COVER STORY The new energy landscape: WHY IOT MATTERS By Vincent Petit, Schneider Electric We are in the midst of a major energy transformation. Our world is becoming more electric, more connected and more distributed and this growth is projected to continue exponentially, with electricity consumption expected to increase by 80% in the next 25 years. This new world of energy will be defined by the trends of decarbonisation, digitisation and decentralisation, shifting the global focus to technologies that create a cleaner, more reliable and future- proof grid infrastructure. The impact of these mega-trends are broader than we ever thought possible. A distributed infrastructure model is emerging, coupled with an influx of new energy resources like renewables and often changing load patterns according to different regional generation capacity evolutions. This is adding complexity and putting more demand on an already outdated grid infrastructure that was not designed to handle the variability associated with today’s level of demand. At the same time, the industry has evolved from a traditional value chain to an interconnected business model where end-users now interact with the grid. 18 A key hurdle of this new world of energy is as a result of the evolving role of the grid operator. Grid operators now take the brunt of the impact of this industry disruption. They are forced to manage the intermittency associated with a higher penetration of renewable energy, more demanding regulatory frameworks requiring increased resiliency and efficiency, along with new market evolutions such as increased customer/prosumer engagement and their interface with the utility. driven automation, and remote monitoring and management tools. For example, the smart grid incorporates sensors that monitor grid tendencies and evaluate grid activity to enhance reliability and resiliency. In turn, automated algorithms help to evaluate how those tendencies can be optimised in order to cut energy spend, drawing in real-time insights from external factors such as weather data to make automatic changes to distributed resources. All the while, those sensors are gathering data that is automatically stored and sorted within an operator’s system to allow the system to learn without impacting operations. Software applications can also be applied to the smart grid for remote monitoring and control, allowing further autonomy. The smart grid as it stands has served as a great foundation that has turned the grid into an asset and greatly increased the level of reliability and efficiency experienced by end-users. However, as we look toward 2025, when analysis suggests the traditional centralised model will be completely transformed by distributed energy, we now know we’ll need a more modern and even more intelligent grid. For grid operators to be successful in the digital age, they must undertake a digital transformation. Keeping pace with the evolving grid The grid became smarter by incorporating technologies such as smart meters, insights METERING INTERNATIONAL ISSUE – 6 | 2016