Latam EV charging efficiency seen up with smart meter transition 

Berg Insight

By AJ Irving, August 2024
Fleet Mobility Today

Latin America is making a transformative leap toward smart electricity meters, a growing option that offers more sophisticated capabilities for cost management, grid stability and sustainability, and the optimization of electric vehicle (EV) charging efficiency.  

In 2023, the penetration of smart electricity meters in Latin America was only 6.5% (some 14 million units), in comparison with North America at some 80%.  

However, the installed base of smart electricity meters is forecasted to grow at an impressive compound annual growth rate of 20.5% during 2023–2029 to reach a total of 42.9 million units at the end of the forecast period, according to a new report by IoT analyst firm Berg Insight. 

The smart metering market in Latin America is becoming increasingly active as several utilities across the region are in the early stages of deployments.  

Over the next six years, the penetration rate of smart meters in Latin America’s largest market Brazil will increase to 18.8% in 2029 from 5.6% in 2023. Brazil and Mexico are expected to drive most annual shipment volumes of smart meters, accounting for more than 70% of shipments throughout the forecast period. 

The smart metering landscape in Latin America is not only growing, it is transforming, according to Berg Insight IoT Analyst Mattias Carlsson. 

"The number of annual meter installations are expected to triple from 2023 to 2029. Colombia, Ecuador and Peru will grow their share of annual shipment volumes to over 18% by 2029 from around 6% in 2023," says Mattias.  

"In Colombia alone we are expecting a six-fold increase in annual smart meter shipment volumes by 2029”, he adds.   

Mattias Carlsson (courtesy of Berg Insight)

According to the newly released study, yearly shipments of smart electricity meters in Latin America will grow to approximately 6.7 million in 2029 from some 2.6 million units in 2023. This makes Latin America one of the fastest growing smart metering markets worldwide. 

Utilities across the region leverage smart metering to drastically cut down on non-technical losses, which includes theft and billing inefficiencies, thereby improving their operational margins and service quality.  

In the end, smart meters help drivers and fleet managers better understand their energy usage and costs. By making these numbers more transparent, drivers will be able to make more informed decisions about when and how to drive their electric vehicles. 

Meanwhile, the race for market dominance over the Latin American smart metering market is heating up. Over the last decade, Chinese smart meter vendors have made significant inroads into the market, capitalizing on their ability to offer competitive pricing.

Berg Insight

Smart Meters   

A smart meter is a digital meter capable of two-way communication between power supply companies and users, and it can manage and adjust the power consumption of users’ various electrical equipment automatically.  

As the eye and data source of the power grid, the smart meter is also the ports where grid companies interact with electric vehicle charging facilities. By expanding the functions of the smart meter, it can manage the charging facilities in society effectively.  

It plays an important role in optimizing the load characteristics of the power grid, improves the quality of power consumption, and increases the economic benefits of power supply companies.