We often hear people talk about renewable energy, the energy revolution and a transition for individuals from user to actor in how they consume energy. Although the story sounds familiar and maybe even a bit fatigued, we are not there yet, and we have plenty more to do to get there.

Just as climate change awareness has shed light on our world reaching its tipping point for resource availability, a deep understanding of how the electricity network behaves is the first step toward better managing it tomorrow. Whether thinking about balancing the loads between energy sources efficiently or simply providing clarity for day-to-day operations, the starting point of understanding the distribution network is knowing what is happening on the ground.

And it all starts with a smart meter.

Over the last four decades, Germany's energy supply has effectively shifted from traditional power generation to incorporating more renewables in the mix. While investments for infrastructures delivered on the promise of more wind and solar-generated power, their proper integration in the distribution grid is pending a larger adoption of connected endpoints.

We know that utilities and cities are the keys to the next stage of the Energiewende, Germany’s energy revolution, and that such transformation will require a dependable partner along the way. At Itron, supporting our customers in their modernization efforts is what we do, and we embarked on this journey early by deploying Forum Network Technology/Network Operation (FNN) compliant smart meters since the beginning of the transition. Building on this, Itron recently launched its eHZ-B base meter with the ambition to keep supporting our customers in laying the foundation for making this energy transformation in Germany a reality.

Integrating and balancing energy sources is only one of the challenges smart meters can help solve. Looking at the future, with electric vehicles and microgeneration on their way to becoming integrated parts of our daily lives, implementing the right smart meter infrastructure today will open the door for more energy-efficient initiatives tomorrow.

Lear more about Itron’s smart meter portfolios: https://www.itron.com/emea/solutions/what-we-enable/smart-metering-rollouts