Capacity & Supply

The future smart grid is conceived to remove barriers between generation, transmission and distribution by utilizing intelligent devices communicating with operations systems. The opportunity is to create a fully integrated network that provides real-time problem diagnosis and resolution and enables real-time exchange of information between the utility and its customers. Integration between all these assets will be critical to creating an intelligent grid in which all forms of supply can be managed more reliably and more efficiently.

The smart grid requires investment in grid infrastructure to move from a central generation model to a model that also integrates management of distributed energy resources. These distributed energy resources include renewables such as solar and wind as well as energy storage and demand management technologies. Distributed energy resource management will help meet the ever-growing need for capacity and significantly reduce the investments needed to roll out new infrastructure.

Several factors are driving this transformation:

• End user electricity rates are moving higher due to the compound impact of increased fuel costs and rising demand.
• Major capital projects required to deliver more generation are very difficult to site with environmental impacts becoming a major concern.
• External review processes are becoming more cumbersome, adding risk factors to new projects.

Addressing all of these factors together creates a compelling business case for the management of demand and the coordination of distributed energy resources for improved operational reliability and efficiency. This results in more effective energy delivery, initiating a multi-billion dollar capacity and supply market for distributed energy resource assets and the software that optimizes their utilization.