CE of National Grid Cautions Patience for Smart Grid Technology

The chief executive of the National Grid announced that renewables such as wind turbines, solar panels, and other forms of sustainable energy account for almost one sixth of the UK’s electricity generation in the next ten years.

One of the UK’s largest utility company operators, Steve Holliday, said that by 2020 15 percent of Britain’s electricity generation will come from “embedded generation” electricity which is installed in offices and homes. He added that these types of electricity generation would be the major dent in renewables for Britain. Holliday will address these points further in an upcoming speech at Imperial College on the future for Britain’s energy systems.

Holliday emphasized the importance that small, home-based energy generation would hold for Britain’s move towards more sustainable forms of energy generation. He added that with the introduction of the £9bn release of “smart meters” more and more personal businesses and residences would be able to “micro generate” their energy.

Although, Holliday did warn that rushing the smart meters introduction into homes could cost homeowners billions of pounds if redundant technology was purchased too hastily. He added that if smart grid equipment was purchased right off the bat then newer emerging smart grid technologies might be too sophisticated to handle the old equipment.

The UK government has said that the meters will provide homeowners with real-time data and will be an essential tool for Britain to reach its target emissions cuts of one third the current amount by 2020.

Holliday also added that Britain could reduce its emissions by 25 percent by 2050 by using better insulation practices and smarter generation technology. He continued stating that the new smart meters are exciting but that it is important not to get ahead of the technology itself by implementing devices too quickly.