IDC “Worldwide Quarterly Smart Meter Tracker” Predictions

There is a wide window of opportunity at the moment for smart meter and communications vendors, according to the latest IDE Energy Insight report “Worldwide Quarterly Smart Meter Tracker”.  IDC predicts that global smart meter shipments are expected to grow 13% from 2010 to 2015.  The report pointed out Europe and Asia Pacific – mainly China as the main growth areas for the next five years.

IDC expects a total of 460.9 million meters to be shipped worldwide between 2010 and 2015, representing an average of 74.6 million shipping each year until 2015.  “The bubble of opportunity for smart meter and communications vendors to capitalise on the expected growth of this market is now,” said Ryan Reith, program manager for IDE Energy Insight’s Tracker products.

Ryan also foresees both government and vendors, such as HP and IBM playing and integral part in the deployment of smart meters and smart grid initiatives worldwide. “We expect this space to quickly move from five to seven strong vendors today to a competitive landscape of regional manufacturers competing for high-profile contracts in emerging markets,” added Ryan.

The Energy Insight also pointed out that Itron and Landis+Gyr together shipped more than 60 per cent of the smart meters deployed in North America last year, followed by GE and Elster.

“Once the smart meters and communication networks are in place, we expected to see additional investment on the customer side of the meter in home energy management and smart building technologies, as well as on the utility side of the meter in distribution management and distribution automation,” said Rick Nicholson, group vice president for IDC Energy Insights.