Intelligent Utilities: The Future of Electric Grids

Table of Contents

• Table of Contents
• Energy Insights Opinion
• In This Report
  • Brief Description of the Solution
    • Defining the Intelligent Grid
      • Components of the Intelligent Grid
      • Technologies Critical for Enabling These Components
    • How the Intelligent Grid Changes Energy Delivery
    • Figure: Evolution of Energy Delivery
• Situation Overview
  • Introduction
  • Figure: Today' s Electricity Grid
  • Figure: Tomorrow' s Electricity Grid
  • A Brief History
    • Underlying Drivers of the Intelligent Grid
    • Figure: Distribution of Smart Meters among European Countries
  • Current Environment
    • Regulators Are Becoming More Involved
    • More Partnerships to Develop Cost-Effective Technologies
    • Table: Current European Intelligent Grid Partnerships
    • EU Leads Worldwide in Large-Scale Deployment
  • Factors Affecting Adoption
    • Utilities Are Risk Aware
    • Regulations Can Force Utilities to Adopt Technologies
    • Differences Between the EU Market and Other Regional Markets
• Future Outlook
  • Remaining Challenges
    • Utilities Will Always be Utilities
    • Who Pays and Who Benefits
    • Technology May Expire Quickly
    • Reality of Distributed Energy
    • Double-Edged Sword of Regulators
  • Future Adoption Patterns
    • A Cautious EU
    • Figure: Internal and External Pressures on a Utility When Evaluating Intelligent Grid Technologies
  • Potential Pitfalls
• Essential Guidance
  • Actions to Consider
    • For Utilities
    • For Vendors
• Learn More
  • Related Research
  • Synopsis