Internet of Things and the Energy Market #exsum13

Dennis Kamst is Program Director IT@RWE2015 at Essent. Essent has a history of mergers and acquisitions, where the core product ‘electricity’ has remained more or less the same. Or has it? What is the product? What is behind the socket? In the business context of energy, the European market is going through true transformation. For example in Germany, in past July, there was more power generated by solar power than by 21 nuclear power plants. But also: Gas powered plants are shutting down because American coal is cheaper to burn. The old days will never come back At the same time, there is more focus on flexible, more renewable and more decentralized (‘virtual’) power generation. Smart meters, local power generation and advanced information allow consumers to better manage their energy use. For Essent there are also side effects: for example the distributed generation is also creating an opening for new competitors. Essent is facing this new competition and the changing rules of the game played by customers and employees head on. For example, trying to open their systems to allow third parties to create apps and to organize hack-battles to find creative new ways of managing information and energy. Energy Internet In a way, the Internet of Things also means that the energy network becomes more like the Internet. It’s as much about Information as it is about energy. The Things (meters, generators, smart fridges and heating etc.) are becoming part of this Energy Internet. It’s time for experimentation and innovation, because as Kamst finished: “If you keep doing what you did, you get what you’ve got”