Abstract
Considering that smart meter roll-out has already been completed in several European countries for some years now, this review assesses the current state and future opportunities for the direct integration of commercial wallboxes and smart meters in Europe. Despite successful smart meter roll-outs, direct integration remains challenging: while commercial wallboxes are sold on international markets and follow recognized standards, installed smart meters and related cloud platforms are mostly national or regional products, and grid operators have developed proprietary technologies to support their own Advanced Metering Infrastructures (AMI). Here, we first advocate the case for direct integration, noting that it is particularly well suited for local load management when EVs are the only flexible loads and for the provision of novel flexibility services based on real-time grid signals. We then review smart meters data exchange protocols and communication interfaces and identify the common issues hindering effective smart meters exploitation. We eventually propose a set of recommendations to tackle current smart metering infrastructures limitations and unlock their identified potential.