Smart Grid in Smart Cities

6 min readJan 6, 2021

To all the sci-fi fanatics out there, does this scene ring any bells? Is there anything in the image that takes you to a particular place? A particular timeline? A particular movie, maybe?

Beginning with the early 90s, moviemakers in particular seemed to be fascinated by the idea of depicting a world that is way into the future, a world where humans are aided by robots, where drones zoom around like flocks of robins and intelligent machines essentially run the universe. The scene visualized above is taken from the aesthetically futuristic 2015 George Clooney starrer “Tomorrowland: A World Beyond”. Besides this project, countless other films- the “Star Wars” franchise, “Akira”, the hugely popular “Back to the Future” series have been influential in not only helping us viewers visualize a modern world but have also given researchers and engineers worldwide numerous ideas to bring such a world to light. Films like the “Terminator” and “Metropolis” picturized drones and robots even before they were a thing. The 1999 Disney film “Smart House” talks about a certain “Internet of Things” to aid a certain “Smart Home”.

In present-day and time, now that Smart Homes and Smart Cities are commonplace concepts, it is very important to have a clear viewpoint and immense clarity of thought when it comes to smart grids, smart cities and their inter-dependence on each other to co-exist. Over the years, Smart Grid has become a lifeline for Smart Cities. It has proven to be influential in powering anything and everything ‘smart’ that Smart cities have to offer. Understanding the aforementioned relationship is the subject of this blog.

Smart Grid and Smart Cities

A smart city can be viewed as an urban space that uses different forms of electronic methods to collect and analyze data, which is then executed to make everyday life more convenient for its residents and improve operations around the entire city. Basically, everything right from watches that track the steps you’ve walked to robots that minimize human interference in critical activities are characteristic services offered within smart cities. However, this meteoric rise in smart technologies makes us ponder as to what actually powers these smart cities?

The answer lies in harnessing energy in a smart way itself, with the aid of a Smart Grid of course!

A smart grid is an electrical grid that has a variety of operations and energy forms that allow for two-way communication with the utility and its customers, resulting in a wider scaled spread of a smart city.

Smart grid technologies have a large number of benefits for smart cities that deploy them, either on their own or in cooperation with utilities.

• Smart grids can provide slightly more efficient transmission of electricity as well as a faster restoration after power disturbances that take place in the city.

• It also improves the safety of the electric transmission and distribution grid via connected assets.

• Utilities mainly benefit from reduced operations and management prices, which in turn means lower power costs for consumers.

The smart grid also integrates with customer-owned power generation systems, including renewable energy systems.

What good is a Smart Grid?

The smart grid technologies which are used in smart cities include complex systems such as Distributed Generation, Distribution system Automation, Smart Homes, Advanced metering infrastructure, Energy Storage and grid integration.

Distributed Generation:

This method includes source fuel cells, solar, wind and biomass which are closer to the end-users. Since this method ends up being close to the end-users, it reduces the cost of transmission and distribution by a significant amount. Other benefits include flexibility and modularity, energy efficiency and reduction of emission.

Distribution System Automation:

Distribution System Automation allows a real-time monitoring system and control of the entire distribution system to maintain stability in the grid through a centralized Master control center. Distribution automation system (DAS) includes various sub-types under it, mainly a substation automation system, feeder level automation and customer level automation, voltage regulation, fault regulation amongst numerous others.

Smart Homes:

A smart home is equipped with intelligent appliances that can communicate with each other such that day to day household activities are automated without manual intervention. They also enable remote control and monitoring of the appliances from anywhere using a mobile phone or any other internet-connected device. So this can be something as simple as the lights turning on in the room you in without the presence of a button switch, or having a surveillance system all over the residence for security reasons, the IoT has us covered.

Energy Storage:

Renewable energy coupled with energy storage can provide reliable and quality power to a smart city. The surplus energy that is generated from renewable sources, such as solar or wind is stored and used later when the demand is high thus reducing the maximum demand of the smart city. Battery energy storage is well proven and would be the most suitable technology for smart cities since it is easy to integrate.

Smart Grid in Action

Cities like Singapore, London, Copenhagen, Tokyo and Hong Kong have earned themselves the title of being a “smart city” for a while now. What this essentially means is that they’ve been practicing energy-saving activities like sustainable development, prevention of global warming and many more which gives these cities a slight edge over the others with the same comparison parameters. From developing a smart parking system that helps individuals to have a hassle-free driving experience to the implementation of a smart home, these cities have seen it all.

The Smart Grid in South Africa is expected to boost the increasing penetration of renewable generation, decarbonizing electricity generation, improving network reliability and availability.

The WiMAX-based smart grid in Australia will support such applications as Substation Automation and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PEV), ultimately supporting 50,000 Smart Meters and 15,000 in-home devices (IHDs) as well.

Global Market for Smart Grids

Since 2018, a hefty sum of 19 Billion US Dollars has been invested in Smart Grids. This sum is set to increase even rapidly owing to the large-scale deployments that have begun since 2017. Smart Grid infrastructure investment in India alone is projected to total $44.9 billion over the period 2017–2027, according to a new study published today by Northeast Group, LLC.

As far as returns as concerned, it is expected that increasing smart city projects and government initiatives will provide major growth opportunities for the market in the upcoming years. The global smart grid market size is projected to reach USD 94.7 billion by 2025.

What does the future of Smart Grids hold for us?

The more our world takes a turn for its smarter and futuristic self, the higher will be our demand for cleaner renewable sources of energy. With the investments in Smart Grids projected to rise, they provide a viable solution to this impending energy crisis. Sustainable development is a development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

All in all, Smart Grids offer some of the most sustainable solutions for energy harnessing and could in-turn become one of our last fading hopes to build a better world.