The verdict post-ETS is there’s potential momentum ahead for the smart energy industry

Jacob-Pereira, Jacob Pereira, IHS

Highlights of the recent Energy Thought Summit (ETS) held in Austin, Texas included the concepts of IT/OT convergence, utility operations and business models; plus newly available technologies designed to improve energy creation, delivery, consumption and conservation. Jacob Rodrigues Pereira, senior analyst, Smart Utility Infrastructure at IHS reports.

The ETS is a leading conference that brings together technology vendors, utilities, and regulators to promote smart energy practices in North America. IHS analysts who attended the conference found a uniform forward-looking mood among attendees and speakers, which was focused on critical near-term events that are most crucial to transitioning this ‘cleantech’ space from a niche enterprise, into one that is fully capitalised.

IT/OT convergence continues to create mayhem in the traditional electric utility business

It’s clear that the amount of IT expertise needed to run a modern distribution grid is rapidly increasing, bringing along with it not only new opportunities for technology vendors, but also headaches for traditional electric utilities. The broad spectrum of IT/OT convergence is essentially the driving conversation point for the smart grid industry in North America.

Electric utilities are faced with so much disruption that innovation centered on properly implementing and maximising modern IT solutions is crucial to success.  While progress is being made, utilities still need more guidance to take advantage of every available opportunity.

The concept of the ‘technology use case’ has been at the forefront of the smart grid industry since its inception. Vendors are looking for success stories, to help prove their wares to potential customers; however, at ETS utilities were asking for a different type of use case. Utilities need a better understanding of how to organise their employees and improve their business practices, to maximise the value of installing new technologies.

A new kind of use case is needed

In North America there is a growing need to clarify best practices for electric utilities, when it comes to organising personnel and updating business processes. Vendors need to view this process as an opportunity to review their successful installations and find ways to mine valuable information from their triumphs. If successful installations can be anonymised, consolidated and digested, in a manner that can then lead to clear examples for other potential clients, then the vendor is simply increasing the chance for future successful installations and case studies for their technologies.

New York and California are bringing needed momentum to the industry

Throughout the panel discussions at ETS, utility and technology speakers were looking at New York and California to give the industry a short-term push. To these speakers regulation is simply not moving fast enough to help maximise the available technology and meet the current business practices of traditional electric utilities; however, change is occurring in New York and California, which is leading players in the industry to increase their scrutiny of the progress achieved in these two bellwether states.

In New York regulators are looking to increase grid resiliency, in the wake of Hurricane Sandy; while in California regulators have conditioned the market environment to be lucrative for energy storage technologies.

In addition, just weeks after the ETS conference, Governor Jerry Brown of California has mandated a 25% water conservation cut, which could potentially lead to promoting smart utility technologies, in the wake of erratic weather patterns. The industry is looking at these two states for clues about how this new regulation will affect technology adoption, utility practices and customer service.

Final conclusion for technology vendors

Continued work to align the thought leadership of vendors and utilities is essential to near-term success in North America. Both parties are becoming fully aware of the changes that lie ahead, and both parties realise the need for regulation that accommodates these changes. While clinging to potential clarity from New York and California is productive, ETS and other industry conferences are needed to help the industry provide a focused, outward view to the public and regulators.

Change is coming in terms of how consumers purchase, receive and conserve energy and water in North America. Regulators need to continue to see a unified industry and engaged consumers, so when the expected successes in New York and California come, the momentum is not wasted.

IHS_logo.web
The author is Jacob Rodrigues Pereira, senior analyst, Smart Utility Infrastructure at analyst firm IHS

 

RECENT ARTICLES

Semtech enhances global connectivity with NTN support in HL78 modules

Posted on: March 29, 2024

Semtech Corporation has announced the integration of non-terrestrial network (NTN) support into its HL series LPWA modules, specifically the HL7810 and HL7812. This significant advancement showcases a leap forward in enabling uninterrupted global connectivity even amidst the most challenging conditions.

Read more

Enhance EV charging performance with cellular connectivity

Posted on: March 28, 2024

Electric vehicles (EVs) are steadily growing their market share at the expense of internal combustion engine vehicles. The growth is fuelled by several factors. Perhaps most importantly, prices for EVs have started to drop as competition in the industry is intensifying. New players and models are emerging, prompting several established EV makers to lower their

Read more
FEATURED IoT STORIES

What is IoT? A Beginner’s Guide

Posted on: April 5, 2023

What is IoT? IoT, or the Internet of Things, refers to the connection of everyday objects, or “things,” to the internet, allowing them to collect, transmit, and share data. This interconnected network of devices transforms previously “dumb” objects, such as toasters or security cameras, into smart devices that can interact with each other and their

Read more

The IoT Adoption Boom – Everything You Need to Know

Posted on: September 28, 2022

In an age when we seem to go through technology boom after technology boom, it’s hard to imagine one sticking out. However, IoT adoption, or the Internet of Things adoption, is leading the charge to dominate the next decade’s discussion around business IT. Below, we’ll discuss the current boom, what’s driving it, where it’s going,

Read more

9 IoT applications that will change everything

Posted on: September 1, 2021

Whether you are a future-minded CEO, tech-driven CEO or IT leader, you’ve come across the term IoT before. It’s often used alongside superlatives regarding how it will revolutionize the way you work, play, and live. But is it just another buzzword, or is it the as-promised technological holy grail? The truth is that Internet of

Read more

Which IoT Platform 2021? IoT Now Enterprise Buyers’ Guide

Posted on: August 30, 2021

There are several different parts in a complete IoT solution, all of which must work together to get the result needed, write IoT Now Enterprise Buyers’ Guide – Which IoT Platform 2021? authors Robin Duke-Woolley, the CEO and Bill Ingle, a senior analyst, at Beecham Research. Figure 1 shows these parts and, although not all

Read more

CAT-M1 vs NB-IoT – examining the real differences

Posted on: June 21, 2021

As industry players look to provide the next generation of IoT connectivity, two different standards have emerged under release 13 of 3GPP – CAT-M1 and NB-IoT.

Read more

IoT and home automation: What does the future hold?

Posted on: June 10, 2020

Once a dream, home automation using iot is slowly but steadily becoming a part of daily lives around the world. In fact, it is believed that the global market for smart home automation will reach $40 billion by 2020.

Read more

5 challenges still facing the Internet of Things

Posted on: June 3, 2020

The Internet of Things (IoT) has quickly become a huge part of how people live, communicate and do business. All around the world, web-enabled devices are turning our world into a more switched-on place to live.

Read more