Open Data Access
Access to energy data is coming, even if it’s not as fast as some people would like. Even the White House weighed in during the past year, calling for all customers to have real or near-real-time access to energy use information.
But the question of who owns and distributes that data has been up for debate until recently. It’s still up for debate in most of the U.S., and most of the world for that matter, but some states are moving ahead.
California published smart grid data privacy rules, stating that consumers can share their information with third parties. For consumers who want to share their information with an outside company, a utility tariff will require that any home area network device that is “locked” to a certain third party, which will start transferring information from the smart meter, must be in compliance with the CPUC requirements. The utilities have six months to create those tariffs. They also must start a pilot study within six months to provide real-time or near-real-time pricing information to their customers.
Texas is arguably ahead of California. The Texas Public Utility Commission lead a committee that decided that Texans who are customers of the state’s four large energy delivery companies will be able to share their energy data with third parties as early as next year. The Lone Star state is already in the lead by requiring that every smart meter customer has access to their data through a website or other means.
Although Texas and California are only two of fifty states, they are big and they are further ahead on the smart grid curve than most other states. What Texas and California choose to do, others are likely to follow. And if the White House puts its money where its mouth (or policy paper) is, there will be easily accessible energy information for all. But don’t hold your breath.
Utilities large and small are also finding that a little bit of information goes a long way to win hearts and minds. Text alerts when bills cross certain thresholds and websites or emails to check the past week’s energy use are extremely popular with customers of both co-ops and big IOUs.
Now that some of the biggest kinks have been worked out in some of the biggest states, providing energy data -- and letting customers take it to other vendors -- will start to become a reality. Expect a trickle in 2012 and real movement in the market in 2013.
