APAC CIOOutlook

Advertise

with us

  • Technologies
      • Artificial Intelligence
      • Big Data
      • Blockchain
      • Cloud
      • Digital Transformation
      • Internet of Things
      • Low Code No Code
      • MarTech
      • Mobile Application
      • Security
      • Software Testing
      • Wireless
  • Industries
      • E-Commerce
      • Education
      • Logistics
      • Retail
      • Supply Chain
      • Travel and Hospitality
  • Platforms
      • Microsoft
      • Salesforce
      • SAP
  • Solutions
      • Business Intelligence
      • Cognitive
      • Contact Center
      • CRM
      • Cyber Security
      • Data Center
      • Gamification
      • Procurement
      • Smart City
      • Workflow
  • Home
  • CXO Insights
  • CIO Views
  • Vendors
  • News
  • Conferences
  • Whitepapers
  • Newsletter
  • Awards
Apac
  • Artificial Intelligence

    Big Data

    Blockchain

    Cloud

    Digital Transformation

    Internet of Things

    Low Code No Code

    MarTech

    Mobile Application

    Security

    Software Testing

    Wireless

  • E-Commerce

    Education

    Logistics

    Retail

    Supply Chain

    Travel and Hospitality

  • Microsoft

    Salesforce

    SAP

  • Business Intelligence

    Cognitive

    Contact Center

    CRM

    Cyber Security

    Data Center

    Gamification

    Procurement

    Smart City

    Workflow

Menu
    • Infrared
    • Cyber Security
    • Hotel Management
    • Workflow
    • E-Commerce
    • Business Intelligence
    • MORE
    #

    Apac CIOOutlook Weekly Brief

    ×

    Be first to read the latest tech news, Industry Leader's Insights, and CIO interviews of medium and large enterprises exclusively from Apac CIOOutlook

    Subscribe

    loading

    THANK YOU FOR SUBSCRIBING

    • Home
    Editor's Pick (1 - 4 of 8)
    left
    Technology Should Be More Proactive and Secure

    Anthony Cinquemani, CIO, Application Deliver - Delivery Channels Regions Financial Corporation

    Explore, Learn & Visualize Model Systems Safely in the Confines of a Computer - Computer Simulations

    Ravi Ravishanker, CIO & Associate Dean for WellesleyX, Wellesley College

    Extending the Reach of Collaboration

    Paige Francis,

    Continuing Smarter Growth and Executing Successful Strategy

    Alwin Brunner, SVP & CIO, Head of Knowledge Management, Heidrick & Struggles

    Innovating and Implementing Technologies is the Way Forward

    Land Carlo Cagalingan, CIO, Robinsons Corporation

    AI is not what you think it is: Creating a relationship between users and machine intelligence

    James Fisher, VP Global Product Marketing, Qlik

    How Analytics and AI Will Reshape the Future of Banking

    Marc Andrews, VP Watson Financial Services Solutions, IBM [NYSE: IBM]

    AI: What it Can Bring and How to Prepare for the Future

    Chris Miller, Chief Technology & Innovation Officer, Avanade

    right

    Electric Utilities Start Joining the Club of Digital Businesses

    Dr Dirk E Mahling, VP, Technology, Alliant Energy

    Tweet
    content-image

    Dr Dirk E Mahling, VP, Technology, Alliant Energy

    The electric power grid is the largest machine mankind has conceived and built to date. Worldwide, it delivers $400 billion of electricity every year to homes and businesses via 7 million miles of power lines. This fact may come as a surprise to those among us who have gotten used to the explosive growth and reach of the internet, thus relegating electricity to a mature core infrastructure, rooted in early 20th century technologies.

    As a regulated sector, utilities do not jump to mind as the first example when we envision the digital transformation of our industries. Yet monumental transformations are taking place at utilities exactly because of the need to answer the demands created by an internet society that is increasingly networked. The most recent visible movement was the SmartGrid , which started about a decade ago. It aimed at bringing computational power and increased communications to the distribution grid— the poles, wires and transformers in your neighborhoods.

    Other external factors that are driving change in the utilities’ business model are renewables and distributed generation, such as photovoltaic cells on rooftops. This puts small, intermittent power plants and energy storage in the hands of consumers, thereby turning them into “prosumers.” This trend is further reinforced by the steady growth of electric vehicles in the marketplace. To a utility, it’s as if a second house suddenly appeared in the driveway with each electric vehicle. This creates challenges in serving the new demand, keeping the distribution grid reliable and allowing for bi-directional flow of electricity in the grid.

    For decades, utilities have delivered reliable services to consumers. With the emergence of residential photovoltaics, electric vehicles and energy storage, we see the emergence of a utility business model that will leverage simple electric connectivity as well as an abundance of information to enable prosumers to participate in real-time energy markets. The combination of these developments brings us to the emergence of the “digital utility.”

    This will put a premium on the ability to operate an information exchange platform and bring market participants together. As nimble actors at the edge of the grid disrupt existing business models and ecosystems, flexibility along with innovative, test-learn, fail fast and refine mindsets can make traditional utilities powerfully relevant.

    With the plethora of data available—more granular and immediate than ever before— the question of a new “RoI” becomes tantamount. This is where the activities in analytics come to full fruition

    Some utilities will leverage virtually unlimited information, ready connectivity and enormous computing capabilities to introduce new business models to their customers. When fully implemented, these will enable utilities to pursue new delivery models and remain central players as orchestrators of newly formed energy markets. As they engage with the prosumer, who will become an empowered actor in utility markets, utilities will need to produce, consume and analyze unprecedented volumes of data to glean actionable insights and to detect and respond to the transformational forces taking shape.

    While utilities have been able to take ideas and systems pioneered by other industries and incorporate them into their own operation structure, a utility that leads the way in technical innovation will have an advantage in this evolving sector.

    Combining SmartGrid on the distribution side and digitization covering the devices, systems, and processes in the electrical utility, a starting place for the digital utility is created. With its physical assets, utilities expand the Internet of Things (IoT) to include substations, SCADAs, smart meters and more. These additional devices manage the electrical generators, the emission controls and many other elements of power plants. On the transmission side, high voltage substations, line sensors and towers are added to IoT, which now becomes a close informational mirror of the electrical grid, making the Internet of Things effectively the central nervous system of the digital utility.

    With the previously islanded physical assets now connected, the digital utility layers existing information systems and processes around this IoT core; systems that include customer service, finance, business development and more.

    At this point, it must be noted that IoT in the digital utility creates many challenges for cybersecurity. Conventionally, cybersecurity is mainly associated with the internet and database transactions. Highly publicized incidents revolve around Social Security numbers or credit card numbers being compromised. With IoT fostering a digital utility with complex machines connected to it, the stakes change. Since the electrical grid is critical infrastructure and a base for our economy and society, its breach would have catastrophic consequences. Life and limb—not numbers and dollars—are on the line. All IoT projects in the digital utility must be safe and secure to deliver the reliability and safety that customers have come to expect from the utility.

    With the plethora of data available—more granular and immediate than ever before—the question of a new “RoI” (Return on Information) becomes tantamount. This is where the activities in analytics come to full fruition. The first step in applying analytics is discovering use cases for turning data into situational awareness and situational awareness into better commercial decisions. In some instances, this may accelerate or improve existing processes by providing better and faster data. In other cases, new processes will be needed to leverage data that was previously not available. An example might be the use of advanced metering infrastructure to provide demand response services that empower consumers to reduce or shift their electricity usage during peak periods.

    The combination of the Internet of Things as the central nervous system and analytics effectively acting as the brain will help bring to full fruition the promise of the digital utility—a modern utility that provides a foundational service to our society in a reliable, clean and safe fashion.

    Check Out : Top Electric Utility Solution Companies
    tag

    IoT

    ROI

    Critical Infrastructure

    Weekly Brief

    loading
    ON THE DECK

    I agree We use cookies on this website to enhance your user experience. By clicking any link on this page you are giving your consent for us to set cookies. More info

    Read Also

    Cultivating a Sustainable Future through Collaboration

    Cultivating a Sustainable Future through Collaboration

    Jiunn Shih, Chief Marketing, Innovation & Sustainability Officer, Zespri International
    Mastering Digital Marketing Strategies

    Mastering Digital Marketing Strategies

    Tasya Aulia, Director of Marketing and Communications, Meliá Hotels International
    Building a Strong Collaborative Framework for Artificial Intelligence

    Building a Strong Collaborative Framework for Artificial Intelligence

    Boon Siew Han, Regional Head of Humanoid Component Business & R&D (Apac & Greater China), Schaeffler
    From Legacy to Agility Through Digital Transformation

    From Legacy to Agility Through Digital Transformation

    Athikom Kanchanavibhu, EVP, Digital & Technology Transformation, Mitr Phol Group
    Change Management for Clinical Ancillary Teams: Aligning Practice with Policy and Progress

    Change Management for Clinical Ancillary Teams: Aligning Practice with Policy and Progress

    Ts. Dr. James Chong, Chief Executive Officer, Columbia Asia Hospital – Tebrau
    Digital Transformation: A Journey Beyond Technology

    Digital Transformation: A Journey Beyond Technology

    John Ang, Group CTO, EtonHouse International Education Group
    Building A Strong Data Foundation: The Key To Successful Ai Integration In Business

    Building A Strong Data Foundation: The Key To Successful Ai Integration In Business

    Richa Arora, Senior Director Of Data Governance, Cbre
    Transforming Tollways Through People, Data and Digital Vision

    Transforming Tollways Through People, Data and Digital Vision

    Carlo Cagalingan, Chief Digital Officer and Chief Information Officer, Metro Pacific Tollways Corporation
    Loading...
    Copyright © 2025 APAC CIOOutlook. All rights reserved. Registration on or use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy and Anti Spam Policy 

    Home |  CXO Insights |   Whitepapers |   Subscribe |   Conferences |   Sitemaps |   About us |   Advertise with us |   Editorial Policy |   Feedback Policy |  

    follow on linkedinfollow on twitter follow on rss
    This content is copyright protected

    However, if you would like to share the information in this article, you may use the link below:

    https://infrared.apacciooutlook.com/cxoinsights/electric-utilities-start-joining-the-club-of-digital-businesses-nwid-4252.html?utm_source=google&utm_campaign=apacciooutlook_topslider