Smart Grids Roadmap - Smart Grid Sherpa

This roadmap recommends the following actions:Collect and codify best practice from smart grid and smart metering pilot projectsand increase study of consumer behaviour, use findings to improve pilot projects.Expand pilots on automated demand response especially in service andresidential sectors.Develop electricity usage tools and pricing practices that incentivise consumersto respond to changes in electricity markets and regulation.Develop new policies and protection mechanisms to control and regulateprivacy, ownership and security issues associated with detailed customer usagebehaviour information.Develop social safety nets for vulnerable customers who are less able to benefitfrom smart grid pricing structures and are susceptible to remote disconnectionfunctions made possible by smart grids.Milestones2011 to 2020Continue over 2011 to 2050Evolve approaches over time,largely completed by 2030From 2011 to 2020From 2011 to 2015Collect best practice on consumerfeedback and use it to improvepilot projectsThe principle behind consumer feedback policies isthat making energy more visible enables customersto better understand and modify their behaviour.Consumer feedback can be provided across acontinuum, from a monthly bill to instantaneousread-outs of consumption and prices, some ofwhich are quite costly. A balanced and effectiveconsumer feedback policy can be developed byconsidering: i) What information customers reallyneed to make rational energy decisions?;and ii) What is the best form and medium topresent this information?Current consumer feedback pilot projects haveonly been able to motivate and discern short-termbehaviour changes, because participants realisethat the technology and services provided aretemporary. Infrastructure changes, which deliverlarge and sustainable efficiency and demandresponse results, are obtained only from long-termor permanent programmes. This is one of manyreasons why consumer feedback pilot projectresults vary radically. The design of pilot projectsalso makes it difficult to discern adaptive andinfrastructure changes, resulting in overestimates orunderestimates of long-term results. More rigorousand methodical research and evaluation is neededto identify the optimal method to deliver feedbackand to understand better the interaction betweenconsumer feedback and pricing or incentives(financial or other) and the effect of enablingtechnologies (e.g. automation) on results. Theseimproved approaches can reduce other issuescreating variability in pilot project results, includingthe prior history of consumer feedback policies,variety in customer types and preferences, and thespecifics of the service options being piloted.Additional research in this area should have threeobjectives: i) identify lessons for policy‐makersfrom social science research on consumerfeedback by collecting and comparing the resultsof advanced metering, real-time pricing andconsumer feedback demonstration; ii) outlinetechnologies proven to mobilise sustainablechanges in energy consumer behaviour; and iii)establish a community of practice internationallyto develop standard methods and analytic toolsfor estimating the consumer behaviour changebenefits of smart grids.Automated demand responseMany analysts believe that the full potential ofsmart grids can only be realised by creating aseamless and automatic interconnection betweenthe network and the consumer installation –either by using some end-use devices that arepre-programmed by the consumer, or by usingautomated building management systems.Feedback with the customer would occurautomatically within consumer-set parameters, inan extension of the feedback policies discussedabove. There is a significant amount of researchbeing carried out on processing and automationtechnologies that enable homeowners, buildingmanagers and business operators to programmePolicy and regulatory framework: actions and milestones37© OECD/IEA, 2010