LoRaWAN: Why a low-power, low-cost wireless network holds the key to bottom-up smart grid solutions
Matt Chester of Chester Energy and Policy was quoted as a utility expert in this article, previewed below.
Electrical power grids form the backbone of our economies, and are under massive pressure to meet the growing demand for energy. Improving their maintenance is a financial and environmental imperative.
The high cost of electricity generation, coupled with the exorbitant expense of maintaining complex, ageing national power grids that have supplied electricity for more than 60 years, makes it increasingly difficult for power utilities to cope, particularly with demand surging for electric vehicles and other power-hungry devices that are shifting away from the direct use of fossil fuels.
US based energy, utility, and sustainability expert, Matt Chester, notes that apart from the anticipated costs of scheduled routine maintenance, power utilities are increasingly concerned about the unforeseen costs of mechanical failures and explosions that lead to blackouts and brownouts, which are almost impossible to budget for, skewing profitability and negatively impacting brands and consumer confidence.
“This is where the introduction of high-technology, bottom-up smart monitoring of electricity grids can provide a financially viable solution to a power utility’s existing privately or publicly owned infrastructure,” Chester said.