.
In the electricity sector, there have been several hits and misses in the past but the Indian growth story remains strong. The sector bounced back rather quickly post-Covid, particularly in terms of electricity demand that registered the highest ever daily peak of 212.6 GW in June’22, up 9% from the prior year and up 16% from pre-COVID-19 levels. The sharp increase in demand is a testimony to our growing economy as well as an indication of rising temperatures and climate change.
PRESS RELEASES
Networked Energy Services Selected to Deliver Transformer Balancing Solution for Albania
The solution for OSHEE will use NES Smart Meters to improve revenue generation and reduce energy distribution losses.
San Jose, CA, February 8, 2023: Networked Energy Services Corporation (NES), a global smart grid solution provider with the industry’s leading Energy Applications Platform (EAPTM), is delighted to announce that OSHEE (Electricity Power Distribution System Operator) in Albania has selected NES, and its local partner ACI, for its transformer balancing and smart metering project. This new project follows the successful completion of an NES smart metering project for residential, business and light industry consumers in Tirana.
OSHEE’s new project includes the supply and installation of a smart metering system for its distribution substations. This includes smart meters, communications, and associated software and services. This project includes more than 3,000 distribution transformers, and is the first phase of a multi-phase project to provide a transformer balancing solution for all of OSHEE’s substations. NES will be providing its OSGP (open smart grid protocol) based smart metering solution, its smart meter operational support system, Grid Operations, and its analytics solutions. The smart grid solution will be deployed in cooperation with NES partner, ACI, an established energy services and infrastructure provider in Albania and supplier to OSHEE, who will perform installation services for the NES System.
Africa Energy Indaba 2023 Reinstates B2B Connect Programme to engage Energy Stakeholders
The Africa Energy Indaba draws government officials, CEOs of private ventures, and high-level executives from across the continent, providing the rare opportunity to expand their business network within the industry. Moreover, participants comprise of distinguished stakeholders such as energy industry producers, government officers, high-end consumers, investors, industry experts, project developers among others.
As the continent’s most influential energy industry event, attendees are privy to the most exclusive industry content and experts. Notwithstanding, the 2023 Africa Energy Indaba is proud to reinstate its MarketPlace B2BConnect Programme which provides exhibitors and delegates the unique opportunity to engage with prominent event guests, speakers, sponsors, investors and other attendees that they would otherwise not be able to meet personally.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Smart Energy Indonesia 2023, Jakarta, Indonesia, 2-4 March 2023
Energy Indaba Conference & Exhibition, Cape Town, South Africa, 7-9 March 2023
Oman Sustainability Week 2023, Muscat, Oman, 12-16 March 2023
Future of Utilities: Energy Transition Summit 2023, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 15-16 March 2023
SGTech Week 2023, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 20-24 March 2023
International SAP Conference for Utilities, Basel, Switzerland, 18-20 April, 2023
SMARTGREENS 2023, Prague, Czech Republic, 26-28 April, 2023
Power Europe Congress 2023, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 26-28 April, 2023
World Utilities Congress, Abu Dhabi, UAE, 8-10 May, 2023
World Energy Storage Exhibition & Forum, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, 10-11 May, 2023
SGF-Cybersecurity Week 2023, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 15-19 May, 2023
EM-Power Europe 2023, Munich, Germany, 14-16 June 2023 (exhibition), 13-14 June 2023 (conference)
Jan2023
MEMBER NEWS
TAURON is strengthening the networks for electromobility. There is an agreement with the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management
In Wrocław, TAURON is starting a project to expand the power grid in terms of the development of infrastructure for electric vehicles. The investment, worth nearly PLN 26 million, will be co-financed by the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management. The agreement was signed today in Wrocław.
- The development of distribution and transmission networks is crucial. Therefore, the President of the Energy Regulatory Office approved his plan. PLN 52 billion will be spent on the development of the power infrastructure, and we want to increase these expenditures in the coming years, emphasizes Ireneusz Zyska, Deputy Minister of Climate and Environment.
Alliander Is Opening an AI Lab for Grid Digitalisation
The Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO) awarded the subsidy to Alliander and its partners, including UTwente, TU Delft, Radboud and HAN University of Applied Sciences.
According to the TSO, the lab will be part of the Innovation Center for Artificial Intelligence (ICAI), a Dutch national network focused on developing technology through collaboration between academia, industry and government in the area of AI.
LINZ AG is equipping 80 SPAR branches with an e-charging infrastructure
By 2028, Upper Austria's largest charging infrastructure provider will equip around 80 branches of Austria's largest retailer with charging stations. More than half of these will be completed by 2025. The locations are widely spread throughout the state. The implementation of the forward-looking project will begin in the first half of 2023. Up to six charging points will be created at the selected branches. Overall, more than half of these will be so-called “high power chargers”, which ensure particularly fast charging processes with a charging capacity of up to 150 kW.
Eltel will build IONITY's next high-power charging stations in Finland
IONITY, Europe's leading electric car charging network operator, and Eltel are jointly building the next wave of IONITY super-fast HPC charging stations. The stations will be located in different parts of Finland and construction will begin in the first half of 2023. Eltel estimates the value of the new contract to be around 2-3 million euros over the next two years.
The new charging stations significantly increase the number of IONITY's HPC stations in Finland. IONITY's stations in Paimio, Hämeenlinna's Tiiriö and Lahti's Karisto are also built by Eltel.
Schneider Electric calls for greater efforts to accelerate the energy transition and address the energy crisis: decarbonization and efficiency are key
Schneider Electric, the leader in the digital transformation of energy management and automation, today issued an urgent call for governments and companies around the world to accelerate their sustainability action and step up investments into technologies that will help them reduce their carbon emissions and bolster their energy security.
The call comes amid spiking energy prices, an energy supply crisis and fast accelerating climate change, which together pose major challenges for companies, economies and societies around the globe. These challenges form the backdrop for the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, from 16-20 January, which senior Schneider Electric executives will attend.
Duke Energy Carolinas requests rate review by North Carolina Utilities Commission to build a cleaner, more reliable energy future
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Duke Energy Carolinas today asked North Carolina regulators to review its rates as the company continues to strengthen the electricity grid to improve reliability for customers and facilitate a cleaner, more secure energy future in a manner that supports economic development across the state.
The rate case includes a three-year plan to fund system improvements, including nearly $4.2 billion in future grid infrastructure upgrades to increase reliability and enhance grid security while enabling renewables, EVs, and supporting economic development and new jobs. Duke Energy is evaluating ways to leverage the Inflation Reduction Act and Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to help offset these investments and save money for customers.
MARKET NEWS
Why digitalization is both a threat and opportunity for energy companies
Looking back at the 2022 World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland, few global policymakers and business leaders could have predicted the forthcoming year. Yet, the cascading effects of a global pandemic, the invasion of Ukraine and critical supply chain distributions have destabilized the entire global energy ecosystem.
These crises fundamentally shifted geopolitics and jeopardized energy and economic security. But they also crystallized how to leverage digital technology to address these issues and the existential threat of climate change through effective energy transition.
Why Data Is The New Oil For Middle East Energy Providers
Digitalization of the U.S. energy industry has revolutionized how utilities approach grid management and engage with consumers in an evolving landscape. With much of today’s digital innovation stemming from tech hubs like Silicon Valley in California, progressive U.S. utilities have been deploying techniques like artificial intelligence (AI)-powered analytics on consumer data. But, as consumer data proves an increasingly valuable asset for understanding how energy supply and demand flow through a utility’s service territories, it’s no surprise countries around the world are looking to replicate this success.
The Middle East (the Gulf Cooperation Council countries in particular) is undergoing tremendous digital transformation, with the first step involving the rapid installation of smart meters.
Germany mandates smart metering from 2025
The German government has adopted a draft law to restart the digitalisation of the energy transition and accelerate the rollout of smart metering.
The law, which enters into force in the Spring of 2023, enables large scale smart metering rollout to start immediately before becoming mandatory from 2025 and provides a roadmap with binding deadlines to achieve an essentially full rollout by 2030.
ZETDC in US$35m smart meter scheme
The Zimbabwe Electricity Tgansmission and Distribution Company (ZETDC) yesterday launched a US$ 35 million prepaid and smart metering roll-out programme as it seeks to curb growing debt risks due to payments default by major electricity consumers
ZETDC, the power transmission unit of ZESA Holdings, is owed approximately $42 billion by customers who are still post-paid meters
Smart grid candidate PCIs/PMIs announced
Six electricity and four gas smart grid projects have been proposed for the EU’s first list of projects of common interest (PCI) and projects of mutual interest (PMI).
The projects, which are currently under consultation, are proposed as key cross-border infrastructure initiatives to further integrate and strengthen the EU energy market under the revised TEN-E (Trans-European Networks for Energy) regulation of May 2022.
Digital twin of European electricity grid to be developed
Europe’s transmission and distribution system operators through their associations ENTSO-E and EU DSO Entity are to develop a digital twin of the region’s electricity grid.
In a declaration of intent the two industry organisations have committed to the joint development of the digital twin as part of the ongoing digitalisation of the energy sector.
UPCOMING EVENTS
DISTRIBUTECH International, San Diego, USA, 7-9 February 2023
India Smart Utility Week (ISUW), New Delhi, India, 1-4 March 2023
Smart Energy Indonesia 2023, Jakarta, Indonesia, 2-4 March 2023
Energy Indaba Conference & Exhibition, Cape Town, South Africa, 7-9 March 2023
Oman Sustainability Week 2023, Muscat, Oman, 12-13 March 2023
Future of Utilities: Energy Transition Summit 2023, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 15-16 March 2023
SGTech Week 2023, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 20-24 March 2023
SMARTGREENS 2023, Prague, Czech Republic, 26-28 April, 2023
Power Europe Congress 2023, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 26-28 April, 2023
World Utilities Congress, Abu Dhabi, UAE, 8-10 May, 2023
World Energy Storage Exhibition & Forum, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, 10-11 May, 2023
SGF-Cybersecurity Week 2023, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 15-19 May, 2023
EM-Power Europe 2023, Munich, Germany, 14-16 June 2023 (exhibition), 13-14 June 2023 (conference)
Dec2022
MEMBER NEWS
Successful trial in Amsterdam: charging more electric cars in a loaded power grid
A test with smart charging shows that it is possible to charge more electric cars on Amsterdam's loaded electricity grid. “With smart charging, three to four times more new charging points can be installed within the boundaries of the existing electricity network,” says Pieter van Ommeren, director of Vattenfall InCharge.
The test used flexible charging speed at public charging points for electric cars. The charging speed adapts to the total number of cars charging at a given time and the capacity available on the grid at that time.
New market manager at Eltel Danmark predicts great opportunities in the electricity supply industry in 2023
Jørgen Christensen's arrival as market manager at Eltel Danmark comes amid the biggest recent restructuring of Denmark's electricity supply, with investments not seen since the current grid was created in the 1960s.
But the growth of electricity supply projects is not limited to the modernization and strengthening of the electricity network. Investing in the grid is rather a way to ensure that we as a country are able to implement a large number of green energy projects such as wind farms, solar systems, Power-to-X, charging station projects, etc.
E.ON urges new smart meter customers to participate in National Grid energy-saving reward scheme this winter
E.ON has announced that five million self-reading smart meters are now providing customers with live data on how much energy they are using and what it is costing them at any time. Customers with a smart meter providing half hourly reads can take part in the Demand Flexibility Service (DFS), a new initiative this winter which rewards households for reducing their energy consumption at specified peak times.
The DFS is a project being run by the National Grid Electricity Supply Operators (ESO) which is available to energy suppliers and aims to reduce energy use at peak times to make the grid greener this winter. Lowering peak time energy usage will make use of more off-peak renewable energy, lower peak time energy prices, and avoid using back-up coal generators that are heavily polluting.
ÖAMTC and Linz AG: 400 new charging points for electric mobility
LINZ. In cooperation with Linz AG, ÖAMTC expands the range of electronic chargers. Added 400 public charging points. As the number of electric vehicle users increases, so does the need for charging infrastructure.
According to Statistics Austria, 14.9 percent of new passenger car registrations this year were purely electric vehicles, and there are currently more than 103,000 electric vehicles on the road in Austria. However, the transition to e-mobility can only be successful if there is a sufficient number of charging stations for electric vehicles. The ÖAMTC Mobility Club in cooperation with Linz AG is now expanding its range of electronic chargers to 400 more public charging points. According to E-Control's quarterly report, there are around 13,809 public charging stations in Austria, most of them in Lower Austria, Vienna and Tyrol.
Conlog: Finding new ways to get closer to the consumer
Have a listen to Sibusiso Skosana, Commercial Director at Conlog, unpack how Conlog achieves synergy between consumers and utilities.
Watch this exclusive interview as we discuss Conlog’s new products and solutions aimed at the private property market space and how these new innovations are helping them get closer to the consumer.
NRGI buys energy consultancy from ANDEL ENERGI
The deal, which comes into effect on 1 January 2023, is part of both companies' respective strategies within the green transition.
The acquisition of Andel Energi's energy consultancy for the professional market will strengthen NRGi's position as one of Denmark's strongest consultancy firms.
MARKET NEWS
Smart grid cost savings to exceed $125 billion by 2027, as governments and utilities prioritise analytics to combat energy crisis
Hampshire, UK – 28th November 2022: A new study from Juniper Research has found cost savings from smart grid deployments will exceed $125 billion globally in 2027; increasing from just over $33 billion in 2022.
This 279% growth will be driven by rising energy prices, with smart grid technologies playing a critical role in increasing network efficiency and optimising resource management. The Smart Grid market report identified abilities of AI-based analytics as crucial to maximising benefits of new renewable energy sources, by actively balancing load and optimising energy transmission.
DOE puts another $13B toward modernizing, expanding U.S. power grid
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has announced $13 billion in new financing opportunities for the expansion and modernization of the nation’s electric grid.
The Grid Resilience Innovative Partnership (GRIP) program and the Transmission Facilitation Program together represent the largest single direct federal investment in critical transmission and distribution infrastructure and one of the first down payments on an over $20 billion investment under the Biden administration’s Building a Better Grid Initiative. Launched in January 2022, the Building a Better Grid Initiative brings together community and industry stakeholders to identify national transmission needs and is investing more than $20 billion to support the modernization and buildout of long-distance, high-voltage transmission and distribution systems.
Germany Wants to Make Smart Meters Mandatory to Help Reach Green Goals
Germany wants to make smart meters mandatory for large- and medium-sized companies so grid operators can better monitor how power is being used and when to augment supplies with electricity from renewable sources.
The proposal by the Economy Ministry also wants to make it easier to put those digital meters into households, according to a paper seen by Bloomberg News. Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s government is aiming for parliamentary approval in the first quarter of next year.
Developing Renewable Energy in Ukraine
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has had far-reaching impacts on the global energy system. In Ukraine, a very different energy crisis is unfolding as Russia has directly targeted Ukraine’s energy infrastructure with waves of missile attacks, leaving the power grid severely damaged. These attacks have led to rolling blackouts across the country, worsening the humanitarian crisis.
Rebuilding Ukraine’s energy system will be essential to enabling both broader reconstruction efforts and the return of economic activity. There are two principles that should guide efforts to rebuild Ukraine’s energy system: (1) ensuring energy security and independence, and (2) deepening the connection and economic relationship between Ukraine and the European Union. To accomplish both, Ukraine should develop its potential renewable energy resources. Renewable energy, including wind, solar, and biomass, are abundant in Ukraine. Developing these resources will support domestic power generation, thereby bolstering Ukraine’s energy security and independence. Ukraine has ample potential to become an energy exporter after the war, thereby supporting the European Union’s decarbonization and energy security goals.
World Energy Transitions Outlook 2022
In 2022, the need for the energy transition has become even more urgent.
Compounding crises underscore the pressing need to accelerate the global energy transition. Events of recent years have accentuated the cost to the global economy of a centralised energy system highly dependent on fossil fuels. Oil and gas prices are soaring to new highs, with the crisis in Ukraine bringing new levels of concern and uncertainty. The COVID-19 pandemic continues to hamper recovery efforts, while citizens worldwide worry about the affordability of their energy bills. At the same time, the impacts of humancaused climate change are increasingly evident around the globe. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) warns that between 3.3 and 3.6 billion people already live in settings highly vulnerable to climate change.
Europe’s smart electricity meter penetration reaches 56%
Smart meter penetration in Europe is expected to reach 56% by year-end, Berg Insight has reported in its latest annual update.
This corresponds to the deployment of about 9.2 million meters across the region, the EU27+3, during the year taking the total from 163 million units at the end of 2021 to over 172 million by the end of 2022.
UPCOMING EVENTS
DISTRIBUTECH International, San Diego, USA, 7-9 February 2023
India Smart Utility Week (ISUW), New Delhi, India, 1-4 March 2023
Smart Energy Indonesia 2023, Jakarta, Indonesia, 2-4 March 2023
Africa Energy Indaba Conference & Exhibition, Cape Town, South Africa, 7-9 March 2023
Future of Utilities: Energy Transition Summit 2023, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 15-16 March 2023
SGTech Week 2023, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 20-24 March 2023
SMARTGREENS 2023, Prague, Czech Republic, 26-28 April, 2023
World Utilities Congress, Abu Dhabi, UAE, 8-10 May, 2023
World Energy Storage Exhibition & Forum, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, 10-11 May, 2023
SGF-Cybersecurity Week 2023, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 15-19 May, 2023
EM-Power Europe 2023, Munich, Germany, 14-16 June 2023 (exhibition), 13-14 June 2023 (conference)
Nov2022
MEMBER NEWS
OSGP Alliance playing active role in Central European Energy Conference CEEC XVI) in Bratislava
Mark Ossel, Member of the Board, OSGP Alliance chaired the panel “The changing role of the Smart Grid: Effective new approach to grid management, making full use of smart grids and smart technologies.” at the 16th CEEC conference.
This prestigious conference, attended by the Slovakian Prime Mininister PM and various ministers from Central Europe and Ukraine discussed the issue of energy security in the light of the need to get rid of dependence on energy supplies from Russia. The conference discussed the measures that could be done to decrease the dependence on Russia, while not abandoning the EU climate goals. The conference, and specifically the OSGP Panel, addressed the possibilities of developing smart grids and smart metering to support the energy transition. Other topics discussed were the hydrogen infrastructure, usage of waste and circular economy, energy efficiency in buildings and changes of ETS in industry sector. Traditional Central European regional format of the conference has been expanded with Ukraine and participation of their representatives and stakeholders .
Vattenfall in premiere project with fast chargers for Danish city buses
Vattenfall has delivered 32 fast chargers to Tide Bus in Denmark’s fifth largest city, Vejle. The delivery is Vattenfall’s first Power-as-a-Service project for passenger transport in Denmark and means that electric buses are now running in the city. The project will be followed by more.
For some weeks now, electric buses have been rolling every day in the streets of the Danish city of Vejle. The buses are operated by Tide Bus – one of Denmark’s largest bus companies. Vattenfall is responsible for both the charging solution and the purchase and supply of electricity. Vattenfall has invested in, designed and constructed the electrical infrastructure and is now operating it.
Improving congestion management on the Dutch grid
Maarten Hofs of Stedin BV and Ron van den Berg from Alliander N.V. talked with Yusuf Latief about flexible ways of managing the grid, a new platform for solving congestion problems that will be announced at Enlit Europe and their experience of the energy industry.
Maarten, an Enterprise/Business Architect, and Ron, a Program Manager, took time from their busy schedules during an extremely busy time for the Dutch grid operators to share their thoughts on the grid situation and talk about the GOPACS platform, which aims to relieve the grid of congestion, a pressing issue of late in the Netherlands.
E.ON Launches Digital Business to Manage Grid Complexity
With the new company, E.ON aims to bring together digital solutions for utilities to enable the energy sector to make grids smart and allow energy consumption to become more sustainable.
Victoria Ossadnik, member of the E.ON board of management responsible for digitalisation, said regarding the new company: “The energy transition is more urgent than ever and digital solutions are one of the main answers to the growing complexity of the energy system. Millions of households, their appliances and businesses need to be connected to the power grid in an increasingly decentralised energy system.
Over 4.1 GW of RES capacity has already been connected by TAURON to its network
In total, 683 large RES installations with a capacity of 1.314 GW and over 370 thousand micro-installations with a total capacity of 2,819 GW. In the first three quarters, TAURON connected to the distribution network 80 large RES installations with a total capacity of 107 MW and over 93,000 micro-installations with a capacity of 786 MW.
- We are expanding and modernizing distribution networks, investing about PLN 2 billion annually. However, the development of renewable energy sources exceeds the forecasts in this respect many times, and the existing power grid was not designed and built with such needs in mind, explains Paweł Szczeszek, CEO of TAURON Group. - Currently, its modernization and adaptation requires increasing financial outlays and is necessary for the development of renewable energy in Poland - adds Szczeszek.
Boost energy efficiency to tackle climate change, says Schneider Electric
There needs to be more of a focus on less exciting parts of the green transition such as energy efficiency, if countries are to meet their net zero goals, argued a leading analyst at energy specialist Schneider Electric.
Olivier Blum, executive vice president of energy management, told City A.M. enhancing the efficiency of existing buildings was essential to meeting net zero goals over the next three decades – with most Western countries reaffirming the target at COP 27 in Egypt this week.
PRESS RELEASE
OSGP Alliance Becomes CEN-CENELEC LIAISON
CEN-CENELEC/JTC-13 Approved the OSGP Alliance as an official Liaison for their Technical Bodies in the development of standards or other technical deliverables.
Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 17 November 2022: The OSGP Alliance, a global non-profit association dedicated to promoting the adoption of the Open Smart Grid Protocol (OSGP) and infrastructure for smart grid applications towards a future proof modern smart grid, is pleased to announce that the CEN-CENELEC/JTC 13 recently approved the Liaison participation of the OSGP Alliance.
The approval enables the OSGP Alliance to support the CEN-CENELEC Technical Bodies work associated with the development of standards or other technical deliverables. This includes their efforts related to Cybersecurity and Data Protection. The OSGP Alliance was selected because of its recognized expertise in areas of Smart Grid, Smart Metering, Cybersecurity, and Data Protection.
MARKET NEWS
World Energy Outlook 2022. Executive summary
The world is in a critical decade for delivering a more secure, sustainable and affordable energy system – the potential for faster progress is enormous if strong action is taken immediately. Investments in clean electricity and electrification, along with expanded and modernised grids, offer clear and cost-effective opportunities to cut emissions more rapidly while bringing electricity costs down from their current highs.
Today’s growth rates for deployment of solar PV, wind, EVs and batteries, if maintained, would lead to a much faster transformation than projected in the STEPS, although this would require supportive policies not just in the leading markets for these technologies but across the world. By 2030, if countries deliver on their climate pledges, every second car sold in the European Union, China and the United States is electric.
Spain: EIB and Endesa sign a new credit line of sustainable financing for €250 million to boost the modernisation of distribution networks
Endesa and the European Investment Bank (EIB) are taking a new step in sustainable financing to boost the energy transition. EIB Vice-President, Ricardo Mourinho Félix, and Endesa Chief Financial Officer Luca Passa signed today a EUR 250 million loan in Madrid to finance the investments that e-distribución, Endesa's networks subsidiary, will make during the 2022-2024 period in the improvement, modernisation and expansion of electricity distribution networks.
This is the first sustainable loan granted by the EU Bank to finance distribution networks in Spain, which links the financial conditions to a corporate direct emissions reduction target (GHG scope 1).
EU electricity market transformation is underway: meet the independent aggregators
On return from work, one checks the smart meter to see when it’s best to charge the electric car, switch on the dishwasher or activate the battery storage to save the potential extra electricity produced by the rooftop solar panels. The flexibility in electricity use gets rewarded by a lower energy bill.
At the same time, this willingness to modify consumption ensures the grid can cope with increasing share of weather-depending renewable electricity, either during abundant or lowered power generation. It also means parting ways with electricity from fossil fuels, reducing emissions and getting closer to EU’s climate targets.
The Future is Now: How the Next-Gen Data Center Optimizes Energy Use for Increased Sustainability
Look around: data is everywhere, and we’re all dependent on it. Accordingly, global data center capacity continues to grow at an exponential rate — a pace that is stressing the electrical grid. Various estimates for the global energy consumption in data centers range from 1% to 2% of the world’s energy consumption. This figure translates to around 900 terawatt hours annually and approximately .3% of overall carbon or greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
This level of data center capacity constitutes the here and now. Think about the near-term growth fueled by the rapid acceleration of digital transformation. Nearly every industry – finance, retail, manufacturing, healthcare, education, government – is fast-adopting digital technology and customer-facing digital experiences to build or pivot, sustain, and grow their business. As we know, digital technology is inextricable from compute, network, and storage — not to mention the internet of things (IoT) and applications that can be used or accessed at any time, from anywhere. When you add mobile devices to the above data center GHG at .3%, this number grows to almost 2% of the world’s GHG!
Assam to install smart electric meters in households
Guwahati: Assam will have smart electric meters installed in almost every household across the state to minimise energy loss, officials said on Wednesday.
The deadline for completion of the project has been fixed at March 31, 2025. The state government will spend nearly Rs 4,500 crore on this project.
Digitised smart energy networks could save billions in energy costs across the Midlands
The report, Smart Energy – An Energy System for the 21st Century, was co-authored by the Midlands Engine partnership, Siemens and the University of Birmingham. It calls for the accelerated digitisation of regional energy systems to usher in significant domestic energy savings, job creation, and support for the continued rollout of cheap, clean energy sources.
Smart energy systems can include ‘microgrids’, electric vehicles and smart meters, and would use digital technologies and artificial intelligence to balance energy needs across a network.
UPCOMING EVENTS
3rd Annual Africa Solar and Energy Storage Forum, Virtual Event, 29-30 November 2022
Enlit Europe 2022, Frankfurt, Germany, 29 November - 1 December 2022
DISTRIBUTECH International, San Diego, USA, 7-9 February 2023
Africa Energy Indaba Conference & Exhibition, Cape Town, South Africa, 7-9 March 2023
Future of Utilities: Energy Transition Summit 2023, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 15-16 March 2023
SGTech Week 2023, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 20-24 March 2023
SMARTGREENS 2023, Prague, Czech Republic, 26-28 April, 2023
World Utilities Congress, Abu Dhabi, UAE, 8-10 May 2023
World Energy Storage Exhibition & Forum, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, 10-11 May, 2023
SGF-Cybersecurity Week 2023, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 15-19 May, 2023
Oct2022
MEMBER NEWS
Energy Transitions Podcast: Optimising smart meter installations and project execution
In this episode of the Energy Transitions Podcast Series, experts from Networked Energy Services and Griffin Group take a close look at how to effectively optimise smart meter installations and project execution using various processes and tools.
Guest experts focus on how the features of a smart metering system can support two diverse but common use cases facing utilities – the optimisation of a smart metering deployment and outage recovery after an extreme weather event, with examples from a utility smart meter rollout in Poland and the restoration of power following hurricane damage in Puerto Rico.
Poland’s Tauron mulls technology for next phase of smart meter rollout
Krakow-headquartered DSO Tauron Dystrybucja has reported the rollout of smart meters to over 950,000 customers.
By 2031 it is envisaged that all of the company’s energy consumers will be billed via remote reading, but the question on executives’ minds is what technology should be employed for the next phase of the rollout.
Grupa Apator is updating the business strategy
The updated strategy is based on the existing foundation of Grupa Apator built on the basis of high engineering competences, thanks to which Apator provides advanced technical solutions in the area of key media management for clients from the utilities sector and now extends the offer with new clients.
- Strategic plan for Grupa Apator until 2025 was created in a very unusual and full of turbulence, and therefore not easy for the economy period. On the one hand, it is a macro-environment characterized by difficulties that business did not have to face three, ten or twenty years ago, on the other hand, the progressing trends create new market opportunities for us, and also allow us to strengthen in existing areas. We see attractive sources of income in our traditional business areas. We are already participating in roll-outs of smart meters in Poland and we are prepared for further orders, we also intend to increase the sales scale of our innovative ultrasonic water meters. We will use production capacity more widely in contract production, thanks to which we will reach completely new customers and geographic regions. Our largest ever contract for the supply of gas meters of our own design to the Belgian market is also entering the implementation phase - says Arkadiusz Chmielewski, President of the Management Board of Apator SA.
Joint project by Linz AG and Pappas
A joint energy efficiency and climate protection project by Linz-Energieservice GmbH and Pappas Automobilvertriebs GmbH brought the car dealer energy independence and savings in CO2 emissions.
LINZ. In order to put a stop to the current energy and climate crisis, sustainable activities are needed in industry and business. Significant changes are also necessary in traffic and this is how cooperation between Linz-Energieservice (LES) and Pappas Automobilvertriebs GmbH came about. In the past year and a half, a joint energy efficiency project has been implemented at the two Pappas locations in Linz and Regau.
Andel is ready with DKK 90 billion for a green transition and increased security of supply
The energy and fiber network group Andel is speeding up its investments towards 2035. A double-digit billion amount has been set aside for increased investments in the basic business and production of renewable energy. Investments to ensure that Denmark becomes independent of Russian natural gas and increase security of supply nationally.
Over the past two years, Andel has gone through an extensive integration phase following the purchase of Radius Elnet and Ørsted's Danish private customer and outdoor lighting business and a majority ownership of Energi Danmark.
Eltel and Nordkysten will together expand the electricity network in Zealand for Nexel at an estimated value of DKK 717 million.
The contract between NKEL and Andels' operating company Nexel runs for the next 5 years, with the possibility of annual options for 3 additional years. The framework agreement is an extension of an earlier framework agreement, but will include both additional areas in Zealand and additional tasks, such as power grid reinforcements and customer connections.
According to Director of Eltel Denmark, Claus Metzsch Jensen, it is gratifying that Eltel and Nordkysten will now together take on the task of future-proofing the electricity grid in Copenhagen and large parts of Zealand. According to the director, electricity infrastructure projects like this will pave the way for a far more electrified society, where we will make use of greener energy sources to a greater extent than today.
MARKET NEWS
Commission sets out actions to digitalise the energy sector to improve efficiency and renewables integration
The European Green Deal and the REPowerEU Plan require a deep transformation of our energy system, which needs to become more interactive and smarter to help consumers embrace the benefits of the green transition. Today, the Commission is presenting an Action Plan highlighting how new technologies can help improve the efficient use of energy resources, facilitate the integration of renewables into the grid, and save costs for EU consumers and energy companies.
The Commission is setting out actions to boost data sharing, promote investments in digital electricity infrastructure, ensure benefits for consumers and strengthen cybersecurity. With data centres and the growing appetite for online services demanding ever more resources from our energy system, today's plan also outlines ways to decouple the energy footprint of the ICT sector from the exponential growth of data.The green and digital transition must go hand in hand.
Spain: Iberdrola and EIB sign a €220 million green loan top-up to boost smart grids
The European Investment Bank (EIB) and Iberdrola have agreed to increase the green loan signed in 2021 to support the development, modernisation and digitisation of the company's electricity distribution networks, a project with an impact on twelve Spanish regions. The €220 million top-up signed today brings the total EIB financing to around €820 million, allocated to strengthen smart grids in Spain and contribute to the further electrification of the economy. The project linked to the loan will improve the efficiency of the distribution network, characterised by automation and control.
With this loan, Iberdrola will boost recovery of the Spanish economy and employment by safeguarding around 10,000 jobs a year in Spain during the implementation period, according to the EIB's estimates. This loan supports the EU Bank's regional cohesion and development objectives, which give priority to promoting projects in less developed regions with a per capita gross domestic product (GDP) below the EU average. In this respect, 68% of the i-DE plan contemplated in this agreement is being developed in those Spanish regions.
Romania secures €420m+ for massive grid overhaul
Contracts have been signed valuing €424.4 million ($411.8 million) for nine projects to oversee the digitisation and modernisation of Romania’s transmission network and power grid.
The contracts were signed yesterday between the country’s Ministry of Energy and the national electric power transport company, Transelectrica SA.
India – 5 Million Smart Meter Milestone
The five million smart meter milestone was passed in India on the last day of September, according to National Smart Grid Mission statistics.
Of these just over 1.2 million are smart prepaid meters.
Behavioural role of smart meters in demand relief
Even as Africa bands together to find solutions to the global energy crises, great emphasis is placed on increasing energy supply. But, less time and research is spent on creating effective ways to temper energy demand or promote sustainable energy consumption.
African presidents have met to discuss affordable, relevant, clean and energy-efficient fuel alternatives to boost the continent’s generation capacity and address Africa’s widening energy deficit.
The Time Is Now: Stepping Up Cyber Security for the Energy Sector
The recent passage of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill and the Inflation Reduction Act will incentivize a new wave of investment in energy infrastructure. With that wave, we have an opportunity to build cybersecurity approaches that keep up with the energy transition.
Nearly all energy infrastructure from today forward will be digitally managed. Optimizing for efficiency minimizes emissions and costs simultaneously – a powerful combination that answers both business and climate needs. Retrofits, renewables, and future business models will rely on networked digital devices to manage and operate physical energy assets.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Egypt Energy, Egypt International Exhibition Centre, 30 October - 1 November 2022
ADIPEC 2022, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, 31 October - 3 November 2022
ASEAN M&E 2022, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 7-9 November 2022
Smart City Expo World Congress, Barcelona, Spain, 15-17 November 2022
Central European Energy Conference 2022, Bratislava, Slovakia, 21 November 2022
Future of Utilities Summit, London, UK, 21-22 November 2022
3rd Annual Africa Solar and Energy Storage Forum, Virtual Event, 29-30 November 2022
DISTRIBUTECH International, San Diego, USA, 7-9 February 2023
Energy Indaba Conference & Exhibition, Cape Town, South Africa, 7-9 March 2023
SGTech Week 2023, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 20-24 March 2023
SMARTGREENS 2023, Prague, Czech Republic, 26-28 April, 2023
World Energy Storage Exhibition & Forum, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, 10-11 May, 2023
Sep2022
MEMBER NEWS
Networked Energy Services Received Official METAS Data Security Certification
San Jose, CA, September 19, 2022: Networked Energy Services Corporation (NES), a global smart grid solution provider with the industry’s leading Energy Applications Platform (EAPTM), is excited to announce the official final data security certification according to article 8b of the Swiss StromVV (Electricity Supply Ordinance) for the NES AMI and Smart Grid platform and all of its Smart Grid components including residential electricity smart meters, Data Concentrators, and the Head-End System Software.
NES received its preliminary METAS certification approval earlier this year. With this important step of obtaining the official certification, it confirms that NES provides a comprehensive end-to-end Smart Grid solution that not only satisfies current data security requirements but can also dynamically react to potential cyber security threats in the future.
Alliander raises another 500 million euros with green bond loan
Network company Alliander has successfully issued a green bond for the third time. The parent company of grid operator Liander has raised 500 million euros through the Green Bond.
The capital is used to finance investments in the electricity grid. In recent years, the network company has raised 1.7 billion euros with the 3 green bond loans.
TAURON supports school electrical laboratories
TAURON has equipped secondary vocational schools from Głogów, Legnica and Lubin with specialist measuring equipment, cables and parts of power installations. All this as part of many years of cooperation with schools. This is the company's contribution to the education of future electricians and power engineers, some of whom will find employment in the distribution of electricity in the region.
For several years now, TAURON Dystrybucja has been carrying out activities related to the promotion of electric and energy professions. The company cooperates with 33 vocational secondary schools in its area and convinces young people that the work in the energy sector is interesting, necessary and prospective. 39 graduates of these schools were employed last year by TAURON Dystrybucja.
Driving the electrification of commercial vehicles: E.ON gears up for the future e-transport market
The energy company E.ON is focusing on the future market of e-transport. With the aim of significantly expanding its business with products, technologies and services for electric commercial vehicle fleets, E.ON has bundled its existing activities in a new organizational unit. By 2025, E.ON's e-mobility offering for electric charging of commercial vehicles is to be expanded to become the market leader in Europe under the name E.ON Drive eTransport.
Battery-powered commercial vehicles are still the exception. In contrast to the passenger car market, the transport sector today is only at the beginning of its development towards emission-free mobility. But the interest of companies and municipalities in electrifying their fleets is growing. In view of the climate targets, increasing freight transport and the growth of electric drives in local and long-distance public transport, the challenges of charging infrastructure, land use and grid connection are also becoming increasingly demanding.
Sheep and panels - the first solar park will be connected to Caruna's electricity grid in Kemiönsaari
The electricity distribution company Caruna and Ruda Solpark Ab have signed an agreement to connect the solar power park to the electricity grid in Kemiönsaari. Solar park is a shared use park - in addition to the panels, sheep graze in the field. The panels are placed in such a way that the sheep cannot knock them over and they do not harm the animals.
The Kemiönsaari solar power plant will be built on a field area where 3,600 solar panels will be placed. In the future, the purpose of the solar power plant is to produce 1.98MWp of electricity and sell it to the contract partner Caruna's network.
Eltel signs a frame agreement in Finland worth about EUR 75 million
Eltel Finland has signed a frame agreement with Caruna, a Finnish energy company, to ensure a reliable power distribution. The three-year frame agreement includes two additional option years and is worth about EUR 75 million.
The frame agreement is based on a geographical model where Eltel is responsible for field services for Caruna’s end customers, distribution network fault repairs as well as maintenance and construction works in awarded municipalities.
MARKET NEWS
Ed’s Note: First official mention of blackouts
It comes from Greece, where the local media mentioned that electricity for all might not be a given during peak hours, while small duration blackouts could become the new normal.
Although the Greek minister of energy, Kostas Skrekas, mentioned recently that the possibility of a blackout is very small, the fact remains that the mandatory 5% cut from the EU Commission forces hands. And it seems like Greece is picking up responsibilities fast. Kind of feel proud here, I won’t lie.
EU Proposes Strict Cybersecurity Rules for Digital-Product Makers
Companies that make digital devices and software will need to prove they fulfill basic cybersecurity requirements under a new European proposal intended to reduce hacking risks in a range of products, from home appliances and wearable devices to software and computers.
The draft legislation introduced Thursday also requires manufacturers that do business in the European Union to provide security patches and updates for the product’s lifetime or five years after going to market, whichever is shorter. Companies that break the rules would face fines of up to 15 million euros, equivalent to $15 million, or 2.5% of global revenue.
Project CARMEN: joint Romania-Hungary smart grid
The Carpathian Modernised Energy Network (CARMEN) smart grid project is up for funding from the Connecting Europe Facility programme.
The project, led by Romanian electricity and gas distribution operator Delgaz Grid and the transmission operator CNTEE Transelectrica in partnership with the Hungarian TSO Magyar Villamosenergia-ipari Átviteli Resdzerszártós (MAVIR), is eligible as one of the European Commission’s ‘projects of common interest’.
Smart meters are being installed in Odesa
Odessa energy company is planning to install almost 16,000 smart electricity meters in customers' homes by the end of 2022
Despite the difficult situation in the country due to the state of war, Odessa energy companies resumed the installation of smart metering devices in the homes of customers. New electric meters are multi-zone and help to save on electricity. They are installed instead of old ones that have reached the end of their service life. In total, in 2022, Odesa residents and residents of the region will receive 15,877 new modern meters.
Elia uses battery-powered virtual power plant for grid balancing
Elia has announced use of battery technology from Smart E-Grid, developed by renewable tech developer Opteco, to connect consumers’ energy in what they tout as one of the largest battery-powered virtual power plants (VPPs).
The TSO has stated how the VPP enables over 2000 families in Flanders to help maintain the balance in the Belgian electricity grid through their home battery.
Biden-Harris Administration Launches $10.5 Billion Investment to Strengthen America’s Electric Grid
WASHINGTON, D.C.— The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today issued a Request for Information (RFI) seeking input on the $10.5 billion Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnership Program to enhance the resilience and reliability of America’s electric grid. The RFI seeks information from states, Tribes, communities, utilities, project developers, and other key stakeholders to help refine the funding opportunity announcement that will be made later this year and to guide the implementation of the funding over five years to enhance the electric grid in support of President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. These programs will accelerate the deployment of transformative projects that will help to ensure the reliability of the power sector’s infrastructure, so all American communities have access to affordable, reliable, clean electricity anytime, anywhere while helping deliver on the President’s goal of 100% clean electricity by 2035.
“DOE is moving quickly to upgrade the nation’s power grid in order to provide American households with more reliable and affordable electricity that comes from a more diverse set of clean energy sources,” said U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm. “President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is investing in improving and expanding transmission and distribution systems across the country, driving down energy costs and generating good-paying jobs.”
EU Proposes Strict Cybersecurity Rules for Digital-Product Makers
Companies that make digital devices and software will need to prove they fulfill basic cybersecurity requirements under a new European proposal intended to reduce hacking risks in a range of products, from home appliances and wearable devices to software and computers.
The draft legislation introduced Thursday also requires manufacturers that do business in the European Union to provide security patches and updates for the product’s lifetime or five years after going to market, whichever is shorter. Companies that break the rules would face fines of up to 15 million euros, equivalent to $15 million, or 2.5% of global revenue.
UPCOMING EVENTS
POWERGEN India & Indian Utility Week & DISTRIBUTECH India 2022, New Delhi, India, 12-14 October 2022
15th EIF World Energy Congress and Expo, Istanbul, Turkey, 12-14 October 2022
IEC 61850 Week, Cardiff, UK, 17-21 October 2022
Smart Energy World Summit, Lisbon, Portugal, 18-19 October 2022
African Energy Week (AEW), Cape Town, South Africa, 18-21 October 2022
Zambia Energy Summit, Lusaka, Zambia, 26-28 October 2022
Egypt Energy, Egypt International Exhibition Centre, 30 October - 1 November 2022
ADIPEC 2022, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, 31 October - 3 November 2022
ASEAN M&E 2022, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 7-9 November 2022
Smart City Expo World Congress, Barcelona, Spain, 15-17 November 2022
Central European Energy Conference 2022, Bratislava, Slovakia, 21 November 2022
Future of Utilities Summit, London, UK, 21-22 November 2022
3rd Annual Africa Solar and Energy Storage Forum, Virtual Event, 29-30 November 2022
DISTRIBUTECH International, San Diego, USA, 7-9 February 2023
SMARTGREENS 2023, Prague, Czech Republic, 26-28 April, 2023
Aug2022
MEMBER NEWS
Vattenfall Wants Offshore Wind Turbines and EVs to ‘Talk’ to Avoid Grid Congestion
European energy company, Vattenfall, wants wind turbines and electric vehicles to communicate with each other about available wind power and EV charging demand in order to avoid electric grid congestion.
The rapid growth of electrified transportation is threatening to overload the electricity grid due to the strain they can put on the grid during times of high electricity demand. Vatenfall believes this can be avoided through smarter matching of energy supply and demand. To achieve this, the , company aims to launch a ‘smart charging’ pilot project using wind power from the Hollandse Kust West wind farm due to be commissioned in 2026. The wind farm, distributed across two areas on the west coast of the Netherlands, are eatch expected to generate a minimum 700MW of electricity.
Griffin Group Energy delivered additional smart meters in OSGP Technology for Zbiornika Czorsztyńskiego
ZEW Niedzica S.A. was one of the first DSOs in Poland to equip 100% of its customers with smart electricity meters based on the OSGP technology.
Griffin Group Energy, a member of the OSGP Alliance provided, inter alia, for ZEW Niedzica meters in the OSGP technology of the American manufacturer NES for intelligent management of the distribution network while maintaining the highest standards of PLC communication security used in the world.
Griffin Group Energy specializing in the implementation of large-scale innovative solutions for Distribution System Operators in Poland, responsible for managing the entire contract process, designed, built and integrated an energy storage system that was produced by the Swiss Leclanché, a company with over 100 years of tradition that provided batteries with lithium-titanium cells that are characterized by much greater efficiency and safety compared to traditional NMC or LFP currently commonly used.
Oracle Helps Utilities in Washington, South Carolina, Indiana with Reliability
Utilities are adopting Oracle Utilities Cloud applications to improve customer service, billing, asset management, meter management and other essential services. Today, more than 210 utilities are serving 107 million households and nearly 10 million smart meters worldwide with Oracle Energy and Water cloud solutions.
Oracle Cloud for Utilities solutions include Oracle Utilities Customer Cloud Service, Oracle Utilities Billing Cloud Service, Oracle Customer Experience for Utilities, Oracle Utilities Work and Asset Cloud Service, Oracle Opower solutions and others.
Solar power from the roof of the north fire station - PV citizen participation project successfully implemented
LINZ. Linz AG is continuing its Solar-Offensive with a public participation project and is thus making a further contribution to realizing climate protection goals. Most recently, a photovoltaic system for the Linz professional fire brigade was set up at the north fire station. At the beginning of August, customers of Linz AG were able to purchase so-called “sunshine” and thus participate in this system.
Linz AG creates the opportunity for citizens who do not own or cannot set up a PV system to participate in climate protection and become part of the energy transition. A total of 208 “Sunshine” awards were given.
Transformer Monitoring and Balancing
Advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) is an integrated system of smart meters, communication networks, and data management systems that enables two-way communication between utilities and customers. An AMI system provides a number of important core functions including the ability to automatically and remotely measure energy usage, connect and disconnect service, detect tampering, promote load conservation, identify and respond to power outages.
In addition, there are other significant benefits that can be enabled including balancing energy at the transformer phase level, identifying distribution losses, monitoring power quality, and improving efficiency of electricity distribution. Also, the AMI System should enable monitoring the health of the secondary distribution stations including monitoring the energy and power quality data of secondary transformers.
Alliander’s investments continue their upward trend
In the first half of 2022, network company Alliander invested €579 million, mainly in expanding the gas and electricity network. This was €114 million more than in the first half of 2021. This means that, once again, more work has been completed compared to the same period last year. Operating profit remained stable at €168 million, compared to €169 million in the first half of 2021.
It was a turbulent year. The war between Russia and Ukraine makes the energy transition even more urgent. In addition, the European Commission stepped up its climate ambitions and the Dutch government announced its sustainability plans for the built environment. Together, these developments are resulting in an upsurge in electricity demand, increasing the urgency to adapt the energy networks and ready them for the near future. Working on the changing energy grid is a colossal task, one that will require even more intensive cooperation with all parties who have a role to play. Unfortunately, businesses — and increasingly consumers too — sometimes still need to wait before they can be connected to the grid or expand their connection. This is partly caused by a shortage of technical staff, but it is also due to a shortage of materials like smart electricity meters, cables and transformers.
E.ON extends innovation cooperation with Microsoft
E.ON is working with Microsoft to develop future innovations geared towards a successful energy transition. The two companies are expanding their existing cooperation with an innovation collaboration for advancing digitalization and developing new sustainability solutions for the future. The goal is clear: both partners will develop projects in close cooperation and build on each other’s expertise to bring solutions to the next level of maturity more quickly.
Following joint digitalization projects in areas such as Future Energy Home, cloud and security solutions, the extended collaboration is now being extended to include the innovation area. Microsoft and E.ON will now jointly identify new projects and develop solutions using technologies such as artificial intelligence and data analytics, among others. The innovation collaboration will provide both partners with a faster learning curve in terms of developing more products and services for their customers, as well as more effective processes in their organizations.
MARKET NEWS
EU supports Serbia with loans, grant for power interconnections, smart metering
The EU approved a EUR 17 million donation to Serbia for power interconnections with BiH and Montenegro and the introduction of an advanced system for remote reading of electricity meters. The grants are from the Western Balkans Investment Framework (WBIF). The two projects are worth a combined EUR 81 million and they are financed through loans.
Within the sixth call for proposals for projects from the Western Balkans Investment Framework (WBIF), the European Union approved grants to Serbia for two endeavors in the energy sector, Minister of European Integration Jadranka Joksimović said.
DEWA virtual power plant enhances smart grid DER integration
Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) has enhanced integration of distributed energy resources (DERs) in its smart grid through its Virtual Power Plant (VPP), touted by the company as the first of its kind in the region.
The VPP is an advanced technology based on aggregation, orchestration, Artificial Intelligence (AI)-based forecasting, and optimisation to integrate diverse DERs and support DEWA’s smart grid.
DOE Announces $45 Million for Next-Generation Cyber Tools to Protect the Power Grid
August 19, 2022 -- The U.S. Department of Energy this week (Aug 17) announced $45 million to create, accelerate, and test technology that will protect the U.S. electric grid from cyber-attacks to seamlessly help deploy clean and cheap energy. Cyber threats to energy systems can shut down critical energy infrastructure and disrupt energy supply, the economy, and the health of consumers. Combined with the additional grid upgrades funded in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act, the United States will have an opportunity to build greater cyber defenses into its energy sector. The newly announced funding will support up to 15 research, development, and demonstration projects that will focus on developing new cybersecurity tools and technologies designed to reduce cyber risks for energy delivery infrastructure.
'As DOE builds out America's clean energy infrastructure, this funding will provide the tools for a strong, resilient, and secure electricity grid that can withstand modern cyberthreats and deliver energy to every pocket of America,' said U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm. 'DOE will use this investment to continue delivering on the Biden Administration's commitment to making energy cheaper, cleaner, and more reliable.'
A.C. Electric to begin upgrading customers to smart meters
Everyone knows they can be more energy efficient — which will save them money and help the environment. Atlantic City Electric is giving its customers the ability to do just that.
On Thursday, Atlantic City Electric announced it will start the broad installation of new smart meters for its nearly 565,000 customers, beginning in September and continuing through 2024.
India launches electricity distribution revival plan
India has launched a plan to invest 3.04 trillion rupees ($38.4bn) in reviving ailing electricity distributors, with a broader goal to boost the country's power sector.
Prime minister Narendra Modi launched the plan on 30 July, around a year after it was approved by the federal cabinet.
Smart meters to cover Oman’s power sector by 2025
A National Smart Meter Programme launched by the Authority for Public Services Regulation (APRS), in coordination with other sector stakeholders, envisages the installation of an estimated 1.2 million smart meters covering all electricity consumers by 2025.
The initiative – launched as part of the government’s digital transformation drive – is expected to deliver a number of far-reaching benefits to consumers, as well as the broader electricity sector.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Enlit Asia, Bangkok, Thailand, 20-22 September 2022
CAREC Conference & Exhibition, Miami, USA, 25-29 September 2022
MENA Energy Forum, Digital Forum, 27-28 September 2022
POWERGEN India & Indian Utility Week & DISTRIBUTECH India 2022, New Delhi, India, 12-14 October 2022
15th EIF World Energy Congress and Expo, Istanbul, Turkey, 12-14 October 2022
IEC 61850 Week, Cardiff, UK, 17-21 October 2022
Smart Energy World Summit, Lisbon, Portugal, 18-19 October 2022
African Energy Week (AEW), Cape Town, South Africa, 18-21 October 2022
Egypt Energy, Egypt International Exhibition Centre, 30 October - 1 November 2022
ASEAN M&E 2022, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 7-9 November 2022
Smart City Expo World Congress, Barcelona, Spain, 15-17 November 2022
Central European Energy Conference 2022, Bratislava, Slovakia, 21 November 2022
Future of Utilities Summit, London, UK, 21-22 November 2022
3rd Annual Africa Solar and Energy Storage Forum, Virtual Event, 29-30 November 2022
Jul2022
MEMBER NEWS
Energy Transitions Podcast: AMI – benefits & challenges of this technology for developing countries
Industry experts Sunil Mittal – Director of Business Development for the Indian Market, Networked Energy Services and Larry Colton, Director of International Business Development & Government Affairs, Networked Energy Services, discuss the benefits and challenges associated with AMI for developing countries.
In this episode of the Energy Transitions Podcast, our guests unpack the benefits and challenges of AMI for a developing country like India, which is going through a massive AMI rollout exercise for its 270 million electricity connections.
While there will be many benefits to the distribution companies from the adoption of AMI, there will be many unknowns and unforeseen challenges for all stakeholders, including system integrators, OEMs, utilities, government and consumers.
Read more…
Smart meters for Poland’s Tauron
A consortium including Griffin Group S.A. Energy and Apator SA are to supply smart meters to the DSO Tauron Dystrybucja in Wrocław.
The meters will have a PLC communication module in the OSGP standard. While the number of meters has not been specified,, the value of the offer amounts to approximately PLN 190 million ($42 million), with the option to increase orders by 12%.
Optimising a building’s energy consumption through data analysis
According to various sources, up to 30% of the total energy consumption of a building can be attributed to heating, ventilation, and cooling. One of the most effective ways of optimising these involves having access to the right data.
Analysing this data will provide the necessary guidance to where the most relevant interventions can be implemented to significantly reduce energy costs.
Vattenfall deploys fully managed EV charging facilities at Instabox delivery hubs
Vattenfall is to provide charging infrastructure for Instabox’s fleet in Europe, supporting the last-mile delivery firm’s work to go electric.
Instabox delivers packages for a large number of e-commerce companies and its international collaboration with Vattenfall will deliver fully managed EV charging facilities at its delivery hubs in Sweden, Denmark and the Netherlands.
Supply Chain amidst a global shortage - Conlog
The electricity supply industry is not immune to the global supply chain crisis. The shortages of materials are partly due to the pandemic and Russia’s war on Ukraine, and disruptions from worldwide port congestion – all of which will have a long-lasting impact on business strategies.
Due to the high demand for and significant investment in electronic devices in many sectors, the need for such devices is currently far greater than the rate at which they can be produced. As a result, components’ supply and demand challenges result in long lead times and risks in price fluctuations. Meanwhile, component shortages and supply chain threats impact the availability of electricity meters and related equipment such as semiconductors.
E.ON starts piloting 500-metre "solar circles" on Spanish island
July 22 (Renewables Now) - German electric utility E.ON SE (ETR:EOAN) said that it has partnered with the town of Adeje, on the Spanish island of Tenerife, on a pilot project to establish solar PV-based energy communities centered around rooftop-mounted systems.
The idea behind the initiative, called Adeje Verde, is to connect around 200 consumers within a 500-metre (1,640 ft) radius to rooftop solar production units that are run by prosumers. The systems would then generate power that can be shared and used by the surrounding neighbours, creating a “solar circle”, as E.ON puts it.
MARKET NEWS
Enemy launches hacker attacks on the power system
The russian federation has carried out a cyber attack on DTEK Group's IT infrastructure.
The attackers' goal was to destabilise the technological processes at power generating and distribution companies and undermine Ukraine's energy security as well as to spread deliberately false information about the companies' operation through state propaganda agencies and as a result leave Ukrainian consumers without power.
It was at the same time as a terrorist missile attack on the Kryvorizka TPP took place that another attempt was witnessed to attack the company's digital infrastructure.
Smart metering – next steps in Europe
Smart metering still has some way to go in Europe, likely to reach the 80% threshold penetration for electricity only around 2025.
Standards, interoperability and consumer access to real time data are some of the aspects that need to be addressed.
Kenya Power aims to double customers on smart meters
Kenya Power plans to double the number of businesses connected with smart metres as it moves to seal revenue leaks by curbing power theft.
The firm is eyeing the installation of smart meters at the premises of 75,000 small and medium enterprises (SMEs) this financial year.
Asia-Pacific is on its way to reach the milestone of 1 billion smart electricity meters in 2026
The smart electricity metering market in Asia-Pacific is well on its way to reach the historic milestone of 1 billion installed devices.
A new research report from the IoT analyst firm Berg Insight analyses the development of smart metering technology in China, Japan, South Korea, India, Bangladesh, Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, Australia and New Zealand. According to the study, the installed base of smart electricity meters in Asia-Pacific will grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.2 percent from 757.7 million units in 2021 to 1.1 billion units in 2027. At this pace, the milestone of 1 billion installed devices will be reached in 2026. The penetration rate of smart electricity meters in Asia-Pacific will at the same time grow from 59 percent in 2021 to 74 percent in 2027 while cumulative shipments during the forecast period will amount to a total of 934.6 million units.
Nesco to install 1.2 million more smart prepayment meters in northern region
A total of 1.2 million more smart prepayment meters are going to be installed in the country’s northwest region aimed at cent per cent revenue collection besides reducing system loss to 1%.
Northern Electricity Supply Company (Nesco) Limited, headquarters in Rajshahi, will install the smart meters under its project styled “Installation of 12 lakh smart prepayment meters in Nesco areas” with an estimated cost of around Tk712.63 crore.
5 digital solutions for a greener Europe
The science is clear: we must act now to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and the use of natural resources to avoid the worst impacts of climate change and biodiversity collapse. EU science and digital solutions can help to make the big changes.
We need to change the way we produce, the kind of energy we use, the buildings we live in, how we travel from place to place, the things we buy and the way we make our food.
UPCOMING EVENTS
2022 Asia-Pacific Power Supply Product and Technology Exhibition, Guangzhou, China, 10-12 August 2022
Enlit Asia, Bangkok, Thailand, 20-22 September 2022
CAREC Conference & Exhibition, Miami, USA, 25-29 September 2022
POWERGEN India & Indian Utility Week & DISTRIBUTECH India 2022, New Delhi, India, 12-14 October 2022
IEC 61850 Week, Cardiff, UK, 17-21 October 2022
Smart Energy World Summit, Lisbon, Portugal, 18-19 October 2022
EcoEnergy Expo 2022, Kyiv, Ukraine, 18-20 October 2022
African Energy Week (AEW), Cape Town, South Africa, 18-21 October 2022
Egypt Energy, Egypt International Exhibition Centre, 30 October - 1 November 2022
ASEAN M&E 2022, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 7-9 November 2022
Smart City Expo World Congress, Barcelona, Spain, 15-17 November 2022
Future of Utilities Summit, London, UK, 21-22 November 2022
3rd Annual Africa Solar and Energy Storage Forum, Virtual Event, 29-30 November 2022
Jun2022
MEMBER NEWS
OSGP Alliance has opened up the Multi Expansion Port, MEP.
The OSGP Alliance has released information regarding the MEP and Optical port on the OSGP meters to the developer community via GitHub. This allows developers to create solutions that read energy and consumption data from the meters to use in home displays or integrate in an inhome energy management system. The OSGP Alliance expects many developers to take advantage and share developments and information through GitHub community.
OSGP advances G3-PLC and M2M LTE-CAT-M implementations
The OSGP Alliance has formed new working groups on G3-PLC and M2M LTE-CAT-M within its standards committee.
The G3-PLC work group is aiming to establish collaborations in worldwide markets to develop, test and promote the OSGP G3-PLC implementation, while the M2M LTE-CAT-M working group is focussed on expanding the communication options available via OSGP
Introducing the fifth generation of smart meters: The NES story
Networked Energy Services (NES), originally part of Echelon, started its smart metering journey over 20-years ago. In 2001, NES participated in the first large-scale smart metering project with Enel in Italy, where more than 30 million smart meters were deployed. At this point, the smart metering evolution is well established, with hundreds of millions of smart meters being installed across Europe and the world.
Since producing its first smart meters about 20-years ago, the experience and many lessons-learned have put NES in a position to now offer the 5th generation of smart meters.
Consortium including Griffin Group SA and Apator will deliver smart meters in OSGP technology for Tauron Dystrybucja
A consortium of Polish companies, which includes GRIFFIN GROUP SA ENERGY and Apator SA, signed an agreement with Tauron Dystrybucja for the supply of meters.
The consortium will provide modern remote reading meters with a PLC communication module in the OSGP standard. The value of the offer is approximately PLN 190 million, with an option to increase orders by 12%.
Kontron AG: S&T AG changes name to Kontron AG
Linz, 1 June 2022: Kontron AG announces that the change of the company’s corporate name decided by the company’s Annual General Meeting on 6 May, 2022 to Kontron AG and the associated amendment to the articles of association was entered in the Austrian commercial register (FN 190272m) on the 1st of June, 2022.
The company has changed its name due to the focus of Kontron AG and its group companies on technologies related to the Internet of Things (IoT), which have been marketed under the Kontron brand for several years. As a multinational technology leader, Kontron AG offers its customers intelligent IoT solutions in a variety of vertical markets — such as smart factory, transportation, medical technology and telecommunications — and expects strong growth in these areas in the coming years. The Group already generates around two thirds of its revenue, which was EUR 1,342 million in financial year 2021, in the IoT segment. By 2025, the company aims to increase revenues to EUR 2,000 million in the high-margin IoT business segment. For Kontron AG, the change of name is a step in the transformation process towards becoming a leading IoT player.
Eon drones begin ‘inside-out’ home and energy health assessments
Energy firm Eon and Nationwide Drones have jointly launched drone and laser scanner-led home ‘health assessments’ – which they claim can gauge solar, heat pump and insulation suitability in under an hour – and outlined ambitions to harness drone tech across ‘all survey requirements’.
Using body-worn mobile laser scanners and thermal analysis, Eon’s drone pilot home assessors have begun surveying walls, floors and ceilings, with findings used alongside aerial 4k resolution photos and combined high-resolution shots of a property’s roof and surrounding area to measure a home’s capacity for flexible assets.
MARKET NEWS
Networked Energy Services received the support of the Polish Investment Zone. What will be built in Gdańsk?
Networked Energy Services (NES) received support from the Polish Investment Zone for the creation of a new plant - "Logistics and Configuration Center". The decision to grant the tax relief was issued by the Board of the Pomeranian Special Economic Zone.
Networked Energy Services Sp. z o.o. (NES), a global provider of smart grid solutions with an industry-leading Application Platform for the Energy Sector (EAPTM), based in Gdańsk, is proud to announce that on May 5, 2022, it received a positive decision of the Polish Investment Zone, issued by the Pomeranian Special Zone Management Board Ekonomiczna (PSSE) to support the project of the Logistics and Configuration Center.
Ed’s note: Smart meters – still a cornerstone of utility operations
Anyone working in the energy sector knows by now that it is undergoing an unprecedented and rapid change, requiring the introduction of many new and previously unknown technologies.
Over the past few years, we have seen an acceleration in the need for the deployment of renewables, the growth of storage, the emergence of widespread electric vehicle infrastructure, the mainstreaming of new enablers such as blockchain, the shift of intelligence to the edge, the race for hydrogen and more.
Eightfold increase in number of prosumers recorded in Romania in 2021
Romania enabled a massive increase last year in the number of prosumers connected to the distribution grid, by 732% to 13,596, with ongoing subsidy programs, reforms and investments in smart metering.
Prosumers are one of the most dynamic parts of the electricity system, according to the Romanian Energy Regulatory Authority – ANRE. Economica.net reported, citing the agency’s data, that legislation change from 2020 led to an increase in the number of prosumers by 8.3 times last year. At the same time, installed power in the category grew 5.2 times to 85 MW.
Energy sector expects increase in cyberattacks, research shows
New research published by risk management and quality assurance company DNV shows that energy executives anticipate life, property and environment-compromising cyberattacks on the sector within the next two years.
The ‘Cyber Priority’ report finds that 85% of professionals working in the power, renewables, and oil and gas sectors believe a cyberattack on the industry is likely to cause operational shutdowns and 84% expect damage to energy assets and critical infrastructure.
New international partnership puts communities and smart grids at the heart of net zero
First introduced at COP26, the International Community for Local Smart Grids (ICLSG) will undertake ground-breaking research that will be informed by the learnings and expertise of the partners.
Today marks the official launch of an international knowledge-sharing partnership of distribution network operators and community energy enterprises and organisations, convened by the University of Oxford and its Research Partner Enel Foundation and supported by the co-founders Ausgrid, Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks and Low Carbon Hub.
Modernisation Fund invests €2.4 billion to accelerate the green transition in 7 beneficiary countries
Today, the Modernisation Fund made available €2.4 billion to seven beneficiary countries to help modernise their energy systems, reduce greenhouse gas emissions in energy, industry and transport, and support them in meeting their 2030 climate and energy targets. Investments were confirmed in Romania (€1391.6 million), Czechia (€520 million), Poland (€244.2 million), Lithuania (€85 million), Hungary (€74.3 million), Slovakia (€49.5 million), and Croatia (€40 million). This concludes the third investment cycle of the Modernisation Fund and represents a sharp increase in spending compared to previous investment cycles.
European Commission Executive Vice-President Frans Timmermans said: “The Modernisation Fund is European solidarity in action. With revenues from the emissions trading system it delivers concrete results on the ground, helping beneficiary countries reduce greenhouse gas emissions in key sectors and become climate neutral. Moreover, this major financial injection is available to launch projects that will help speed up our energy transition in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.”
UPCOMING EVENTS
International SAP Conference for Utilities, Munich, Germany, 5-7 July 2022
International Congres on Advanced Materials Science and Engineering (AMSE-2022), Opatija, Croatia, 21-25 July 2022
2022 Asia-Pacific Power Supply Product and Technology Exhibition, Guangzhou, China, 10-12 August 2022
Enlit Asia, Bangkok, Thailand, 20-22 September 2022
IEC 61850 Week, Cardiff, UK, 17-21 October 2022
EcoEnergy Expo 2022, Kyiv, Ukraine, 18-20 October 2022
African Energy Week (AEW), Cape Town, South Africa, 18-21 October 2022
Egypt Energy, Egypt International Exhibition Centre, 30 October - 1 November 2022
ASEAN M&E 2022, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 7-9 November 2022
Smart City Expo World Congress, Barcelona, Spain, 15-17 November 2022
Future of Utilities Summit, London, UK, 21-22 November 2022
May2022
PRESS RELEASES
New G3-PLC and M2M LTE-CAT-M Working Groups Established by OSGP Alliance
Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 23 May 2022
The OSGP (Open Smart Grid Protocol) Alliance announced today that two new working groups have been established within the OSGP Alliance standards committee.
In 2015, OSGP Alliance members started collaboration with the G3-PLC Alliance to develop a G3-PLC based implementation of OSGP. One of the members, Networked Energy Services (NES), with OSGP compliant smart meters, received certification for G3-PLC communication in 2016 for their single phase meters and in 2017 for their poly phase meters. After this initiative, various utilities, who were looking for smart grid solutions based on G3-PLC technology, supported creating the G3-PLC working groups due to their positive experience and confidence in using the Open Smart Grid Protocol (OSGP).
Networked Energy Services Received Smart Metering Project Extension from LINZ NETZ GmbH
San Jose, CA, 12 May 2022
LINZ NETZ GmbH expands its smart meter deployment with NES, strengthening the security of its deployment that meets Austria’s leading regulatory requirements
Networked Energy Services Corporation (NES), a global smart grid solution provider with the industry’s leading Energy Applications Platform (EAPTM), announced today that LINZ NETZ GmbH (LN) has exercised its option to obtain an additional 30,000 smart meters and supporting communications infrastructure and software from NES.
MEMBERS NEWS
Rethinking energy usage in South Africa
23 May 2022 , By Frikkie Malan, head of sustainability at Remote Metering Solutions
South Africans are all too aware of the ongoing electricity supply issues facing the country. The deteriorating electrical generation, transmission, and distribution infrastructure is cause for significant concern. Adding to this are the ongoing climate-related discussions around the long-term viability of the energy sector. It should therefore hardly come as a surprise that businesses and building owners are scrutinising whether their precious kWh units are going to waste.
ETM Mätteknik AB is now a part of Sigicom
ETM Mätteknik AB and the slightly smaller sister company ETM Communications AB, are a part of Sigicom since February, 2022.
ETM Mätteknik AB is a leading Swedish IoT supplier of cellular-based devices for several industrial applications. The company has manufactured and delivered more than half a million cellular communication devices to customers worldwide. ETM was founded in 1988 and was headquartered in Bromma outside Stockholm before they moved into Sigicom’s office in Älvsjö at the beginning of May.
Read more…Significant increase in use of charging stations: enthusiasm for electric driving has risen sharply after the pandemic
Since January, much more use has been made of public charging stations for electric cars than in the same period last year. It is not surprising that the corona measures have had a major impact on the charging behavior of electric drivers. What is striking is that charging station use has also increased compared to the period before corona.
The rising trend can be seen throughout the Netherlands. The largest increase in absolute volumes can be found in Amsterdam and the surrounding area. With 35%, the strongest increase in consumption per charge point per day can be seen at Vattenfall's fast charge points.
Tauron will connect another 200 electric car charging stations
Tauron will connect 200 publicly accessible charging stations for electric vehicles. They will appear in eight cities of the province. Śląskie, as well as in Opole and Tarnów.
So far, Tauron has connected over 70 such stations to the network, helping local governments to meet statutory requirements. On the basis of the amended Act on electromobility and alternative fuels, energy groups help municipalities meet their obligation to provide an appropriate number of charging points for electric vehicles. In the area of Tauron's operations, only the authorities of Krakow, Katowice and Wrocław had previously declared that they would meet the statutory standards in the required time. Other cities had a problem with that.
Schneider Electric set to acquire AutoGrid
AutoGrid, a specialist in AI-driven optimization for distributed energy resources (DERs), has signed a definitive agreement to be acquired by Schneider Electric.
Schneider Electric and AutoGrid are no strangers to one another, as they have previously partnered on a fully integrated advanced distribution management system, as well as a distributed energy resources management system (DERMS), which was released two years ago.
Duke Energy renewable energy growth soars by 20% in 2021
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK) had its best year ever for adding renewable energy as the company posted a 20% jump in wind and solar power in 2021.
This information, along with large amounts of other data and insights, was detailed in Duke Energy’s comprehensive ESG Report (formerly Sustainability Report), the company’s 16th annual disclosure on environment, social and governance (ESG) topics. (Watch a video about the report.)
MARKET NEWS
Towards a stable, sustainable, and more intelligent energy system
In the transition towards a fossil-free energy system, it is important to find a way to balance consumption and production in an economically satisfactory manner and to include a high share of fluctuating renewable energy sources. Close to 70 % of Denmark’s electricity consumption is based on renewable energy, enabled by a smart, flexible energy system that integrates systems across gas, electricity, thermal energy, and transportation. This also implies solving challenges of storage of electricity, as well as using smart, digital solutions and data to ensure reliable and green energy for cities and societies.
Networked Energy Services publishes COVID-19 smart energy transition report
Networked Energy Services Corporation has completed its industry survey related to the impact of COVID-19 on smart metering and smart grid projects and the associated analysis and report, “Smart Metering and the Smart Energy Transition in the New Normal.”
COVID-19 has changed the world in many ways. The health, social and working practice impacts dominate our view of the New Normal, but what does it mean to the smart energy transition, which has been disrupted.
Utilities to Increase Cybersecurity Spending for 1.3 Billion Electricity Meters by 2027 due to the Adoption of Advanced Metering Infrastructure
The move toward Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) is becoming the quintessential driver for connected electricity meters, which are expected to reach an installed base of 1.3 billion by 2027. This growth is prompting utilities and energy suppliers to revisit their digital security agendas and device management operations, according to a new report by global technology intelligence firm ABI Research.
Digitization of traditional electricity grids and the modernization of the aging energy infrastructure is among the top concerns for operators and governments worldwide. Security for last-mile energy consumption applications was frequently overlooked. "However, the introduction of AMI, smart metering, and grid digitization is steadily increasing spending for secure management services, assisting implementers to transition to IT (information technologies) and OT (operational technologies) security services and help tackle their primary objectives," explains Dimitrios Pavlakis, Senior IoT Cybersecurity Analyst at ABI Research.
Smart electricity meters: Intellismart has big plans, to raise loan of Rs 10,000 crore
Intellismart, a joint venture between Energy Efficiency Services (EESL) and National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF), sees an opportunity to install over 20 million smart meters in the country in the next 2 years. The company would need to raise around Rs 10,000 crore in loans to fund the installations.
Anil Rawal, MD & CEO of Intellismart, told FE that state electricity distribution companies have understood the benefits of smart meters not just in terms of controlling power theft, efficient billing and collections, but also for data mining and analysis.
EIB approves EUR 7.3 billion for climate action, renewable energy, clean transport and refugee support
The Board of Directors of the European Investment Bank (EIB) today approved EUR 7.3 billion of new financing to accelerate climate action by companies and utilities, enhance civil protection from a more extreme climate and other disasters and confirmed EUR 4 billion for housing, health and education investment in countries welcoming refugees from the conflict in Ukraine.
“Addressing the humanitarian impact of the war in Ukraine and delivering climate action are key priorities for the European Union and its Bank. The new EIB financing approved today will unlock investment to enable Ukrainian refugees to be welcomed with dignity and reduce the burden on communities demonstrating hospitality. The impact of climate action and business investment backed by the EIB will cut emissions and better protect communities vulnerable to extreme weather. EIB backed investment will also help businesses to innovate to better tackle the effects of a changing climate.” said Werner Hoyer, President of the European Investment Bank.
Microgrid demo to lend a helping hand in India’s green energy transition
A group of energy specialists supported by the EU-funded IELECTRIX project has built a smart grid demonstrator in a district in New Delhi, India. The demonstration will show how innovative solutions involving local photovoltaic units and self-consumption can enable the creation of local energy communities.
The Shakti demonstration – named after the Hindu goddess associated with the creative energy of the universe – is led by French distribution system operator and IELECTRIX project coordinator Enedis. For this demo, Enedis is joined by four members of the IELECTRIX consortium: Tata Power Delhi Distribution Limited in India, French manufacturer Schneider Electric, French service provider Odit-e, and Danish research and development company GECO Global.
UPCOMING EVENTS
15th German-African Energy Forum, Hamburg, Germany, 1-2 June 2022
Enlit Africa Live Event, Cape Town, South Africa, 7-9 June 2022
IEC 62443 Week 2022, Edinburgh, UK, 13-17 June 2022
InnoGrid 2022, 14 June 2022 (Online) and 29 June 2022 (Hybrid/Brussels)
SPARK, London, UK, 21-22 June 2022
Power & Water Nigeria Exhibition & Conference, Lagos, Nigeria, 21-23 June 2022
Offensive Cybersecurity Strategies (Webinar), 29 June 2022, 16:00-17:00
International SAP Conference for Utilities, Munich, Germany, 5-7 July 2022
International Congres on Advanced Materials Science and Engineering (AMSE-2022), Opatija, Croatia, 21-25 July 2022
2022 Asia-Pacific Power Supply Product and Technology Exhibition, Guangzhou, China, 10-12 August 2022
Solar Energy Future & EXPO 2022, Bangkok, Thailand, 15 September 2022
Enlit Asia, Bangkok, Thailand, 20-22 September 2022
IEC 61850 Week, Cardiff, UK, 17-21 October 2022
EcoEnergy Expo 2022, Kyiv, Ukraine, 18-20 October 2022
Solar Energy Future EXPO Malaysia 2022, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 2 November 2022
Solar+Storage Congress & EXPO 2022 Indonesia, Jakarta, Indonesia, 18 November 2022
Future of Utilities Summit, London, UK, 21-22 November 2022
Apr2022
MEMBER NEWS
Consortium with Griffin Group, NES and Apator selected by Wrocław-based Tauron Dystrybucja as a supplier of meters
The offer of the Griffin Group and Apator consortium was selected by Tauron Dystrybucja as the most advantageous for the supply of static remote reading meters with a PLC communication module in the "OSGP" standard along with installation, storage and cleanup services in the Smart City Wrocław area.
The value of the consortium's offer is PLN 189.8 million (without the option right), including the remuneration for Apator for deliveries of 1-phase and 3-phase meters operating in PLC technology is estimated at 18-20% of the value of the offer.
NES, a next generation AMI solution provider for India’s Smart Grid Market
India is an emerging, and one of the largest markets for AMI & Smart Grid Solutions in the World. NES, a global smart grid company, recently announced it was entering the Indian market with its proven end-to-end AMI solution. To learn more about NES Readiness for India, Sunil Mittal, Director Business Development (India), NES, was interviewed, and his responses and views are summarised below.
Networked Energy Services (NES) is a US based Smart Grid Company with more than 25 years of experience in the AMI field, serving in more than 25 countries & has deployed more than 100 smart grid projects. NES technology has been deployed on more than 40 million metering nodes worldwide.
Digital Evolution of the Grid
In order to accommodate an increase in renewables, power grids will need the ability to integrate new technologies more quickly. Digitalization is a key to integrate renewables in electricity systems, to improve reliability and leverage data to get sustainable energy where it needs to be. Learn more at our partner event, the EM-Power Europe Conference, and hear from key utility industry and energy service stakeholders including Enel X, Next Kraftwerke, RTE, Fluence, ENGIE, Eneco, TenneT, Elvia, Netze BW, Bamboo Energy, Energy Pool, Catapult Energy Systems, ENEDIS, E.ON, Statnett, Agder Energi, E-Redes and many more. EM-Power Europe, part of the smarter E Europe is taking place in ICM München (Conference 10-11May, Exhibition 11-13 May)
Vattenfall starts wireless EV charging trials in Sweden
Vattenfall's three-year induction charging point project with partners involves charging pads embedded in Gothenburg streets
Just as mobile phones made the transition from plug in to wireless charging, electric vehicles look set to take the same technological journey.
Major milestones drive Duke Energy Florida's commitment to a cleaner, smarter energy future just in time for Earth Day
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla., April 22, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Duke Energy Florida is celebrating Earth Day by sharing key milestones as part of its clean energy transformation and commitment to the environment, customer affordability and reliability.
"As the energy needs of customers and communities in our state change, we must be ready to meet those needs," said Melissa Seixas, Duke Energy Florida state president. "We believe generating electricity from renewable resources and expanding innovative technologies will play an important role in delivering energy that's reliable, affordable and increasingly clean."
Energy efficiency in the healthcare sector: Clinic Diakonissen Linz
Thanks to an innovative solar power and LED lighting project, the Klinik Diakonissen Linz can now save more than 200,000 kWh of energy annually. In addition, patients, staff and visitors will also benefit from the measures.
The pandemic and the humanitarian and economic effects of the Ukraine war are currently demanding a lot of energy in all areas of life. Nevertheless, climate protection remains the top priority. In order to achieve goals such as those set by the city of Linz to achieve climate neutrality by 2040, long-term and national energy and climate strategies are needed. But individual activities can also show ways to protect the climate.
MARKET NEWS
Future of meter data management
Metering has evolved from being just a component of the revenue cycle for meter-to-cash use case, to being an enterprise function that supports multiple core business processes providing operational benefits.
For utilities undergoing digital transformation having the right solution to drive mission-critical operations and new customer-focused solutions is crucial. The chosen solution should be more than a typical MDM platform, serving as the digital backbone for energy companies.
Smart Metering as Cornerstone for Grid Integration of Renewable Energies
At EM-Power Europe, part of the smarter E Europe, you will learn how to make use of digital tools to maximise the use of smart meters and grid infrastructure for enhanced services. Get insights in smart metering and smart charging, smart PV metering and technical requirements including those for privacy and security. Hear about the latest developments in interoperability to future-proof your investments in the smart energy platform and reduce vendor lock-in.
A cyber-attack on Spain's electricity giant Iberdrola has accessed data of 1.3 million clients
On 15 March Iberdrola suffered a cyber-attack in which hackers obtained the personal information of 1.3 million clients, the company has confirmed. The information included ID numbers, addresses, phone numbers and email addresses, but the police say those responsible did not access “sensitive” information such as bank account details, credit card numbers or information about the clients’ use of energy.
Iberdrola says the incident was resolved on the same day and on the following day its IT experts identified further massive attacks which failed.
Smart Meters Market to hit US$ 55.7 billion by 2028, Says Global Market Insights Inc.
The smart meters market is expected to surpass USD 55.7 billion by 2028, as reported in a research study by Global Market Insights Inc. Favorable government norms pertaining to effective energy management along with continuous technological advancements toward the adoption of intelligent metering units will foster the industry scenario. Moreover, the increasing replacement of conventional meters with intelligent meters along with ongoing infrastructural developments will augment the industry outlook.
Optimized consumption mechanism along with the implementation of government standards & measures toward energy efficiency will fuel the adoption of smart meters across commercial establishments. The introduction of government norms and directives along with rollout plans toward the deployment of intelligent meters will sway the industry growth. Rising investments from public and private sectors in the development of advanced energy management systems in line with sustainable & accurate leak detection will further stimulate the industry landscape.
From 2023, the replacement of energy meters with smart ones will start all over Poland
From 2023, the replacement of energy meters with smart ones will start. The cost of the project is PLN 9 billion. It will be spread over 8 years so as not to burden the budgets of electricity recipients - said Piotr Dziadzio, Deputy Minister of Climate and Environment, during the conference "Intelligent in energy" on Thursday.
During Thursday's 1st National Conference "Intelligent in energy", Deputy Minister of Climate and Environment, Piotr Dziadzio, announced the launch of the Smart Energy Networks project.
Kuwait's ministry continues installation of smart meters in new private housing areas
KUWAIT CITY - The Ministry of Electricity, Water and Renewable Energy said until now it has installed of 102,000 smart meters, and added work is underway to install these meters in private housing, starting from next Sunday, in new areas, reports Al-Jarida daily.
In a statement to the daily, the ministry sources pointed out the Smart meters will provide greater flexibility for the ministry, especially for customer billing departments, in addition to first and foremost collecting the ministry’s dues, and preventing the accumulation as happened in the past when the old meters were in use. Moreover, the Smart meters facilitate the payment of power consumption in various ways whether through the ministry’s website or through consumer affairs centers and through other methods.
PRESS RELEASE
Think Tanks: Start-Ups are Driving the Digitalization of Energy Systems
Munich/Pforzheim, April 26, 2022 – Our future supply of electricity and heat from renewable sources relies on the different sectors of the energy system being intelligently intertwined – from energy generation and storage to distribution and use. And start-ups across the energy sectors are part of the push to unlock the key to that level of collaboration – digitalization. The international EM-Power Europe exhibition promises plenty of exciting insights into new technologies and concepts. Between May 11 and 13, 2022, experienced stakeholders will stand beside start-ups and young companies focusing on the new energy world in Munich to showcase their innovative ideas and technologies for smart energy management and integrated energy solutions.
UPCOMING EVENTS
EM-Power Europe Conference & Exhibition 2022, Munich, Germany, 10-13 May 2022
9th Power and Energy Kenya 2022, Nairobi, Kenya, 19-21 May 2022
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DISTRIBUTECH INTERNATIONAL, Dalas, Texas, 23-25 May 2022
15th German-African Energy Forum, Hamburg, Germany, 1-2 June 2022
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Enlit Africa Live Event, Cape Town, South Africa, 7-9 June 2022
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IEC 62443 Week 2022, Edinburgh, UK, 13-17 June 2022
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SPARK, London, UK, 21-22 June 2022
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Power & Water Nigeria Exhibition & Conference, Lagos, Nigeria, 21-23 June 2022
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Offensive Cybersecurity Strategies (Webinar), 19 June 2022, 16:00-17:00
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International Congres on Advanced Materials Science and Engineering (AMSE-2022), Opatija, Croatia, 21-25 July 2022
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2022 Asia-Pacific Power Supply Product and Technology Exhibition, Guangzhou, China, 10-12 August 2022
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Solar Energy Future & EXPO 2022, Bangkok, Thailand, 15 September 2022
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Enlit Asia, Bangkok, Thailand, 20-22 September 2022
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Renewable Energy & Smart Grid Conference, Miami, 25-29 September 2022
EcoEnergy Expo 2022, Kyiv, Ukraine, 18-20 October 2022
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Solar Energy Future EXPO Malaysia 2022, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 2 November 2022
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Solar+Storage Congress & EXPO 2022 Indonesia, Jakarta, Indonesia, 18 November 2022
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Mar2022
MEMBER NEWS
Networked Energy Services receives METAS data security certification
NES, along with its partner VIVAVIS Schweiz AG in Switzerland, has successfully certified its OSGP PLC Solution for the Swiss Market.
Networked Energy Services Corporation (NES), a global smart grid solution provider with the industry’s leading Energy Applications Platform (EAPTM), is proud to announce that together with our partner, VIVAVIS Schweiz AG, we have completed the process in Switzerland of achieving the METAS Data Security Certification for the NES AMI Platform based on OSGP (Open Smart Grid Protocol).
OSGP Alliance Proud Partner of EM-Power Europe 2022
For the second year the OSGP Alliance is Partner of the EM-Power Europe Exhibition and Conference taking place as part of The smarter E Europe (Munich, 11-13 May 2022), the largest platform for the Energy Industry in Europe, bringing together four exhibitions Intersolar Europe, ees Europe, Power2Drive Europe and EM-Power Europe with 1450 exhibitors and 50.000 visitors.
The EM-Power Europe conference (May 10-11) focuses on renewable grid integration covering topics such as Solar PV and Electric Vehicle Grid integration, Residential and Utility scale solar+storage, Digital Evolution of the Grid, Active consumers for system efficiency and flexibility markets.
There will a dedicated Forum Sessions on Smart Metering as Cornerstone for Grid Integration of Renewables. OSGP Alliance Members are entitled to receive 20% discount upon registration.
Tauron has launched the first microgrid installation in Poland
Tauron in Bytom has launched a pioneering investment on a Polish scale. It is a microgrid, i.e., a small power network that allows to guarantee, even in extreme situations, electricity supplies to the needs of consumers.
The system, launched in Bytom, has wind capacity, photovoltaic panels and an energy storage and gas aggregate stabilizing the system. It is the first functioning microgrid system in Poland. The microgrid is a physically separated area of electricity supply that includes local energy sources (mainly those generating electricity from renewable resources) and the energy consumers gathered around them.
Vattenfall named Sweden's most sustainable energy company
Vattenfall is ranked highest of all Swedish energy companies in the Sustainable Brand index's annual study of Sweden's most sustainable companies.
The Sustainable Brand Index is Europe's largest independent brand study in sustainability and is conducted once a year in the Nordic countries, the Netherlands and the Baltic countries.
Alliander and Radboud University strengthen cooperation
Alliander will collaborate closely with Radboud University for the next two years. To this end, we signed a declaration of intent on 1 March with the ambition to better connect research, education and the professional field and thus optimally support the energy transition.
In the collaboration we exchange experts and research facilities and jointly initiate master, PhD and postdoc projects. We are also working on digital technologies that can support network management. In doing so, we take into account the changing energy production. “By working together, we want to make an extra contribution to the energy transition with our education and research,” said Daniel Wigboldus, chairman of the Executive Board of Radboud University.
New e-fast charging station in Bad Leonfelden
BAD LEONFELDEN. Linz AG put another e-fast charging station into operation directly at the Kastner Lebzelterei in Bad Leonfelden.
Linz AG put around 200 new e-charging points into operation last year and is continuing to expand the e-charging infrastructure. A modern fast charging station has now been put into operation in Bad Leonfelden. Your location is at Lebzelterstraße 243 in the immediate vicinity of the Kastner Lebzelterei and the Lebkuchen World of Experience. The charging station offers two charging points with up to 100 kW of power for very fast charging.
MARKET NEWS
Smart grids for seamless integration of consumers
Interview with Michael Villa from smartEn about smart grids in Europe
We will not be able to transform the energy system without smart grids. Michael Villa gives an overview on their development in Europe. He is Executive Director of smartEn, a European business association which strives for the integration of consumer-driven solutions in the clean energy transition.
smartEN is a partner of EM-Power Europe which will be held from May 11–13, 2022, in Munich. The EM-Power Europe Conference on May 10 and 11 will host six different sessions on a variety of topics. They will provide a deep dive into the grids of the future, the challenges and potential solutions.
TenneT plans to increase grid investment to $6.6bn a year
Dutch transmission system operator TenneT has announced that it will increase its annual investment in grid infrastructure to at least €6bn ($6.6bn) by 2025.
Last year, the company invested €4bn in the expansion and maintenance of its grids to address its energy transition challenges.
EU funding for Africa worth €150bn to boost post-pandemic growth
Funding, in the form of European Union (EU) combined member funds, member state investments and capital from investment banks, is earmarked for Africa.
The European Commission recently announced investment funding for Africa worth €150 billion (approximately $165bn) as part of the EU Global Gateway Investment Scheme.
How IoT is enabling transformation in the electricity sector
Over the coming decade the electricity sector must face increasing demand, increasing regulation, and fundamental changes in the way that electricity grids work on a day-to-day basis. New fluctuating energy sources must be integrated into existing grids, and many of today’s customers may take on a second role as suppliers, writes Jim Morrish, a founding partner at Transforma Insights.
The deployment of new technology is critical to enabling the changes that must happen, and a wide variety of technology-based solutions are being deployed in the electricity industry right now. These range from smartmetering applications through to remote asset monitoring and control solutions and solutions to better enable a remote workforce. According to research undertaken by Inmarsat, investment in IoT solutions overall is expected to be significant for electricity utilities, and with cost reduction and increased efficiency come related benefits in sustainability.
Smart electricity meters market to surge to $15.2 billion by 2026
A new market study by Global Industry Analysts Inc. (GIA) shows that the global market for smart electricity meters is expected to reach $15.2 billion by 2026.
The prediction comes courtesy of market research publisher GIA’s latest report, Smart Electricity Meters – Global Market Trajectory & Analytics.
Dewa completes short-term goals of Smart Grid Strategy
Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa) has completed the short-term goals of its Smart Grid Strategy 2014-2035, having replaced all electricity and water meters with smart meters between 2015 and 20.
This amounts to a deployment of over two million smart meters, said Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD & CEO of Dewa, adding that by automating meter readings, Dewa empowers its customers with information on their usage patterns; allowing them to effectively manage their electricity and water usage.
UPCOMING EVENTS
3rd Solar + Wind Congress & EXPO Vietnam 2022, 31 March 2022, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
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SMARTGREENS 2022, Online event, 27-29 April 2022
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EM-Power Europe Conference & Exhibition 2022, Munich, Germany, 10-13 May 2022
9th Power and Energy Kenya 2022, Nairobi, Kenya, 19-21 May 2022
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15th German-African Energy Forum, Hamburg, Germany, 1-2 June 2022
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Enlit Africa Live Event, Cape Town, South Africa, 7-9 June 2022
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IEC 62443 Week 2022, Edinburgh, UK, 13-17 June 2022
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SPARK, London, UK, 21-22 June 2022
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Power & Water Nigeria Exhibition & Conference, Lagos, Nigeria, 21-23 June 2022
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Offensive Cybersecurity Strategies (Webinar), 19 June 2022, 16:00-17:00
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International Congres on Advanced Materials Science and Engineering (AMSE-2022), Opatija, Croatia, 21-25 July 2022
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2022 Asia-Pacific Power Supply Product and Technology Exhibition, Guangzhou, China, 10-12 August 2022
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Solar Energy Future & EXPO 2022, Bangkok, Thailand, 15 September 2022
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Enlit Asia, Bangkok, Thailand, 20-22 September 2022
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EcoEnergy Expo 2022, Kyiv, Ukraine, 18-20 October 2022
Solar Energy Future EXPO Malaysia 2022, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 2 November 2022
Solar+Storage Congress & EXPO 2022 Indonesia, Jakarta, Indonesia, 18 November 2022
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Feb2022
MEMBER NEWS
Which next-gen cellular and why
Smart meters have the potential to improve sustainability of our energy distribution grids by reducing losses in energy distribution and reducing new network build-out. Whilst this stands on its own “green” credentials, this also benefits the energy distribution companies by reducing op-ex and cap-ex costs.
Smart meters do this by exposing information about end-point energy consumption and generation and the “quality” of energy that is received from the distributor. When this information is exposed to the latest grid optimisation tools, it shows distributors how to reconfigure their grids to reduce losses to heat and vibration and better use available capacity.
Overlay on the counter. It will help reduce electricity bills
Students of the Warsaw University of Technology have developed a special cover for electricity meters. Its aim is to reduce the amount of electricity bills. The solution is simple but very effective.
Rising electricity prices affect us all. For this reason, students of the Warsaw University of Technology from the Science Club of Power Engineers operating at the Faculty of Power and Aeronautical Engineering have developed an intelligent module that can be installed on an electricity meter. It will allow you to control your electricity bills.
Despite high hurdles: E.ON reaches digitalisation milestone and installs 100,000th smart meter in Germany
E.ON continues to drive the digitalisation of the energy industry and was the first company to install 100,000 intelligent metering systems (so-called smart meters) in Germany. The anniversary device was installed on February 10th in the network area of E.ON subsidiary Bayernwerk in a primary school in the municipality of Thalmassing.
Compared to other countries, however, Germany has some catching up to do in the rollout of smart meters: in Sweden, E.ON has already installed one million smart meters in a first rollout wave between 2004 and 2009. The second wave is currently on its way, in which around 200,000 meters have already been installed. By the end of 2024, another 1,200 to 1,500 devices will be added daily.
Algorithm will help Vattenfall InCharge to place out charging points
Vattenfall InCharge, together with partners, will install a minimum of 4,000 charging points during three years in 67 municipalities in the Dutch provinces Gelderland and Overijssel. Placement is largely proactive, before the need arises, and based on an algorithm.
The InCharge network was introduced in 2016 by Vattenfall. It has today more than 30 000 connected charging points in northern Europe and provides drivers of electric cars with access to many more charge points through roaming agreements. With this new agreement, with the provinces of Gelderland and Overijssel, the installation work is planned more efficiently and the possibility to drive electric carelessly will increase significantly in the Netherlands.
AEF advised Gelderland and Flevoland on Alliander investment
Alliander has raised €600 million from its shareholders. With the money, the network company will strengthen its capital position, so that it can invest in the much-needed upgrade of the electricity grid in the coming years.
The demand for electricity has been increasing rapidly in recent years. This is partly due to the energy transition – think, for example, of people who no longer run on petrol, but plug their car into the plug every evening. But economic growth and many residential buildings also contribute to higher electricity consumption.
MARKET NEWS
Smart power meters for better billing
NEW DELHI: Power and renewable energy minister RK Singh on Thursday batted for pre-paid smart metering installation in the country as it will ensure improvement in billing collection. The minister while addressing the CII Conference on Smart Metering also said that politicisation of the electricity is going to be disastrous for the power sector.
“The pre-paid smart meters will give great advantage to the poor people. At the current structure if you don’t pay the bill, your electricity will get disconnected. To restore it, you have to apply for a fresh connection, which includes paper work and installation charges. Therefore, many from the rural belt avoid getting fresh connections and stay without electricity. If they have pre-paid meters, they can recharge it whenever they have money,” said Singh.
Dubai records world’s lowest electricity Customer Minutes Lost of 1.43 minutes per year
Dubai: Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa) has achieved a new world record in electricity Customer Minutes Lost (CML) per year. Dubai recorded 1.43 minutes per customer in 2021, compared to around 15 minutes recorded by leading utility companies in the European Union (EU).
The achievement results from Dewa adopting the latest global technologies in energy generation, transmission and distribution.
Factors driving the global smart meters market
A new report published by Research and Markets states that the global smart meters market will expand by 9% between 2021 and 2026 and highlights factors driving the market.
The report states that revenue generation will increase from $19.6 billion to $30.2 billion owing to factors including: Government mandates and incentives for smart meter installations: Governments across the globe are increasing funding for grid modernisation and developing and enacting policies that support smart technologies including smart metering, according to the study.
Zeeland BPW customers to get smart meters this month
The Zeeland Board of Public Works begins swapping out customers' electric meters for advanced, or "smart" electric meters this month.
Installation of the approximately 6,000 electric meters will be carried out over the next several months by technicians from Allegiant Utility Services, hired by ZBPW to do the work.
MSEDCL to install 10 lakh smart meters across state
Mumbai: The MSEDCL has floated tenders for installation of 10 lakh smart meters for electricity consumers across Maharashtra and has also sent a proposal to the government for setting up of 1.66 crore smart meters in 3-4 years, announced MSEDCL managing director Vijay Singhal on Friday.
“The installation of 10 lakh new smart meters will be finalised in a fortnight and this will be a game changer in 2022,” Singhal told TOI, adding that the smart meters will ensure accurate readings, reduce cases of inflated billings, bring in savings for consumers who can keep a check on consumption every hour and also reduce annual power distribution losses. The power distribution losses of MSEDCL, with a consumer base of 2.8 crore, is the highest in the state at over 10%.
PRESS RELEASE
Networked Energy Services Receives METAS Data Security Certification
NES, along with its partner VIVAVIS Schweiz AG in the Switzerland, has successfully certified its OSGP PLC Solution for the Swiss Market
San Jose, CA, February 14, 2022: Networked Energy Services Corporation (NES), a global smart grid solution provider with the industry’s leading Energy Applications Platform (EAPTM), is proud to announce that together with our partner, VIVAVIS Schweiz AG, we have completed the process in Switzerland of achieving the METAS Data Security Certification for the NES AMI Platform based on OSGP (Open Smart Grid Protocol).
METAS-Cert is the body designated by Switzerland and recognized by the EU for the conformity assessment of measuring instruments. Acting on behalf of the manufacturers of measuring instruments, METAS-Cert carries out the conformity assessments required for placing products on the market. However, for the Data Security Certification, the manufacturers use outside testing laboratories, certified according to Common Criteria (ISO/IEC 15408), to conduct a security review and penetration testing following a standardized test methodology of the products.
UPCOMING EVENTS
POWER TRANSMISSION IN AFRICA, Virtual Conference, 23-24 February 2022
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Africa Energy Indaba, Virtual Conference & Physical Exhibition, Cape Town, South Africa, 01-03 March 2022
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India Smart Utility Week 2022, Digital Platform, 02-04 March 2022
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Future of Utilities – Smart Energy, London, UK, 8-9 March 2022
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Oman Sustainability Week, Sultanate of Oman, 13-17 March 2022
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ISRTC International Sustainability Resources & Technology Conference, Muscat, Oman, 14-16 March 2022
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Middle East Energy 2022, Dubai, UAE, 15-17 March 2022
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26th ICCI 2022 International Energy – Environment Fair & Conference, Istanbul, Turkey, 16-18 March 2022
IEC CIM Week 2022, London, UK, 21-25 March 2022
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3rd Solar + Wind Congress & EXPO Vietnam 2022, 31 March 2022, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
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SMARTGREENS 2022, Online event, 27-29 April 2022
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EM-Power Europe Conference & Exhibition 2022, Munich, Germany, 10-13 May 2022
9th Power and Energy Kenya 2022, Nairobi, Kenya, 19-21 May 2022
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15th German-African Energy Forum, Hamburg, Germany, 1-2 June 2022
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Enlit Africa Live Event, Cape Town, South Africa, 7-9 June 2022
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IEC 62443 Week 2022, Edinburgh, UK, 13-17 June 2022
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SPARK, London, UK, 21-22 June 2022
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Power & Water Nigeria Exhibition & Conference, Lagos, Nigeria, 21-23 June 2022
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Offensive Cybersecurity Strategies (Webinar), 19 June 2022, 16:00-17:00
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International Congres on Advanced Materials Science and Engineering (AMSE-2022), Opatija, Croatia, 21-25 July 2022
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2022 Asia-Pacific Power Supply Product and Technology Exhibition, Guangzhou, China, 10-12 August 2022
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Solar Energy Future & EXPO 2022, Bangkok, Thailand, 15 September 2022
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Enlit Asia, Bangkok, Thailand, 20-22 September 2022
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EcoEnergy Expo 2022, Kyiv, Ukraine, 18-20 October 2022
Solar Energy Future EXPO Malaysia 2022, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 2 November 2022
Solar+Storage Congress & EXPO 2022 Indonesia, Jakarta, Indonesia, 18 November 2022
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Jan2022
MEMBER NEWS
Griffin Group Energy has delivered further smart meters in OSGP technology for the leader of certified energy clusters
The AMI intelligent metering system in OSGP technology is also implemented in the neighboring distribution area ZEW Niedzica -TAURON Dystrybucja in Wrocław in the amount of over 400,000 smart meters, in which meters from three manufacturers in the OSGP standard have been used, while maintaining the highest standards of PLC communication safety. Griffin Group Energy has delivered OSGP meters to Tauron Dystrybucja from several manufacturers over the past few years m.in the Japanese manufacturer Mitsubishi Electric, the American NES and the Polish Apator. This is the first solution of this type in Europe.
On the basis of this technology, 40 million such meters have already been implemented in Europe by more than 60 renowned power plants. The key advantages of OSGP are the security and effectiveness of communication, which are of key importance in this type of implementation of the country's critical infrastructure.
Which Next Gen Cellular and Why
Smart meters have the potential to improve sustainability of our energy distribution grids by reducing losses in energy distribution and reducing new network build out. Whilst this stands on its own “green” credentials, this also benefits the energy distribution companies by reducing op-ex and cap-ex costs.
Smart meters do this by exposing information about end-point energy consumption and generation and the “quality” of energy which is received from the distributor. When this information is exposed to the latest grid optimization tools, it shows distributors how to reconfigure their grids to reduce losses to heat and vibration and better use available capacity.
Prointer ITSS Silver Member OSGP Alliance
Prointer ITSS ends the business year as a Silver Member of the OSGP Alliance
OSGP Alliance members share a common goal and vision, which is to promote open standards for energy demand management, smart grid and smart metering systems.
The energy industry is facing more and more challenges. Most of the issues revolve around the "energy trilemma", which seeks to ensure that energy is safe, sustainable and affordable. The critical issue concerns the provision of a smart grid, an energy infrastructure that includes thousands of devices and systems connected to the grid that consume energy.
Tauron will replace 750,000 meters per year with devices with remote reading
Over the next eight years, Tauron Dystrybucja will replace approx. 750,000 meters per year with devices with remote reading. By 2031, all customers of the Group will have such meters – Tauron announced today. The company supplies electricity to approx. 5.7 million customers in southern Poland.
Currently, about 840,000 Tauron customers have meters with remote reading. EU regulations provide that by 2028 distribution companies will equip 80% of their individual customers with such devices – in Tauron this means about 5.1 million customers. Two years later, at the end of 2030, the number of such meters is to increase in the Group to approx. 6 million. Customers using the so-called smart meters gain the ability to automatically control energy consumption, and thus – more conscious use of it.
Morocco: ONEE partners with Atos and Siemens to improve electricity metering
Atos, a French group specializing in the digital transformation of companies, and subsidiaries of the German conglomerate Siemens will help the National Office of Electricity and Drinking Water of Morocco(ONEE)to set up a smart electricity metering platform in the kingdom.
The collaboration, announced by Atos on December 1, aims specifically to enable ONEE to "take control of the data collected by more than 100,000 smart meters that will be installed across the country and thus optimize energy consumption and the management of the national network".
E.ON issues EUR 800m green bond
January 12 (Renewables Now) - German energy company E.on SE (ETR:EOAN) has issued a green bond worth EUR 800 million (USD 906.8m) to secure financing for sustainable projects that support the energy transition.
The bond is due in October 2034 and bears a coupon of 0.875%, E.on said on Tuesday.
MARKET NEWS
Kenya Power launches smart meters to improve services
Kenya Power has launched smart electricity meters in Meru as it seeks to achieve efficiency in service delivery.
Mount Kenya Regional Manager Phineas Marete said the smart meters will record consumption of electricity, voltage levels and other data.
Romanian distributor secures €90m loan for green grid expansion
Distribuie Energie Electrică Romania S.A. (DEER), an electricity distributor based in Romania, has secured a €90 million ($102 million) loan for grid modernisation, expansion, decarbonisation and digitalisation.
The 15 year loan will fund the installation of smart meters for accurate billing and improved visibility of consumer usage behaviour, renewable energy for grid reliability and decarbonisation and distribution lines and related infrastructure.
Iraqi Power Station Developer to provide Smart Meters
The Iraqi cabinet has required the developer of the Al-Khairat [Al-Khayrat] power station to also supply smart meters for use by domestic and industrial customers.
According to a statement from the Cabinet, the investing company, which it says is Harlow International , will prepare between 100,000 and 150,000 smart meters, in addition to the training of technical and engineering personnel.
TAQA, Etisalat Digital to enhance digital capabilities and customer experience
Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (TAQA) and Etisalat Digital announced that they will partner on an Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) project to enhance utility metering in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi.
Over the next two years, TAQA’s power and water distribution companies - Abu Dhabi Distribution Company (ADDC) and Al Ain Distribution Company (AADC) - will work alongside Etisalat Digital to deploy the communication network and an advanced Internet of Things platform for AMI, helping unlock the capability of existing and new smart metres installed in customer homes and businesses.
New electricity meters are coming
Edyna, the largest electricity distributor in South Tyrol, will replace the electricity meters of its 238,000 customers with smart meters, a new generation of smart meters, by 2024. The project to replace the electricity meters has been running since 2020, and to date 50,000 new smart meters have already been activated in 25 South Tyrolean municipalities.
From 3 January 2022, the exchange will start in the municipality of Bolzano in the Gries-Quirein district, followed by the districts of Zentrum-Bozner Boden-Rentsch in June and Don Bosco at the end of the year. In the course of the year, the municipalities of Schenna, Klausen, Deutschnofen, Ritten, Sarntal and Karneid will follow. At the end of 2023, the Bolzano district Europa-Neustift will follow and in 2024 Oberau-Haslach. "Smart meters are an important innovation that makes our power grid even smarter and more digital. This allows us to control energy distribution more efficiently and increasingly improve the quality of service for users," explains Luis Amort, General Director of Edyna.
Virginia okays Dominion's plan to deploy 1.1M smart meters
Dominion Energy Virginia's 10-year Grid Transformation Plan, designed in response to Virginia's 2018 Grid Transformation & Security Act, envisions a broad restructuring of the electricity grid in order to integrate more solar, wind and battery storage technology. The company had argued that as more distributed energy resources come online in response to state and federal policy, it will be necessary to create a more nimble distribution system with responsive rates in order to ensure reliability and cut down on costs.
The second phase of the plan approved by the SCC covers $666.5 million in capital spending for 2022 and 2023, which the company can seek recovery of in a future proceeding. The plan will allow Dominion to spend $194.4 million in grid technologies, including intelligent grid devices and fault location, isolation and service restoration projects targeted at grid segments with below-average reliability. It also includes $27.7 million on grid infrastructure spending for corridor improvements and voltage island mitigation.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Distribution Systems Automation, Virtual Conference, 27-28 January 2022
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6th Power and Energy Tanzania 2022, Dar-es-Salaam, 10-12 February 2022
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POWER TRANSMISSION IN AFRICA, Virtual Conference, 23-24 February 2022
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Africa Energy Indaba, Virtual Conference & Physical Exhibition, Cape Town, South Africa
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Future of Utilities – Smart Energy, London, UK, 8-9 March 2022
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ISRTC International Sustainability Resources & Technology Conference, Muscat, Oman, 14-16 March 2022
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26th ICCI 2022 International Energy – Environment Fair & Conference, Istanbul, Turkey, 16-18 March 2022
IEC CIM Week 2022, London, UK, 21-25 March 2022
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3rd Solar + Wind Congress & EXPO Vietnam 2022, 31 March 2022, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
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EM-Power Europe Conference & Exhibition, Munich, Germany, 10-13 May 2022
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9th Power and Energy Kenya 2022, Nairobi, Kenya, 19-21 May 2022
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15th German-African Energy Forum, Hamburg, Germany, 1-2 June 2022
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Enlit Africa Live Event, Cape Town, South Africa, 7-9 June 2022
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IEC 62443 Week 2022, Edinburgh, UK, 13-17 June 2022
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SPARK, London, UK, 21-22 June 2022
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Power & Water Nigeria Exhibition & Conference, Lagos, Nigeria, 21-23 June 2022
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Offensive Cybersecurity Strategies (Webinar), 19 June 2022, 16:00-17:00
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International Congres on Advanced Materials Science and Engineering (AMSE-2022), Opatija, Croatia, 21-25 July 2022
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2022 Asia-Pacific Power Supply Product and Technology Exhibition, Guangzhou, China, 10-12 August 2022
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Solar Energy Future & EXPO 2022, Bangkok, Thailand, 15 September 2022
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Enlit Asia, Bangkok, Thailand, 20-22 September 2022
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EcoEnergy Expo 2022, Kyiv, Ukraine, 18-20 October 2022
Solar Energy Future EXPO Malaysia 2022, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 2 November 2022
Solar+Storage Congress & EXPO 2022 Indonesia, Jakarta, Indonesia, 18 November 2022
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Dec2021
MEMBER NEWS
Ukraine’s DSO centralises smart grid management with GE Digital
In Ukraine, energy distribution system operator (DSO) DTEK Kyiv Grids has partnered with GE Digital to centralise its data management and sharing, work controls and network management.
DTEK Kyiv will deploy GE Digital’s advanced distribution management system to centralise dispatching centers and to develop a unified grid management system.
E.ON acquires majority stake in envelio GmbH
E.ON has acquired a majority stake in envelio GmbH, a clean-tech software company based in Cologne, Germany. envelio is a specialist in digital grid management and has developed the “Intelligent Grid Platform” – a solution that enables power grid operators to set up a “digital-twin” of networks and optimize grid planning and operational processes and decisions based on real time data. envelio has already been working with E.ON’s distribution system operators (DSOs) Westnetz and E.DIS for the past three years and is already serving more than 35 customers across Europe.
Victoria Ossadnik, Board Member for Digital, comments: “The energy transition will only succeed through the smartification of power grids. Through envelio and its dedicated team, we are securing a key technology that will enable utilities to manage their grids more efficiently.”
NES partners with Power Africa on smart metering and renewables
Networked Energy Services Corporation (NES), a global smart grid solution provider, has been selected as an official partner of Power Africa, a US-based government-led partnership, coordinated by USAID.
NES will help Power Africa to further expand into Africa, with projects in the DRC, Ghana, South Africa, and elsewhere.
Smart grid, sprints by Acea and Enel in Genova, Italy
Energy companies push smart grids. Acea, through its subsidiary Areti, has launched the "Smart Grid" project as part of the broader development plan for the Italian electricity grid, which will allow for a more innovative and efficient infrastructure.
The implementation phase of the project was entrusted, through tender, to two important technological partners, Sirti, an innovation hub in the field of network infrastructure development and system development and integration, and Nokia, a global company for communication solutions and technologies.
Duke Energy Indiana files plan to improve reliability and resilience of its statewide electric grid with innovative technology
PLAINFIELD, Ind. – Duke Energy Indiana filed a plan Tuesday with Indiana state utility regulators to improve the reliability and resilience of its statewide network of power lines and infrastructure that deliver electricity to more than 860,000 Hoosier homes, businesses and industries.
The six-year plan uses a combination of advanced technology and infrastructure upgrades to improve service to customers.
E.ON to invest Eur27 billion by 2026 into Europe's energy transition
Europe's biggest energy network operator E.ON plans to invest some Eur27 billion ($30.4 billion) in the energy transition over the five years to 2026, the Germany-based utility said Nov.23.
Some Eur22 billion are planned for the expansion of its gas and power distribution networks with E.ON also planning to add 5,000 new electric vehicle charging points across Europe boosting its customer solutions business, it said.
MARKET NEWS
Northern Powergrid unveil voltage control project to increase network efficiency
Northern Powergrid is looking to lower customers energy bills and reduce carbon emissions by using smart meter data to optimise the network voltage.
The Boston Spa Energy Efficiency Trial (BEET) will kick off in August 2022 in Boston Spa, Wetherby and the surrounding area.
Modern protocol for the smart grid
Smart metering sets the stage for a smart grid “system” offering increased functionality via built-in two-way communications and smart grid applications, many of which provide improved and expanded customer service.
However, DSOs should think beyond the meter and toward an overall system solution that delivers dramatic improvements in utility operations, reliability, and customer-service capabilities by offering detailed usage information, demand metering, detailed power-quality data, energy loss information, timely outage information and flexible billing options. Consumers, DSOs, and retailers all benefit from smart grid development.
Dutch installer Zonneplan launches maiden smart grid system that tracks prices in real time
Dutch solar installer Zonneplan has launched its first ‘smart grid’ system called that will offer customers energy based on real-time prices.
Launched this week (15 November), Slimme energie (Smart Energy) is a virtual power plant (VPP) and peer-to-peer (P2P) energy trading system that aims to completely digitise the generation, purchase, sale and storage of electricity.
How to Manage Cyber Risk as Grid Modernization Efforts Intensify
Few sectors face as much disruptive change in the years ahead as power and utilities (P&U), with the mantra of decarbonization, decentralization, and digitization continuing to grow more intense. Amid this rapid evolution, P&U companies have new opportunities to thrive—and so do cyber criminals eager to exploit new vulnerabilities, which in turn has triggered greater scrutiny from the Biden administration.
Within the P&U sector, 53% of chief information security officers have never been as concerned as they are now about their ability to manage the threat, according to the EY Global Information Security Survey 2021. About 80% have seen an increase in disruptive attacks in the past 12 months (Figure 1)—the highest rate among all sectors—and 43% believe it is only a matter of time before their organization suffers a major breach that could have been avoided if they had received additional investment. With 37% reporting that attackers are primarily targeting their industrial control systems—substantially more than any other attack vector—it’s no wonder that the White House asked P&U leaders to be part of a cyber summit on securing the nation’s critical infrastructure, and that the Transportation Security Administration has been working on enforceable new guidelines for pipelines, for example.
SaskPower Announces Mass Smart Meter Deployment
SaskPower is set to begin installing smart meters on residences across Saskatchewan. This follows a successful pilot that saw 17,000 volunteers receive residential smart meters this year.
"Smart meters are an important part of our efforts to build a modern power grid in Saskatchewan," Minister Responsible for SaskPower Don Morgan said. "These meters will allow SaskPower to respond to outages faster, ensure accurate billing, and provide customers with detailed information about power use to help them save on their bills."
UPCOMING EVENTS
Distribution Systems Automation, Virtual Conference, 27-28 January 2022
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6th Power and Energy Tanzania 2022, Dar-es-Salaam, 10-12 February 2022
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Africa Energy Indaba, Virtual Conference & Physical Exhibition, Cape Town, South Africa
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Future of Utilities – Smart Energy, London, UK, 8-9 March 2022
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ISRTC International Sustainability Resources & Technology Conference, Muscat, Oman, 14-16 March 2022
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EM-Power Europe 2022, Munich, Germany, 9-9 May 2022
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9th Power and Energy Kenya 2022, Nairobi, Kenya, 19-21 May 2022
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Enlit Africa Live Event, Cape Town, South Africa, 7-9 June 2022
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Power & Water Nigeria Exhibition & Conference, Lagos, Nigeria, 21-23 June 2022
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International Congres on Advanced Materials Science and Engineering (AMSE-2022), Opatija, Croatia, 21-25 July 2022
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Enlit Asia, Bangkok, Thailand, 20-22 September 2022
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Nov2021
MEMBER NEWS
Power Africa selects Networked Energy Services as an Official Partner
San Jose, CA, October 25, 2021: Networked Energy Services Corporation (NES), a global smart grid solution provider with the industry’s leading Energy Applications Platform (EAPTM), is excited to announce its selection as an official partner of Power Africa, which is a U.S. Government-led partnership, coordinated by USAID.
Power Africa chose to collaborate with NES because of its plans to further expand into Africa, with projects in the DRC, Ghana, South Africa, and elsewhere. NES looks forward to supporting Power Africa by developing and implementing smart grid and smart metering projects in the region, which will reduce losses, improve revenue, and assist with generating project funding for adding MWs and new connections.
EM-Power Europe 2022 presents smart solutions for the energy transition
A great atmosphere, well-visited booths and enthusiastic exhibitors – EM-Power Europe Restart 2021 in Munich in October was a complete success. Responses from exhibitors, visitors, organizers und partners were positive across the board: “We are so happy to finally meet again in person!”
Meanwhile, preparations are underway for the next EM-Power Europe, the international exhibition for energy management and integrated energy solutions, from May 11-13, 2022. Many exhibitors from October have already registered for 2022. The OSGP Alliance will also be a partner of the EM-Power Europe again. Present your company as well and secure a good position in the exhibition hall of EM-Power Europe 2022 in Munich. As an OSGP Alliance Members, you will benefit from attractive special conditions.
Enel X And Gogoro Partner To Make The Power Grid In Taiwan Smarter
Enel X, the world's leading virtual power plant (VPP) and demand response service provider, and Gogoro®, a global technology leader in battery swapping ecosystems that enable sustainable urban mobility, today announced they will support the integration of more renewable power on electricity grids utilizing Enel X's VPP platform and Gogoro Network's battery swapping platform, beginning in Taiwan. The project is designed to support the local electricity grid run by Taiwan Power Company (TPC), Taiwan's public power utility. The announcement was made during a TPC hosted press conference in Taipei, Taiwan.
"As a global leader in sustainable urban transportation and battery swapping refueling, Gogoro is committed to working with public utilities like TPC in Taiwan, and industry leaders like Enel X, to utilize the full potential of innovative technologies like time-shifted power to support the transition to renewable power, first in Taiwan and in additional markets in the future," said Horace Luke, founder and CEO, Gogoro. "By joining Enel X's digitalized VPP platform, we blend our ecosystems of innovative technologies together to support public utilities incorporating new renewable energy sources."
Polish utility to install advanced metering infrastructure with EIB loan
In Poland, utility company TAURON has secured a PLN 2.8 billion ($704.6 million) loan from the European Investment Bank (EIB) to modernise its electricity distribution assets and install an advanced metering infrastructure.
The advanced metering infrastructure and smart grid technologies to be installed will enable TAURON to leverage real-time data and analytics to enhance the operations of its grid and customer services.
Sympower and Vattenfall to Provide Northern Europe with Grid Balancing
Sympower, the Dutch independent flexibility services provider, has extended its partnership for a further three years with the European energy utility giant - Vattenfall. Working together with one of Europe's largest producers and retailers of electricity and heat, the renewed contract allows Sympower to provide continued grid balancing services in the Swedish market, while opening up further markets in countries such as Denmark.
Commenting on the renewed partnership, Anders Tonhammar Lööf, Commercial Team Lead, Sympower said: "Sympower is quickly establishing an enviable reputation as a world leader in smart grid technologies. Partnerships such as these allow Sympower to accelerate the global transition towards 'net zero' by helping to build smarter, cleaner renewable energy systems and deploy a wider range of lower-carbon grid-balancing services, such as demand-side response, across Europe and in other parts of the world."
Intelligent grid control: EON subsidiaries gridX and Westenergie cooperate
The smart grid company "gridX" and the distribution system operator Westnetz are cooperating. Specifically, the Westenergie subsidiary wants to use gridX's energy management solution to further advance the future project "Grid Operation 4.0", according to a press release.
As part of this project, Westnetz is equipping 100 local grids with intelligent metering technology and connecting them to a digital system. The different components can thus communicate with each other in order to dynamically control power generation, consumption and storage. At the same time, the planning and operation of local networks would become even safer and more efficient. In this way, the distribution system operator is making an important contribution to the cost-optimal integration of flexible loads in the grid – above all to charging points for e-mobility.
MARKET NEWS
More than half of all electricity meters in Europe are now smart
A historic milestone has been reached in the European energy sector as the penetration of smart electricity metering has now passed the 50% mark. This could be concluded in the latest study of the European smart metering market from the IoT analyst firm Berg Insight, which has tracked the development of the market since 2004.
At the end 2020, the EU27+3 region was home to nearly 150 million smart electricity meters, corresponding to a penetration rate of 49%. Growing at a robust CAGR of 7.2%, the installed base is expected to exceed 227 million units in 2026. The European smart gas metering market will meanwhile increase its installed base of devices from 39 million units in 2020 to just over 70 million in 2026.
The Clean Energy Package and the Smart Metering Business Case
The Clean Energy Package (CEP) in Europe, and similar initiatives around the globe, are driving the smart energy transition forward. Accompanying this transition is a significant change in the role of smart meters in the DSO’s business case. It is a little strange to think of “old views” and “new views” for the smart meter business case, but the reality is that the concept has been around, practical and deployed for over a decade. However, there has been a transition in the role of the smart meter.
The CEP is a major element of this change as it formalises the role of the smart meter in the heart of the smart energy transition. Through alignment to the concepts of the CEP, a DSO can leverage their investment in smart meters and generate more business value.
Grid modernization plan seeks $220M investment into AEP Ohio smart grid
AEP Ohio filed a settlement regarding its grid modernization expansion plan this week with the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO), setting the stage for a seven-year, $220 million investment into smart grid equipment across the company’s rural service territory.
Through an agreement with PUCO staff, the Ohio Consumers’ Counsel, industrial user groups, the Ohio Hospital Association, competitive retail electric suppliers, the Smart Thermostat Coalition and Mission:data, AEP Ohio laid out plans to increase access to technologies like smart meters, real-time energy usage data, and distribution system reliability enhancements. The goal is to leave no customers behind, no matter their environment.
Serbia’s DSO Elektrodistribucija Srbije announces smart metering rollout
In mid-September, Elektrodistribucija Srbije signed a loan agreement for the smart metering rollout with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).
The entire project in Serbia is valued at EUR 80 million, and the contract with the EBRD covers the first phase – the procurement and installation of software and the new system, and the replacement of about 205,000 smart meters in the cities of Kraljevo, Čačak, and Niš. The investment in the first phase is estimated at EUR 40 million.
Prepaid electricity meters to be installed in Sikkim in phased manner: Minister
Gangtok: The Sikkim government has decided to install prepaid electricity meters in a phased manner to ensure operational efficiency and sustainable use of energy by consumers, state Power Minister M N Sherpa said on Wednesday.
In view of the Centre's Integrated Power Development Scheme, the state government has planned to install prepaid smart energy meters in all major cities and towns of Sikkim by December 2021 in a phased manner, he told reporters.
Case study into outwitting electricity theft
The high incidence of electricity theft, meter tampering, meter bypassing, reading errors, and defective and aged meters increases utility losses, especially non-technical losses (NTL). By using customer-level residential billing panel data from 2018 to 2019, obtained from Northern Electricity Distribution Company (NEDCo), a study was undertaken on NTL in the distribution sector, since the economic viability of the whole electricity sector hinges on distribution.
The study assessed the effectiveness of the NTL programme using the difference-in-differences fixed-effect (DID-EF) approach. On average, the results indicated that the reported amount of customers’ monthly electricity consumption increases by 13.2% when any tampered post-paid meter is replaced with a smart prepaid meter. The study’s authors further employed quantile difference-in-differences regression and observed that reported energy consumption increased for all households except those at the lower quantile (25th quantile).
UPCOMING EVENTS
Enlit Europe, Milan, Italy, 30 November – 2 December 2021
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Hydrogen Economy Europe 2021, Online Conference & Exhibition, 2-3 December 2021
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Distribution Systems Automation, Virtual Conference, 27-28 January 2022
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6th Power and Energy Tanzania 2022, Dar-es-Salaam, 10-12 February 2022
Read more...
Africa Energy Indaba, Virtual Conference & Physical Exhibition, Cape Town, South Africa
Read more...
Future of Utilities – Smart Energy, London, UK, 8-9 March 2022
Read more...
EM-Power Europe 2022, Munich, Germany, 9-9 May 2022
Read more...
9th Power and Energy Kenya 2022, Nairobi, Kenya, 19-21 May 2022
Read more...
Enlit Africa Live Event, Cape Town, South Africa, 7-9 June 2022
Read more...
Power & Water Nigeria Exhibition & Conference, Lagos, Nigeria, 21-23 June 2022
Read more...
Enlit Asia, Bangkok, Thailand, 20-22 September 2022
Read more...
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