INFUSING DATA INTO THE NIGERIAN ENERGY (POWER) SCENE

By -
The two main things that would continually increase in future are Energy demand and Data. So there has to be a way of managing this growing energy demand. The world's population is growing significantly daily, in Nigeria alone we are approaching 200 million people, and these 200 million people require energy to meet their daily needs. Also quintillion bytes of data are generated daily world wide. We can easily appreciate the power of data in the recent Facebook data scandal with Cambridge Analytica. Data is being infused in so many things, so why not infuse it into the Nigerian Energy (Power) scene. This brings about Energy Analytics.

                                           


According to enertiv Energy Analytics describes the process of collecting electrical data and applying sophisticated analytical software and algorithms to deliver insights around consumption and time of use reductions. Energy Analytics is gaining traction and currently been used by many energy companies in the world. Infact, we now have specialized companies, who's main services is to provide energy analytic services to their client. Nigeria today suffers from insufficient power generation among other power issues. And one way to make the best use of this limited generation, is through highly efficient energy demand management through the use of data.

                                      


Energy companies in Nigeria, most especially, power distribution companies (DISCO's) need to acquire more data about their customers. This would help them in serving their customers better and also solving some of their challenges. Personally, I know some Power distribution companies are already embracing this new aspect, by using data in fishing out energy meter bypassers. This is just one of the several ways in which data can used.  Data/Energy Analytics can be used by in forecasting possible equipment and asset downtime and failure, this can help in reducing unnecessary downtime. Based on the limited power available for distribution to customers, Energy Analytics can be used in optimal power sharing and allocation, such that customers are given power when they need it most, and customers are given the right amount of power they can actually afford.  This would help increase the collection efficiency and further reduce the ATC&C losses. As the Nigerian Power grid grows smarter with the installation of smart meters, distribution companies can now have access to more accurate, real time information about their customers. These new data being acquired is gold and should be used judiciously.

                                                 


Data/Energy Analytics isn’t meant for only the power companies. With increased penetration of smart meters in Nigerian homes, I foresee a situation where software development and Internet of Things would be incorporated with smart meters such that customers can have mobile or web apps that shows them their current energy usage, displaying when (time) they consume the most energy, the appliance that consumes the most energy, best time to operate certain equipment to reduce energy cost among other features. This would make the customers more energy conscious, and give them a better insights on how to manage their energy in the most efficient and cost effective way.

It is my hope, that in future we would see the rise of more Energy Analytic companies in Nigeria and see more energy companies infusing data into their business models.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

FEARS

By -
Image
No matter how brave you are or how courageous you may act, there is always that one thing that you are scared of. Now fear doesn’t necessarily have to be physical, at times we fear things we can’t see (non-physical). I know most people, especially the motivational speakers would say we shouldn’t have fears, they say things like you should fear nothing but fear itself, some argue that fear isn’t real, that it is a choice, and we can choose not to be afraid. Now I agree with this school of thought to an extent, not completely though. Also one thing I’ve noticed is that we always paint our fears as bad, and this isn’t always the case. At times our fears are good, yes I said it, good, well you should keep in mind that this “good” is relative. Sometimes our fears keep us in check, a person who is afraid of having STI would most likely refrain from “unsafe” sexual acts. A person scared of spiders would always make sure he/she has a neat room to avoid cobwebs and spiders. Now to my...
Read more

CHRONICLES OF AN NYSC MEMBER"CORPER" PART 1

By -
Image
So, after being postponed like four freaking times, the National Youth Service Corp (NYSC) camp was eventually confirmed to hold on the 27th of April 2016. Alas, i could finally tell people who doubted if i actually did graduated, that i was off to camp. i'd already bought my things about 2 months before so i was fully prepared and eager to get to camp . In my mind i thought camp was going to be fun, filled with a lot of flexing and partying (at least that was what i was told) but my case was quite different from the assumed norm. Maybe it was just me because most of my co-corp members all said they had fun. It had to definitely be just me because i really didn't catch much fun in camp.                    I resumed at the issele uku orientation camp in delta state, a day ahead of the official resumption date, guess i was too eager and so were many other people because i met a crowd of similar people all waiting to be addre...
Read more

THE NOT SO FUN PART OF COLLEGE

By -
Image
You know that annoying or should I say weird moment when things don't go as planned. Well today I'm going to be talking about life in colleg/university and what you should expect. This post is basically for the freshmen just joining the system. Before I got admission into school, I could still remember the late night reading, tutorials and all those extra work I had to do just to get admitted ( and believe me it was tiresome).           When I finally got admitted I was ecstatic, and I thought that now my flexing begins. This was actually due to a misconception I had about college/university, I thought it was going to be filled with fun, partying, and .....(You know what I mean) Well I blame this misconception to the numerous series films which I watched such as GREEK, which portrayed college as fun filled and interesting, the thrill of joining a fraternity/sorority (I'm not saying school is totally boring though), but what I saw and still seeing...
Read more