Conference article

Electricity has always had a ’time’ dimension for suppliers; and the advent of variable renewable generation may make this dimension more obvious to consumers than it has been in the past. Variable generation increases the need for an ’active demand-side’; in order to balance load and achieve security of supply; and various forms of smart grid are under consideration and trial; possible prototypes for the grids of the future. However; it is often not clear what the implications of an active demand side are for small-scale end-users; although their participation (or cooperation; at a minimum) is seen as essential. As utilities increasingly require the cooperation of their customers in managing distribution networks; so they need to persuade them to adopt new tariffs; technologies and customer-utility relationships. Four options are outlined and discussed; with the aim of developing a better understanding of the social and behavioural dimensions of distributed generation. The options are based on work carried out as part of the SUPERGEN HiDEF (Highly Distributed Energy Future) project in the UK. The focus is on householders; who have been used to a passive relationship with their energy retailers; along with simple tariffs. Policy questions revolve around how to encourage the cooperation of endusers – an ’active demand side’ - and questions of control; equity and data privacy are significant factors in the embryonic public debate over smart grids.

household; electricity; dynamic demand; tariffs