Ahead of his presentation at the upcoming European Utility Week event in Amsterdam, Mait Rahi, project manager and head of the Smart Metering Programme at Elektrilevi Estonia, says that outsourcing and relying on partners has its challenges as well as its advantages.
“Before one can distinguish between the different levels of responsibility shared by partners, you have to know what is happening on the ground and understand the potential issues that may arise during the project,” explains Rahi. “Normally, this may only become clear during the period of implementation and operation.” But, as he goes on to explain, Elektrilevi’s approach is to define these “connection points” only where they are able to define them clearly, and to measure them accurately.
Elektrilevi also believes in outsourcing services where possible. Rahi explains that outsourcing is essential if the company wants to maintain a competitive edge in the market. He adds, “It also gives us the confidence that our customers’ fees are spent in the best possible way.” (See Elektrilevi selects Ericsson for smart metering in Estonia)
Open energy market
Today all Estonian customers are in an open energy market, one which opened fully in January 2013. Indeed, for high consumption clients (above 2GWh/Y), the market has been open since April 2010.
Estonian domestic customers can choose among 12 sellers which makes the price of electricity more favourable than in most European countries, explains Rahi. Around 93% of electricity is consumed in contracts, and only 7% of the electricity is consumed under general service. Customers can choose their electricity at a fixed price-based on the stock exchange dependent price and as a combined package.
Rahi expects that the newly developed grid connections (the NordBalt connection between Lithuania and Sweden, and the connection between Lithuania and Poland) will lead to more stable prices throughout the Baltic and Nordic region, and that the added new production capacities will help to stabilise prices.
Estonia’s metering plans
Estonia is on the path to meeting its 2020 electricity metering goal. Estonian legislation states that all electricity meters must be replaced with smart meters by January 2017. The Elektrilevi Smart Metering programme is following this timeline. Mass installation took place in March 2013 and by the middle of 2014, over 263,000 meters were installed. Approximately 357,000 meters are yet to be installed.
According to Rahi, Elektrilevi’s main project is meter installation and operation for the efficient and accurate delivery of consumption data. In addition to this, the company is focusing its attention on the analysis phase of meter usage in wide grid monitoring. Says Rahi, “As everyone in the industry knows, meters ‘talk’ a lot. Therefore, the challenge is to convert this huge data flow into useful and trustworthy information which can be put to proper operational use.”
Energy transition
While smart meters offer numerous benefits to both the utility and its customers, Rahi believes that customers’ energy management solutions will eventually shift from the meter. “There are a number of solutions on the market already. These solutions will provide different levels for energy management for end-users and they are also able to operate independently from the meter,” he says, adding that at the end of the day, it is the customers’ choice as to what technology is used-whether it is a smartphone, tablet or desktop computer. “They all will be used if there are customers using them.”
So, what is Rahi’s opinion on Europe’s energy transition?
“Each European country and its electricity infrastructure is different. Therefore, the urgency on this topic is different for each utility. However, I strongly agree that there must be a decision-making point for every utility where they must decide whether they will participate in and provide off-grid services or not. By agreeing to participate, they will be taking on a new business opportunity.”
Mait Rahi will be speaking at the new sessions on Local and Small to Medium Sized Utilities within the free-to-attend Case Study Programme. This will take place on the exhibition floor, and you can join his presentation on Tuesday November 4, from 14.20-14.40. It is entitled Estonia: The Challenges and Advantages of Relying on Partners.
Follow this link for the full programme.
Click here to register to join the event in Amsterdam in November.
This article was originally published on Engerati.com
