Analyst Insight: Megatrends Impacting Non-Wires Alternatives

Non-wires alternatives (NWA) make use of distributed energy resources (DER) to provide grid relief necessary to avoid or defer traditional grid infrastructure investments. The largest NWA market is in the US, due in part to the growing number of regulatory requirements at the state level related to NWAs. A larger push is underway worldwide, resulting from cooperation among all key stakeholders including regulators, legislators, utilities, and customers.

Encouraging NWAs can lead to a cleaner and less congested grid that is flexible enough to respond to changes in supply and demand. NWAs can be particularly useful in remote, rugged, isolated, or densely populated areas where traditional grid infrastructure can be limited. To further encourage NWA development, a supportive regulatory environment must be designed, and strong customer engagement strategies must be employed to take full advantage of demand side resources.

The Guidehouse Insights Non-Wires Alternatives Tracker provides a comprehensive and up-to-date database of global NWA projects. Information provided for projects tracked includes project name, location, utility, capacity, cost, included technologies, status, and more details when available. The most recently updated tracker was published in 4Q 2022. This accompanying Analyst Insight focuses on megatrends impacting NWA projects, which span regulatory, behavioral, and technology issues.