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Smart Metering

Background

Issues

Case Studies

Smart metering has been rolled out with considerable success in a number of world wide markets including the United States, Italy, Sweden, Finland and Australia.

Smart metering, as defined by the Energy Services Directive and the 3rd Energy Package, is indeed simply an extension of current practice in the industrial and large commercial markets.

Anyone interested in smart metering progress around the world should visit this excellent web site maintained by Engage Consulting:

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&msid=115519311058367534348.0000011362ac6d7d21187

Bath

Aim	Energy consumption monitored over a 9-month period and compared (weather-corrected) to the previous year's consumption. Participants (with the exception of the control group) received feedback in various forms, i.e. consumption compared to previous consumption or to similar others; energy saving tips in leaflets or on a computer; or feedback relating to financial or environmental costs.
Consumption	Residential
Utility	Electricity and Gas
Duration	9 Months
Size of Trial	120 households
Location	Bath, UK
Date	1999
Web	weblink

Display	Display on PC
Advice	Home visits + energy saving tips in leaflets or on a computer; or feedback relating to financial or environmental costs

Electricity	Most households reduced consumption
Gas	Most households reduced consumption
Note	Overall the results indicated that income and demographic features predicted historic energy consumption but not changes in consumption during the field study, where environmental attitudes and feedback were influential. Of all the feedback groups, the installation of computers helped reduce consumption most markedly. Furthermore, people with positive environmental attitudes, but who had not previously been engaged in many conservation actions, were more likely to change their consumption subsequent to the feedback period.

Birka Tecknik og Miljo

Consumption	Residential
Utility	Electricity
Size of Trial	288 residents of apartment block. No-one had electric heating
Location	Sweden
Date	1998
Web	weblink

Display	On keypad-type (prepayment) meter. Information on consumption, cost, tariff, 'effect' [=environmental impact?]
Frequency	Real time hourly
Note	Coincided with move from group to individual metering.

Electricity

-0.2

California's Statewide Pricing Pilot

Aim	To test if customers shift or reduce load to time varying price signals.
Consumption	Residential
Utility	Electricity
Duration	2 years
Location	California, USA
Date	2003
Note	Tested different pricing options for different customer groups based on local climate differences
Web	weblink

Functions

Variety of Time of Use and Critical Peak Price options on top of 5 block tariff

Electricity	Various: +2% to -14% reduction during peak periods. Dependent on tariff
Note	Big price differentials are needed to obtain reductions in the 10-15% range. Residential customers are more price responsive than commerce and industry. Climate is key driver for demand response (warm climate and reduction in air-con use)

Canada 1992

Aim	Conservation effect of immediate electricity cost feedback information
Consumption	Residential
Utility	Electricity
Duration	60 days
Size of Trial	33 + 67 controls. All-electric family homes.
Location	Canada
Date	1992
Web	weblink

Display	Cost/Energy display on PC
Frequency	constant

Electricity	-0.12
Savings	feedback given for 60 days; use of display increased over that period.

Country Energy

Aim	To better understand our residential customers' propensity to change their electricity consumption patterns, if provided with more information about their consumption and its relative costs at different times of the day and year
Consumption	Domestic
Utility	Electricity
Duration	18 month
Size of Trial	150 customers in stage 1[single phase], 50 customers in stage 2 [mix of polyphase and single phase]
Location	Eastern Australia
Date	38322
Note	Introduction of 4 time of day price bands: 7c/kWh to 38c/kWh

Telemetry	PLC
Analysis	Home energy monitor' system - displays consumption history/patterns
Note	For critical peak pricing periods consumers are alerted >2hr beforehand via email, SMS and meter

Display	On meter: Cost and consumption. Daily, weekly and monthly. Red light and alarm for critical peak periods.
Advice	Yes
Frequency	real time 1/2 hourly

Electricity

variable: -25% to 0%

ENEL AMM Alliance

Aim	To create a AMM network for 30 million customers in Italy. Main aim to manage peak demand and manage bad payers.
Consumption	Residential
Utility	Electricity
Duration	Permanent
Size of Trial	21 million meters, 30 million customers
Location	Italy
Cost	€2.1 billion over 5 years
Date	2005 onwards
Note	Replacement period of 4 years. 40k meters installed daily.
Web	weblink

Meter	Single phase
Telemetry	PLC 2.5 Kbps half-duplex to concentrator. GSM from concentrator to CRM.
Note	New demand side management tariffs for householders introduced

Display	LCD on meter
Frequency	Accurate bills
Note	Capability to curtail power supply to specific customers at any time

Electricity

Estimated 5% reduction of peak demand for 3 hours, 10 days a yr.

Niagara Mowhawk

Aim	Low-income weatherisation pilot project that field-tested weatherisation, energy education and money management components compared to weatherisation alone
Consumption	Residential
Utility	Electricity and Gas
Duration	14 months
Size of Trial	47 (+ 30 controls), low-income
Location	USA
Date	1992
Web	weblink

Display	On 'energy log' display
Advice	3 home visits
Frequency	constant

Electricity	-0.03
Gas	-0.27
Savings	Over 14 months of project

Ontario SM implementation

Aim	Ongoing supply/demand challenge: ageing generation plant and predicted increased demand. Economy wide conservation target of 5% reduction in growth in peak demand.
Consumption	Residential and business
Utility	Electricity
Duration	5 years
Size of Trial	90+ local distribution utlities, 800,000 homes and businesses by 2007. Replace all concential meters by 2010.
Location	Ontario Canada
Cost	Capital cost of installation for all Ontario customers $850m (US). Estimated to increase monthly bills to consumers by $3 -$4 by 2010
Date	2005 -2010
Web	weblink

Advice

Introduction of time-of-use tariffs: on/mid/off peak rates: 2.9c/kWh to 9.3c/kWh

Note	Investigating other programmes which may be required to help nurture a 'culture of conservation'

Pilot systems

Consumption	SME Industrial, offices, pubs, churches, small plant
Utility	Electricity
Duration	2 years
Size of Trial	48 half-hourly customers and 25 non-half-hourly customers
Location	UK
Cost	£150 per meter per annum total
Date	38657
Web	weblink

Meter	Any FLAG meter (electronic with 1107) Elster, Actaris, PRI, Ampy, Siemens, Horstmann
Rate	Half hourly data
Telemetry	PSTN, Paknet and GSM
Analysis	Monthly review of profile on weekday basis, highlighting deviations
Functions	Daily retrieval, and import to web server for user access

Display	On Internet. Daily graph of HH data, monthly view of each weekday on 7 graphs
Advice	Person closest to control of operation (e.g. site manager) given access to web site so he owns the process
Frequency	Real time 1/2 hourly

Electricity	Variable: -25% to 0%, total suggested 847119 kWh or £55063, total implemented : 149685 kWh or £6096
Note	hard work getting user to put effort in, or spend money, even when savings can be proved

SenterNovem

Aim	Cost/benefit analysis of large scale introduction of smart metering for residential customers.
Consumption	Residential
Utility	Electricity and gas
Duration	10 year transition time
Location	Netherlands
Cost	For the CBA a period of 30 years (7% internal rate of return) is used. Costs: purchase and installation costs = ~€800m, monthly billing = ~€450m, data infrastructure = ~€350m. Benefits: easier swithcing, increased competition = ~€1350m, Reduced complaints
Note	Cost-benefit analysis rather than actual pilot.
Web	weblink

Meter	kWh counter, logging consumption per period (gas and elec), standard output for data
Telemetry	2 way comms using modem. 40% PLC, 40% internet, 20% GSM
Functions	Monthly billing.

Display

Yes - in house.

Note	Analysis concludes that Government and Regulator action is desirable. Defining standards and function across industry is necessary.

TEXAS - DSM

Aim	Testing Demand Side Management information and communications technologies.
Consumption	Residential
Utility	Electricity
Duration	Long term
Size of Trial	600+
Location	Texas, USA
Date	1998

Telemetry

AMR

Advice	No
Frequency	Constant
Note	Meter gave news of outages, TOU pricing. Used for customer load management; they can take advantage of cheap offpeak rates

Electricity	7-10%; 2kW peak reduction
Savings	Long term

Vattenfall AMR

Aim	Swedish Government proposition to have monthly meter reads for all customers by 2009 and hourly readings for all customers with 80-200 Amps by July 2006
Consumption	Residential and Industrial
Utility	Electricity
Duration	Permanent
Size of Trial	~900,000+ [phased introduction]
Location	Sweden
Cost	54 Billion Swedish Krona? (~ £3.8 bn)
Date	2003-2009
Note	Roll out of meters over 4 phases. Phase 1 = up to 50K meters (radio AMR); Phase 2 = up to 50k meters (PLC AMR); Phase 3 (PLC AMR )
Web	weblink

Meter	Choice of Actaris or Iskraemeco
Rate	Daily data collection - monthly exporting to billing systems
Telemetry	Actaris: 433Mhz radio to collector. GSM from collector to central system. Iskraemeco: PLC to collector. IP from collector to central system
Functions	Daily data retrieval to enable accuarate monthly billing