UK's future rests with a smarter power grid, group says

A new cross-industry organization in Great Britain will work to promote the development of the nation’s smart energy grid.

SmartGrid GB’s membership includes companies in sectors ranging from energy and information and communication technologies to consumer advocates and government. The group aims to promote the many benefits — consumer, environmental and economic — that could come from a more modern, cleaner and smarter grid.

The organization’s creation was led by Intellect, a trade association for the UK’s technology sector, along with key players in the nation’s utilities industry.

“The implementation of the smart grid will be of critical importance to the UK’s future,” said Charles Hendry, Minister of State for Energy and Climate Change. “It will be essential for meeting our future energy demands, ensuring our energy supply remains secure and resilient, and reducing our overall carbon emissions.”

“Success in smart grid will create new jobs and drive innovation,” added Robert McNamara of Intellect.

Deploying a next-generation power infrastructure is needed to ensure “future competitiveness of the British economy,” according to IBM’s Gavin Jones, who will serve as acting chair of SmartGrid GB. “We can’t afford to fall behind our competitors. We will set out an ambitious and challenging vision and develop a plan of how we get there. It will bring together the best minds and best ideas and provide a step-change in our engagement with government. This really is a call to arms.”

In addition to Intellect, founding members of  SmartGrid GB include Alcatel-Lucent, British Gas, Cable & Wireless, General Electric, IBM, Logica, npower, Oracle, Power Plus Communications, SAP, Siemens, UK Power Networks and Utilisoft. With its launch, the organization also became the newest member of the Global Smart Grid Federation, an international network with representatives from the US, Japan, India, Ireland, South Korea, Australia and Canada.