These days, it is possible to talk about Portugal, Spain, Sweden and Poland without having to refer to the European football championship. While there is a lot of energy in this competition, there is now a reason for these four countries to be in the same group without having to compete with each other for the first place. That reason is UPGRID. An investment of €15.7 million will make it possible to install, until 2017, four smart grids demonstrators.

In Portugal, the demonstrator will be installed at Parque das Nações to monitor and control energy expenses, with the support of the EDP Distribution, the Institute for Systems and Computer Engineering, Technology and Science, Withus and NOS. The demonstrator will monitor the consumptions of over 20 thousand consumers in that parish.

The idea is that after the four demonstrators are running, an integrated and efficient system is set up to monitor and control the medium and low voltage grids. The great advantage of the smart grids is the possibility of anticipating problems, and in this case the possibility of including the “end users in the operation”, explains Luís Seca, coordinator of INESC TEC’s Centre for Power and Energy Systems (CPES).

It is expected that the impact of UPGRID will lead to the introduction of “new regulatory policies and business models that will reduce the overall cost of supply, benefiting end users and allowing them to participate in a market environment. The social impact of the solution will also be assessed, taking into account sensitive issues, such as concerns about data protection and public acceptance by citizens and other stakeholders.”

Expresso, 17 June 2016