Just think of the revolution brought by the electronic meter, which was rolled out over ten years ago and which today is in every industrialised country on the planet, and was a milestone in the development of remote management and smart grids.
But that’s not all, as the Group has continued to experiment and has in fact made huge strides in energy infrastructure and sustainability. Among the latest is the Smart Info device, which enables users to check their electricity consumption from a PC or smartphone, and which offers advice on when electricity use costs less. By helping customers move towards more sustainable behaviour, Smart Info will be a crucial part of the smart homes of the future.
Another example of Enel’s innovation is the electricity storage system installed in Isernia at the end of last year, which Paola Petroni, head of Network Technology for Enel’s Infrastructure and Networks Division, described as ‘the first storage on medium-tension network in Europe. It goes hand-in-hand with a similar system installed by Endesa in the Canary Islands.
Enel is also focussing on transformer cabinets, which are essential in the distribution of electricity, in order to develop cutting-edge cabinets that are connected via fibre optics and equipped with the latest technology, including devices that detect copper theft to the ability of containing equipment used by the Protezione Civile, the Italian body that deals with extraordinary events such as floods and earthquakes.
All in all, Italy still has a lot to do in terms of innovation if it wants to keep up with the most developed economies, but the knowledge that there is already someone who has been doing that – well – for a while now can only help bring us all a bit closer.
