European countries are rolling out smart meters on an unprecedented scale. Sweden especially has maintained its reputation as a frontrunner in this area: Between 2004 and 2009, E.ON installed the first generation of smart meters for one million customers in the Scandinavian nation.
Currently, a second wave of more capable smart meters is being integrated. Customers of E.ON Sweden in possession of that second generation of devices are now able to unlock the true potential of a smartly electrified home with the new service Elna.
Sofie Bredinger, Head of Energy Sales Consumer in Sweden is excited about the release: “Elna makes it easy for E.ON customers to understand their household consumption and thereby lower it. The timing of the launch is perfect, especially in these market conditions.”
Easy Plug-in, smart insights
Elna has two parts: A small hardware dongle that customers can easily plug in their smart meter and a service suite integrated in the “My E.ON” app. Once it’s set up, Elna collects energy data every 10 seconds and analyses the household energy consumption. This enables users to monitor their current power consumption in real time with the app.
The free smart service also reveals detailed insights and a breakdown of data on household consumption in up to 14 categories, including standby appliances, heat pumps, washing machines or EV chargers.
Making conscious choices
The array of features provides opportunities to make conscious choices to save energy
On top of that, the array of features provides many more opportunities to make conscious choices that help save energy and lower energy costs: Users can, for example, access a historical comparison of their energy usage in an annual, monthly, weekly, or daily view.
As a truly smart service, Elna’s A.I. capabilities continually learn more about a household’s energy usage. This enables users to get more accurate readings over time and see more detailed views in the “My E.ON” app.
Better energy management
Development on Elna started in 2020 in a close cooperation between E.ON Sweden and E.ON Innovation. The very positive response to a small roll out in June this year demonstrated the market possibilities for the new service.
Dr. Markus Grote, Head of Consumer Innovation at E.ON, is excited about the prospects: “The potential of smart meters is staggering and it’s services like Elna that make this potential truly visible to the consumer. With Elna, we at E.ON are now able to get the maximum out of smart meters to our customers when it comes to transparency and managing their energy usage better.”
Following Elna’s roll-out at the end of October, E.ON Sweden aims to gradually increase the numbers of customers over the following months. A release for the service in other European countries remains an ambition, as the smart meter rollout is starting to gain steam across the continent. Despite many still trailing behind the target, most European countries are working towards achieving full smart meter coverage within the next few years.
