Widespread deployment of smart grids is critical
for a secure, cost-effective and clean energy future, IEA report
says. ‘Smart Grids Technology Roadmap’ shows how use of smart grid
technologies can be expanded, identifies goals that must be
met

A new report from
the International Energy Agency (IEA) says the widespread
deployment of “smart grids” - networks that monitor
and manage the transport of electricity from all
generation sources to meet the varying
electricity demands of end users - is crucial to achieving a
more secure and sustainable energy
future. 

With
current trends in the supply and use of energy becoming
increasingly untenable - economically, environmentally and socially
- the IEA believes smart grids can play a significant role in
enabling nearly all clean energy technologies, including
renewables, electric vehicles and energy
efficiency. 

 

The
report, Smart Grids Technology Roadmap, provides a
consensus view from more than 200 government, industry, academia
and consumer representatives on the current status of smart grid
technologies, and charts a course for expanding their use from
today to 2050.

What is a smart
grid?    While there are different
interpretations, the IEA defines a smart grid as an electricity
network that uses digital and other advanced technologies to
monitor and manage the transport of electricity from all generation
sources to meet the varying electricity demands of end users. Smart
grids co-ordinate the needs and capabilities of all generators,
grid operators, end users and electricity market stakeholders to
operate all parts of the system as efficiently as possible,
minimising costs and environmental impacts while maximising system
reliability, resilience and stability.

This
report is the latest in the IEA‟s series of technology roadmaps to
guide governments and industry on the actions and milestones needed
to achieve the potential for the full set of clean energy
technologies.

 

A key enabling
technology

 
 

As well
as addressing current concerns with existing electricity systems,
such as ageing infrastructure and increasing peak demand, smart
grids are an important element for expanding the use of a number of
low-carbon technologies, such as electric vehicles. But governments
need to multiply their efforts.

 

“We
need to see a much more aggressive investment in large-scale
regional pilots in order to deploy smart grids at the scale they
are needed,” said IEA Executive Director Nobuo Tanaka, speaking at
the launch in Paris on 4 April.

 

“In
addition to funding regional pilots, governments need to establish
clear and consistent policies, regulations and plans for
electricity systems that will allow innovative investment in smart
grids. It will also be vital to gain greater public engagement.
This can be done by educating all relevant stakeholders - but
especially customers and consumers - about the need for smart grids
and the benefits they can offer.”

 

class=”Default”>Deploying in developing
countries

class=”Default”> 
 

The
report recommends that smart grids play a critical role in the
deployment of new electricity infrastructure in developing
countries and emerging economies.

 

As well
as enabling more efficient operations, grids can also help to keep
downward pressure on the cost of electricity, the report
says.

 

It also
outlines the potential for smart grids in rural areas of developing
countries further down the line. “Small “remote‟ systems - not
connected to a centralized electricity infrastructure and initially
employed as a cost-effected approach to rural electrification -
could later be connected easily to a national or regional
infrastructure, ” says David Elzinga, the report’s author and an
Energy Technology Policy analyst at the IEA.

 

The
report adds that smart grids could be used to get electricity to
sparsely populated areas by enabling a transition from simple,
one-off approaches to electrification (e.g. battery-based household
electrification) to community grids that can then connect to
national and regional grids.

 

Collaboration is
vital

 

While
many countries have plans to develop smart grids, the report argues
that there is a need for increased co-ordination to enable
countries to share lessons they have learned on a global
basis. 

 

The
report recommends greater international collaboration in sharing
experiences of pilot programmes and in leveraging national
investments in the development of required
technology.

 

It also
stresses a need to develop common standards between countries that
will help optimise and accelerate both the development and
deployment of necessary technology while at the same time, reduce
costs for all stakeholders; namely governments, industry, and the
public.

 

“Major
international collaboration is needed to expand research,
development, demonstration and deployment investment in all areas
of smart grids - but especially in the development of standards,
policies, regulations and business models,” says Mr
Elzinga.

 

href=”http://www.iea.org/papers/2011/smartgrids_roadmap.pdf”
target=”_blank”>The complete report on the Smart Grid Roadmap is
available for download here.