Slowly but Surely: Smart Grids Are Just Around the Corner [Guest Editorial]

Abstract

The articles in this special section focus on the development and applications supported by new smart grid technologies. The term smart grid means different things to different people, and quite rightly so. Our relationship with electricity varies significantly around the world. Many countries are trying to decarbonize their electricity systems; for them, a smart grid should be able to integrate large volumes of renewables. In other parts of the globe, the main concern is reducing the number of outages during common and uncommon events (such as natural disasters). For these countries, a smart grid is one that uses innovative solutions to increase reliability and also to make the grid more re..