On the sidelines of the Middle East Electricity Expo 2019, held at the Dubai World Trade Center on March 5-7, Schneider Electric announced that smart cities are pushing the market for smart power grids in the countries of the GCC to reach $33 billion by 2042.
Hanan Darwish, President of Schneider Electric in the Gulf and Pakistan, said: Smart cities are working together with digital transformation across the GCC to consolidate energy efficiency in projects whether through renewable energy generation projects, or more efficient energy distribution using the Internet of things, analytics and major data, as well as raising the efficiency of smart buildings in energy use. This helps to rationalize energy costs, promote economic growth and meet the growing energy needs of residents and the industrial sector.
Smart cities should initially invest in operational technologies to advance current performance, integrate emerging technologies. In order to achieve this, the integration of three-tier actions need to take place; Smart cities need an operational technical foundation consisting of smart panels and switches, and a middle level of self-management and control for the connected hardware peripherals, and then a higher level to deliver in-depth insights in real-time with a view to upgrading services.
