Market Trends of Asia-Pacific Smart Grid Network Industry
This section covers the major market trends shaping the APAC Smart Grid Network Market according to our research experts:
Advance Metering Infrastructure to be the Fastest Growing Segment
- Advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) or smart metering is an integrated system of smart meters, communications networks, and data management systems that enables two-way communication between utilities and customers.
- The metering industry has taken rapid strides in the recent past few years by traversing from automated meter reading (AMR) to smart metering, using bi-directional communication, thereby enabling greater benefits to electricity distribution companies (DISCOMs), customers and society.
- AMI provides significant operational benefits, which translate to utility cost savings and convenience to customers. AMI can significantly reduce operating costs by remotely reading meters, connecting/disconnecting service, and identifying outages-all previously manual functions, and generate more accurate bills faster and enable utilities to provide customers digital access to their usage information.
- In December 2019, State Grid Corporation of China signed a USD 1.1 billion deal for smart meter contract with Saudi Arabia, manufacturing around 5 million smart meters to be installed in western and southern areas of Saudi Arabia.
- Hence, with the increasing efforts to modernize the electricity grid and reduce T&D losses, governments across Asia-Pacific are investing in advance metering infrastructure. This, in turn, is expected to drive the AMI market during the forecast period.
China is Expected to Dominate the Market
- China is the world's largest market for power transmission and distribution (T&D) and is also poised to become a major consumer pf smart grid technology, supported by its policy to reduce carbon emission and commitment for green development.
- China has the ambition to become a world leader in electrical power equipment by 2025. This is a national strategy outlined in the Technology Roadmap (2017) of the Made in China 2025 programme. Innovation and technology are heavily focused on in the national programme and large amounts of funding are allocated to support the development.
- State Grid Corporation of China has rolled out 'Global Energy Internet' concept, based on having smart grid connections to an ultra-high voltage power grid that would have the potential to deliver clean energy. This in turn is expected to drive the smart grid network market in the country during the forecast period.
- In December 2019, State Grid Corporation of China signed a USD 1.1 billion deal for smart meter contract with Saudi Arabia, manufacturing around 5 million smart meters to be installed in western and southern areas of Saudi Arabia.
- Also, in 2019, China's State Grid sanctioned world's largest smart grid facility, with first phase of this project concluding in 2021, and completing it in 2024. This project is expected to bolster the smart grid network market in China and hence drive it during the forecast period.