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Operations & Assets Fecamp is a 498MW offshore wind- farm being developed by EDF Energies Nouvelles, Dong Energy, independent renewables developer WPD Offshore and wind turbine manufacturer Alstom. If you have an asset or project you would like to see featured in this slot, please send your pictures and details of the project to: paul.newton@fav-house.com or call 01342 332085 Pipe up Maher Chebbo I n March this year Ofgem recommended the Competi- tion and Markets Authority carry out a review of the energy sector that in its words would "once and for all clear the air and allow the CMA to ensure that there are no further barriers to effective competition". This review highlights once again the requirement to have well-managed and transparent governance pro- cesses. Those who have invested in open and consistent architectures will benefit when they need to respond to such inquiries. The disciplines required to support investigations like this – such as reporting, data man- agement, business processing and customer relationship management – can be used to deliver additional value to customers, drive innovation and increase competitive- ness in the sector. It's crucial, therefore, that organisations look to support the current and future requirements of these disciplines with the appropriate infrastructure. The adoption of mobile technologies, for example, enables utilities to reach a new consumer – Generation Y, who are comfortable to be contacted in this way. Smart grids, on the other hand, offer a way to meet the challenges of increasing energy demand, spiralling costs, and emissions reduc- tions. And analytics technology can run reports that provide granular, real-time visibility of demand, so loads can be controlled with pinpoint accuracy. These analytic solutions aggregate, cleanse, and make massive amounts of customer data available for analysis almost instantly, so that providers can react quickly to events; for example, by alerting a third-party outage management system that can instantly reroute transmissions and prevent a blackout. Demand-side management soware can also leverage insights about customers and allow providers to manage programmes that influence customer behaviour in ways that reduce usage and carbon emissions, and balance energy demand and supply. Regulation, compliance and regulator inquiries are becoming an inevitable and increasingly defining characteristic of the deregulated UK market. The choice energy companies face now is simple: try and carry on as usual, without the trust of customers, or start making the changes to turn those perceptions around. Having IT architecture that recognises the need for this will go a long way to determining the winners and losers over the next five years. Maher Chebbo, vice president utilities for EMEA, SAP "Analytics can aggregate, cleanse, and make massive amounts of customer data available for analysis." It's crucial that utilities support current and future requirements with the appropriate infrastructure 6th - 12th June 2014 | utILItY WeeK | 23