POWER June 2013 - 51

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Global Business Reports
POWER AUSTRALIA
Andrew
Halliday, Sales
and Support
Manager, ANZ,
PowerSense
Peter McIntyre,
Managing
Director,
Transgrid
ing capital costs in international markets,
increasing gas prices and the introduction
of a carbon price scheme. Our solution
is to freeze our prices in 2013 and then
smooth them over the following years, " said
Peter McIntyre.
One way that utilities can combat the rising
costs of electricity passed along to the
consumer is through the use of smart grid
technologies. Energy management technologies
have applications in both the highand
lower-ends of the energy market in Australia,
said Andrew Halliday, sales and support
manager of Australia and New Zealand
of PowerSense, a Denmark-based smart
grid company who have targeted Australia
as a growth region. " Smart grid is moving
forward on two fronts: high-end functionality
where sophisticated technology
is required to measure power quality; and
an increased focus on low-end technologies,
such as transformer loads, " he said.
PowerSense's Australian operations
currently contribute 40% of the company's
global revenues.
The Australian government is employing a
number of state-based programs to advance
the deployment of energy management
systems. The state of Victoria, in southern
Australia, mandated that smart meters be
installed in all Victorian households and
small businesses by the end of 2013.
Despite the Victorian government's support
of a smart grid rollout, some companies
still feel that the industry needs better
regulation in this area nationally. Oliver Iltisberger,
executive vice-president, Asia Pacifi c
at Landis + Gyr, an international smart metering
company, explained: " The industry
needs a clear regulatory framework for the
rollout of smart metering or smart grid technology
in the other Australian states. Until
this regulatory framework is in place, it will
June 2013
be diffi cult to secure investment to move
smart grid projects forward. "
A clear regulatory framework is also essential
because, according to Michael Cummings,
fund manager of the Infrastructure
Fund at AMP Capital, Australia as a country
is combating low productivity gains. " Arguably,
investment in technology such as smart
meters will help drive productivity, " he said.
According to Michael Rath, National
Leader of Energy and Water at Deloitte,
the customer will be one of the biggest
catalysts for driving change in the power
sector: " The industry is going through a
tremendous amount of change. Nowhere
is this more apparent than in the technology
area: we are moving to a digital-based
industry. This will impact the way networks
are designed and how customers interact
with their energy providers. "
For the foreseeable future, demand
management technologies and infrastructure
upgrades are the answer to the question
of how to provide energy for Australia's
still-growing economy. " There should be
no additional baseload requirement before
2020, as energy consumption has fallen
largely as a result of the slowing in GDP
growth, a reduction in demand from the
manufacturing sector, noticeable price elasticity
in the residential sector, and the success
of federal and state energy effi ciency
schemes, " explained Gilles Walgenwitz,
general manager of government and utilities
at Energetics, an energy management consultancy
with offi ces across Australia.
The country is entering a new phase of
energy management: one that focuses on
the effective delivery of energy to its population
rather than continuous supply, and it is
up to regulators and industry alike to ensure
a smooth transition.
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