Factors including a lack of funding, consumer resistance and unwillingness by utilities to deploy smart meter technologies in the past years have restrained the growth of the market. Since 2020, the impact of the pandemic on supply chains and 2021 installation procedures have further negatively affected the market.

However, a lot of developments have been achieved despite the negative restraints. We look at the top five achievements realised in 2021.

Europe’s smart meter installation milestone

In 2021, the penetration of smart electricity meters in Europe passed the 50% mark with more than 150 million units installed in consumer households and premises, according to a study released by Berg Insight. The milestone is owing to increased digitalisation and modernisation of the grid and the enactment of supporting policies as the bloc eyes to achieve energy sustainability goals set under the Fit for 55 and Green Deal packages. The UK under its effort to install 50 million smart meters, connected 16.6 million units on the Data Communications Company (DCC)’s network as of 11 December 2021. In late November, the DCC had announced that 10 million households have been connected to its network . By 2026, the number of smart meters installed in Europe is expected to reach 227 million units with the central, eastern and southern Europe regions , which have been slow in deploying over the past years, expected to have the ten fastest-growing markets in terms of […]

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