Trendspotting in Malaga

Smart meter trends

The main trend within Smart Metering is to evaluate a combination of technologies, using radio or PLC communication from the meters to the secondary sub-stations and use different kinds of concentrators for that purpose.

From the concentrator the most common trend is to use wireless M2M solutions (P2MP) to the M2M platforms and other backend systems. To secure reliable communication there is also wireless M2M solutions that communicate directly with the meters (P2P). In this case coverage is very important and there is a big uncertainty on how to secure absolute coverage if you are dealing with only one mobile network operator (MNO).

Due to this many companies evaluated the possibility to become an virtual mobile network operator (MVNO) but in the evaluation process companies become aware of the complexity and investments needed, this in conjunction with the deviation from core business the idea became a no go.

We had interesting discussion with almost all major utility companies from Germany, Spain and Portugal within this area and there is a large need for wireless M2M and MVNO expertise. Some utility companies are still in the pilot phase while some have already moved into the first phase of large scale rollout covering up to 1 million meters.

In Home Displays

The second trend is testing of different consumer monitoring solutions with the ambition to change consumer behavior. The most common model is different kinds of In Home Displays (IHD) combined with a web interface. Only a few are testing to provide services in f.x smartphones with some basic management features.

Some are also testing how differentiated pricing during the day will influence the usage of energy, both with automatic management and with sending signals about price changes via mobile phones. The common denominator for all these pilots is that they are fairly small, we only heard about one pilot bigger than 1.000 units.

Ubiquitous computing

We received very positive feedback on our workshop in the area of ubiquitous computing and how that can be used in dialogue with consumers. Our User Experience (UX) portfolio was perceived as a "very advanced tool for giving customers feedback" as one delegate said. Many delegates were also very impressed with the achievements we have done with E.ON and the 100Koll project, both from a solution and implementation perspective.

Renewable Energy Sources - VPP

The third trend is related to distribution of electricity from renewable energy sources, a rapid growing area. The production capacity from solar panels and windmills will vary a lot which in the next phase will generate challenges for the Transmission System Operators (TSO) to keep the balance in the transmission network and the quality of the power on a stable level.

To manage this the need to involve other energy sources will probably increase so that compensation for the variation can be obtained. Examples are diesel generators and batteries of different kinds. When all these different generators are combined you have created a Virtual Power Plant (VPP). To be able to manage such a VPP, full control of all the different energy sources are needed in order to know when to use what source and for how long each source will be available and add power to the network.

Online M2M devices is a prerequisite to get a VPP to operate correctly since real-time data is the key. The next critical issue is to calculate the best combination of sources for a specific target, high speed data management is needed combined with possibilities to create rules that trigger different actions to get the VPP to operate automatically.

What you need to know. Right now.

We left the NGU Summit exhausted and very thrilled about the upcoming future since we are able to provide "what you need to know, right now"!