Project Smart ReStart: How smart meters can help to strengthen local electricity networks

Cold load pickup is a growing challenge. Project Smart ReStart will provide the insights needed to support regulatory and operational changes in how smart meters can address this issue.

Across the UK, more households and businesses are adopting heat pumps and electric vehicles (EVs) than ever before. With this continued growth, electricity demand is expected to rise by 50% by 2035 and double by 2050 - creating new pressures for local electricity networks, particularly after power outages.

While outages are rare, they do happen, and when electricity is restored, thousands of devices can restart simultaneously. This sudden surge in demand – known as cold load pickup – can overwhelm local networks and make it harder to restore power smoothly.

This issue is likely to worsen because peak demand after outages could double by 2030, making it crucial to find new ways to manage cold load pickup and keep local networks resilient.

Cold load pickup explained further 

Substations send electricity to local areas, and low voltage (LV) feeders deliver it to homes and businesses. The increasing number of heat pumps and EVs being installed in homes is already leading to many substations and feeders being pushed beyond what they were designed for.

To avoid overwhelming these local networks, flexibility measures, such as managing demand or temporarily reducing consumption, are used to help limit stress on substations and LV feeders during peak times. However, when an outage occurs, this flexibility is lost, and as power is restored, demand surges, resulting in a cold load pickup.

When power is restored after an outage, the priority is to get the overall electricity system running. However, current procedures do not fully consider the specific needs of local communities.

The illustration below shows how, with no management, the many appliances and devices connected to the same feeder start drawing power at the same time. This can overload the system and cause more outages.

How can smart meters mitigate cold load pickup?

LCP Delta has partnered with Passiv, to help SP Electricity North West (SP ENW) explore how smart meters can mitigate cold load pickup and enhance local network resilience.

SMETS smart meters are UK-standard devices that record energy use, communicate securely with suppliers, and respond to control signals. This makes them ideal for managing demand after outages and enabling controlled appliance restarts to reduce cold load pickup. Their functionality includes a built-in 0–30-minute randomised offset delay. This can be used so that devices such as off-peak heating systems or EV chargers are restarted in a phased way, helping prevent large demand spikes that could compromise network stability.

The visual shows how randomised offset delays support the Smart ReStart solution:

Developing an approach to using SMETS meters

Over the next six months, LCP Delta is excited to play a leading role in developing a robust approach to using SMETS meters to address the growing challenge of cold load pickup.

During this period, we will focus on:

• Technical feasibility: Review SMETS meter features, such as staggered reconnection and random offset timers.
• Regulatory and compliance review: Check compliance with current and upcoming rules, including the Distribution Code.
• Methodology design: Plan staged load restoration, factoring in prioritisation rules and randomisation windows.
• Simulation roadmap: Identify the data, models, and software needed for future testing.

The project will guide future field trials and provide the evidence needed to support regulatory and operational changes for national rollout.