Middle East & North Africa Smart Grid: Market Forecast (2012-2022)

y reducing domestic demand for oil and gas -­‐ both through decreased overall demand and through the incorporation of renewable resources -­‐ freeing up more oil and natural gas for export. Additionally, instituting some level of dynamic pricing mechanisms to the domestic electricity market will raise additional funds, while reducing technical and non-­‐technical losses will ease the cost to the government of electricity subsidies. With volatile oil and gas markets and GDP growth rates expected to temper following the enormous growth of the past several years, Gulf countries will need to look in new directions to ensure the wealth that drives current domestic spending programs. To a certain extent, the same holds true outside of the Gulf. The biggest differences with MENA countries outside of the Gulf are lower electricity consumption profiles and challenging political environments. But even though energy consumption is not nearly as high in other MENA countries, it is growing quickly and will continue to do so as the region’s large youth population reaches working age. Governments throughout the region will therefore face increasing challenges in supplying affordable and reliable power to their populations. In the short-­‐term, the political changes seen throughout MENA may stall investment, but in the long-­‐term, smart grid will prove instrumental in meeting the goals of modernization and reliable public infrastructure. Key questions answered in this report: • How large will the smart meter market – including 5 segments -­‐ in MENA become over the next decade? • Which countries are developing smart grid regulatory frameworks and what do they look like? • Which international vendors are already active in MENA? How will rules on local participation affect international investment in the smart grid market? • Which communications technologies will be favored by utilities in the MENA region? • How will the development of renewable sources of energy affect smart grid in the MENA region? • What pilot projects are in place and what hurdles have they faced? !"#$%"&'()*+,'$)-.()*+/!,0+!"#$%&'$()&)*+*,-."*/%&(/&0123&E4##+1424A)>41+5)%4+1424A)>41+,12.*341+54$4%"*6+7*8%.#$%'3$'%4+/,570+9)'%34:+;)%$