We’ve fully integrated with Green Button over at Electrify613.ca to help with some tools we’re building. If there’s a way to load in historical usage into home assistant, it would be doable to get previous day hourly usage. The billing data used to be ingested overnight in a batch job as it’s delivered in bursts from the meters.
It doesn’t seem reasonable that everyone that wants to pull their own data should have to onboard as a partner though, hence why having a third part service act as the broker and make the data available to you. There is unfortunately no ability within green button to get realtime data.
So it all depends on if the utility is willing to provide Green Button Data (historical data downloaded in XML) or Connect My Data (live API connection).
It would be nice if there was an integration for both in HA.
I have found a graphing tool on GitHub that the GBA even forked. Green Button Grapher. At least it gives you a visual of the XML data.
Hadn’t seen it, but looks like it’s dead (shut down). Has anyone else taken it up?
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The earliest thread I can find about Green Button is from 2017, and while the platform has now rolled out to many utilities in the US and Canada, there’s zero traction for supporting this in Home Assistant.
It’s long passed the point of just giving up on it. If you want energy monitoring, the only workable way forward at this point is to install your own devices in your load center/panel and/or on specific devices at your premises.
They did make it mandatory for providers to provide the green button service, but the user facing service is a download and use service and API use seems restricted to third parties that go through a certification process. Renders the overall process a bit more awkward.
I did see that savagedata.com was the provider of the green button service for a few utilities which might help.
The process for becoming a registered “third party” for my local utility seems pretty straight forward and doesn’t even require a business number.
Otherwise you’re right, the xml download requires going into your account and then navigating to the correct page, or going to the general site, correct green button download page and validating with info from a “recent bill”
Is it the case that if I want to access the Hydro Ottawa Green Button API instead of logging into their website and manually pulling down the data, that I’d need to register as a 3rd party (even though I’m only a private home-owner)? Has anyone done this?
My intention would be to poll it maybe a few times a day.
Hah. Toronto Hydro wants a certificate of insurance for 3rd party liability for 2 million.
That is standard for business but unlikely a private citizen will have that.
I emailed savage data systems:
“I’m not aware of Toronto Hydro publicly sharing a list of 3rd parties that have been approved. It might be worthwhile to check with the vendor of your Home Assistant dashboard to see if they have created an integration. If it’s a custom dashboard you’ve created you can look into creating your own third party application and connecting to your own data to enable an automated flow.”
It would be great to have a Green Button Connect my Data integration. I’d be willing to help fund the development.
Guess this isn’t going anywhere because as usual, these Canadian numb-nuts don’t want to do any work. Requiring insurance is “F-off” in polite Canadianese.
These guys are all in violation of the law than mandated the data availability in the first place, but who’s going to spend the $$ to take them to court?
I’ll be using my time and energy to focus on becoming an expat within the next 5 years and leaving the great white north far far behind me.
In the meantime, for anyone else wanting usage data, install some good clamp meters and devices to report into HA. The benefit of this is the ability to compare against your utility’s reading so you can tell when they’re overbilling you.
Hi. In my continued search to get electricity data integrated into Home Assistant here’s what I learned so far.
Ontario customers can download data directly from electricity / water / hydro / natural gas provider
this is useless for HA as it’s cumbersome to do and you wouldn’t even get close to “live” data feed. You would have to import xml data manually each time
To get “live / real-time” data you need to go thru a third-party vendor. That’s how the regulation is designed.
not a fan of the name and it does not inspire confidence to hand over data to them
Looks like SDS then paired up with ERTH corporation to create an ERTH GB connector. This is not a HA connector.
from the article “The countdown to November 1, 2023 has begun and utilities across the province are busy planning their path to Green Button Certification and their Green Button Launch to give energy consumers more tools to lower their utility bills and meet the requirements of O. Reg 633/21: ENERGY DATA. Savage Data Systems’ Data Custodian is the first solution in Ontario to be tested by the Green Button Alliance and successfully complete the Certification process for Green Button Download My Data (DMD) and Connect My Data (CMD) supporting NAESB ESPI version 3.3 for electricity (including some optional Function Blocks), gas and water consumption data.”
they have a dedicated page http://www.erthcorp.com/greenbutton which leads to error 404… great …. that’s another point for a regulation that does not help The People of Ontario.
They also say this:
As Ontario’s first certified Green Button standard-compliant solution using v3.3, the Savage Data Systems Data Custodian advances the ERTH GB Connector to the front of the pack. Leveraging existing ODS and CIS technologies to securely connect customers and third parties with the consumer’s energy and billing data are fundamental parts of this winning recipe. By leveraging proven technology and trusted solution providers, the ERTH GB Connector powered by Savage Data Systems improves interoperability and security posture, while mitigating cost and risk associated with third party API integration, ongoing data synchronization and licensing. Consumer data remains within existing systems, and is available in real-time.
Alectra Utilities is an electricity provider in Ontario and their service territory includes Mississauga, Brampton, Hamilton, St Catharines, Markham, Barrie… (not Toronto)
Wanted to share this in case anyone had luck signing up for a third-party vendor or for the energy folks, if one were to go about building an integration / custom component how would one go about it? Reach out to the vendor?
Hope this can move this thread a bit more forward.
Thanks for the summary of info - very nice to have it all in one place. Can’t speak for others, but personally I’ve kinda given up on trying to get my energy info into HA, even if I was to download it and try to import it (not aware of any HA import scripts for Hydro One data).
I also got myself an SDR to try and scan for anything I could (hydro, gas, water) and I’ve given up on that front too. I can’t find the frequency and/or it’s encrypted and hops channels or whatever… and no idea if my gas meter is smart or not.
Personally, I feel like Ontario has a very long way to go to actually give homeowners control over their data without allowing companies to put it behind yet another pay-wall and further screw us over.
Would anyone want to join in on a project and develop something here? Im willing to head it but not much time to contribute to much. Together we should work together and create something.
The ONTARIO REGULATION 633/21 specifies what electricity providers have to provide to customers via third-party vendor. Not sure if Home Assistant can be considered a third-party say via an integration. I’ve seen electricity integrations for European countries so there must be a way the Home Assistant community got that working. I’m sure they use a different standard in the EU.
reading the actual regulation can be boring but this one is surprisingly short and clear
it looks like data is using the North American Energy Standards Board (NAESB) ratified and published enhancements to the Energy Service Provider Interface (ESPI) Retail Energy Quadrant Book 21 (REQ.21 )
