Although they operate on different types of infrastructure, electric, water, and gas utilities share the same challenge today: they need to make better use of networks that are becoming increasingly complex, while improving both efficiency and reliability.
Among these sectors, electricity is facing the greatest pressure. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), global electricity demand is expected to grow at an average annual rate of 3.6% between 2026 and 2030, driven by industrial electrification, electric vehicles, cooling demand, and the expansion of data centers. At the same time, more than 2,500 GW of renewable generation, storage, and large-load projects are currently waiting to be connected to power grids.
How can this challenge be addressed? Building more infrastructure cannot be the only answer. The IEA estimates that annual investment in electricity grids needs to increase by approximately 50% from the current US$400 billion level. In addition, planning, permitting, and building new grid infrastructure can take between five and fifteen years. The key, therefore, is to make better use of the infrastructure that already exists.
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A traditional utility network consists of thousands or even millions of distributed assets, including transformers, substations, power lines, valves, pumps, pipelines, and meters. But physical infrastructure alone does not necessarily provide visibility into what is happening at every point across the network.
Adding sensors, connectivity, and telemetry creates an information layer on top of that infrastructure. This makes it possible to understand what is happening, where and when it is happening, and how an event is evolving over time.
Connecting devices is only the starting point. The real transformation comes from integrating their data to create infrastructure that is observable and capable of continuously generating operational intelligence.
Industrial IoT therefore provides a distributed sensing infrastructure that can support better decision-making across network operations.
At their most basic, meters record consumption and generate data for billing. With connectivity and analytics, however, their role expands to support analysis, detection, and action.
Consumption data can gain operational value when combined with information about demand patterns, anomalies, and variations across the network.
This evolution also means that network intelligence no longer needs to reside exclusively in a central control center. In smart grids, some processing and decision-making capabilities are moving closer to where events occur. Deloitte describes hybrid architectures combining edge, cloud, and on-premises systems. Depending on the use case, this approach can reduce latency and enable decisions to be made within milliseconds.
In gas networks, sensors and actuators can provide information in near real time or at an update frequency appropriate to each process. This capability helps utilities move from a model based on inspection, detection, and repair toward one built around continuous monitoring, anomaly detection, prioritization, and intervention.
Across these industries, better measurement capabilities can translate into lower losses. Smart meters, pressure sensors, and telemetry can help identify unusual consumption, leaks, and losses by network segment, as well as detect conditions that may signal a potential problem before intervention becomes necessary.
For water utilities, digitalization can be particularly important in reducing losses. The World Bank estimates that in emerging and developing countries, approximately 40% of supplied water is either lost or unaccounted for.
For this evolution to fully materialize, industrial IoT deployments need to move beyond being a collection of isolated projects. The sequence that begins with sensors must continue through connectivity, telemetry, data, analytics, prediction, and ultimately action.
Artificial intelligence can help prioritize interventions, anticipate failures, and improve incident response, but it requires a data infrastructure capable of interpreting what is happening in the physical world.
The next wave of utility efficiency will depend on turning millions of distributed signals into operational capabilities. To achieve this, assets whose connectivity delivers operational value must be able to generate and transmit useful information.
The digitalization of utilities makes it possible to measure more, gain greater visibility into infrastructure, and act earlier and with greater precision. At Plusmo, we support this evolution with an IoT services offering built around SIM and eSIM technology that can be centrally managed through a unified platform.
