A Smart Grid is an efficient way of managing the electricity. The term appeared first in 1998 but started to be more commonly used in 2003. A Smart Grid uses information and communications technologies applied to the electrical grid to collect data about the suppliers and consumers. The Smart Grid manages the data gathered to improve the efficiency, reliability, economics, and sustainability of the production and distribution of electricity.
Portland, OR, where conferences about Smart Grids and transactive energy are regularly held. Picture from Michael Silberstein (Flickr)
The existence of smart grids implies the use of information technology to optimise the process of production and distribution of electricity with the aim of balancing the supply and demand between producers and consumers. The balance can generate savings to the electrical system since it avoids the loses of energy produced when the energy is transported and not used. The spread of use of information technologies to convert the electricity network in a smart grid is one of the 5 basic pillars of the Third Industrial Revolution as stated by Jeremy Rifkin in his book due to the promotion of a more sustainable and democratic society from the energy point of view.
In the U.S. there are already several research programmes and developments related to Smart Grids, like IntelliGrid, Grid 2030, Gridwise or GridWise Architecture Council, which objectives are among others, to put the technological basis for future Smart Grids implementation at a national level. A report from the U.S. Department of Energy showed a possible saving between $46,000 and $117,000 million dollars over the next 20 years for the U.S. electrical system if Smart Grids are applied and used.
The existence of an electrical grid with distributed generation coming from the use of sustainable sources of energy makes the energy flows in a smart grid different from the flows in a non-smart grid. In case of distributed generation the users of the grid are also producers of electricity, causing that the flow of energy occurs in two directions and making the smart grids more adequate for this purposes.
The main markets for the smart grids development in the world are China, UK and U.S. Other countries like Germany or Spain are in good position for the deployment of Smart Grids due to its big diffusion of renewable and sustainable energies which is highly beneficial for the future use and improvement of efficacy on the Smart Grids.
The use of Smart Grids has many benefits, it would generate savings to the electrical system (to the producers in the generation part and to the consumers in their electrical bills), would also create qualified works in the energy sector and would reduce the green house emissions as well.