Updated date - Nov 28, 2019

MarketsandMarkets forecasts the Power Line Communication market to grow from USD 5.5 billion in 2017 to USD 9.5 billion by 2023, at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 9.5% during the forecast period. The major factors that are expected to be driving the PLC market are cost-effective installation, enabling wide coverage by using the existing electricity distribution network, growing deployment of smart grids and high penetration of broadband power line communication devices in indoor networking applications.

Power Line Communication Market by application, the energy management and smart grid segment is expected to grow at the highest growth rate during the forecast period

Integration of renewable energy sources into the electricity supply chain, effective utilization of existing electrical infrastructure, and delivery of secure, reliable electricity are the major objectives of smart grids. Communication technologies play an important role in smart grids, as these technologies are required for obtaining data for the efficient control and distribution of energy. Power line communication technology is one of the most preferred technologies for communication on smart grids. This preference can be attributed to the ability of this technology to enable communication using existing powerlines, resulting in a wide coverage with less capital expenditure. A number of companies in the power line communication industry are offering products for application in smart grids.

Power Line Communication Market by vertical, the industrial holds the largest share of the market

Automation and control of power grids, advanced metering, electric vehicle charging, monitoring and control of solar panels, lighting control, and indoor networking are the major applications of the power line communication technology in the industrial vertical. Various companies operating in power line communication market are offering products and solutions for meeting the demand being generated from industrial customers.

Europe to account for the largest market size during the forecast period.

Europe is expected to hold the largest market size in the PLC market during the forecast period, followed by the APAC region. Europe held the largest share of the market and Italy is one of the major contributors. The dominant position of Europe in the market can be attributed to the high adoption of power line communication technology-based products for the advanced metering, substation communication, and network expansion applications. Moreover, prominent players, such as ABB (Switzerland), Siemens (Germany), devolo (Germany), Iskra (Slovenia), Landis+Gyr (Switzerland), Iskraemeco (Slovenia), and Schneider Electric (France), in the power line communication market are based in this region, contributing to the market growth.

Power Line Communication Market Dynamics

Driver: Enabling wide coverage by using the existing electricity distribution network

The use of power line communication technology for communication is not only cost-effective but also allows wide coverage. Considering the wide availability of the power lines, nearly all the devices receiving power through these power lines can be controlled and monitored with the use of the power line communication technology. The fact that the power line communication technology uses the existing electricity distribution network for communication makes it especially useful for communication with devices, which are located in remote areas where no communication infrastructure is available. One of such example is communication with substations located in remote areas with inadequate communication infrastructure. Extension of each electricity distribution network results in the extension of power line communication network, thereby enabling a wider geographic network coverage.

Restraint: High noise generation on power lines limiting the data transmission quality

Initially, the power lines were used for energy distribution and not for data transmission. The harsh environment of the power lines can negatively impact the quality of data being transmitted. Noise is one of the main distortion factors, which impacts the performance of the communication systems over power lines. Noise is generated by electrical appliances, which are connected to the electric grid, as well as the coupling of the radio broadcasters that transmit signals over short, middle, and long wave ranges. There is an inverse relationship between the noise on the power line and performance of the power line communication systems. With the increase in the noise level, it is harder to detect the received signal. For instance, light dimmers, vacuum cleaners, drills, and kitchen appliances are some of the noise-sourced devices, which can have a negative impact on the performance of a power line communication technology-based home network.

Opportunity: Use of power line communication technology for lighting control applications

The power line communication technology is witnessing an increasing penetration in the lighting control applications. This technology can be used for both indoor as well as outdoor lighting control. In outdoor lighting, street lighting, such as roadway lighting, tunnel lighting, car park lighting, and urban lighting, is one of the upcoming applications where this technology is increasingly being used. Street lighting accounts for a significant portion of operating expenses incurred by municipalities and businesses with large facilities. Moreover, the lighting cost cannot be avoided, as it is necessary for public safety and operation; hence, municipalities and businesses are moving toward automating lighting networks for lowering the energy usage. Power line communication is considered one of the ideal technologies for this purpose. The advantages, such as no additional wiring required for setting up communication network, as well as network coverage even through walls, underground, and adverse weather conditions, offered by this technology has led to its adoption in the lighting control applications. Furthermore, this technology is increasingly being used for network expansion and lighting control in smart homes. A number of companies in the power line communication market are offering power line communication technology-based products for the lighting control application. For instance, NYX Hemera Technologies (Canada) offers TLACS-EM solution designed for switching on and off luminaire/lamps, and controlling and supervising luminaire/lamps status and consumption. This solution for communication either uses the power line communication technology and transfers the data through the power lines or uses dedicated communication wires.

Challenge: Availability of various substitute technologies

The players providing power line communication technology face competition from other players providing wired and wireless communication technologies. Fiber-optic network is one of the communication technologies, which can be used for smart grid communication instead of power lines. The selection of the communication technology depends upon various factors such as infrastructure, application, and resources. For instance, the factors, such as frequency spectrum for wireless technologies, availability of fiber-optic cables, and quality and length of the power cables for broadband power line carrier, needs to be considered for the selection of communication technology for data communication in power utilities. At times, a combination of various communication technologies is also required to be deployed at the power utilities for effective communication and cost efficiency. At the consumers� end, the selection of communication technology differs based on consumer�s requirements. For instance, in buildings, where a communication network is required only for the transmission of meter data and price signals, GPRS modems or narrowband power line carriers are sufficient. On the other hand, broadband power line carriers, fiber-optic cables, or wireless solutions can be used in smart homes where power generation and controllable loads or e-car charging stations need to be managed. In the network expansion application segment, the power line communication technology-based product providers face competition from other players offering various communication devices such as Wi-Fi extenders and network switches. However, companies operating in the power line communication market are focusing on offering innovative products to compete with the substitute communication technologies. For instance, in 2016 TP-Link Technologies launched the TL-WPA9610, an AV2000 gigabit powerline AC Wi-Fi kit. This device is designed for the network expansion application and is capable of simultaneously delivering AV2000 via powerline and AC1200 via Wi-Fi.

Scope of the Report

Report Metric Details Market size available for years 2014�2023 Base year considered 2016 Forecast period 2017�2023 Forecast units Million (USD) Segments covered Offering, Frequency, Application, Vertical, Solution and Region Geographies covered North America, Europe, APAC, RoW Companies covered Siemens (Germany), NETGEAR (US), ABB (Switzerland), AMETEK (US), Schneider Electric (France), General Electric (US), Hubbell Power Systems (US), TP-Link Technologies (China), D-Link (Taiwan), Landis+Gyr (Switzerland), Belkin International (US), Devolo (Germany), and Zyxel Communications (Taiwan).

The research report categorizes the PLC to forecast the revenues and analyze the trends in each of the following sub-segments:

Power Line Communication Market, By Offering

Hardware

Software

Services

Power Line Communication Market, By Frequency

Narrowband (3 kHz to 500 kHz)

Broadband (Greater than 500 kHz)

Power Line Communication Market, By Application

Energy Management and Smart Grid

Indoor Networking

Power Line Communication Market, By Vertical

Residential

Commercial

Industrial

Power Line Communication Market, By Solution

PLC over AC Lines

PLC over DC Lines

Power Line Communication Market, By Region

North America

Europe

Asia Pacific (APAC)

RoW

Key Market Players

Siemens (Germany), NETGEAR (US), ABB (Switzerland), AMETEK (US), Schneider Electric (France), General Electric (US), Hubbell Power Systems (US), TP-Link Technologies (China), D-Link (Taiwan), Landis+Gyr (Switzerland), Belkin International (US), Devolo (Germany), and Zyxel Communications (Taiwan).

Siemens (US) ranked first in the power line communication market for substation communication application in 2016. The company�s leading position in this market can be attributed to its strong product portfolio of power line communication technology-based products. The company is further trying to expand its product portfolio by introducing new products. In September 2017, the company launched the PowerLink IP, a new power line communication system. In addition to an extensive product portfolio, the company�s strong brand image, customer base, and wide geographic reach have also helped it attain a leading position in the market.

Recent Developments

In September 2017, Siemens launched the PowerLink IP, a power line communication system that uses high-voltage lines between transformer substations as a medium for communication of data, teleprotection, and voice. This system uses bandwidths of up to 256 kHz and can offer a data rate of up to 2.5 megabits per second (Mbps) of bidirectional transmission.

In May 2017, Siemens entered into an agreement with African countries � Uganda and Sudan. Under this agreement, the company along with its partners would develop solutions in the areas of power supply, industry, transportation, and healthcare. Moreover, the company would participate in the "Make IT Alliance" for the promotion of start-ups and technology companies in Africa. Furthermore, it would conduct training programs for various technical fields for creation of a pool of well-trained local workers.

In November 2016, Zyxel Communications launched the PLA5236, a 1000 Mbps powerline AC900 wireless extender designed to help users extend both Ethernet and Wi-Fi network in buildings using power outlets.

In October 2016, ABB (Switzerland) entered into a strategic partnership with Fluor Corporation (US) to execute large turnkey engineering, procurement, and construction projects for electrical substations. Under this partnership, Fluor would benefit from the prominent position of ABB in the power technologies market while ABB would benefit from the expertise of Fluor in managing large engineering, procurement, and construction projects. The companies have collaborated with an aim to capture new growth opportunities in the substation market.

Critical Questions the Report Answers:

Where will all these developments take the industry in the long term?

What are the upcoming trends for the PLC market?

Which segment provides the most opportunity for growth?

Who are the leading vendors operating in this market?

What are the opportunities for new market entrants?

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