by The Daily Energy Report

Aging grid infrastructure, rising energy costs and demand, and new and pending government legislation are some of the factors motivating consumers and utilities alike to seek more energy efficient, sustainable solutions. Smart grid technologies are the key to addressing these challenges and bringing energy management to the masses.

2012 will prove to be another exciting year to watch the smart grid market evolve. Here are a few top trends to expect next year:

1) Distributed Automation takes center stage 

Many utilities are preparing to leverage smart grid technologies to deliver improved reliability through increased automation.  Distributed Automation (DA) is a key element to this strategy as it enables two-way communication with substations, power lines, intelligent devices, and other physical facilities. As a result, utilities are able to remotely monitor and control systems, automatically identify and isolate faults and quickly restore service.

DA is set to play a significant role in smart grid infrastructure. Two drivers of this trend are: the expected proliferation of plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) and distributed energy resources (DER) such as renewables.

IDC predicts that there will be 120,000 PEVs sold in North America in 2012. Consequently, the rate of DA adoption will accelerate as utilities seek to provide power to meet the added load requirements from EVs, while simultaneously maintaining grid reliability and safety.  Additionally, DA will be increasingly important as utilities seek to integrate distributed renewable generation resources into the grid.

Over the past 30+ years, DA has helped the utility industry realize cost savings and improve operational efficiency, reliability, and energy conservation, and its impact is projected to continue to grow in coming years (Pike Research forecasts that DA revenues will reach $10.4 billion by 2014, up from $2.7 billion in 2010). 

Read the complete article Smart Grid Trends to Watch for in 2012.