Electricity Providers Head toward Digital Transformation to Meet Changing Demands

As businesses electrify and digitally transform their operations, demand for affordable, clean and uninterrupted power supplies is accelerating. In order to meet the demand, electricity providers will likely need to shift away from traditional asset management strategies and develop comprehensive digital strategies with “robust data governance and cyber security at the core,” states a new report from Deloitte.

Digitally transforming their assets means providers can make data-driven, risk-informed decisions, rather than basing decisions on subjective information.

Digitally transforming their businesses will also help providers gain visibility and better understand distributed energy resources (DER) at the “grid edge” — that is, the growing array of DER and devices that are customer or third-party owned and controlled. DER, including rooftop solar systems, battery storage, EV chargers and flexible load program capacity may add up to nearly 24% of US generation capacity by 2025, the report points out.

While most electricity providers have not yet begun to approach digital transformation with the comprehensive view that is necessary to unlock its full potential, a number of disrupters are compelling new asset management strategies, Deloitte says. These include aging assets, rising cyber and physical threats, and increasing regulatory scrutiny and mandates, according to the report. As these challenges drive power providers to seek new tools and processes for asset management, they will continue to digitally transform their businesses.