Pola de Siero has a premiere. As a result of the agreement signed between the City Council and EDP Hc Energía, the capital of Siero has the latest technological innovations integrated into the electricity distribution network. Two charging points for electric vehicles, efficient lighting in public spaces, a photovoltaic panel and the monitoring of electricity consumption thanks to the new smart meters. These innovations are part of the Inovcity project, which EDP Hc Energía has developed in the town.

The Inovcity project was presented this Thursday at the Palace of the Marquis of Santa Cruz, by the mayor of Siero, Ángel García, the general director of Innovation and Entrepreneurship of the Principality of Asturias, Francisco Delgado, the general corporate and regulated business director of EDP Spain, Massimo Rossini, and the director of the Inovgrid project of EDP Spain, Jesús Fernández.

During the presentation, attendees were also able to learn about the Inovcity route in Pola de Siero. It is a tour through the new facilities, where residents can learn about the characteristics and objectives of each of them. Also, through an app developed by the company, they can check their electricity consumption.

With the implementation of this project, EDP Hc Energía aims to promote energy efficiency and incorporate microgeneration and electric vehicles. The investment made by the company exceeds 100,000 euros.

EDP Hc Energía has installed two charging points for electric vehicles, one in Celleruelo Street, next to the Town Hall, and another in Belarmino García Roza Street, in the vicinity of the Auditorium Theater. The users of this type of vehicles will have at their disposal, through a recharge card, an online application for the management of recharges, which are free, as well as the parking space during the use of the points.

The electric vehicle is associated with multiple advantages both environmental and economic. On the one hand, its use does not involve carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions or noise pollution. On the other hand, the efficiency of these vehicles is three times higher than that of combustion vehicles and, in terms of the cost of recharging, the savings are up to 80% compared to diesel.

Another innovation was the replacement of the street lighting in Celleruelo Street with more efficient luminaires using LED technology. EDP Hc Energía has installed 24 luminaires, 12 oriented to the road and another 12 to the sidewalk, with presence detector, flow regulation and point-to-point remote control.This will allow for greater energy, maintenance and conservation savings, improved service quality and a reduction in both light pollution and CO2 emissions.

The application developed by EDP Hc Energía to know the consumption of the new installations also extends to three public buildings, the Palace of the Marquis of Santa Cruz, the Social Services Center and the Peña Careses School. These buildings, like the rest of the population, have remotely managed meters. With the application, neighbors will be able to consult the instantaneous, daily, weekly, monthly and annual consumption of each one. This will allow for the subsequent analysis and a proposal of energy efficiency measures.

The company is currently building a 5 KW photovoltaic installation at the Casona de San Miguel pilgrims' hostel. This installation will encourage the incorporation of microgenerators of renewable origin, which will allow savings in the energy bill.

Pola de Siero has the most advanced and modern electricity distribution network in Asturias. For that reason, EDP Hc Energía installed more than 7,000 meters and 30 concentrators. In addition, more than 50,000 meters of medium and low voltage power lines were revised and updated.

The new smart meters are only the visible part of a project that goes beyond that. In addition to improving electricity supply, the new smart meters enable consumers to manage their energy more sustainably and efficiently. By enabling remote management, which involves two-way communication between the device and the company's distribution center, users play a more active role. They benefit directly from multiple applications developed such as the possibility of managing parameters in the contract or the resolution of faults remotely, with a faster restoration of service and without displacements.

With the replacement of meters, the residents of Pola de Siero are ahead of the government’s replacement plan, which sets 2018 as the date by which all Spanish households will need to have these new remotely managed devices installed. For its part, EDP has also brought forward the deadlines and has already installed more than 375,000 smart meters in its distribution network.

EDP

EDP is an international energy group, leader in value creation, innovation and sustainability. It is part of the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes (World and STOXX) and is also world leader in renewable energy.

In Spain, EDP is a referent company in the energy market, present in the generation, distribution and commercialization of electric energy and gas, with a portfolio of more than two million customers all over the country.

EDP is leader in gas in Cantabria and the Basque Country, as well as in Asturias, where it is also the referent electricity operator.