Future Home Demand report released
The Future Home Demand Report presents the findings of a multi-staged research project with 36 households as well as a survey with 1,325 responses across the three electricity distribution businesses: CitiPower, Powercor and United Energy in Victoria. The report identified 51 emerging trends across household life, 9 future energy peak scenarios, and includes research participant designs for value-led energy futures.
Through in-depth ethnographic research with 36 Victorian households, and a survey with 1,325 responses, researchers from the Emerging Technologies Research Lab have identified 51 emerging trends in household life, and identified 9 possible future peak scenarios. The findings have been released today in the Future Home Demand report.
These 51 emerging trends represent both possible challenges and opportunities for the electricity sector.
For example, the increase in electric vehicle adoption will make how and when people charge their vehicles increasingly important for the grid.
The research found that those who own or plan to purchase an EV in the next 5 years plan to charge their electric vehicles at home (77%).
While many are open to using a smart charger to help them manage this, so that charging occurs when electricity is cheap or coming from renewable sources, many want ultimate control or the ability to override any automation.
This may lead to new energy demand peaks, such as the Storm Charging Peak presented in the report. In this speculative future scenario, households charge their car batteries, home batteries and even smaller batteries such as power tools and laptops in advance of coming storms.
These emerging trends and the future peak scenarios will help the energy sector and the research partners better prepare for the future energy needs of Victorians.
The research was commissioned by energy networks CitiPower, Powercor and United Energy. They are directly using these research findings as part of their consultation program informing regulatory reset proposals for the 2026-2031 period.
“This research is an evolutionary jump in how we model future electricity use,” says Ms Renate Vogt, General Manager, Regulation at CitiPower and Powercor.
“It’s been great to see how this research is going to have a direct impact in improving the electricity system for Victorians. Working with industry partners on this report has meant the research is about to have a direct impact. We also wouldn’t have been able to do it without their help in recruiting research participants through their customer networks. This project has shown just how much is possible when university researchers and industry work collaboratively together.” Dr Kari Dahlgren
Read the executive summary.
Read the full Future Home Demand report
Find out more about the project