Industries: energy and utilities
Satellite data for energy and utilities
Energy companies and utilities use satellite data to select and monitor generation sites, forecast output from sun and wind, watch grids and pipelines, and synchronise grid measurements with satellite timing. LETO SPACE finds the use case that pays off in your energy business, helps you procure the service and takes it to a pilot on your sites or grid.
- Terrain, river and parcels
- Overhead lines, pylons and substations
- Solar parks and roofs suited to photovoltaics
- Woodland along the lines, hatched where it grows into the corridor
01Use cases
Where satellite data helps energy companies and utilities
From choosing a site to running a grid and selling systems to customers, satellite data answers questions along the whole energy value chain.
- UC-09
Automating the sales of renewable energy systems
Which data helps automate the sales of solar and other renewable energy systems, where satellite data and AI contribute, and what stays with the sales team.
- UC-08
Rooftop solar potential from satellite and aerial data
How satellite radiation data, roof models from laser scanning and AI on satellite imagery show which roofs suit solar panels, and what they cannot show.
- UC-10
Site selection with satellite data
How satellite data on radiation, wind, terrain, land cover and ground motion narrows the search for solar, wind and industrial sites, and what to check on site.
- UC-11
Pipeline and grid corridor monitoring with satellite data
How operators monitor pipelines and power line corridors with satellite data: ground motion, vegetation and third-party interference, with limits.
- UC-12
Renewable energy forecasting with satellite data
How satellite data improve solar forecasts and support wind power: cloud motion from weather satellites, irradiance records, weather models and their limits.
- UC-13
GNSS timing for power grids
Why power grids depend on GNSS timing: phasor measurement units, microsecond synchronisation, Galileo next to GPS and resilient grid timing.
- UC-22
GNSS jamming and spoofing: protecting business operations
How a business protects operations that depend on GNSS position or time against jamming and spoofing: find dependencies, harden receivers, plan a backup.
- UC-29
Satellite IoT use cases: connecting remote sensors
How remote sensors send data via satellite: gateways with satellite backhaul, direct-to-satellite IoT and NB-IoT over satellite, with delays and limits.
02Projects
Client project: automating the sales of renewable energy systems
One of our four anonymised client projects sits in sales, at an energy company.
- P-01SellEnergy and utilitiesAutomating the sales of renewable energy systems.This industry
- P-02PlanConstruction and real estate
- P-03OperateMobility and logistics
- P-04ReportIndustrial manufacturing
03How we work
How we help energy companies and utilities
- Station 1
Strategy and use cases
We rank the use cases in site development, grid operation and sales by value and feasibility.
- Station 2
Requirements and procurement
Requirements for a monitoring, forecasting or timing service, and a scan of the providers.
- Station 3
Implementation
A pilot with KPIs agreed in advance on one grid section or one group of sites, then the move into operation.
- Station 4
Skills and workshops
Training for the teams in planning, asset management and sales who will use the results.
Planning a pilot on a grid section or a group of sites?We help you define what the pilot must prove.
04Topics
Energy generation, grids and raw materials
T-01
Energy generation and renewables
Earth observation supports a generation site through its whole life: choosing it, planning it and monitoring it in operation. Copernicus atmosphere and climate services (CAMS and C3S) supply inputs such as solar radiation and wind speeds that are used to plan and operate solar and wind installations Source: EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA), 26 May 2026EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA)EU Space Market Report 2026, Issue 126 May 2026Open source (opens euspa.europa.eu).
T-02
Grids, pipelines and networks
Transmission networks are monitored from space to protect their integrity, and phasor measurement units in the grid typically rely on satellite timing to synchronise their measurements Source: EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA), 26 May 2026EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA)EU Space Market Report 2026, Issue 126 May 2026Open source (opens euspa.europa.eu). The European Ground Motion Service measures ground motion across Europe from radar satellite data, down to a few millimetres, and its data are free to use Source: European Space Agency (ESA), 26 July 2022European Space Agency (ESA)Tap into Europe in motion (European Ground Motion Service)26 July 2022Open source (opens esa.int).
T-03
Raw materials and mining
Satellite imagery helps identify areas with high mineral potential, monitor the slope stability of mine pits and tailings, detect illegal mining and follow the rehabilitation of closed sites. With correction networks, satellite positioning reaches centimetre level for surveying and machine guidance in mining Source: EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA), 26 May 2026EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA)EU Space Market Report 2026, Issue 126 May 2026Open source (opens euspa.europa.eu).
05Limits
When satellite data is not the answer in energy
Limit 01
Inspection on site
Satellite data points to the zones at risk, for example where the ground moves or vegetation grows close to a line. Those zones then need a closer look with equipment on site Source: EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA), 26 May 2026EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA)EU Space Market Report 2026, Issue 126 May 2026Open source (opens euspa.europa.eu).
Limit 02
Clouds and revisit
Cloud cover blocks optical sensors, and each satellite passes over a site only at set intervals. Where you need continuous measurements, sensors on your own assets remain the better choice.
Limit 03
Timing needs resilience
GNSS signals can be disrupted. Because power systems are critical, satellite timing in the grid must be resilient against interference Source: EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA), 15 December 2020EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA)Timing is everything: GNSS and the energy grids of the future15 December 2020Open source (opens euspa.europa.eu).
Frequently asked questions
Q1How can energy companies use Earth observation and GNSS data?
Earth observation supports site selection, planning and monitoring, helps forecast the generation potential of solar, wind and hydropower sites, and is used to monitor transmission networks. GNSS adds position and time: it is a key technology for synchronising smart grids through phasor measurement units Source: EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA), 26 May 2026EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA)EU Space Market Report 2026, Issue 126 May 2026Open source (opens euspa.europa.eu). The right starting point is a problem in one of your processes, for example site development, grid operation or sales, not the data source.
Q2Which problems does Earth observation solve in energy, and which does GNSS solve?
Earth observation answers questions about what is on the ground and how it changes: land cover around a planned site, vegetation encroaching on a line, or ground subsidence around a pipeline or plant Source: EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA), 26 May 2026EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA)EU Space Market Report 2026, Issue 126 May 2026Open source (opens euspa.europa.eu). The European Ground Motion Service, for example, measures ground motion from radar satellite data down to a few millimetres Source: European Space Agency (ESA), 26 July 2022European Space Agency (ESA)Tap into Europe in motion (European Ground Motion Service)26 July 2022Open source (opens esa.int). GNSS answers questions about position and time: precise timing for grid measurements, and centimetre-level positioning with correction networks for surveying and machine guidance Source: EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA), 26 May 2026EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA)EU Space Market Report 2026, Issue 126 May 2026Open source (opens euspa.europa.eu). Satellite communication links platforms and stakeholders offshore and onshore and lets operators analyse assets in real time Source: European Space Agency (ESA), ESA Space Solutions, accessed 6 October 2026European Space Agency (ESA), ESA Space SolutionsESA Space Solutions: Energyaccessed 6 October 2026Open source (opens business.esa.int).
Q3How does GNSS timing support power grids?
Phasor measurement units measure voltage, current, power and frequency in real time and are used to monitor and control the stability of power grids. They typically rely on GPS or another GNSS to synchronise their measurements, and Galileo could serve as an alternative or backup Source: EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA), 26 May 2026EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA)EU Space Market Report 2026, Issue 126 May 2026Open source (opens euspa.europa.eu). Because power systems are critical, the timing signal must be resilient against interference Source: EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA), 15 December 2020EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA)Timing is everything: GNSS and the energy grids of the future15 December 2020Open source (opens euspa.europa.eu). The use cases on precise timing for power grids and on protecting GNSS-dependent operations against jamming and spoofing go into detail.
Q4How do we start, and what does a first pilot look like?
Pick one problem that has an owner, for example a grid section that is costly to inspect or a sales process that depends on manual site checks. A first pilot is measurable and time-boxed: its KPIs are agreed before it starts, and the person responsible for the problem decides at the end whether it goes into operation. Our consulting overview shows the path from the problem to operation.
Q5What data do we need to bring?
The locations of the assets or sites concerned, for example as GIS layers or lists of coordinates, a description of the decision the data should support, and the records you already keep, such as inspection reports or measurements. You do not need to buy satellite imagery first: Copernicus services and data are free of charge Source: European Union, EUR-Lex, 12 May 2021European Union, EUR-LexRegulation (EU) 2021/696 of 28 April 2021 establishing the Union Space Programme and the European Union Agency for the Space Programme12 May 2021Open source (opens eur-lex.europa.eu).
Sources (5)
- EU Space Market Report 2026, Issue 1 (opens euspa.europa.eu)
- Tap into Europe in motion (European Ground Motion Service) (opens esa.int)
- ESA Space Solutions: Energy (opens business.esa.int)
- Timing is everything: GNSS and the energy grids of the future (opens euspa.europa.eu)
- Regulation (EU) 2021/696 of 28 April 2021 establishing the Union Space Programme and the European Union Agency for the Space Programme (opens eur-lex.europa.eu)
Contact
From site planning to grid operation and sales: which process should satellite data improve first?
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