The essential role of next-gen advanced metering infrastructure in the new energy environment

Why are many utility leaders transitioning their operations with next-gen AMI? Greg Myers, Vice President, Global Product Management, Trilliant Networks, explores some of the reasons.

Beginning in the 2000s and continuing into the 2010s, the utility industry invested billions of dollars in Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) 1.0.

For a historically conservative, risk-averse industry, AMI 1.0 was a game-changing movement from manual and rudimentary meter reading processes, such as walk-by and drive-by readings, to a robust, two-way communications network with digital technology at its core.

This significant shift, driven by advancements in technology and a focus on sustainability, revolutionised the meter reading industry and paved the way for new use cases aimed at improving ageing grid infrastructure and achieving cost savings.

Today, the utility industry is continuing this momentum and shifting toward AMI 2.0, or next-generation AMI solutions, with utilities in North America and Europe leading the way.   

Characterised by the emergence of more advanced use cases and a continuing explosion of customer and operational data, next-generation AMI solutions are centred around customer experience, asset performance and revenue growth.

Utilities are transforming from asset-based commodity distributors to becoming active participants in the energy transition, powered by ubiquitous connectivity and the prevalence of customer and operational data coupled with intelligent analytical applications and predictive AI.

Why the new energy environment?

While these advances in technology are impressive, utility leaders should be asking themselves why they need greater certainty when making these major capital investments. Regulatory bodies will also be on the lookout for clear and decisive returns on investments for next-generation AMI.

At the core, next-generation AMI solutions start with an advanced technology platform capable of interconnecting and managing multiple applications that form an interconnected smart grid. Leveraging technology to better manage these dynamic, essential services is key to becoming an active participant in energy management and improving the overall customer experience.

The energy transition will see increased distributed energy resources (DER) and a massive need to manage a dynamic and ever-shifting power grid. It is essential to choose a technology platform that continuously adapts to the ever-changing requirements of a dynamic grid, ensuring true interoperability of devices and upgradability at every turn.

At Trilliant, the Power of Choice is an industry standard with our flexible, multi-tiered head-end system  that is device-independent and drives optimal endpoints and outcomes.

As customer-driven devices proliferate across a utility’s network, enabling applications like smart homes, EV charging, demand response (DR) programmes and IIoT, the importance of a communications network with an open architecture becomes critical.

The result is a network that integrates with any communications technology, meter, sensor, or field device, allowing utility customers to integrate with various devices and platforms. This flexibility empowers the energy transition by instantly providing the required oversight and management of a dynamic grid.

A common thread is the data-rich nature of these applications, changing from singularly generating and using data to gathering and processing massive volumes of disparate data for efficient, two-way, reliable data analytics.

This is where intelligent infrastructure investments create business value. Without an open, reliable, and robust communications network, none of this is possible.

What’s next in AMI?

Next-generation AMI is a pivotal part of the communications network for different use cases, including:

• Awareness and enabling active, near real-time monitoring of assets and critical infrastructure through grid edge intelligence, analytics, and predictive AI.
• Maintaining relevance for utilities in an increasingly demanding marketplace.
• Shifting from asset and commodity delivery to active participation in the new energy economy.
• Partnering with local governments for a variety of smart city applications and use cases, from security and smart street lighting to the growth of EVs and mandates for public transport electrification.
• Engaging and scaling DERMS to accelerate a utility’s energy transition and integrate renewable opportunities, while not compromising rate stability or grid reliability.
• Improving consumption management on a scale for more effective and efficient sub-metering aimed at meeting green energy and carbon reduction initiatives.
• Leveraging technology for existing and emerging utility business models, including suite metering and competitive business applications.

Trilliant is currently working with leading utilities that recognise the need for a comprehensive AMI solution.

Our customers leverage Trilliant’s AMI solution to better manage their assets, incorporating enhanced forecasting and planning (crucial as DER penetration increases), improving outage management detection and reaction times, gaining device independence from meter-centric AMI solutions, and aligning with various customer experience initiatives.

Overall, these solutions support long-term carbon reduction goals for the region’s customers by enabling efficient planning and smarter energy management and consumption.

As the utility industry advances into the energy transition and the AMI era, an open, reliable, and robust communication network with grid edge intelligence and analytics will be essential for building the new energy environment.

To learn more about our applications and solutions for utilities with a focus on sustainability, visit Trilliant here.

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About Trilliant

Trilliant® empowers the global energy industry with the only device-agnostic communications platform that enables utilities and cities to deploy any application securely and reliably on one powerful network. Our purpose-built portfolio is designed to offer the power of choice, without risk of customers being ‘locked in’ with one technology provider or meter manufacturer.

We are proud to offer mission-critical solutions that support AMI, data and analytics, smart metering, smart grids and smart cities. Customers worldwide benefit from Trilliant’s unique combination of flexibility, sustainability and scalability that connects utilities and cities to the IIoT and a more strategic path to the energy transition.