The Grid: Electrical Infrastructure for a New Era

by Gretchen Bakke

This, then, is exactly the problem. The utilities don’t know how to upgrade existing technology without putting themselves out of business. Nor do they know how to continue with the existing infrastructure without going out of business. As a compromise, most utilities in the country are opting to install the smart meters but not to provide consumers with the rest of what the Petersons got. At least not on their dime. A smart meter allows for smart appliances, such as an air conditioner or thermostat, that can be set in conjunction with a utility’s promotional-rate structure to encourage time-of-day use that smooths out peak demand. It also turns out, to almost nobody’s surprise, that smart meters allow the utility to remotely control electricity use.