Changing Business Models of Energy Companies in the Transition to Intelligent Energy

The cost reduction of alternative energy generation, the growth of local distributed generation, the restructuring and liberalization of the energy industry, the future integration of the energy system through the instant data exchange of millions of smart meters with operational analysis and tuning of the energy system together determine the transition to the so-called "intellectual energy". Changes in the electricity industry inevitably entail a significant transformation of energy companies' business models. In this paper the analysis of these changes is made. Firstly, the current state and structure of the industry in Russia, technological and structural changes in the Russian and foreign markets are described and analyzed. Then the traditional business models of vertically integrated electric power industry were identified and the classifications of innovative business models of electric power companies that appeared in response to changes in the scientific literature were considered. On the basis of the considered classifications, an integrated set of business model configurations that can be used by Russian companies is formed. In conclusion, the paper presents recommendations for electric power companies on the implementation of innovative business models taking into account the specifics of the Russian market identified in the analysis in the first part of the work.