Consumers have tremendous expectations for future energy services
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However, they are largely unaware that they need to take a more active role in managing energy decisions for their visions to become reality.
In many cases, consumers lack even the basic knowledge necessary to accomplish this. Utilities and other smart grid advocates need to improve information transfer to consumers to build broader support and the customer engagement that can follow. Delivered through trusted and generation-appropriate channels, this information must address consumers' specific knowledge levels, most important motivating influences and current perceptions of providers.
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 Global Smart Grid Federation Report
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The Global Smart Grid Federation is committed to creating smarter, cleaner electricity systems around the world. By linking the major public-private stakeholders and initiatives of participating countries, the federation shares practices, identifies barriers and solutions, fosters innovation, and addresses key technical and policy issues. These and other activities help member organizations initiate changes to their countries’ electric systems to enhance security, increase flexibility, reduce emissions, and maintain affordable,
reliable, and accessible power.
In addition, the Global Smart Grid Federation works with the International Smart Grid Action Network as well as with national and international government policymakers to address the broad challenges of deploying smarter grids. This nexus provides a forum for communication and collaboration, which will advance smart grids around the world and facilitate consensus-building within the international community to address electricity system and climate change concerns.
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Power of choice - giving consumers options in the way they use electricity
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Consultants report for the AEMC's Demand Side Participation Stage 3 Review (Power of Choice) which canvasses all the DSP pilots and trials throughout Australia.
This may serve a good check point as to what is happening across the industry.
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Building a smart energy future
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SGA welcome’s the government’s package of energy efficiency programs designed to drive smarter energy use in business, local government, households and communities for a clean energy future.
The programs include:
- The Community Energy Efficiency Program – $200 million to assist local government, not-for-profit and community organisations to undertake energy efficiency upgrades to community infrastructure.
- The Low Income Energy Efficiency Program – $100 million to support groups of service providers to demonstrate smarter energy use in low income households across Australia.
- The Energy Efficiency Information Grants program – $40 million to support small and medium sized businesses and community groups by providing information and advice to make smarter energy choices.
SGA has been a long time supporter of using smart technologies to address the issues of climate change, energy efficiency and sustainability and is keen to play a key role in these new programmes.
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NBN statement from SGA - 10 Oct 2011
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There has been some public comment about the cost savings of smart metering utilising NBN. SGA's position is that we believe there are synergies between NBN and smart grid technologies and that this needs to be explored along the lines being undertaken in the Smart Grid, Smart City demonstration.
Accordingly, SGA's Intelligent Network Working group is looking at these synergies with NBNCo. SGA is working with NBNCo to examine any potential costs and benefits of bringing NBN and smart grid technologies together. This work is focused on a national approach.
One of the challenges of taking advantage of the synergies is the different timeframes for the rollout of these technologies. |
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Change in services driven by Sensing and monitoring information
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According to an Australian Communications and Media Authority report, information harvesting through sensing and monitoring is increasingly pervasive in many aspects of day-to-day life and is being used to drive changes in life-supporting sectors including areas such as; food, health, energy, environment, entertainment and social engagement.
The report, ‘Sensing and Monitoring – recent developments’ looks at changes in information and communications technology that support the collection, connection and analysis of data through sensing and monitoring. This data is then being used to drive changes in production and distribution processes and the reach of services in the Australian economy.
Sensing and monitoring provide the mechanism for the harvesting of digital data. Sensors are parts of machines that gather data and have an important role in the processing and transport of data. Monitoring is a process that observes a state in time or tracks changes in data sets to derive information.
The report also examines:
- the use of sensing and monitoring developments across particular industry sectors of the digital economy,
- potential implications of digital capabilities for users,
- while the information revolution can potentially empower both organisations and individuals, it is also creating a pervasive environment that is increasingly less private, shrouded in technology, and raising questions about ownership and use of gathered information.
The report found that consumer experience will continue to drive many aspects of sensing and monitoring in providing information to people. An example of this is the smartphone as a source of data. These phones have emerged as a device that meets the consumer-centric expectation by providing a rich human interface experience and the ability to acquire and sense information in a personalised environment.
The smartphone provides not only the data input and information output but, in some instances, the application platform as well. This can be challenging to providers as functional trade-offs are made between the machine and human interface. |
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SGA welcomes NBN developments
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Smart Grid Australia welcomes the significant progress that has been made with the signing of the definite agreement between Telstra and the Government. With the NBN now firmly moving forwards the opportunities for smart grids are firming up. Smart Grid Australia and NBN Co have a work group relationship where such issues can be discussed. The NBN legislation also enables NBN to work directly with the electricity companies to interconnect their networks. Just like existing carriers arrangements, electricity companies will have to become carriers if they offer communications services to their customers.
Increasingly the focus of the industry is moving towards ‘The Internet of Things’ and smart grids are seen as one of the largest elements of this new development. Increasingly names such as ‘Super Grids’ and Super Intergrid’ are popping up in industry papers. The development of IPv6 is also getting the attention of the electricity industry as this IP address system would allow them to make every sensor in the network and every power point in the home an IP addressable element of the grid. |
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Media Release
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| European Distribution System Operators Organization - Joins the Global Smart Grid Federation |
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October 6, 2011 - Washington, DC - The Global Smart Grid Federation (GSGF), an international collaborative effort among national smart grid associations, today announced that The European Distribution System Operators (EDSO) for Smart Grids has joined the Federation.
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Launch of Smart Grid Research and Development Roadmap
Smart Grid Australia (SGA) has developed a Research and Development Roadmap to guide the energy industry and the research community in the key areas of research needed to support the rollout of smart grids in Australia.
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Clean Energy Future’ opens up opportunities for new investments in smart grids
Smart Grid Australia welcomes the government’s carbon price scheme ‘Clean Energy Future’. It brings certainty to the market and will allow companies to start planning for a greener and a much more energy efficient future by investing in arrange of new technologies.
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Smart Grid Australia welcomes focus on energy efficiency
With talk about the Multi-Party Committee on Climate Change to conclude negotiations shortly, Smart Grid Australia encourages energy efficiency to be included in the package of agreed measures to address reducing Australia's carbon emissions.
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Smart Grid Australia - Maximising Consumer Benefits
1st July 2011, Melbourne, Australia: Smart Grid Australia (SGA) today released a Consumer Report today entitled ‘Maximising Consumer Benefits’ which highlights that deeper consumer engagement is important for them to benefit from new smart grid technologies. The report, developed in collaboration with Retailers, Distribution companies, Academia, Technology Vendors and Consultants, explores some of the issues surrounding consumers and smart grids, and offers suggestions about how to manage consumer engagement.
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Smart Grid Australia provided the vision for the Smart Grid/Smart City project
In 2009 Smart Grid Australia presented its vision and ideas to the government in relation to what is now known as the Smart Grid/Smart City Project (SGSC). The project was so well received by the government that it doubled the proposed funding to $100 million. The aim is to link 9,500 homes to a smart grid during the period 2010-2013. The project was awarded to a consortium and is expected to deliver many valuable lessons and highlight key issues to be considered in the deployment of Smart Grid solutions across Australia.
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