Realising the benefits of smart metering: Creating consumer engagement

The UK is facing a gap between our peak demands and our generating capacity which, by 2015, makes the possibility of blackouts very real. This paper looks at the impact of that gap on the UK economy, the role that the consumer can play in bridging the gap through adopting more intelligent consumption behaviour, the experience of creating consumer engagement in Sweden and the opportunity for suppliers to transform their relationship with their customers. The twin challenges of climate change and delivering energy security are fundamentally changing the drivers and demands on the sector. These are not just political or regulatory challenges; they are creating socio-economic pressure for new approaches to how our energy needs are satisfied. For consumers, the need to shift perception from controlling their energy bill through the unit rate will shift from focusing on how much they pay per kilowatt hour they consume, to how and when they use energy. More importantly in the context of addressing the energy gap, will be how they can be rewarded for this behavioural change and maintain their motivation to act over the long term. The challenge for suppliers will become how they segment their customer base, develop and market propositions that address the needs of those customers and, most important their ability to identify and target these propositions to those customers that will buy them. The introduction of smart meters or more precisely the information and communication infrastructure that it creates is critical to this transformation.