Kamstrup and N1 optimize the grid

By analysing and presenting existing data from any brand of electricity meter, GMS uncovers grid topology, phase, and configuration issues, helping the DSO handle major grid challenges and prepare for the future. 

“We are constantly working on getting new data about our electricity grid and figuring out what is actually happening out there,” says Jesper Klitgaard Frederiksen, Head of Digital Development at Danish DSO N1.

The reason for this effort is simple: Like other DSOs, N1 needs to know when and where to invest in its grid, but without detailed insight it is left groping in the dark. DSOs often lack the time and resources to carry out the necessary analyses and pinpoint areas prone to overloads, topology issues, and phase imbalances – and without that knowledge, it is hard to prioritise investments and optimise capacity utilisation. 

N1 supplies electricity to approximately 800,000 customers across western Denmark, and it faces a very real challenge: According to a 2025 estimate from the Danish Ministry of Climate, Energy and Utilities, Denmark’s total electricity consumption could triple by 2050 compared to 2023 levels. Handling that scenario requires DSOs to make the most of existing and future grid resources.

“Our low-voltage asset base is enormous, and we cannot expand it in time to keep up with demand,” says Henrik Vind Frost, Senior Manager for Grid Operations & Maintenance at N1. “One of the challenges we face is that we do not know whether the data we have today on our low-voltage grid is accurate or not. And we need to ensure phase balance so that we can utilise the capacity we have planned for.”

“If we just continue as we are today, we will see electricity consumption steadily increasing at the outermost edges – out on residential streets, in vacation home areas – and we will be somewhat blind to where the heaviest loads are,” adds Jesper Klitgaard Frederiksen. 

When N1 had the opportunity to participate in a proof-of-concept project to co-create and test the new Grid Management Services (GMS) offering from Kamstrup, it proved to be the solution that the DSO was looking for. According to Jesper Klitgaard Frederiksen, the objective was to use the electricity meter in a new way: to record and analyse all the data coming in from the meters – and to act on that data.

“The electricity meter has traditionally been used just to settle consumption, but we can also use it to monitor what is happening with the phases in the grid,” he says. “How are they loaded? Where is the overload happening? We can also use the electricity meter to determine whether our grid is correctly mapped in our systems. That is not always the case, and it is extremely important – both for operating the grid and when making long-term investments – that we are investing in the right places.”

GMS collects detailed data about the grid from meters. It analyses the data and presents the results on dashboards that give the DSO an unprecedented overview and concrete tools for tackling hard-to-find technical issues. Knowing the exact location of such issues, the DSO can prioritise its maintenance resources and expansion investments based on data-driven insights rather than partial overviews or gut feeling. GMS works with any brand of meter; a major advantage for DSOs like N1 with several meter brands in their asset base. 

Using the patented Kamstrup technology, it was possible to uncover a number of grid issues that N1 could address and correct, for example configuration issues caused by mistakes in connection with past maintenance work.

“It turns out that there are switching errors – meaning that we have reconfigured the network during troubleshooting but never switched it back to its normal state,” says Henrik Vind Frost.

A similar issue that GMS helped solve is documentation errors. N1 was born from mergers of several previous DSO companies, and network topology information has sometimes become garbled or lost during transitions between companies and systems. By validating topology data, GMS has revealed inconsistencies that N1 could quickly correct in its systems.

In addition to detecting topology and switching errors, GMS has given N1 insight into phase imbalances that impacted the reliability of supply in some residential areas. With this knowledge, N1 is better able to assign its maintenance resources on areas that need it the most, optimising capacity and improving its service towards electricity customers.

The detailed grid knowledge is expected to help N1 gradually evolve from a reactive to a proactive approach to network maintenance – and GMS has provided concrete insights that will help N1 qualify its procedures for network configuration and repair tasks. 

N1 is in the early stages of assessing the financial impact on its operations of the insights gained from GMS, but Jesper Klitgaard Frederiksen is keenly aware of the potential – and of the need.

“In 2024, we invested DKK 1.5 billion (approx. EUR 200 million) in strengthening the power grid,” he says. “That is a lot of money, which is why it is crucial that our future decisions are highly data-driven.”

The need to invest wisely is not just a Danish phenomenon: According to data from Eurelectric and a European DSO survey carried out by Kamstrup, EUR 67 billion will be required every year from 2025 to 2050 to prepare the European electricity grid to meet the increase in demand and succeed at the energy transition. And as materials and skilled staff are sometimes in short supply, it is all the more important to make the most of the resources available.

“The next steps involve looking into the financial aspects,” says Jesper Klitgaard Frederiksen. “We have identified figures indicating a significant potential, and we will continue working with these numbers to gain a more precise understanding of the real financial impact of these new insights.” 

Through a combination of concrete data-driven insights and significant potential savings, the GMS offering from Kamstrup is helping N1 optimise its operations today and ease the transition towards the efficient and reliable grid of tomorrow. The Danish DSO has made a conscious decision to use the latest digital tools to evolve, and it is reaping the first rewards of that decision.

“This initiative is also part of an effort to be proactive in understanding how the grid will look in the future,” concludes Henrik Vind Frost.