Digitalisation and Beyond: Economic Perspectives on Granular Energy Data

Energy transition relies on integrating renewable energy sources and end-use electrification. These pose operational, economic, and regulatory challenges on energy sector’s stakeholders. Through smart-metering, digitalisation enables suppliers to implement innovative dynamic tariffs and bundling services, while consumers are incentivised to adopt these bundled services and increase their demand flexibilities. Investments in grid digitalisation and real-time monitoring are crucial to achieve efficient, fast, and fair integration of renewables. In this paper we discuss the challenges posed by the implementation of digital solutions in the power sector and discuss the mapping from technological solutions to economic incentives, needed to examine their economic implications and trade-offs. This is needed to overcome unintended consequences and incentives posing obstacles towards the green transition, and ‘future-proof’ the energy systems. We build this mapping by exploring some key economic issues emerging from the diffusion of smart meter granular data, focusing on the impact of data interoperability, standardisation, and centralised vs decentralised solutions on efficiency, inequality, and market competition. Finally, we derive regulatory recommendations for a successful energy systems’ digitalisation.<p></p>