The guide to smart metering covers all the most important components of this process - legal, technical, organizational and economic.
I work for a regional energy company, and in my free time I am interested in the history of the electric power industry and the theory of energy markets.
You may have heard that Russia is starting a transition to smart electricity metering. We are all consumers of electricity - at home or at work, and the meter is an important element of our energy consumption (its readings, multiplied by the tariff, are our accrual, what we must pay). I hope my Smart Accounting Guide will help you understand what it is, how it works, and when it will happen in your home, office, or business.
1. What is smart metering?
First, let's define the concepts. There is a regular counter (Next we will talk about electricity meters, since the legislation provides for the mass introduction so far only of smart electricity metering, and for other resources - water, heat, gas - there is still no certainty). Normal counter:
- considers only energy as a cumulative total (there are also multi-tariff ones that consider a cumulative total for two or three zones of the day - day, night, half-peak);
- it is necessary to write off readings from its scoreboard once a month and transfer it to the supplier (or energy companies send controllers to write off readings);
- does not allow you to regulate energy consumption (for example, turn off the defaulter).
Life hack for transferring meter readings
By the way, about the transfer of readings from ordinary meters: many suppliers have a personal account on the website and a mobile application through which it is quick and easy to transfer readings, receive an electronic invoice and pay it - check it out! Just type in the search the name of your supplier (take it from the electricity bill) and the words "personal account", "mobile application".
With the spread and cheapening of microprocessors in the 90s - 2000s, it became possible to integrate electronics into the meter. The easiest way is to build it into an electricity meter - after all, it has a constant power supply from the network and a rather large case. So there were "smart meters" and accounting systems ASKUE, AISKUE (these abbreviations mean an automated system for commercial energy accounting). Key features of AISKUE:
- such a meter takes into account not only energy, but also power, active and reactive, and can do it in hourly and for each phase, which already gives the first trickle of BIG DATA in the energy sector;
- such a counter remembers in the built-in memory read characteristics and automatically transmits readings to the server (in parallel, the readings can also be controlled from the built-in or remote display);
- smart meter can have built-in relay, limiting on command from the server of the non-paying consumera;
- this is usually two- or three-level systems: The counter (first level) sends data either directly to the server or to a collection device (second level), which consolidates the data and sends it to the server (third level).
In Russia, the AIIS KUE system (rather complex and expensive) is required for those who buy and sell electricity on the WECM - the wholesale electricity and capacity market (this market began operating in a limited volume since 2005 - the moment when the reform of the electric power industry began, and now there most of the energy produced is bought and sold. In addition, consumers in the retail electricity market with a capacity of more than 670 kW are required to provide hourly metering (that is, in one form or another AISKUE) along the contour of their consumption. These are hundreds of consumers in each region.
But for more than 90% of all electricity consumers, including households and small businesses, until recently, the main tariff was a one-rate or tariff by day zones (day-night), and the meter was ordinary, not “smart”.
Individual grid, power supply and management companies implemented smart consumer metering programs, but all this accounted for a small percentage of all consumers.
But recently, the concept has appeared in the legislation "smart meter" и "intelligent accounting system". How does this differ from a "smart meter" and ASKUE? What is now called "intelligent" is a device or accounting system that complies with a set of legally defined technical requirements, .
If the meter or the system does not correspond to them, but allows you to automatically collect and transfer data to the server, we still call such a meter "smart", and the accounting system - AISKUE.
Let's see what are the regulatory requirements, the fulfillment of which makes the meter (accounting system) intelligent?
2. What regulatory acts of the Russian Federation determine the rules and requirements for smart metering?
Until now, the cost of purchasing an electricity meter was borne by the consumer. Many did not like this, because
“The buyer does not go to the market with his own scales, the seller must have the scales”? ..
But the legislator at the beginning of the reform of the electric power industry decided that the tariff would be cleared of metering costs, that installing a meter is a separate paid service, and the consumer, paying for the meter with installation, has the right to choose: either to install the cheapest one-tariff meter or a more expensive meter that allows count by zones of the day or even by hours, and choose one of 3 types of tariffs in the tariff menu (population) or up to 4-6 price categories (legal entities).
FZ (Federal Law) made changes to , defining the basic requirements in the electric power industry in terms of accounting.
In fact, these are 3 key changes:
(1) As of July 1, 2020, the obligation to set up accounting transfers from the consumer to:
- network companies – in relation to all consumers who are connected to their networks, with the exception of apartment buildings) and
- guaranteeing suppliers (these are energy sales companies that supply you with energy and bill you) - at the entrance to the apartment building and inside the apartment buildings, i.e. apartments and non-residential premises connected to intra-house electrical networks);
In other words, the consumer will now bear the costs of the meter not directly and at a time, at the time of installation of the device, but indirectly - they will be included in the tariff of guaranteeing suppliers and network companies (read below how this will affect the tariff).
(2) From January 1, 2022, all metering devices installed must be smart (i.e. match ), and the consumer who has such a device installed will get access to its readings (how and what to do with it - see below).
That is, from July 1, 2020 to December 31, 2021, ordinary metering devices will be installed at the expense of tariff sources of energy companies (but in some regions where funds for smart metering were included in the tariff earlier, smart devices will be installed in full or in part), and only from 1 January 2022, smart meters will begin to be installed throughout the country (but not immediately - see "When will I get smart metering and how much will it cost?").
(3) Starting January 1, 2021, all developers commissioning apartment buildings must equip them with smart meters, put these devices into operation to the guaranteeing supplier, and the guaranteeing supplier will connect them to its smart metering system and give access to their readings to the owners of apartments and non-residential premises.
Let's sum up the intermediate result. 3 terms are defined:
- July 1, 2020 - from now all newly installed metering devices to replace those that failed, lost, with an expired calibration interval (except for those installed by developers in houses under construction) - at the expense of network companies and guaranteeing suppliers (in apartment buildings), however, not all such devices will be intelligent yet;
- January 1, 2021 - from now on, all apartment buildings commissioned must be equipped with smart meters;
- January 1, 2022 - from now on, all new meters must be smart, and the consumer who has such a meter must be given remote access to his readings.
3. What does a smart meter do?
If you open , you will see a long list of smart meter specifications, several pages long. So, what does a smart meter look like and what does it do in a minimal way? Here is a short summary:
- Outwardly, it looks like a regular counter.perhaps only a small antenna can indicate that the meter is smart;
- It has a built-in display on which you can see significantly more parameters than on a conventional, or remote display (some meters are installed on a support, and the consumer receives a device with a display connected to the network, which "communicates" with the meter, usually via the mains - );
- Terminal box (it includes 2 wires "phase" and "zero", and 2 out if the meter is single-phase) and the meter body are sealed electronic seal - when they are opened, an entry is made in the event log (and the opening icon appears on the screen), while the log is in non-volatile memory and is not erased when the power is turned off. The log also records the occurrence of problems in the "hardware" and "software" of the device, disconnection from the network and inclusion in the network, critical changes in quality parameters. Magnetic fields are also controlled - so, if the module of the magnetic induction vector exceeded 150 mT, this is recorded as an event with date and time fixed;
magnet and counter
Never put a magnet near a smart meter - it usually won't hurt it, but you will be accused of trying to tamper with the meter! - To access instrument parameters (with direct connection to the instrument via optical port, RS-485 or from a server), you will need identification and authentication (that is, login with a username and password);
- The meter measures energy not only for receiving, but also for giving. In parallel, we note that now in Russia it is legally allowed to install a windmill or a solar battery up to 15 kW in an individual house. The smart meter will take into account every hour how much you have consumed and how much you have put into the network;
- Counter counts energy by the hour - yes, 24 hours a day (with storage for at least 90 days), while counting both active energy (the one for which the consumer, in fact, pays) and reactive energy (this component of the total energy, which is created, for example, in electric motors , and "walks" through the network, distorting the parameters and creating losses). Possibility to calculate energy even every minute (however, the available memory will be used up faster). The accuracy class for the population and small businesses is 1.0 for active energy (that is, the measurement error fits into 1%, this is 2 times less error than conventional meters now) and 2.0 for reactive;
- Each phase calculates phase voltage, phase current, active, reactive and apparent power in a phase, current unbalance between phase and neutral wire (for single-phase), network frequency. Intelligent system captures moments of violation of quality parameters with a 10-minute interval: so, a slow change in voltage in an interval of 10 minutes should be within ± 10% (207-253V), and overvoltage is allowed up to + 20%, or 276V from certain 230 volts. This turns the meter into a node for monitoring the state of the network and its parameters (modes) of operation, and tens and hundreds of thousands of such devices in different network nodes create a significant BIG DATA stream about the state of the power system.
- The counter has built-in clock with an error of no more than 5 seconds / day, a built-in power supply for them (that is, the time does not go astray when the power is turned off), with synchronization with an external source of time signals;
- An important component of a smart meter is the way it is links with other elements of the intelligent accounting system (other devices, data collection and transmission device - USPD, base stations, server). The following methods are used (for details, see below - What smart metering systems are there?): communication over a low-voltage conductor (twisted pair, ), power network communication (), radio communication (or , or built-in -modem with a SIM card, WiFi is rarely used);
- Finally, one of the most important functions built-in switching device for limiting/disconnecting consumption. It performs a limitation (power reduction or complete shutdown - depending on the device) when receiving a signal from the server. These can be planned limits or non-payment limits. But the meter can be programmed to turn off when the specified parameters in the network, power consumption, unauthorized access are exceeded. Locking in the “off” and “on” positions is also possible on the device body. Of course, if the meter is transformer connected, it cannot contain such a relay;
- In this case, verification interval such a complex device remains almost the same as that of conventional metering devices: at least 16 years for single-phase and at least 10 years for three-phase. (Verification is a confirmation of the compliance of measuring instruments with metrological characteristics, it is carried out on special equipment).
Let's summarize the intermediate result: a smart meter is a powerful source of data for both the consumer and the supplier, and for the entire power system at the point in the network where it is connected. But this is not a passive meter, but an active element: it can produce a limitation, give a signal about interference in its work.
4. What smart metering systems are there?
All smart metering systems (IMS) can be divided into several types.
By architecture:
(1) IMS containing a minimum number of levels - two (the meter itself and the server on which the readings are stored, and to the data of which the consumer has access to his meters);
(2) IMS having intermediate levels - at least one - is the level of data collection from meters to the data collection and transmission device (DCD) or to the base station. USPD is usually connected via a power network (PLC technology, Power line communication - data transmission over a power network at high frequencies). The base station uses radio frequencies of the unlicensed spectrum: 2,4 GHz, 868/915 MHz, 433 MHz, 169 MHz with a range of up to 10 km in line of sight. At the level of USPD, the base station collects data from meters (interrogation of meters), sends data to the server (usually via a GPRS modem), as well as receives information from the server and sends it to the meters. In addition, sometimes the devices themselves can relay each other's signal further along the network. The servers themselves can also be a layered system.
According to the method (technology) of communication, IMS can use the main technologies:
(1) Data transmission over a low-voltage non-power network (twisted pair, laid in special boxes in apartment buildings, offices, enterprises or , for connection with a nearby USPD). The advantage of this method is sometimes low cost (if only there were free boxes or the twisted pair was laid earlier). The disadvantage is that a twisted pair cable with mass use (40-200 metering devices in each apartment building) will be subject to equally numerous failures, deliberate breaks, which will prohibitively increase the cost of maintenance.
(2) Data transmission over the power network () from meters to USPD. Next - GPRS modem to the server.
This technology increases the cost of a separate meter, the cost of USPD with a modem, which is installed on 20 - 40 - 100 meters in the house, also increases the cost of the system by 10-20% per metering point. There may be impulse noise in the network (for example, from old technology), which can reduce reliability, require an increase in the number of polls. To install a USPD with a modem, you need to have a lockable input device (cabinet) of an apartment building, a place in it, or purchase and hang on the wall a secure, key-locked, burglary-resistant metal box.
However, the PLC-USPD technology is used quite widely, it is already a kind of “basic standard” in smart metering systems, against which other solutions are evaluated.
(3) Radio data transmission (), while the meters have a special radio module and antenna, and in settlements at high points, base stations or concentrators are installed that receive a signal from numerous meters and other smart home devices. The advantages of these systems are:
- Large coverage radius - up to 10-15 km in a straight line in the absence of obstacles;
- The ability to connect multiple devices (various types of meters, smart home devices) within the reception radius of the base station;
- The cost of the base station, its installation and maintenance per one metering point in some cases may be lower than the cost of the USPD per point.
Disadvantages of LPWAN - LoRaWAN systems:
- Lack of uniform standards, novelty of the system;
- The need to design a network of base stations that provide guaranteed coverage of a separate settlement - a project, calculations and tests on the ground are required;
- The need to rent a place (contracts with owners, managing organizations) of tall buildings to accommodate a base station, antenna, power supply - this complicates the logistics compared to the installation of the USPD, which requires a small space in the input device or a separate lockable box on the wall;
- Low transmission speed (however, this limitation is not critical for metering systems, where meter polling should occur either once a day for metering points over 150 kW, or once a week for all others: population and legal entities less than 150 kW, up to 80-90% all points)
- When passing through the wall, the signal overlap is weakened, a certain proportion of devices with an unstable connection may appear (it will be necessary to move the device antenna to a more “catchable” place);
- In small settlements, of which there are thousands in each region of European Russia (from one to 10 metering points in each), this solution will be prohibitively expensive per metering point;
- Finally, one of the legal restrictions is the requirement of PP 890: the number of counters with a limiting function controlled by such a station should not exceed 750. That is, instead of spreading the cost of such a station over thousands or even tens of thousands of devices within reach, we must register no more than 750 direct connection meters in it).
Why such a restriction?
This restriction was introduced to minimize the risk that an intruder, having taken possession of access to such a device, will simultaneously be able to de-energize a large number of consumers ...
(4) Meters with built-in GPRS modem. This is a solution for equipping small points, as well as for those points in apartment buildings, other buildings, to which the USPD or the base station “does not finish”. If the MIS in the city is built on the basis of USPD, then for small houses with 2-4-10 apartments, USPD may be more expensive per metering point than a device with a built-in GPRS modem. But the disadvantage of meters with a built-in GPRS modem is the high price and operating costs (you need to pay monthly for a SIM card for each such device for several communication sessions per month). In addition, a large number of such devices that send data to the server will require a wide channel for receiving such messages: it is one thing to interrogate several thousand USPDs and base stations in the region, and another - hundreds of thousands of individual metering devices. For this, an intermediate level is created from the USPD and (or) base stations.
By ownership (ownership)
Smart metering systems may belong to:
- For network companies, these are all metering points, except for those that participate in the wholesale market, as well as apart from apartment buildings. There may be several network organizations in the region: one large one, which is part of Rosseti PJSC, and several small ones, owned by different owners and municipalities. They must establish a free exchange of data in the part that concerns metering devices at the border of their networks and consumers that are connected to the networks of several owners;
- Suppliers of last resort (this is an energy sales company that sells energy and bills to consumers in its region). These are systems that cover accounting at entrances to apartment buildings and meters inside the house, including entrepreneurs on the first floors, in basements, non-residential premises, if they are connected to the intra-house network. If such a room is fed by a separate input, then its meter belongs to the IMS owned by the grid company - as determined by the legislator. At the same time, guaranteeing suppliers and network organizations exchange their IMS data free of charge - so that the consumer does not have to look for data from his devices in his personal account or mobile application;
- Developers - those smart metering devices that will be installed by developers in houses remain their property, the legislator only talks about transferring them into operation to guaranteeing suppliers.
- There are also AISKUE systems that are not intelligent (that is, not suitable for the minimum requirements of PP 890), which belong to different owners - management organizations in apartment buildings and office buildings, summer cottages and gardening associations, industrial enterprises, participants in the wholesale electricity market.
There is one more component of any ISU - safety requirements, including data transfer protocols. These requirements (the so-called “violator model”, as well as protocol specifications) have not yet been approved, the Ministry of Energy and the Ministry of Communications were instructed to develop and approve them by January 1, 2021. And until July 1, 2021, it will be introduced single coding of all metering points - any data of any metering devices will be tied with a unique code to the point in the network where the device is installed (now each IMS owner uses his own coding). This, given the massive and free exchange of smart metering data between energy companies, will allow creating a distributed database with clear identification. At the same time, the data of each consumer is protected by the requirements for the protection of personal data.
To summarize: smart metering systems can be based on different architectural solutions, use different data transfer technologies, belong to different owners, but all of them must provide the minimum functionality of data, operations, and actions that are prescribed in PP 890.
5. When will I get smart metering and how much will it cost?
First of all, let's be clear: conventional and smart meters at the expense of network companies and guaranteeing suppliers will not be installed by everyone, and from July 1, 2020 only to those who have:
- The meter is missing or lost;
- The meter is out of order;
- The service life of the device has expired (it is 25-30 years);
- The device does not correspond to the accuracy class (2.0 for household consumers - that is, its error lies in the range of 2%. Old meters with a class of 2.5 should be taken out of service. The accuracy class is the number in a circle on the front panel of the device);
- The interval between calibrations has elapsed - usually this interval is 16 years for household appliances.
But, in connection with anti-coronavirus measures, meter readings with an expired calibration interval for residential consumers are accepted until January 1, 2020;
- With technological connection to the network, during the construction of apartment buildings by the developer.
There is another significant point defined by the legislator:
- From July 1, 2020 to December 31, 2021, grid companies and guaranteeing suppliers can install conventional meters (but if they have been allocated funds for smart meters in the tariff, they will install smart meters);
- But already from January 1, 2022, grid companies and guaranteeing suppliers install all new meters with intelligent functionality and provide access to their systems so that the consumer can remotely see all the data that this meter has collected: through a personal account on the website or a mobile application. The login will be under your username and password, and you will see only your smart meters.
- One more thing: if you are the owner of a country or garden house, a garage in a garage cooperative, an office in an office building, if in your cooperative or village the intra-settlement network does not belong to any of the network companies in the region (it may belong to all owners in certain shares, or belong to a cooperative), then neither the grid company nor the guaranteeing supplier is obliged to install metering devices free of charge at such points (with the exception of the point at the entrance to the village, cooperative, office, where the border of the grid company begins - the grid organization installs there). Your right, as owners, to get together and decide what kind of accounting you will put - intellectual or ordinary, the cheapest. Similarly, inside the border of a plant, a shopping complex, if there are no networks of any network company, then the owners of workshops and premises establish accounting at their own expense.
So, if you, as a household consumer, have expired the calibration interval, you can transfer the readings of the meter until 1.01.2020/XNUMX/XNUMX, and they will be accepted.
If your metering device is not working or is missing (and there is an opportunity to install it), then you contact to a network organization (if you have an individual house or other premises that are not connected to the intra-house networks of an apartment building).
If you apartment in an apartment building that has a common network or non-residential premises in an apartment building connected to intra-house networks, then you contact a guaranteeing supplier. The scope of duties to establish accounting on the part of the guaranteeing supplier does not include blocked houses, townhouses with separate inputs - this is the scope of the responsibility of the grid organization.
How quickly will the meter be delivered to you? determines a period of 6 months from the date of application. It must be understood that many owners of apartments and houses were in no hurry to replace the metering device for their money until July 1, 2020, if they come along with those whose device fails after July 1, they will create a large queue for replacement (the number of specialists, replacing metering devices cannot increase immediately and many times). If you are the kind of consumer who was in no rush to replace your appliance before July 1st when you received a standard bill, perhaps you did this because the standard was more profitable for you than the actual consumption calculation? That is, you must be prepared that the free replacement of the meter will lead to the fact that the actual fee charged according to real readings will increase (or you will have to do energy saving in your apartment or house), and for non-payment, the meter will turn you off even without leaving the brigade.
But what happens if my metering device fails and I don’t contact the network or the guaranteeing supplier (in an apartment building)? Sooner or later (as soon as the replacement queue decreases), the network organization or the guaranteeing supplier will contact you themselves and offer to install the device. You must agree on the place of installation (or replacement, if the device was previously located there).
Some consumers do not want to wait and are ready to pay for the installation of a smart device themselves, just to get a meter “out of turn”, without waiting for the existing calibration interval to expire, or without waiting for January 1, 2022. The legislation does not prohibit the installation of metering devices for such consumers for a fee. This, by the way, reduces the burden on the tariff for all consumers.
But what is the price of smart metering? Let's count. Previously, a household consumer paid for a replacement with the installation of a conventional meter from 1 to 2 thousand rubles (depending on whether he needed one or two-tariff meters) on average 1 time in 16 years, that is, an average of 5,2 - 10,4 rubles. per month of consumption.
The cost of an intelligent device, taking into account the USPD system or base stations, servers and software, per household consumer, including installation and commissioning, is expected to be about 7-10 thousand rubles. - depending on the type of system, the density of consumers and, importantly, depending on the price dynamics in the market for smart devices. This, with a period of 16 years, is about 36,5 - 52,1 rubles. per month or 5-10% of the monthly electricity bill of most consumers.
Does this mean that the tariff for the population will increase by 5-10% due to smart metering? This is not such a simple matter, as the household tariff is cross-subsidized by high voltage consumers, mainly by large industry. And the population tariff itself is indexed annually by an amount no higher than the official inflation figure - this only covers the inflationary increase in costs. Therefore, the answer to the question about the growth of the tariff for the population sounds like this: it is expected that the rate of growth of the household tariff will not exceed inflation, that is, the vast majority of the costs of smart metering in the part of the population will fall on consumers-legal entities, whose share in consumption is about 80%. For many of them, this will be an imperceptible increase (price fluctuations in the wholesale market have much wider limits), but in the aggregate, of course, smart metering is a noticeable burden on the tariff. Moreover, since quite a few citizens have accumulated who were in no hurry to replace the meter for money, this burden will be significant in the first years. And the program itself for replacing metering with smart metering will drag on for 16 years - until the calibration interval for conventional devices that were installed in the first half of 2020 expires.
How to reduce, optimize the tariff burden from the introduction of smart metering? The first thing that suggests itself is to set a price ceiling for such devices. But this is an extremely inefficient solution - limiting the price, according to our experience of 30 years ago, will immediately lead to a shortage of devices on the market. And no one removed the obligations for installation and sanctions for non-installation from guaranteeing suppliers and network organizations.
We, power engineers, still hope that competition between manufacturers of intelligent devices and systems will lead to a significant drop in prices in the coming years (historically, prices for all electronics tend to decrease, especially for those electronics that use an element base of not the highest performance) .
But there is another way to reduce the costs of implementing smart metering. This complex equipment of apartment buildings with accounting. How it works? Now the legislation says: those points where the device is absent, out of order, lost, the service life has expired or the interval between verification of metering devices has expired are subject to free metering. But inside an apartment building, this means that the replacement of metering devices with smart ones will be “leaky” - they replaced it here, and here the replacement is only in 2027, and here - in 2036 ... And the brigade will have to travel from house to house for the sake of 1-2- 3 devices from 40-100 metering points. Time, gasoline, salary… And in order to provide all such devices with access to the intelligent system (to the server) from 2022, you will have to install USPD in all houses, or cover all cities with a network of base stations… Literally in a year! As a result, the cost per metering point in the first years will increase significantly, it will be extremely inefficient, point automation, which will not give any effect to either residents, or management organizations, or power engineers.
The way out of this situation is complex equipment of apartment buildings. At the regional level, it is developed and approved multi-year ISU equipping program, taking into account how much the tariff can “pull”. In this program, specific houses are prescribed, which this year should fall under 100% equipment. First of all, the program will include houses with the highest intra-house losses, which impose additional costs on residents and management companies, houses whose networks are ready for PLC, houses that are compactly located near the base station. The team will work on one house from the beginning until it is fully equipped, which will dramatically reduce the cost of installation.
But in order to adopt such a program for the comprehensive provision of smart metering, it is necessary to amend the existing legislation, which would allow the region to decide on the spot how, when and with what technologies it is more efficient to implement smart metering.
Let's sum it up briefly: the existing legislation requires “spot” equipping of apartment buildings with smart metering, while such equipment can stretch for 16 years. In the first years, a lot of money should be invested, and then - a little bit. This is extremely inefficient and expensive, and will not work.
The proposed way is to enable the region to form a comprehensive program, taking into account the possibilities of the tariff for a long period. This program will indicate specific houses that are subject to 100% equipping in a given year. This will make it possible not to dissipate funds, but to get control over their spending: after all, it is much easier to check whether the system is in 400 apartment buildings that should be equipped this year than whether the device is installed in 40 individual points scattered across 000 houses. ?
6. What will smart metering give me (consumer, business)?
First of all, smart device frees the consumer from the need to take and transmit his testimony, while energy sales and networks reduce the cost of bypassing controllers (although they do not disappear completely - after all, smart meters also require periodic maintenance, troubleshooting on site).
An important function is hourly accounting, which will allow any consumer-legal entity and individual entrepreneur, even an ice cream stall, at any time switch to hourly rate, with the calculation of energy and capacity prices corresponding to prices on the wholesale market (these are the 3rd - 6th price categories in the tariff menu). A household consumer can choose one of 3 tariffs - one-rate, "day-night" and "peak-semi-peak-night". And not just to choose, but according to the dynamics of hourly consumption the intelligent system itself will show which of the tariffs is more profitable, when and how much. And by following the recommendations for leveling the load schedule within the existing tariff, price category, recommendations for energy saving, the consumer will be able to further reduce your energy bill, while smart metering will help you understand where and how much you can reduce it. Due to the many parameters considered as an intelligent device, it is possible to introduce wider tariff menu, giving even more options for choosing the optimal tariff.
The consumer (so far only a legal entity) with the installation of an intelligent device has the opportunity to participate in demand management market – get paid for the fact that the consumer has transferred consumption from peak hours to those hours where the load on the power system is lower. This will allow reduce energy prices in the wholesale market, by reducing the load and payment for the power reserve of the most expensive, inefficient and often environmentally "dirty" stations and power units. This is a very promising market - the service of the Chief Power Engineer at the enterprise, thanks to participation in demand management, ceases to be only a source of costs, begins to provide a stream of income that can even pay for its maintenance.
Thanks to smart metering in apartment buildings losses will drop sharply, which will reduce the payment of tenants and eliminate the costs of management companies to pay for excess intra-house losses, freeing up money for current repairs and improvement of the house and the area around it.
Smart metering data, when used effectively, makes the enterprise and business a little “smarter” technologically, because all the subtleties of the work of the technological process are reflected in the fluctuations in the consumption of active and reactive power, and their decoding, incl. accurate to the minute, can give additional source of data for optimizing equipment operation processes.
Since the smart device counts the energy both receiving and giving, then the consumer in a private house has the opportunity to install a windmill or solar panels with a capacity of up to 15 kW (this will require a change in the conditions of technical connection in the grid organization), conclude an agreement with a guaranteeing supplier serving you on the supply of surplus to the network at prices not higher than wholesale market prices ( this is with VAT, on average, about 3 rubles / kWh), while the delivery price will depend on the hour - it’s cheaper at night!
Thanks to a distributed system of tens and hundreds of thousands of smart meters that measure hourly and even minute graphs of active and reactive power, voltage and current parameters, the power system receives an invaluable source of data for optimizing your modes of operation, identifying reserves and power shortages by each node, feeder, substation, reducing losses and detecting illegal connections, identifying points in the network where reactive power compensation, local generation, incl. for renewable energy sources, energy storage for smoothing peaks and equalizing parameters in the network. Taking into account the new data, the investment programs of generation and networks, leading to an increase in tariffs, can be revised and optimized.
Let's summarize: strategically, in a ten-year perspective, after smart metering devices are widespread, smart metering will transform the energy sector, make it more efficient, and therefore more affordable for the end consumer, and give the consumer ample opportunities to optimize his bill for energy, participation in demand management, will allow the implementation of effective tariff menus. This will eventually pay off the additional costs included in the tariff, allowing to reduce its growth in the long term, however, in the early years, the inclusion of such programs in the tariff may provide a few additional percentage growth.
To smooth out this growth, as we have identified above, the adoption of a comprehensive program of equipping with smart metering, indicating specific multi-apartment buildings equipped with 100% in each of the years of such a program, will allow.
7. What's next?
The smart metering program will last for 16 years - until the moment when all outlets will have such metering. 16 years is the period until the last conventional devices installed in 2020-2021 reach their calibration interval. This period can be reduced to 10 years by adopting appropriate regional programs for complex equipment (they will allow unloading the tariff in the first years of installation, and finding sources for increasing the volume of work in 5-7 years).
The smart energy metering program will encourage the installation of smart appliances and other resources - hot and cold water, gas and heat. Having received a smart metering device in operation, many owners of apartments and houses will also be interested in other smart home systems - a variety of sensors and controllers (pipe breaks, gas leaks, breaking windows, opening windows and doors, video surveillance systems, curtain control, music, climate control and lighting...)
The smart electricity meter also has room to grow. The functionality that is currently defined is not in vain called minimal. In future the counter can become a "smart hub" to concentrate information from all devices of a smart home or apartment, devices installed in the entrance, counters of other resources. A smart meter can record the slightest changes in voltage and current, reactive power, and understand which devices turn on and off - not only in the house, but also in the office, in production. This will make it possible to understand which devices and equipment work, in what periods, how efficiently - to organize effective energy management, under the control of "artificial intelligence", represented by millions of smart devices, big data processing tools, statistics, the base of best practices for selecting and controlling the modes of any equipment.
Smart meters will change our lives in the same way that mobile communications, the Internet, mobile Internet have changed it. We are on the verge of a future where all electrical devices will be a single living, self-organizing organism, serving convenience, comfort and efficient human activity.
PS Smart metering is a very broad and multifaceted topic. If you have any questions about organization, economy, logistics, I will try to answer in the comments.
Source: habr.com