Boulder, Colorado, USA. Business Wire– The home energy management (HEM) market is expanding at a slow but steady pace, as new industry participants introduce innovative products and a few US utilities, including Oklahoma Gas & Electric, NV Energy, and Baltimore Gas and Electric, promote HEM products linked with demand response programmes.
At the same time, the government of the United Kingdom has mandated that each home with smart electric and / or gas meters must include an in-home HEM display. According to a new report from Navigant Research, the installed base of homes with HEM systems, either standalone or networked, will grow from 4 million in 2013 to 87 million in 2022.
“The home energy management market has shown new signs of life in the past year, as non-utility players, such as broadband service providers and home security companies, have moved in and started to lay the groundwork for growth,” says Neil Strother (pictured above), senior research analyst with Navigant Research. “In some countries, government mandates that require energy management tools to be included with smart meter deployments will also play an important role in driving the market over the next 10 years.”
The barriers to wider adoption of HEM systems continue to be the cost and the perception of a long payback period, according to the report. Although some consumers will be motivated by rising electricity costs and by a desire to conserve energy, many others see little reason to jump in if the payoff is negligible. Slim savings of 3 – 5% may not be enough for them to change. Similarly, most consumers have a hard time justifying the initial investment in HEM hardware systems that cost US$200 or more.
The report, “Home Energy Management”, examines global and regional HEM trends as they play out along a continuum of five segments that include: paper bills, web portals, standalone HEM, in-home displays, and networked HEM. The study explores the drivers and inhibitors shaping the market, plus major technology issues.
Global HEM market forecasts, broken out by these five segments and world regions, extend through 2022. The report also includes key vendor profiles and analysis of new players, as well as case studies that illustrate the various stages of HEM market maturity. An Executive Summary of the report is available for free download on the Navigant Research website.
