Global smart meter installed base to double by 2016

The global installed base of advanced (communicating) electricity meters is expected to double by 2016, according to a new study from IMS Research. The report, entitled The World Market for Smart Electricity Meters - 2012 Edition, forecasts that this will propel the installed base of communicating meters to almost 25% penetration globally.

At the close of 2011, just under 18% of the roughly 1.43 billion installed meters were communicating. These meters ranged from older one-way AMR (Advanced Meter Reading) style technology to GPRS (cellular) enabled C&I meters (commercial and industrial), to residential smart two-way meters.

From 2012 onwards, a mixture of fixed network technologies is anticipated to be installed worldwide, ranging from simpler RS485-wired types to next-generation smart two-way PLC-OFDM meters.

“In 2011, the market for advanced meters reached new heights; North American shipments remained strong, while shipments to China and Spain began in earnest,” said Michael Markides, IMS Research Lead Analyst.

“Largely due to these factors it is estimated that global advanced meter shipments in 2011 were double those of 2010. However, average annual shipments from 2012 through 2014 are expected to remain at this level, only growing significantly once more in 2015 when expected European advanced metering projects go online.”

In terms of developing regions, China is currently the only significant market for advanced meters. In 2011, 40 million advanced electricity meters were shipped to China; however, most of these were simple wired RS485 meters using one-way communications.

IMS says the adoption of these simpler communicating meters reflects the difference in drivers in China when compared to Western Europe and North America. Rather than focusing on next-generation functionality such as voltage optimisation or demand response, utilities in China are more concerned with energy theft through meter tampering or bribes to readers.

Brazil, India and many other developing countries face similar challenges and may also see the need for simpler one-way-style communicating meters to be installed in order to curtail non-technical losses.

“In the next five years, most developed countries and industrialising, developing nations will have thriving advanced electricity meter markets,” Markides said.

“Whether installed to save on labour costs, work in conjunction with other smart grid schemes or curtail non-technical losses, utilities worldwide are accelerating their adoption of smart metering.”

The full report is available here.