Learnings from the Swedish Market. Mälarenergi Elnät AB

Transcription

1 Learnings from the Swedish Market Mälarenergi Elnät AB

2 De-regulated market in Sweden Separation between supplier and DSO in TSO, Prox. 170 DSO s and 120 suppliers 1 regulator (same for TSO and DSO) 5.2 Million end user (customer sites) 87% consumers, rest industries and other companies NordPool market share of power market 77% (out of 338,2 TWh in total) DSOs are responsible of metering. Balance settlement is based on metered hourly values also for the small consumption sites No regulated end user prices for electricity supply 2012: 37% of customers were active. (change of supplier or re-signing contract). About 15-20% yearly supplier switching rate Vulnerable customers have protection through general social service activities 2 bills system. One from DSO and one from supplier separately. The Market

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4 De-regulated market in Sweden Hourly metering for all customers >63A fuse from 1/ Monthly metering (meter reading) for all other customers from 1/ => AMR Hourly metering for all customers with Spot price contract from 1/ (with 3 months timeframe for DSO to make it possible) Going for common energy market in Nordic countries 2015 (balance regulation as well as end customer market Today 2 contracts for customer, in the Nordic market a version of SCM - Supplier Centric Model The Market

5 Legal demands in Sweden -> AMR/Smart Meters Decision in 2003 by Swedish government: Meter readings at least once a month for all customer sites (implemented 100% 1/7 2009) Daily collected hourly readings for larger customers already decided (implemented 100% 1/7 2006) The meter manufacturers marketing and sales activities exploded Priority to speedy implementation rather than analyzing the situation for best price, product and technology. Companies that waited with the implementation until the last minute (2009) generally got a better price as well as improved technology. The Market

6 The rollout phase

7 Purchasing meters and installation Many smaller DSO decided to cooperate during the purchasing process Different co-operation forms in different companies Specially trained (hired) personnel did most of the installation Including customer relation training Often to a fixed price Logistic challenge to run the metering project When installed the meter starts to demand things Updated back-office systems etc.. The rollout phase

8 Customer interaction Customer information is essential in order to make the roll out process as effective as possible Prox. 20% of meters in Sweden is placed inside customer home As the exchange means an annoyance for the customer (a power outage, having to take time off from work to etc.) Information both before, during and after the meter exchange For the rollout personnel, it is important to have knowledge about local conditions. Using a local contractor helps to build local acceptance for the project. Picture: This is just a picture of a smart meter. The rollout phase

9 DSO learnings / benefits Benefits for the utilities always ultimately benefit the customer via lower prices and/or better service

10 Customer interaction Invoicing based on actual consumption rather than estimated values (balanced annually) Decreased number of customer calls to contact center Easier and quicker to explain the invoices Annual bill always creates confusion and discrepancy between invoiced and actual sum Increased number of questions during change phase Even more during winter than summer DSO learnings/benefits

11 Energy consumption Different experiences regarding changed behavior in using energy. Information and campaigns rather then access to hourly values (or meter readings) or even momentarily values makes changes happen regarding customer consumption. Almost all changes have been noticed in single family houses or vacation houses (not flats) DSO learnings/benefits

12 Efficiency and processes No more manual meter readings reduced cost as well as environmental gains by not having to visit the customers by car. In theory (and depending on what you compere to..) Normal business processes such as move in/out and supplier switching more efficient and faster to carry out But still we put a lot of hours every month to achieve near 100% meter readings DSO learnings/benefits

13 Loss reduction and grid calculations Locate electricity theft Metering in substation needed -> benefit depending on how good existing documentation of the grid is Better use when reaching technical limits of transformers and cables Better monitoring and control possibilities of grid status last mile DSO learnings/benefits

14 Connect/Disconnect Possibility to automatically connect and disconnect electricity from the meter benefits the customer in various ways disconnect a site with no customer (i.e. flat with no moving in customer) which reduce losses quicker connection during move in situations when disconnecting due to unpaid bills, quicker and cheaper re-connection after bills are paid when disconnecting due to unpaid bills, quicker and cheaper disconnection thus not increasing the customers debt towards the utility DSO learnings/benefits We now disconnect every flat without a paying registered customer

15 AMR/DMS Shorten time for outages (i.e. after a storm) Faster information of a smaller LW outage During huge summer storms in 2010 and winter storms in in Finland, several DSOs found smart metering a very useful tool in fault detection and repair chain s missing link Substation and distribution network automation SCADA DMS AMR AMR meter

16 AMR/DMS We are now implementing Automation of LV interruption management with real time information Faster handling and restoration of failure in LV network Possibility to verify the status of LV network Faster response and higher quality on customer service Simplified and more accurate outage statistics on customer level DSO learnings/benefits

17 Customer benefits and behaviour

18 Conclusion: Bills are easier to understand Customer call are shorter and more focused now. Whishes to flatten the payment over the year has increased We now offer banking services for our customers -- Energy account Customer benefits and behavior

19 Actual consumption Enables the electricity customer to settle his account with the DSO and supplier each month Budgeting will more accurate Possibility to use the consumption feedback for behavioral changes. Even better with hourly values, best with momentarily values (through local interface on meter) Makes introduction of micro generation into the energy system much easier (if 4 quad metering) Customer benefits and behavior

20 Cost and challenges

21 Cost and challenges Cost for installing meters in Sweden was a range from all-inclusive project costs Depending on communication solution, functionality etc Early installation Technique not really without problems 99% no problems 99,99 costs fieldwork thus expensive Radio solutions works generally better than PLC (also from av PDM perspective Power down message) Today in Sweden there are a big difference in the hourly meters annual cost for collecting meter reading. Roughly its pending from 3-10 times more expensive than collecting a monthly meter reading Mosty due to high cost in the field trying to reach 100% collection Summer houses with disconnected breakers, broken meters etc. Also securing meter reading from abnormal values and time consuming, hard to get automated controls Same technical solution (read communication methods) works fine in some areas, but not in other GSM, radio, PLC etc Density of population (and their equipment), geography differences (mountains, flatland or archipelago),

22 Cost and challenges Cooperation with Telcos has been hard. Many Telcos seem to use DSO contracts building monopolies (SIM card has had an in locking effect) As DSO we would appreciate a more competitive approach from the telecom market operators to be able to use existing telco platform for communication with meters. Small number of meter communication in Sweden uses GPRS due to this. Regulations change -> drives cost Demand for hourly metering (with 3 months notice) make a lot of meters out of date Throwing away maybe 15% of installed meters (6-12 years ahead of life expectancy) feels not good!! Only meter information exchange is standardized. (power outage, connect/disconnect etc is not generic. And thus not open market friendly) Cost and challanges

23 Conclusions

24 Conclusions Rollout has to be planned and made in cooperation of many interests Local knowledge makes it easier DSO may have benefits in network operations But it will not happen without focusing on this issue Customer will: Be more engaged in the market Have easier to understand invoices Metering is not the final solution, more one of some prerequisite to reach the smart grid Tariffs and in-home equipment will make impact on a larger scale Market model and complexity of understanding drivers is essential to make customer interaction Implementation time and understandable and predictable legislation, standards and protocols vital for cost-efficient solutions Administration cost rises for DSOs in Sweden.. But overall costs go down Share for administrating customer interactions and invoicing (incl metering) has increased by more then 3 times since 2000 (from 10% to 30% of total grid cost)

25 Taxes Supplier cost of electricity price DSO cost of electricity price

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