In the world of IoT, we talk about a future of sci-fi-like digital twins and near-instantaneous data transmission. These are all amazing in their own right, but for families facing the challenge of affording to heat their home in the winter, or businesses struggling to keep up with the price of utilities, these technologies seem irrelevant. The bigger picture – that of climate change and its looming shadow over all markets and sectors, seems less pressing.
But these technologies are especially relevant to those families, both for the near future and the far one. It is evident that the energy sector must step up its game to avoid future energy crises, and a big part of that is developing and implementing IoT solutions that not only enhance energy efficiency but establish a safety net toward 100% sustainability. With that in mind, let’s have a look at the current numbers and see where the sector is heading.
Let’s start with the basics. Global energy demand rose by 3.4% so far in 2022 – which is less than the estimated 3%. A similar growth rate is expected for 2023, and the general trend is for a slowing down of energy demand. Annual renewable capacity has grown by 6% in 2021, despite the pandemic, and is expected to grow by 8% in 2022. In other words, demand is slowing while capacity is growing. On the finance side of things, the energy market was valued at 168.57 billion in 2020 and is expected to reach 298.26 billion by 2026 – a CAGR of 10%. Within this span, several factors will push and pull the market. The pandemic already affected it significantly, and a shift towards renewable, natural resources like solar and wind energy is continuing to break annual records and reallocate government funds away from oil and coal and towards expanding infrastructure to keep renewable energy capacity growing.
Creating a IoT energy sector
In particular, the implementation of smart meters for more efficient monitoring and management of energy flow is the key selling point IoT brings to the energy sector. You may think this isn’t a particularly ground-breaking technology, but this has a “many droplets make an ocean” effect on how energy is used.
This IoT-powered energy efficiency will cascade into many different layers of the energy market. From the solar farm energy grids all the way to the end client – the family warming its home in the winter or charging its electric vehicle. From head to tail of this energy journey, everyone gets to make a more informed, data-driven decision on their energy consumption thanks to those meters. The end result is a more stable ratio between supply and demand, lower prices, and a greener future.