Why smart meter data could be key to a cleaner future

But protecting people's privacy is essential

Montage by Chris Baraniuk. Includes imagery from Oscar Williams, Patrycja Grobelny, and Marcin Wichary (CC Licence, image modified to remove background and alter some details).

There are roughly 190 million smart meters in Europe today. By 2028, there will probably be more than 325 million. And they are going to churn out a tonne of data.

As people retrofit their homes to save energy, buy more efficient appliances, or switch from fossil fuel-based heating systems to heat pumps, there are arguably as many pitfalls as opportunities. Smart meters could help scrutinise the transition by tracking peaks and troughs in energy consumption, for example, or by diagnosing problems with heat pump installations.

Some even argue that governments should be doing a lot more with smart meter data.

“If you installed new energy-saving measures, you could use smart meters to identify how much they were genuinely saving [people] money,” says Adam Bell, director of policy at Stonehaven, a consultancy.