More households will be equipped with smart meters under a new pilot programme by the Energy Market Authority (EMA) and SP Group.

Slated to be launched by the second half of 2024, the Residential Demand Response (R-DR) programme will encourage consumers to actively reduce their electricity consumption during demand peaks in the power system, said EMA in a press release on Oct. 24.

This will help "create a more sustainable and efficient energy ecosystem for everyone", said EMA chief executive Ngiam Shih Chun.

Financial incentives for cutting down on power

Under the pilot, consumers can keep track of their weekly carbon emissions and adjust their electricity consumption habits during demand peaks.

Once deployed, the smart meters would be used to monitor electricity consumption in the household.

During demand peaks, alerts would be sent to participating households through the SP Group mobile app, reminding them to reduce or defer their electricity usage temporarily.

Households can then take action by putting off the usage of appliances like the washing machine and dishwasher, lowering the temperature of the air-conditioning or switching it off entirely.

Participating households would in turn enjoy benefits such as financial incentives, said EMA.

Reduce energy consumption during peak demand periods

Reducing electricity consumption temporarily during peak demand periods, a concept known as Demand Response (DR), helps keep the power system running smoothly and more efficiently, said EMA.

This works by using demand-side resources in addition to supply-side (like large conventional power plants) to balance electricity demand and supply.

With the smart meters being progressively deployed to residential and non-residential consumers, consumers can help contribute to DR by using them to monitor their electricity consumption.

Group chief executive officer of SP Group, Stanley Huang, shared that the DR pilot would help empower consumers to be more energy-efficient and reduce carbon emissions.

He added that the SP app's features will provide consumers with "timely and useful information on their utilities usage and patterns", to nudge them to reduce their consumption.

As of September 2023, SP Group has installed more than 834,000 smart electricity meters across residential and non-residential premises.

Top photo via Unsplash