The opportunity to save increases the popularity of load control of electricity use in households – already 350,000 Elenia customers have a new, smart electricity meter
Already 350,000 Elenia customers have received a new, smart electricity meter, which enables more accurate monitoring of electricity consumption and also load control of electricity use. The popularity of electrical load control is growing. According to Elenia's survey, interest is driven by the economic benefits for households.
The installation of Elenia's new, smart electricity meters for nearly 400,000 of the company's customers is nearing completion. The new electricity meter allows electricity users to monitor and manage their own electricity consumption more accurately. Load control of electricity consumption is available to Elenia customers who have the new electricity meter installed and who have controllable electrical devices connected to the electricity meter, such as a water heater or underfloor heating.
"To gain information about our customers' expectations for service development, we conducted a survey on load control of electricity usage, to which over 2,600 of our customers responded. We were interested in how customers experience the benefits of load control, the effects on everyday life, and possible obstacles to implementing the service," says Sanni Harala, Chief Customer and Stakeholder Officer.
About 90% of those who used load management felt that they had received financial benefits without negative impacts on everyday life.
"More and more households want to take advantage of the cheap prices of electricity on the exchange. The customer can choose for herself or himself how many hours she wants to turn on the devices during the day using load control. A price cap can also be set for load control," says Harala.
According to Elenia's survey, customers expect that they can control electrical loads using a meter, either themselves or using someone else's service. From the perspective of the electricity market, load control enables electricity consumption to be reduced or increased depending on the needs of the electricity system or the price of electricity.
"Our customers can use the services related to the new meters free of charge in the Elenia Aina service, where consumption information is displayed in just a few minutes at best. The new meters also have a home automation interface HAN, which allows the measurement data to be utilized, for example, in charging an electric car or in smart home electrical systems," says Harala.
The main installation phase of Elenia's new meters will be completed during the summer. Some customers have newer meters that will be replaced later. The meter replacement is free of charge for customers.
For some customers, the installation of the electricity meter has not been successful, for example, if the customer has not confirmed the proposed installation time or there has been an obstacle in front of the metering center. Elenia will start contacting customers for retrofitting in April.
“The importance of a smart grid is central to climate solutions. The reform of electricity consumption measurement is also an important step in terms of sustainable development,” Harala emphasizes.
The technology platform for the new services has been created by electricity meter and system supplier Aidon in collaboration with Elenia. The installation of electricity meters for Elenia is being carried out by Elvera.
