Smart Electricity Meter Revenue Set To Hit $7 Billion By 2021, According To IHS Markit

The global market for smart electricity meters generated more than $4 billion in revenue in 2015, a figure which IHS Markit expects to grow to $7 billion by 2021.

A new report from information and analysis firm IHS Markit, the Smart Electricity Meters Report, was released this week. According to IHS Markit, electricity meter manufacturers shipped more than 100 million smart meters globally in 2015, resulting in more than $4 billion in revenue. With the increased attractiveness of smart meters, helped along by their increasing innovation and usefulness in saving actual electricity dollars, IHS Markit expects the global market to expand to almost $7 billion annually by 2021.

“A number of factors came together to create such a strong smart meter market in 2015,” said David Green, research manager at IHS Markit. “At the top of the list, China continues to roll out massive numbers of smart meters, as part of the government’s 10-year plan.”

China is already the leading the field, selling more smart meters in 2015 than any other region, accounting for almost half of all basic and smart meters shipped globally. Japan’s utilities are also installing millions of smart meters in advance of the country’s decision to deregulate the market. Europe and North America also saw solid growth over the past 12 months, giving credence to the long-awaited mass rollouts.

“The long-awaited European rollouts are gaining steam, with multiple countries installing millions of meters in 2015, and many more ramping up to that level in an attempt to meet their deadlines,” Green said. “Meanwhile, the North American market also came out of a stagnant phase, further bolstering the overall global market in 2015.”

Smart meters are one thing, but communicating meters are set to continue to grow their own market share as well, though at a less impressive pace than their less intelligent brethren. The ever-increasing public perception of smart and communicating meters can thank companies like Nest and Honeywell for making the old-fashioned electricity meter suddenly “sexy,” and continued and wider understanding of the benefits of smart and communicating meters will result in continued increases in sales.

“Looking to the future, the networking infrastructure side of the smart metering picture is becoming increasingly competitive, especially as the pool of companies involved in the projects increases,” Green said.

“For example, the influence of telecommunications companies and IT solutions providers on utility providers is growing in all regions, while the question for meter manufacturers continues to be centered on whom to partner with and to what extent.  Although the impact on competitive landscape for meter hardware might not yet show it, big changes are also in the offing, as software, analytics and services grow in importance. Further merger and acquisition activity is definitely in play for the short term, as utility companies around the world get more comfortable discussing smart-grid applications, security and services with a wider array of potential suppliers.”