Modernising the energy grid is a complex, large-scale endeavour, ranging from distributed energy resource management to grid digitisation, smart metering to the rise of prosumers, and much more.

Grid modernisation

In the coming decades, energy needs are forecast to increase as the global population continues to rise and as countries develop and their economies grow. During this transformation, accelerating the availability of clean, renewable energy is critical to meet this growing demand while addressing climate concerns.

As the world looks to a net zero future, technological advancements in electrification are helping address challenges associated with scaling renewables and enabling them to become viable alternatives to traditional fossil fuel sources of energy.

Furthermore, as the grid evolves, the distribution, storage and management of electrical energy are changing. There is a shift from centralised power stations to distributed renewable energy- characterised by smaller and widely spread power generators, usually coupled with energy storage capacity, which feed into the distribution grid. Decentralisation results in bidirectional energy flows, where end consumers become prosumers, necessitating the evolution of new energy markets. Done right, decentralisation can promote energy resilience and reduce transmission losses.

From a technology perspective, this distributed nature of energy assets like cars, homes, and manufacturing sites is giving rise to the Intelligent Edge where analogue sensing meets digitalisation. Simply put, we need intelligence at all the critical nodes: across every energy consumption, production, distribution, and reserve modality.

Watch the full video interview with Patrick Morgan below.

Data is the lifeblood of this new technology world. To create and capture value, technology developers like ADI must interact in new ways throughout the ecosystem. Our focus is to learn and co-create, as we develop complete subsystems at the Intelligent Edge with our partners. As we grow, we are bringing in new expertise, in areas that stretch beyond the typical approaches into areas like artificial intelligence, data science, virtualisation, battery chemistry, and more. Plus, we are advancing our IP strategy to include systems and standardisation to drive the industry. In taking a holistic view of Intelligence at the Edge and in designing with the total cost of ownership in mind, we are enabling the Intelligent Edge to stretch into the key area for value creation and growth.

You might be interested in reading:
Why we need ‘intelligence everywhere’ to build the energy ecosystem of the future

There is no time to waste and with the signs of climate change all around us, a combination of innovative technology and legislation is helping us to electrify and ensure a brighter and healthier future for us all. At ADI, we look forward to engaging with the full electrification ecosystem to help realise its decarbonisation potential.

Regardless of complexities, ADI solutions aim to simplify the paradigm into Energy Conversion, Energy Management, and Energy Storage. It is our unique position in the ecosystem, across the industrial, energy, automotive and consumer markets, which provides us with a macro-to-micro perspective into the challenges and opportunities.  

Learn more:
The Future Is Electric (Sustainability Series #2) | Analog Devices

Though the ‘edge’ has been talked about for years, it is increasingly taking central stage as more and more homes and businesses take up solar and battery systems, switch to electric vehicles ((EVs) and heat pumps and instal the smart appliances that are advertised as bringing more convenience to life.

In broad terms the edge is where the utility and customer meet and is effectively represented by the meter – the utility side in front of the meter and the customer side behind the meter.

With this growth of decentralised resources and the increasingly complex and unpredictable power flows, some of the risks include the likely emergence of hyper-local capacity constraints and that ageing infrastructure can be put at risk.

Have you read?
Generative AI solutions for utilities on the rise
‘We need to think smart and fast’ to future-proof the grid

But there has been what Itron has termed a ‘control gap’, with the challenge that whereas a typical SCADA manages approximately 1,000 assets per million customers and a typical advanced distribution management systems 10,000 assets, that to the point of service is a further two orders of magnitude greater at around 1 million points.

But that is changing, with the evolution of IT and other technologies opening the way for a variety of new products and services to provide visibility and control to address the challenges of the evolving grid.

Itron’s grid edge intelligence portfolio

A pioneer of edge intelligence in the energy sector, Itron has consolidated its offerings into a cloud-based edge intelligence portfolio combining connectivity, analytics and applications with intelligence for AMI operations and optimisers for the low and medium voltage grid, DERs and EVs, coupled to a central datahub.

To simplify the process the Itron Enterprise Edition has been made available in the Microsoft Azure marketplace, also opening the way for integrating the Azure OpenAI generative AI solution for users to expedite and improve visibility on data and operations.

Among the new solutions launched are Active Transformer Load and Voltage Monitoring (ATLM/ATVM) applications to enable visibility on transformer loading and voltage statistics in real-time along with configurable threshold-based alarms.

Key for broader uptake of the solutions is partnerships with other providers with these opening the way for Itron’s grid edge intelligence solutions to be integrated into Schneider Electric’s digital grid solutions and to GE Vernova’s new GridOS Data Fabric alongside the GridOS apps.

A further partnership is with the Mobility House as part of its Fast & Flexible Interconnect (FIX) programme for charging of EV fleets in constrained distribution systems.

Don Reeves, senior VP of Outcomes at Itron, reports that customers have advised that the company’s Grid Edge Intelligence portfolio can enhance grid capacity by approximately 20% through the optimisation of existing grid assets.

“Utilities are operating in a more complex environment than ever before and there is a real sense of urgency that change is needed to ensure grid reliability, resiliency and sustainability and improve the customer experience.”

Landis+Gyr and Span partnership

Landis+Gyr has announced a partnership with home electrification technology developer Span, with the first joint product combining their respective solutions to deliver a grid edge solution with circuit-level billing-grade metering, DER visibility and controls.

Describing the co-innovated solution as “a whole-home multi-asset virtual power plant (VPP)”, Werner Lieberherr, CEO of Landis+Gyr, says: “The partnership not only expands our flexibility management platform but also helps [utilities] reduce costly grid infrastructure investments required for electrification. We’re particularly excited to bring SPAN’s service upgrade avoidance capabilities and intuitive app experience … to drive energy efficiency and flexibility.”

While full details of the solution are still to be released, the companies promise to evaluate it in pilots with US utilities starting later in the year.

Siemens Gridscale X

Siemens has launched Gridscale X as a modular software to scale grid capacity and handle the complexity of DERs.

A key component of Gridscale X is DER Insights which is designed to unlock visibility over the distribution grid, with features including the location and behaviour of DERs, grid impact identification and digital grid mapping and modelling.

“With the electrification of everything and the exponential growth of DERs, there is an urgent need for increasing grid capacity fast,” says Sabine Erlinghagen, CEO Siemens Grid Software, pointing to the use of such software as enabling utilities to focus on critical infrastructure upgrades and reducing the impact and occurrence of grid equipment failure, outages and technical debt.

Users of these or similar softwares are invited to contact us with case studies.

Jonathan Spencer Jones

Specialist writer
Smart Energy International

Follow me on Linkedin

The increasing complexity of power grids with high levels of inverter-based variable renewables and unpredictable electric vehicle charging patterns has brought with it challenges for power grid operation and the need for real-time control as key for maintaining voltage stability.

Based on deep reinforcement learning – a subset of machine learning – the new algorithms are designed to solve this challenge by delivering intelligence to power converters in the grid utilising what the researchers describe as a novel data synchronisation strategy to optimise the large-scale coordination of energy sources safely under fast fluctuations without real-time communication.

“Centralised control is not cost-efficient or fast under continuous fluctuations of renewable energy and electric vehicles,” says Qianwen Xu, one of the researchers involved in the project.

Have you read?
It’s time for a new era of low voltage grid management
How digitalisation can solve grid challenges for TSOs

“Our purpose is to improve control strategies for power converters, by making them more adaptive and intelligent in order to stabilise complex and changing power grids.”

The research, which was demonstrated in KTH’s smart microgrid hardware platform and published in the IEEE Transactions on Sustainable Energy, proposes a projection-embedded deep reinforcement learning algorithm to achieve decentralised optimal control with guaranteed 100% safety.

This is intended to overcome the challenge of existing deep reinforcement learning methods in power system applications of not being able to achieve optimal performance and guarantee safe operation at the same time.

In essence, the approach of the researchers is to formulate the grid control problem as a deep reinforcement learning problem with hard physical constraints and then based on this to project a multi-agent algorithm onto a set of constraints characterised by the physics of the distribution system.

With this, the proposed method can achieve the optimal control of the distribution system in a decentralised manner without real-time communication while guaranteeing the physical constraints of the system all the time. As such, it is thus flexible for scalability and practical deployment.

The research formed part of KTH’s Digital Futures Centre which collaborates with researchers from the Universities of California, Berkeley and Stockholm University.

Deep reinforcement learning combines deep learning and reinforcement learning and has been developed for application in complex, unpredictable systems.

With the acquisition, energy supplier EDF is positioning itself to meet the expected take-up of solar panels as the demand increases, with projections indicating an up to 75% increase by 2030.

It also forms part of the company’s plans to provide a ‘whole house’ net zero home offering, combining solar, battery, EV charge points and heat pumps and follows the earlier acquisition in November 2023 of the heat pump installer CB Heating.

“This investment marks another important step forward in our commitment to helping our customers achieve net zero,” commented Philippe Commaret, Managing Director of Customers at EDF.

Have you read?
Empowering transformation in energy retail
How consumer understanding is key for utility engagement

“We know more and more people want to save cash and carbon and by acquiring a company like Contact Solar we can help them by providing better value and a truly great end-to-end solar panel install service, utilising a company whose expertise, knowledge and service is exceptional.”

Contact Solar, which was founded over a decade ago, is a specialist installer of domestic and commercial solar and battery storage systems and electric vehicle charge points and has gained an ‘Excellent’ rating for its services on the review site Trustpilot.

Contact Solar’s network of local installers across the country will work with EDF to deliver residential installs alongside solutions for local authorities, housing associations and developers in building and retrofitting homes.

EDF also intends to explore the possibility of upskilling engineers already working on home energy solutions to install solar panels, alongside other zero carbon products such as EV chargers or heat pumps.

Expressing delight that EDF had chosen to acquire Contact Solar, director Tom Taylor said: “We are excited about the limitless opportunities that lie ahead and look forward to working alongside EDF to help more customers install solar and batteries in their homes, as the country moves towards a greener future.”

Customers in Britain with ten 4kWp of solar panels along with a 5.32kWh battery could save up to three-quarters on their annual energy bill, modelling indicates.

Customers who opt for an installation will be provided with a personalised performance estimate based on their property type, size, location and household usage.

This content is password protected. To view it please enter your password below:

Password:

The roadmap is built around two pillars that are considered key, i.e. developing a power system fit for a carbon-neutral Europe while at the same time managing a secure and efficient power system for the region.

Or put another way this corresponds to ‘preparing the future’ while ‘managing the present’, to which the TSOs commit, stating: “This will require the continuous deployment of operational excellence, implementing efficient and operational market mechanisms, increasing regional coordination, and making the best use of information and communication technologies.”

Developing the power system

Starting with the power system for a carbon-neutral Europe pillar, the roadmap identifies five main areas where change is necessary to deliver on that.

Have you read?
Europe’s offshore network development plans set out
Energy Transitions Podcast: Redefining resilience for a modern power system

● Energy system flexibility: An accurate assessment of flexibility needs and potential is needed at national and European levels, as is a comprehensive ‘system of systems’ approach involving TSOs, DSOs and other sectors such as hydrogen to coordinate the deployment and use of the most efficient flexibility resources.

● Operating future grids: In a ‘system of systems’ approach, new approaches are needed, including enhanced real-time grid visibility, forecasting capabilities and controllability. Automation and AI will support operators in handling grid complexity while the electrification of end uses and sector coupling will require new risk-based methodologies, cybersecurity and new concepts for the coordination of operators.

● Infrastructure and investments: To accelerate the delivery of grid infrastructure both onshore and offshore coordinated planning will be required across the ‘system of systems’, as will massive investments in the transmission networks. Other requirements include reforming regulatory frameworks, ensuring fit-for-purpose financing mechanisms, developing seamless supply chains to overcome bottlenecks and enhancing engagement with local communities.

● Market design: Electricity markets will need to evolve, with strong long-term signals to enable investments in renewables, flexibility and grids, short-term markets to encourage efficient resource use and carbon-neutral flexibility and with incentives aligned with system capabilities and security, while other important aspects are transparency tools for a carbon-neutral system and potential changes to transmission tariff principles.

● Innovation development and uptake: While the TSOs are making breakthroughs in new strategic technologies by implementing ENTSO-E’s RD&I roadmap and the deployment of solutions, new measures regarding the adaptation of regulatory frameworks, the de-risking of first-of-a-kind projects, demonstrators and corresponding stakeholder engagement should be pursued.

Managing the power system

In the secure and efficient power system pillar, four main areas are identified in which the TSOs, with support and coordination by ENTSO-E, are playing multiple roles.

● Operational excellence, with support to TSOs to deliver efficient, resilient and secure system operation.

● Market development and operation, with the implementation of market mechanisms to efficiently operate the system and optimise social welfare for consumers.

● Regional coordination of national and regional actors.

● Information and communication technology, with support for the design and development of the ICT tools to manage the power system.

The roadmap document concludes that while planning and delivering the future power system, Europe needs to continue to rely on a strong, secure and efficient electricity supply.

“To ensure the balance between these two dimensions, ENTSO-E will need to manage intertwined and sometimes challenging approaches or activities while fulfilling these dual strategic goals. The strategic roadmap will focus its activities, resources and the stakeholder engagement of ENTSO-E on [these] twofold objectives.”

To enable the integration, PowerPod is to use the community run blockchain from peaq as the layer 1 backbone.

PowerPod’s initiative is founded on the lack of available EV charging infrastructure, reportedly putting off around one-third of prospective buyers, according to the company.

To fill this gap, PowerPod is proposing to tap the thousands of private chargers already installed by existing EV owners to open them up for other drivers and for which they also would be rewarded.

Have you read?
Digital identities for ‘trust’ in Germany’s energy system
Researchers tackle the biggest problems facing electric vehicles

PowerPod reports currently building a platform and an app to enable the interactions and also is working on a range of hardware devices, including a smart charger adapter, a charger and a travel adapter for charging from regular sockets.

These devices will be outfitted with the peaq self-sovereign identities to enable them to connect with the blockchain, which also is to be leveraged for storage of charging session data, transactions handling and the token-based reward scheme for users.

“The DePIN model is perfect for unleashing the full capacity of the electric vehicle industry,” says Ting, Singapore-based co-founder at PowerPod.

“Through leveraging Web3, PowerPod empowers people globally to contribute to a more sustainable future while also capitalising on existing charging infrastructure. The DePIN-focused functionalities and economic framework offered by peaq will expedite our development and deployment significantly.”

The peaq layer-1 blockchain is aimed to enable anyone to build dApps (decentralised applications) and DePINs that can leverage real world assets to create what amounts to an ‘economy of things’.

Use cases to date out of more than 50 suggested by peaq include car sharing, location mapping and community wifi hotspot implementation with users listed on the website including Bosch, Airbus and NT among others.

Till Wendler, co-founder of peaq, says the smart mobility industry has been displaying a lot of excitement about Web3.

“It’s thrilling to see PowerPod use the DePIN model to close a vital gap for the electric vehicle market while also giving individuals more ownership in its hardware backbone. We are certain that PowerPod will bring new value and opportunities for the entire ecosystem.”

With the phase 2 plan, AES Ohio is proposing to continue the modernisation of its grid, which has been underway in the first phase, with a focus on the ongoing rollout of smart technologies to improve system stability and performance and the backbone communication capabilities.

At the foundation of the smart grid is smart meters and AES Ohio expects to have deployed these to 95% of customers by June 2025.

The smart grid phase 2 plan has three principal components – automation of distribution operations, advanced grid intelligence and telecommunications and cybersecurity.

Have you read?
Managing power grid complexity: The 5 biggest priorities for utilities in 2024
European energy bosses join IEA’s call for grid action

“We have a commitment to our customers and community to ensure the reliability and resiliency of our grid by making needed modernisation investments,” says Ken Zagzebski, President and CEO of AES Utilities.

“With the successful deployment of smart meters and mid-line reclosers in phase 1, customers are benefitting from fewer outages and decreased restoration times. The Smart Grid 2 plan is a critical step to an integrated grid and creating meaningful capability improvements that add value to our customers.”

The plan filings point to a number of challenges and opportunities that have driven the phase 2 vision.

These include fundamental changes in the energy industry that have created unprecedented strain on the nation’s power grid such as the rise of decarbonisation, the installation of utility-scale storage and renewables projects and the rapid adoption of customer-owned distributed resources.

In addition localised changes including more volatile weather, increasing adoption of EVs and growth from new industrial, commercial and residential customers have further increased the need for grid modernisation.

To achieve improved operational insights, AES Ohio is proposing investments in areas including dynamic network model optimisation, distributed energy resource management, the distribution performance monitoring and analytics centre and grid edge intelligence.

Regarding grid technology deployment, AES plans to continue to make investments in a self-healing grid, with a particular focus on grid automation, volt/var optimisation/conservation voltage reduction, an advanced distribution management system and field crew management.

To support the connectivity needs of the new technologies, such as the new substation and distribution devices, upgrades and expansion of the existing communication networks also are proposed, along with a strengthening of cybersecurity measures and optimising advanced threat readiness.

Positive benefits

In the filing, AES Ohio estimates a 3.6 to 1 NPV benefits-to-cost ratio of the investments over 20 years, with most indirect in the form of reduced CO2 emissions and economic impact but almost a third direct, including avoided or deferred capital spend, operations and maintenance and energy and demand savings and enhanced reliability.

AES Ohio has requested an order on the plan in Q1 of 2025 to enable smooth transition between the two phases but also in the anticipation of maintaining on-site the same contractors working on the phase 1 investments.

AES Ohio serves more than 527,000 customer accounts in west central Ohio.

At least half of the utilities reported increases in solar panels and electric vehicles over the past three years and just over a third an increase in batteries. Looking ahead, the majority also foresee further increases in all these resources.

But while this broad panorama is understood by the utilities, more granular details are harder to track, the survey found, with data showing a lack of clarity as they try to understand the location, size and activity of these resources.

For example, DER location information is often accessible only for resources that are either connected to grid management software such as a distributed energy resource management system (DERMS) or required to submit interconnection requests to connect to the grid – or in some cases both.

Have you read?
Local Energy Markets Alliance launched
How consumer understanding is key for utility engagement

Almost three-quarters of the respondents rely solely on interconnection requests and/or integrations with platforms like DERMS to gather location information but it remains incomplete as the majority of customers are not enrolled in DER management programmes.

Overall, the utilities estimate, they have visibility into little more than a third on average of the DERS on their grid – and this is creating operational issues with nearly three quarters citing challenges including voltage visibility and control, back-feeding, protection and control coordination, distribution transformer and conductor overloads and masked or hidden loads.

“The complexities associated with behind-the-meter DERs are a significant challenge to electricity distribution utilities in North America,” comments Marcus McCarthy, SVP of Siemens Grid Software, US and Mexico.

He points out that technology can help by providing actionable insights into the opportunities and challenges of these resources to improve grid resilience.

“The software and digitalisation tools we implement today, will not only increase capacity, but aid in reliability – laying the foundation for an autonomous and advanced clean grid of the future.”

Demand side management

That technology, DER management programmes but especially the more easily implemented demand side management programmes, is pointed to in the survey with over two-thirds implementing such programmes and planning to expand them in the next five years.

With this, more than half of the respondents expect visibility into the behaviour and location of behind-the-meter DERs to benefit their operations by reducing their SAIDI and SAIFI metrics and increasing productivity.

Based on the findings of the survey Siemens offers three key recommendations for utilities, of which one is obviously to invest in the technologies that boost visibility behind the meter as a necessity to successfully navigate the energy transition and future-proof the grid.

The others are to prioritise strategies like demand side and DER management programmes for increased flexibility behind the meter and to strengthen customer trust to enable boosting participation in management programmes.

“With a deeper understanding of their customers’ needs and preferences, utilities can develop transparent policies and practices that reduce barriers to programme enrolment, including lack of interest and hesitation to share information.”

The survey Seeing behind the meter was undertaken with Oxford Economics and was based on input from 100 decision makers from electric utilities in the US and Canada.

The objective of the ODEON (federated data and intelligence Orchestration and sharing for the Digital Energy transitiON) project is to create “an inclusive ecosystem of stakeholders characterised a mesh of data, intelligence, service and market flows”, the project brief reads – and thereby jointly enabling the resilient operation of the energy system under increased renewables integration and distributed flexibility.

Specifically, the project aims to introduce a federated technological framework, i.e. a cloud-edge data and intelligence service platform, and the corresponding federated energy data spaces and smart data/AIOps orchestrators for the delivery of a range of services in a system operating with a high degree of flexibility from distributed assets.

Have you read?
Tech Talk | A framework for a European energy data space
Energy data and Buildings: The BEYOND way

Project goals include promoting connectivity, interoperability and seamless data exchange between the different stakeholders in the sector, prioritising privacy and data protection and enabling transparent energy transactions through tailored marketplaces.

The project’s innovations are planned to be validated in five large-scale demonstrators in Greece, Spain, France, Denmark and Ireland involving a diverse range of energy sources, networks, IoT infrastructure, systems and assets implemented across multi-climatic, geographic and socio-economic conditions from vulnerable customers to prosumers and local energy communities.

With this, lessons are expected for replicability and market uptake across Europe.

The ODEON project has a budget of €22.56 million ($24.3 million), of which the EU Horizon Europe contribution is €17.87 million.

The project coordinator is Spanish IT services and consultant organisation Etra and the project consortium is comprised of 34 participants from thirteen European countries.

With a four-year duration, ODEON runs to the end of December 2027.

The DIVE – ‘Digital identities as trust anchors in the energy system’ – project, which has been reported by Energy Web, is focussed on establishing secure and reliable digital identities for devices and systems within the energy sector.

These can then act as trust anchors, verifying the existence and capabilities of each system in real time.

By automating those verification processes, the electricity use cases that the devices are participating in can be changed quickly and easily to ensure grid stability and cost savings for energy consumers.

Have you read?
ReBeam – harnessing blockchain to improve the e-mobility experience
Time to put humans at the centre of energy transitions

With the large scale of expansion of renewable energies in Germany – as elsewhere – the system is decentralising and with increased consumer choice use cases such as renewable energy tracing, providing flexibility to the grid and supplier switching need seamless integration for efficient energy management.

Energy Web reports to play a central role in the DIVE project, including taking the lead in developing and implementing use cases related to electricity labelling and verification. This includes the use of digital identities in conjunction with the registry and exploring energy industry use cases and their links to the identity register.

Additionally, Energy Web intends to extend its existing open-source Green Proofs solution to connect to the digital trust anchors of DIVE and leverage the Energy Web X chain (EWX).

The Green Proofs solution is designed to enable trustworthy device identities to connect with different registers for guarantees of origin.

In the project, Energy Web will develop standardised representation and description forms for smart contracts under DIVE. This includes classification within the energy industry context, ensuring implementation-independent descriptions of inputs, outputs, conditions and logic of smart contracts.

The establishment of a ‘Smart Contract Register’ as an ‘app store’ for decentralised applications and logic devices, along with the provision of smart contracts under free licenses, should set the groundwork for an independent technology library.

Throughout, Energy Web aims to support existing standards and platforms, such as EnergyTag, the Elia Group platform Energy Track&Trace, GO, REC, I-REC and the German guarantees of origin register (Herkunftsnachweisregister, HKNR).

Energy Web also is integrating the ReBeam ‘fast change of supplier for EV charging stations’ solution with DIVE. Initially tested with Elia Group and 50Hertz Transmission in Berlin during the summer of 2022, the integration ultimately allows the consumption of self-generated PV power at public charging stations.

Other partners in the project are Forschungsstelle für Energiewirtschaft e.V, Oli Systems, KILT Protocol, Fieldfisher and Fraunhofer FIT.

The Alliance, an initiative of London-based digitalisation professional services company Gemserv and local energy market solution provider Traxis Group, is planned to bring together market players to develop commercial solutions for local energy markets and to scale the delivery of consumer-facing local energy systems.

While there have been multiple local energy system pilots and demonstrators, there are few fully commercial developments and the aim is to redress this, with the challenge mainly commercial rather than technical.

As such the proposal is to address common market barriers and to find collaborative business solutions, which ultimately should accelerate electrification and decarbonisation.

Have you read?
The clean energy transition is just getting started with much more to come in 2024
Why utilities need to optimise customer-centric energy management models

“Decarbonising demand is a really big energy challenge. Local energy systems will become an essential part of it so we are delighted to be working with Gemserv to initiate this really important enterprise,” says Simon Anderson, a co-founder of LEMA and CEO of Traxis Group.

Miriam Atkin, the other co-founder of LEMA and Executive Director at Gemserv, likewise expresses her delight to be working to support the development of commercially sustainable solutions through the Alliance.

“Local energy systems are a critical enabler to achieving net zero but they must be commercially viable.”

The basis for the Alliance is that the delivery of the many elements for consumers, such as the electrification of heating and transport and maximisation of rooftop solar, is highly fragmented with multiple parties and tends to lack leadership.

A programme of work has been developed for the Alliance, which is focussed initially on the creation of a network through stakeholder engagement and in the current year to identify common market barriers and develop business concepts and models to minimise their impact.

In 2025 the intention is to develop and approve common structures and contractual frameworks and thereafter to build on the experience gained to optimise delivery and support new development business cases.

The Alliance is also envisaged as an opportunity for businesses to commercialise their innovations through connecting with organisations with complementary capabilities.

The report, aimed to present the status of the market and to review the challenges of scaling flexibility, takes as its starting point TSO RTE’s recent adequacy report with scenarios to 2035 and its highlighting of the importance of demand management and battery storage.

Of these, based on its research, including input from members and other stakeholders in the sector, Think Smartgrids believes that demand management is the most promising option in the short term.

As such three flexibility ‘levers’ are identified that should be activated as a priority, the association states – the price lever based on smart metering, load shifting in industry and demand side management in the tertiary building sector, i.e. offices, shopping centres, public buildings, etc.

Have you read?
Energy efficiency now an action agenda – IEA
Energy Transitions Podcast: Redefining resilience for a modern power system

Residential demand side management also could be accelerated for short curtailment needs, such as winter consumption peaks, where electric heating accounts for almost half the peak demand, but in the short term its potential is small compared with that of tertiary buildings.

Think Smartgrids suggests in the report that the immediate approach should be awareness and support from public authorities towards the implementation of variable tariffs and the installation of the necessary control technologies with electricity consumers.

The main challenge, however, is the investment required, indicating an urgent need to consider financing options and remuneration for flexibility.

The association also states that the focus initially should be on mature and proven solutions, such as space and water heating and HVAC.

Interactions between actors from all sectors must be carefully coordinated and information and communication technologies and market mechanisms will be key to ensure this coordination and facilitate sectoral integration.

Ultimately however, for the functioning of a system with a much greater share of renewables, an expanded and coordinated mobilisation of all the levers – production, consumption and storage – as well as network infrastructures dimensioned in a smart way will be needed.

Turning to the delivery of flexibility, Think Smartgrids comments that the roles of public authorities and the regulator are fundamental.

But time is running out and uncertainties such as geopolitical conflicts can still modify the context and actions on an industrial – or at least semi-industrial – scale need to be launched now.

With the central position of Think Smartgrids within the French ecosystem and the range of solutions offered by members as well as the presence of public institutions on the board, the association points to it being the favoured actor for this role.

Think Smartgrids states that it has taken up the subject because it will play a major role in the development of smart electricity grids.

The association also indicates that this report will be followed before the end of Q1 2024 with a second part with recommendations on hardware and digital solutions and interoperability for flexibility and that pilots are to be launched to build the technical-economic framework for a mass-scale rollout.

The Grid Modernisation Platform is aimed to help utilities accelerate their grid modernisation efforts with a smart grid architecture comprised of connected devices, communications networks, grid data management, applications and analytics.

TRUSync, an expansion of the software acquired through Tantalus’ acquisition of Congruitive in 2022, is a middleware layer that delivers true interoperability and automates the integration of all utility data captured from any device, any system and any vendor, the company states in a release.

“To modernise, utilities must shift their perspective from traditionally being device-centric to becoming data-centric,” said Peter Londa, President and CEO of Tantalus.

Have you read?
Tech Talk | A framework for a European energy data space
The flexible, digital grid platform of the future

“Grid modernisation requires the integration of an increasing amount of data from a growing number of connected devices in a synchronised manner. To fully achieve grid modernisation, utilities must access untapped value through data interoperability.”

Tantalus reports finding in a 2023 utility survey that almost all said that modernising their distribution grid was an important priority but only about one in ten felt completely prepared to do so.

Tantalus’ Grid Modernisation Platform is designed with a modular approach, which is intended to enable utilities to be more strategic in their deployments while minimising the cost of prematurely abandoning existing investments and assets.

The TRUSync middleware layer, that sits between a utility’s connected devices and the software applications and analytics packages that use the data those devices generate, generates a “unified, single version of the truth” that bridges the gap between the OT and IT.

In addition, Tantalus is rebranding its existing suite of solutions to align the overall platform, including:
● TRUConnect AMI – the purpose-built edge computing endpoints that are capable of integrating a wide range of field devices and meters across a robust communications network and suite of software applications.
● TRUGrid Automation – the expanding suite of applications and data analytics that leverage AI to anticipate and respond to challenges arising from failing distribution equipment, such as transformers, extreme weather events or imbalances between the supply and demand of electricity.
● TRUFlex™ Load+DER Management – the solution to help utilities manage a wide variety of residential and commercial loads responsively, reliably and flexibly while reducing costs associated with power outages and improving operational efficiencies.
● TRUSense Gateway – the suite of collar-based connected devices that deliver AMI 2.0 functionality without unnecessarily replacing existing meters. The devices also capture substation-level power quality measurements at the meter socket and deliver a dedicated secure connection to DERs and smart appliances located behind the meter.

When world leaders agreed at the Conference of the Parties 28 (COP28) in Dubai, held in December 2023, to transition away from fossil fuels, anyone operating a power grid surely took notice. While expanding renewable energy capacity is good news for the planet, it’s bittersweet for utilities who – according to a special report by the International Energy Agency (IEA) – are already at risk of becoming a bottleneck in the global shift toward renewables.

All this ratchets up the importance of transforming the power grid into a dynamic entity that can sense, think, and act. Not an easy feat – but a necessary one for a power grid that has been mostly static since its birth in the 1880s.

Why do renewables such as distributed energy resources (DERs) present such a challenge? The hard truth is that the majority of electric grids were not originally designed to accommodate DERs.

DER for Reliability is an educational track at DISTRIBUTECH International,
set for Orlando, Florida February 26-29, 2024.

Obstacles will emerge when balancing energy supply and demand, coupled with managing fluctuations in voltage and frequency. Moreover, many renewable sources rely on unpredictable weather patterns, presenting a challenge for a grid that requires continuous, intensive oversight of DER infeed conditions at the interconnection point to maintain electricity balancing and help ensure stability and safety. Additionally, the proliferation in micro/nano grids and bi-directional electricity flows from “prosumers” that must be integrated into the grid.

Thus, to adapt to the clean energy future, the power grid must be able to sense, think, and act. And what does it mean for the power grid to sense, think and act?

For starters, it must sense, as in measure and monitor, which of the many DER inputs it is dealing with. Then it must think about how to adapt to the ever-changing landscape of energy supply and demand.

Indeed, think at a level that – given the extensive scale and high-density presence of DERs on the grid – demands help from grid applications that embrace new technologies like artificial intelligence to evaluate how best to generate and dispatch power to meet the load demands. Then it must act through intelligent electronic devices (IEDs), which again – as the power grid scales in size and complexity – will require technological assistance to act in a synchronized and coordinated manner.

Let’s take a look at the role of a converged field area network (FAN) and how it helps transform the power grid into an entity that can sense, think, and act as more and more megawatts of renewables enter the system.

Introducing field area networks

Converged FANs help utilities extend communications deep into the distribution grid to enable integration of DERs as well as storage, distribution automation, substation automation, and advanced metering infrastructure.

Converged FANs connect IEDs in substations and on feeder circuits that sense line conditions. Grid management systems and automated controllers across the grid apply application logic to think and send commands to IEDs to act, essentially to protect and control the grid.

A converged FAN integrates an IP/MPLS field router with a private LTE network, bringing resilient and secure broadband network services to the distribution system. This enables system operators to wirelessly deliver a broad range of distribution automation applications to utility poles, low-voltage substations, and DER sites, connecting IEDs (such as reclosers and line switches), CCTV, drones, and other devices.

Addressing islanding

Islanding prevention is a good example of why FANs are becoming more crucial to power grid operations. For example, as line sensors across feeder circuits send current measurements from a feeder circuit to a recloser controller, the controller logic will analyze the data in real-time to detect fault currents. Once detected, it will command reclosers adjacent to the fault location to open.

When the circuit connects with a community solar project rather than a traditional one-way grid, further remedial action is required.

Should the solar array inverter fail to detect island formation, it would still continue to supply power through the point of common coupling (PCC) into the section of the feeder circuit downstream from the recloser. This situation results in an islanding condition, posing a hazard to the dispatched crews addressing the fault as well as to the local electrical equipment on that particular section of the feeder.

With a converged FAN, control logic gains the capability to issue a trip command to the downstream switch at the PCC, preventing the DER from energizing the feeder.

Restoring service

Another key to improving grid reliability is through fault location, isolation, and service restoration (FLISR), which brings self-healing capabilities to power grids.

According to a U.S. Department of Energy study, FLISR can have the potential to decrease customer minutes of interruption (CMI) by 53% and the number of customers interrupted (CI) by 55%. That’s because a line sensor can send a message to the FLISR controller to indicate a service interruption which kicks off a process whereby power is re-routed, and users are reconnected to a different substation.

This is not a bandwidth-intensive process. Add DERs to the power grid, though, and things get complicated.

When a DER contributes to a fault, there are many locations to isolate, surpassing the capacity that older FLISR systems can manage. The key is to make the advanced distribution management systems (ADMS) aware of the exact configuration of circuit topology and model the more complex system in the ADMS software so that it can correctly carry out the restorative actions through dynamic circuit reconfiguration.

Centralized ADMS FLISR applications demand substantial flexibility to manage multi-way communications with IEDs in the substation and on feeder circuits. This is necessary to collect data and send instructions once the fault(s) are located and appropriate actions are determined.

In some FLISR implementations, the application logic is run in the substation with IEDs that also communicate with each other for heightened awareness. A converged FAN has the ability to support, flexible any-to-any communications in order to meet this complex need.

Mitigating fire risk

FAN is crucial in supporting applications that monitor for and s iftly detect falling power lines, a factor implicated in some of the most severe forest fires of this century.

Identifying and de-energizing falling conductors before they reach the ground is essential for mitigating wildfires. A converged FAN, leveraging IP/MPLS and private LTE/5G, can also carry real-time synchrophasor data for the distribution automation controller to detect and de-energize falling power lines. In fewer than two seconds, a falling line can be detected and isolated while in mid-air – before it sparks on the ground – significantly mitigating the threat of widespread destruction and injury or death.

Dynamic energy grids

Certain attributes are required for a converged FAN to support grid communications and empower the grid to sense, think, and act. Look for a solution with end-to-end multi-fault network resiliency, deterministic quality of service for assured data delivery, any-to-any multi-point connectivity for more efficient machine-to-machine communications, and robust cyber security defenses.

As power grids integrate more DERs, the converged FAN will play a significant role in guaranteeing effective energy provision and administration – thereby removing the risk of power utilities becoming the bottleneck in the world’s sustainability efforts. A dynamic energy grid that can sense, think, and act is the foundation for the power grid of the future.

About the author

Dominique Verhulst currently heads the Energy Segment at Nokia’s Network Infrastructure Group.

Leveraging Nokia’s portfolio of Fixed, IP&Optical, and professional services products, Dominique drives the business and solutions development for Energy customers globally. He is the author of the “Teleprotection over Packet Networks” e-book available on the iTunes bookstore, and co-author of several publications from the University of Strathclyde on the matter of Differential Protection over IP/MPLS. He has over 30 years of experience in the telecommunications networking industry, holding senior sales and marketing positions at Nokia, Alcatel-Lucent, Newbridge Networks, Ungermann-Bass and Motorola.

The global push for cleaner, greener sources of energy is accelerating. According to the International Energy Agency, renewable energy was expected to account for nearly 30% of global electricity generation by this year.

In fact, we are approaching “the beginning of the end of the fossil age”, according to the fourth annual Global Electricity Review written by Malgorzata Wiatros-Motyka and others for the energy think-tank, Ember.

As fossil fuels go out of style and fossil-burning power plants are taken offline, renewable energy sources are now surpassing coal as the largest source of power worldwide, says the IEA. By 2027, the IEA report states, renewable energy sources will grow by 2,400GW. That’s equivalent to the entire power capacity of China today, and an acceleration of 85% over the previous five years. In fact, renewable energy is expected to account for 90% of global electricity expansion in the next four years.

That expansion is attributable to renewable energy policies and market reforms in the US, European Union and China, according to the IEA report.

Renewable energy need

The acceleration of renewable energy sources – solar, hydroelectric, wind, biomass – tracks along with the spike in energy prices brought on by war in eastern Europe, which has disrupted the fossil fuel supply chain. That disruption, which the IEA called “the first truly global energy crisis”, underscored the need for the energy security provided by domestically produced renewable energy sources.

In 2022, 63% of the new utility-scale generating capacity added to the US power grid came from solar (46%) and wind (17%). In fact, renewables are the only sector expected to continue to grow, with declines predicted in coal, natural gas, nuclear and oil.

Offshore wind generation is a newer player in the renewables market and is expected to continue to grow globally. However, the expansion in that area is being stalled by lengthy permitting processes and a lack of improvements to power grid infrastructure.

While the expansion of renewable energy might be slowed by policy disagreements and political considerations, the need to update utility infrastructure to handle renewable energy could be the most critical holdup.

Grid enhancements

Utilities are realising that smaller, less predictable energy sources like wind and solar aren’t just plug-and-play. Their grids must be upgraded and digitised to handle not only new offsite power sources, but disruptive technologies such as electric vehicles that are shifting traditional energy demands.

Plus, with the introduction of new renewable energy sources, just how much load they will deliver isn’t certain. Utilities need to move to a real-time, digital approach to load management in order to keep supply and demand balanced. A digital representation of the network, or digital twin, is essential to understand, predict and plan for production and consumption.

A digitised network will also be more efficient since each component and asset can be tracked and maintained through its entire lifecycle, making it more reliable. Having a digitised grid in place is necessary before utilities can adopt a distributed energy resource management systems (DERMS) approach to dealing with alternative energy sources.

DERMS are the combination of hardware and software that allows management of a power grid that includes renewable energy sources such as wind and solar. DERMS provide real-time communication and control across batteries, solar panels and other devices that may lie behind the meter and outside the grid operator’s direct control. They primarily optimise energy consumption to minimise peak demands, which requires careful planning.

Sustainable future

Renewable energy is not only a transformative opportunity for the utility industry, but also a key driver of global transformation.

By adopting renewable energy sources and the advanced grid management technologies needed to sustain them, utilities can help themselves by enhancing their efficiency, reliability and resilience, while helping the world by reducing the causes of pollution, climate change and dependence on fossil fuels.

About the author:

Maximilian Weber is the senior vice president of EMEA for Hexagon’s Safety & Infrastructure division. He has more than 25 years of experience within Hexagon, serving in various executive roles throughout the years, such as general manager, business unit manager and sales manager.

About Hexagon:

Hexagon helps utilities and communications companies achieve greater service reliability, increase operational efficiency and enhance customer satisfaction. We support hundreds of utilities and communications customers around the world with solutions for network engineering and design, operations and maintenance.

The update finds that world demand for electricity grew by 2.2% in 2023, less than the 2.4% growth of 2022, attributing this to declines in advanced countries due to the lacklustre macroeconomic environment and high inflation.

However, the demand is expected to rise, growing by an average of 3.4% annually through 2026 through an improving economic outlook and particularly in advanced economies the ongoing electrification of the residential and transport sectors.

Significant extra demand also is expected from outside these economies, in particular in China, India and countries in Southeast Asia.

Have you read?
Managing power grid complexity: The 5 biggest priorities for utilities in 2024
Energy Transitions Podcast: Accelerating decarbonised power generation at scale

Notable expansion of the data centre sector also is likely, with consumption from data centres, AI and the cryptocurrency sector potentially doubling by 2026.

In 2023 the share of electricity in final energy consumption is estimated to have reached 20%, up from 18% in 2015.

To meet the IEA’s net zero by 2050 pathway, the share must near 30% in 2030 and thus electrification needs to accelerate rapidly, the Electricity 2024 publication states.

Renewables and nuclear

The report projects that low-emission generation sources, including nuclear and renewables such as solar, wind and hydro, are set to rise at twice the annual growth rate over the past five years.

By 2026 these sources are set to account for almost half the world’s generation, up from 39% in 2023.

In particular, the share of renewables is forecast to rise from 30% in 2023 to 37% in 2026 and more than offset demand growth in advanced economies such as the US and European Union and potentially also in China.

Nuclear power generation also is expected to reach an all-time high, with growth averaging close to 3% per year.

With this global coal-fired generation is expected to fall by an average of 1.7% annually through 2026.

Global CO2 emissions also are expected to decline, averaging 4% between 2023 and 2026, which is more than double the 2% in the period from 2015 to 2019.

“The power sector currently produces more CO2 emissions than any other in the world economy, so it’s encouraging that the rapid growth of renewables and a steady expansion of nuclear power are together on course to match all the increase in global electricity demand over the next three years,” commented IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol.

“This is largely thanks to the huge momentum behind renewables, with ever cheaper solar leading the way, and support from the important comeback of nuclear power, whose generation is set to reach a historic high by 2025. While more progress is needed, and fast, these are very promising trends.”

Electricity demand highlights

Some other top points from the report are as follows:

● Africa remains an outlier in electricity demand trends, with per capita demand having been effectively stagnant for more than three decades. A more than doubling in investments is required to deliver the region’s energy development and climate targets.

● Electricity prices were generally lower in 2023 than the record highs in 2022, in tandem with declines in prices for commodities such as natural gas and coal, but price trends varied widely among regions, affecting their economic competitiveness.

● Growing weather impacts on power systems highlight the importance of investing in electricity security. For example, global hydropower generation declined in 2023 due to impacts such as droughts, below average rainfall and early snowmelts in numerous regions. Diversifying energy sources, building regional power interconnections and implementing strategies for resilient generation in the face of changing weather patterns will be increasingly important.

● Rising self-consumption in distributed systems and data collection is giving rise to demand forecasting and planning and data sharing challenges. Complete data sets on distributed generation and consumption can give valuable insights into the potential for local flexibility solutions and improved data exchange between DSOs and TSOs can contribute to a more comprehensive accounting of self-consumption.

● Global smart meter investments doubled in 2022 compared to 2015, with the number of smart meters exceeding 1 billion worldwide. However, smart meter penetration varies significantly among countries and regions, from around 80% of US households to 10% in Latin America. Smart meters not only enable better and more detailed data collection but can also enable considerable cost savings.

Under the name of ‘Net Zero Data’, the portfolio of datasets has been built to align with the needs of different types of low-carbon projects being investigated by network operators, local authorities or other technology installers.

Common project themes include the potential locations for renewables and storage or renewable heat, buildings suitable for net zero retrofits and land with potential for electric vehicle infrastructure.

The Energy Systems Catapult reports that the datasets have been developed drawing on 30 years of collective data modelling expertise and are intended to fill gaps in common open data sources.

Have you read?
Tech Talk | A framework for a European energy data space
Energy data and Buildings: The BEYOND way

They have been applied, refined and tested in various real-world scenarios and projects, with an example cited of understanding the baseline of a local energy system prior to full local area energy planning.

The datasets cover the local authority regions GB-wide, with availability at the regional level using the Ordnance Survey standardised ‘unique property reference number’ and thus enabling overlaying and integration with the user’s own datasets.

The datasets can be visualised with any GIS platform or through a partnership with Advanced Infrastructure Technology via its LAEP+ digital twin based planning and modelling platform.

Further, the datasets are updated on an ongoing basis, in many cases reported as often as daily.

The Energy Systems Catapult states that the use of such datasets enables more rapid decision making to speed up the net zero transition without the need for lengthy delays for custom-made datasets to be compiled.

The datasets are available both by one-off purchase or subscription.

The ‘Future of Utilities’, which was published by the Abu Dhabi utility (Abu Dhabi National Energy Company, TAQA) and Bloomberg Media to coincide with the World Economic Forum meeting, found that confidence in achieving 2030 targets is low in the utilities sector based on the current trajectory and there needs to be immense transformation.

Poor partnerships with technology providers and low awareness of the latest technology alternatives are the largest impediments to innovation.

And the top threat is the complexity of integrating renewables, with others including the vulnerability of supply chains and lack of access to capital.

Have you read?
Action plan for Europe’s grids launched
Energy ‘tipping point’ is business opportunity says Octopus Energy CEO

“The utilities sector is on the frontlines of the global energy system, and it is therefore uniquely placed to shape the transition to a low carbon future,” says Jasim Husain Thabet, Group CEO and Managing Director of TAQA, one of the largest listed integrated utilities in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, commenting on the findings.

“As the utilities community responds to that challenge with increased urgency, the insights from this report can serve as a lens to guide decision making and validate perspectives.”

The study was based on a survey of almost 600 experts from across the energy sector worldwide, with the majority, 80%, agreeing that utilities are actively pursuing a future geared towards net zero.

However, with less than half confident that 2030 targets would be met with the status quo, almost all felt that a profound change is not only required but also imminent.

With calls for decentralised energy systems accelerating, consumer empowerment is considered vital for the success of utilities in 2030, with evolutions in operating models and customer relations as consumers increasingly adopt self-generation.

The study found that regulation is largely seen as an enabler of net zero, with facilitating renewable integration seen as the top benefit, and only 5% reported that their regulatory environment is a hindrance.

The complexity of integrating renewables as a top threat to achieving net zero goals was cited by half of the respondents, although there are variations both by region and role.

For example, investors considered regulatory challenges while policy advisers cited threats to digital security and cyberattacks.

Nevertheless, this indicates the need for a stronger focus on innovation with more effective collaboration and communication.

To put this into context BloombergNEF in its New Energy Outlook 2022 projected a $21 trillion investment by 2050 to expand and refurbish the global electricity system.

Additionally, its Energy Transition Investment Trends 2023 expects electrified transport, renewable energy and grids to dominate investments to 2030, comprising almost three-quarters of the annual combined share – a trend set to escalate in the 2030s with an estimated annual investment of $6.88 trillion and a further increase to $7.87 trillion by the 2040s.

This increasingly changing power grid paradigm poses great challenges for the growth of power grid infrastructure and brings forward the need for innovative solutions.

Traditional grid expansion approaches, such as infrastructure reinforcement, are no longer optimal due to the disparity between forecasts and reality.

This article explores the limitations of current strategies and proposes a solution based on grid digitalisation — Federated Distributed Energy Resources Management System (Federated-DERMS), which offers a decentralised approach to grid management, optimising operations and overcoming the hurdles posed by the evolving energy landscape.

Power grid infrastructure growth challenges

Traditional approaches, mainly focused on infrastructure reinforcement or equipment replacement, struggle to keep pace with the dynamic changes in the energy landscape.

The integration of distributed energy resources (DER), which doubled between 2004 and 2021 and will continue to grow in the upcoming years due to governmental policies and objectives, such as the European Union’s (EU) active net zero carbon emissions by 2050, coupled with the rapid adoption of electric vehicles and the shift from consumer to prosumer, has led to a significant disparity between the current estimation methods and the evolving reality.

To bridge this gap, a paradigm shift toward grid digitalisation may be a suitable path to follow.

Traditional grid reinforcement-based approach, driven by decisions based on load simultaneity factors and worst-case future scenarios, may no longer be efficient for grid reinforcement planning, as new uncertain variables such as knowing where and when DERs are going to be installed.

In addition, the evolution from consumers to prosumers, elastic to electricity prices and capable of injecting power into the grid, further complicates the equation.

Instead of trying to invest in grid reinforcements under this high uncertain scenario, the solution lies in non-wire alternatives (NWA) such as grid digitalisation, entailing investments in edge computing (IoT) and innovative software architectures.

This dual investment is the fittest for optimal exploitation of information generated by edge devices, providing a pathway to a more adaptive and efficient grid.

Operational challenges for DSOs

Following the current trends in the network paradigm shift, DSOs will need to be able to operate a greater number of devices.

On the one hand, this is positive, as they will have more tools to optimise network exploitation. On the other hand, it will mean there is a greater number of variables to optimise.

This implies that to solve optimisation problems in the same way as it is currently done (centralised control), the operator will require greater computational power.

Moreover, with the increase in uncertainties associated with both generation and demand, primarily due to renewable generation, electric vehicle charging schedule, and consumers’ behaviour with their variable loads, network operation has become more complex.

Following a grid digitalisation approach, the deployment of smart meters and IoT edge devices will cause a considerable increase in the volume of data for DSOs to manage.

This implies that centralised management architectures, where all data flows from devices to the central hub, will require greater robustness and computational power capable of handling both the data volume and the variables to be optimised in acceptable timeframes for operation while ensuring system’s quality of service.

Maintaining this type of network control architecture over time can become inefficient, as the investment in computational power may reach considerable figures. To address this challenge, one of the possible courses of action is proposed in the next section.

Federated-DERMS as a solution

In response to the pressing challenges faced by power grids, a transformative solution emerges — the Federated Distributed Energy Resources Management System.

This innovative software architecture is defined by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) as FAST-DERMS and offers a decentralised approach to grid management.

As Figure 1 portrays, a Federated-DERMS strategically divides the grid into areas controlled by individual DERMS systems (the Flexibility Resource Scheduler in Figure 1), each equipped with personalised microservices tailored for optimal grid operation of their control region.

Federated-DERMS operates with a central coordinator communicating seamlessly with all DERMS systems across the grid.

Each local DERMS, armed with personalised microservices, undertakes specific tasks to optimise its control area. These tasks may include precise load forecasting, economic dispatch of DERs in the local market and hosting capacity calculations in order to accomplish forecasting, planning and operation tasks efficiently and effectively.

Importantly, all local DERMS systems collaborate, sharing data and insights with each other and the central coordinator to achieve close-to-optimal grid operation.

Therefore, applying this architecture brings improvements both at a general and local level.

On a general scale, it achieves a reduction in the number of signals directly exchanged with the central coordinator, as the managers of each zone will send condensed information received. This implies that the computational power required to manage the entire volume of data will be reduced due to the distribution of data handling among zone operators.

On the other hand, at the local level, the deployed microservices can be specifically configured to address operation, control, or planning issues in the controlled area with greater precision, thereby enhancing overall network management.

Conclusion: Embracing innovation for a resilient future.

About the authors

Daniel Palomo, Business Development Manager Grid Control, Minsait, is responsible for grid control products as well as the launch to the market of new control and real time products. In addition, he has worked for strategic projects deploying IoT edge technologies, SCADA in the cloud, DER flexibility and FLISR implementation.

Juan Menendez-Pidal, Real Time Control System Expert, Minsait, is an expert in implementation of management, operation and optimisation solutions for electrical distribution networks for DSOs and research centres. He also is actively working on R&D projects for the development of new products that promote the energy transition.

About Minsait

Minsait, an Indra company (www.minsait.com), is a leading firm in digital transformation and information technologies in Spain and Latin America. Minsait possesses a high degree of specialisation and knowledge of the sector to focus its offering on high-impact value propositions, based on end-to-end solutions. Its capabilities and leadership are demonstrated in its product range, under the brand Onesait, and its across-the-board range of services.

About Indra

Indra (www.indracompany.com) is one of the leading global technology and consulting companies and the technological partner for core business operations of its customers worldwide. Its business model is based on a comprehensive range of proprietary products, with a high-value, end-to-end focus and with a high innovation component. In the 2022 financial year, Indra achieved revenue totaling €3,851 billion with almost 57,000 employees with a local presence in 46 countries and business operations in over 140 countries.

In two separate and unrelated initiatives united only by the word ‘waste’, Veolia has pioneered V2G in a trial with its waste collection trucks, while Octopus Energy is investing £200 million ($255 million) in the startup Deep Green to scale its technology to capture waste heat from data centres and provide free heat to energy-intensive organisations such as leisure centres.

In the first phase of Veolia’s trial, the company has demonstrated charging and discharging of 110kW of energy from two specially designed bi-directional vehicles – enough to supply power to 110 households for over two hours during peak evening hours.

Veolia now plans to expand the trial and test it out on the streets, using Westminster council collection vehicles to pilot the innovation.

Have you read?
UK funds vehicle to everything research and development
IEA calls for doubling down on energy efficiency action

In due course and by 2040 Veolia plans to electrify all of its 1,800 refuse collection vehicles, with the potential to provide around 200MW of flexible power to the grid daily.

Such vehicles are considered ideal for V2G with batteries that are six times larger than those in an average car and that the fleet is usually parked at peak energy consumption times for the national grid.

Veolia also intends to maximize the use of local decarbonised energy from its waste-to-energy plants to power its vehicles.

“We need to innovate in local decarbonising energy and transform our traditional approaches to take advantage of untapped sources,” commented Veolia CEO, Estelle Brachlianoff.

“This requires a change of mindset and a collective willingness to rethink the way we produce, distribute and consume energy. The success of the V2G demonstration illustrates this perfectly.”

Waste heat for heating

Octopus Energy’s investment in London-based data centre company Deep Green is aimed to help it rapidly scale its micro data centre technology at ‘edge’ sites across the UK.

The Deep Green furnaces are comprised of computers immersed in a biodegradable mineral oil to capture the heat generated, which are installed on-site and the heat delivered to the adjacent swimming pool or other user of large volumes of heated water such as a distillery or large apartment block.

In return, Deep Green gets free cooling to give it the competitive advantage over traditional data centres and to offer more affordable, energy-efficient computing to businesses.

With their micro-scale and on-site installation, the data centres do not require additional grid upgrades or planning permission so can be up and running in a matter of weeks.

Zoisa North-Bond, CEO of Octopus Energy Generation says innovative solutions to unusual problems are needed to tackle the energy crisis head-on.

“By using excess heat from data centres to slash energy bills for communities across the UK, Deep Green solves two problems with one solution. We’re looking forward to rapidly rolling this out and positively impacting even more people as we drive towards a cleaner, cheaper energy future.”

In a press notice, the company quotes a swimming pool in Devon as slashing its pool heating bill by over 60% and cites current customers including York University.

Octopus Energy launched its Transition fund in 2023 to support scaling companies in fast-growing sectors decarbonising society. A previous recipient is the ground-source heat pump company Kensa Group.

Over the course of 2023 – and indeed since its start in mid-2022 – this column has not been short of possible new and future technology content to feature. But for this one I have decided to take a forward look to 2024 – and would invite your feedback on its focus and style for the year ahead.

The energy sector in 2023 has been dominated by many advances, such as the drive for decentralisation, the increasing use of Web3 and AI technologies and the focus on the grid as the foundation or ‘backbone’ of the renewables-driven grid of the future and we expect these to continue into 2024.

Decentralisation

Decentralisation of the energy system is a given for the future as consumers are able to instal own generation such as rooftop PV or storage, either fixed or in an electric vehicle – and in turn deliver excess to the grid or trade with peers or form part of a local energy community.

Rising energy prices and the threat of disruptions has been a driver for much of the latest uptake of distributed energy resources – National grid in the UK, for example, has reported more than 40,000 new connections since April 2023 – but coming with this is the increasing need for flexibility.

In the UK again, Octopus reported that one million customers had signed up for a demand flexibility scheme for the current 2023/24 winter season.

Have you read?
Action plan for Europe’s grids launched
Energy Transitions Podcast: Accelerating decarbonised power generation at scale

Clearly for participation such schemes must be straightforward from both the consumers’ and suppliers’ perspectives.

The rewards also must be adequate and again quoting Octopus the top 5% of participants in the previous year’s scheme achieved average savings over £40, while the average over all the participating customers was about £7.50.

Delivery of such schemes requires platforms that can automate the process as much as possible, with various technologies possible.

Blockchain, Web3 and AI

One of these is blockchain, which a couple of years ago was being hyped as a technology but since then that has died down as it has matured and its promoters have stood the test of time.

Key issues have been around scalability, interoperability and energy efficiency.

Which use cases that can most benefit from blockchain are still open to debate but one area that is attracting growing interest is renewables tracking and certification and by extension the tracking and certification of other commodities such as e-fuels and CO2 emissions.

Another driver for increasing demand for tracking is ‘circularity’, in this case of ‘hard’ products such as batteries and their components and which is being enabled with the emergence of other Web3 technologies such as self-sovereign identities and digital passports.

With the first battery passports set to appear in Europe – although not obligatory until February 2027 – more products are likely to be caught up in the digital passport net, particularly those containing valuable raw materials as regions such as Europe aim to become as self sufficient as possible on those materials that are critical for their economy.

Another technology that is now widespread is AI, particularly in data related applications and platforms. But much of the future focus is likely to be on generative AI as utilities and companies look to harness it for both customer and internally related applications.

So far only a few sector players have publicly announced their foray into generative AI – most recently E.ON – but these and other early movers are likely to be those to gain the most advantages over competitors.

The future grid

Few would claim to know what the 2050 grid will look like but there are many scenarios from organisations such as the IEA and IRENA and regional bodies such as the EU with its newly released grid action plan as to how to get there.

These include the need for significant and urgent investments, in Europe for example an estimated €584 billion ($641 billion) by 2030.

At the heart of the future grid is smart metering, particularly the second generation meters that provide grid-related data in addition to the regular consumption data.

In the US, installations are ongoing at a rate of about 8 million units per year, while in Europe there has been an acceleration as countries seek to catch up. However, as past rollouts that all too easily have slowed have shown, to maintain the momentum there is a “need for speed”, as Esmig’s managing director Tomás Llobet has put it.

The grids require not only extending but also upgrading for modernisation and reinforcement. But equally important looking ahead is getting the most out of the current and future infrastructure, with flexibility and so-called ‘grid enhancing technologies’ such as dynamic line rating and flexible alternating current transmission system (FACTS).

The space race

Space is increasingly being seen as the next frontier for the energy sector, with space-based data being utilised for utility applications such as renewables siting and vegetation management as well as for other climate related issues such as carbon and methane monitoring and disaster management.

Dubai Electricity & Water Authority (DEWA) has gone a step further, developing and launching its own satellites and has the vision to offer satellite data ‘as a service’ to other utilities.

But perhaps the most significant interest in space from the energy perspective is the potential for space-based solar power.

Caltech’s Space Solar Power Project is the most advanced to date and has delivered three positive demonstrations amid ongoing investigations – that energy can be transmitted from space to Earth, that low cost solar cells show potential for use in space and that it should be possible to deploy the large flexible membranes that will be required for what will be kilometre-scale satellites in space.

While the prospect of commercial space-based solar is likely to be a decade off at least with the considerable technical developments still required, several countries are vying for leadership in the technology.

A new ‘Lighthouse Project’ entitled ‘Electricity network planning and implementation under uncertainty for the clean energy transition: The roles of smart distribution grids in energy systems’ is aimed to initiate closer collaboration between the Networks’ six working groups to address smart distribution grids.

In particular the project should unite the working groups around the goal of planning smart distribution grids to support the clean energy transition.

With distribution crucial for changes such as electric vehicles and heat pumps, a holistic approach is needed to configure smart grids and leverage flexibility at the distribution level, an ISGAN statement comments.

Have you read?
Smart grid – technologies for the future
The EU Clean Energy Package and the smart grid

“The Lighthouse Project will identify specific activities and stakeholders to address these challenges. By pooling the expertise within ISGAN, we can make meaningful contributions to global smart grid development.”

Scoping for the project has begun and it is anticipated that bringing together the working groups and stakeholders will spark new ideas.

The six working groups are on Communications, Benefit and Cost Analyses, Smart Grid International Research Facility Network, Power T&D Systems, Smart Grid Transitions, and Flexibility Markets – Development and Implementation

Brazil joins ISGAN

In other news Brazil has become the latest member of ISGAN, with the country formalising its membership during the COP28 meeting in Dubai.

Brazil was represented by Luiz Carlos Ciocchi, CEO, and Christiano Vieira da Silva, Operations Director, of the country’s National Electric System Operator (ONS).

With Brazil’s membership – the first from Latin America – ISGAN’s reach is expanded across all the continents and the country has promised to broaden the Network’s perspective on integrating high shares of renewables and facilitating regional energy trade.

“We have now acquired a very valuable Brazilian partner that can assist ISGAN in comprehending and addressing grid challenges alongside innovation-specific needs, with a focus on South American countries,” said Luciano Martini, Chair of ISGAN.

New vice-chair of ISGAN

The other recent news is that Dr John K Ward, Research Director of the Energy Systems Research Programme at Australia’s CSIRO, has been elected as a vice chair of the ISGAN Executive Committee

In that role he joins the three other vice chairs, Russell Conklin from the US Department of Energy, Arun Kumar Mishra, Director of India’s National Smart Grid Mission, and Wickie Lassen Agdal, advisor and project coordinator at the Danish Energy Agency.

Ward’s work has focussed on facilitating increased uptake of renewable energy and improving the utilisation of infrastructure to allow this transition.

One example of this has been through incorporating the CSIRO Renewable Energy Integration Facility (REIF) as a member of the IEA’s Smart Grid International Research Facility Network (SIRFN), which is reported as having helped international laboratories adopt a more consistent unified framework for evaluating the relative merits of various inverter standards and helping lift global best practice.

Ward aims to help ISGAN improve international collaboration – avoiding duplication and accelerating progress through knowledge sharing, including with countries that have not traditionally been part of such collaborations.

The Alliance, which is being convened by the renewable trading platform LevelTen Energy, includes energy companies AES and Constellation as well as Google and Microsoft.

The solution, under development in partnership with the US financial exchange and clearing house Intercontinental Exchange, aims to enable energy buyers to easily source carbon free generated around the clock and to incentivise energy sellers to produce clean energy where and when it is most needed.

In addition to supporting LevelTen Energy’s development of a transaction infrastructure for granular certificates, Alliance members intend to be among the first group of users when the solution launches.

Have you read?
Technology Trending: REC transactions and energy consumption matching
Energy Transitions Podcast: Accelerating decarbonised power generation at scale

As the solution scales, it is anticipated to help accelerate the energy transition through the decarbonisation of electricity.

“The Granular Certificate Trading Alliance is tackling the next challenge for the energy transition, which is driving carbon-emitting resources off the grid at all hours,” says Bryce Smith, CEO of LevelTen Energy.

“To achieve this goal we must, by definition, creatively re-deploy existing resources and creatively incentivise new carbon free energy generation to come online where and when it is needed most.”

Granular certificates are the next evolution of renewable energy certificates or ‘guarantees of origin’, which have been increasingly sought after by companies for clean energy procurements typically on an annual basis.

With granular certificates, the energy can be matched on a closer to real time basis – for the Alliance, hourly – and thereby better support corporate decarbonisation accounting.

The Alliance’s offering – one of a number of such ‘matching’ solutions that have been conceptualised in energy markets – is planned to include two components, a trading platform and a management platform.

The trading platform, which will be hosted by the Intercontinental Exchange, is expected to launch in 2024 and will connect carbon free energy buyers and sellers – including solar, wind, hydropower and nuclear generators and battery storage charged by carbon free resources – to enable them to trade granular certificates based on buyers’ preferred technologies and the time and location the electricity is generated.

The management platform, which is being developed by LevelTen Energy, is intended as a centralised hub for market participants including generators, energy buyers and project financers, to manage granular certificates before and after trades and is planned to include access to market data, custom reports to inform granular procurement strategies, as well as certificate tracking and settlement.

External financial support is generally only required for energy communities until two regulatory-related conditions are met.

One is that the red tape surrounding the establishment and operation of energy communities is reduced to the level of accepting terms for a digital app, with local service providers offering turnkey solutions for renewable energy installations and asset management.

The second is that the scope of energy community trading is extended to peer-to-peer trading within and among communities, which is permitted by the related EU directives but not yet by the member state implementation of these.

Have you read?
Technology Trending: REC transactions and energy consumption matching
Maximising benefits for local energy communities

The new study, which was conducted by Grid Singularity in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute of Applied Information Technology (FIT) and published by the German Energy Agency dena, confirms this perspective.

The study, titled ‘The decentralised energy system in 2030. A systemic bottom-up approach to market integration of decentralised consumption and generation assets’ (‘Das dezentralisierte Energiesystem im Jahr 2030 – Ein systemischer Bottom-up-Ansatz zur Marktintegration dezentraler Verbrauchs- und Erzeugungseinheiten’), received support from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK).

Bottom-up approach to market integration

In the study a bottom-up, agent-based model of the German energy market was simulated, with 967 agents representing distributed energy assets (PV, electric vehicles, heat pumps, battery storage, consumption load profiles, wind power plants) and their owners’ trading preferences in a possible German electricity system in 2030, with our open source Grid Singularity Exchange software tool for simulating and operating local, regional or national energy markets.

The number and the regional distribution of the respective agents were determined by our research partner, FIT, which based its calculations on the German Market Master Data Register and the German government’s forecasts for distributed energy resources (DER) expansion for 2030 (Bundesministerium für Wirtschaft und Klimaschutz, 2022 and 2023, Bundesnetzagentur, 2022).

The study envisaged the German electricity market in 2030 as one that is composed of connected local electricity markets in the form of local energy communities (LECs) fully engaging in peer-to-peer trading.

The applied simulation model has three market levels and the trading is bottom-up peer-to-peer electricity trading (P2P), i.e. asset-based, moving up the market hierarchy, as follows: i) trading within the LEC, ii) trading within and among LECs in one region, and iii) trading within and among LECs across the entire country.

The market design follows the pay-as-bid spot market type, where bids and offers are matched hourly in a P2P exchange. Prices for matched trades are determined by market conditions, considering feed-in tariff rates and utility rates, accounting for grid costs and ensuring that any matching gap is supplemented by the utility.

The study investigated six simulation scenarios in addition to the base case scenario, researching the implementation of P2P trading at different market levels, with additional analysis of the impact of the time-variable grid fee and time-variable electricity price models.

In the study, we applied actual asset-to-asset (peer-to-peer) electricity trading among market participants which is in general compliance with the EU directives on energy communities, but still more advanced than the trading mechanisms currently applied in the EU, in particular in Austria and Spain, which are among the most progressive compared to other EU members.

These EU countries still allow only indirect intra-community trading with a single, predefined energy price and more correctly described as peer-to-market energy trading mechanisms. To this day, none of the EU members allow trading between communities and the study finds this to be a significant opportunity.

Key findings of Germany 2030 bottom-up market simulation

The analysis shows that the implementation of P2P electricity trading markets leads to an important reduction in electricity cost for the participating households and the industry. For households, the electricity bills would be reduced by 4% in the case of local, intra-community P2P implementation without inter-community trading and up to 20% if P2P trading is enabled across all communities and regions in Germany.

Participants in P2P electricity trading were able to purchase electricity from their peers at a lower price than from the utility, resulting in improved matching of electricity generation and consumption at the local, regional and national levels. Electricity cost savings progressively increased with the expansion of P2P electricity trading scope, from community alone to between communities in a region, finally resulting in a fully-fledged bottom-up energy market for the entire country.

Furthermore, the P2P trading scope expansion also brings about a momentous increase in the degree of autonomy, also termed self-sufficiency, which reflects the ratio of total demand satisfied by generation at the analysed market level (or differently put, the share of self-consumption in the total consumption).

The average self-sufficiency rate for the community rises from 6% in the base case scenario where self-consumption is limited to owners of renewable assets, to 31% with the activation of local P2P trading when these assets are effectively shared with other local energy community participants.

When P2P trading is scaled to inter-community trading at a regional level and then at national level, the average self-sufficiency rate for the region increases to a very high 70% and 73% respectively, effectively including wind generation and industry consumption in P2P market trading.

In conclusion, the study indicates that over two-thirds of the electricity demand of households and industry in Germany can be met with the country’s PV and wind generation by implementing a bottom-up P2P market design.

This outcome implies a significant relief of the transmission grid use but can also lead to a higher utilisation of the lower grid levels, and the implications for grid network planning and operation can be a subject of further research.

At the same time, the results show no significant impact on electricity costs, emissions or self-sufficiency when time-variable electricity prices and grid charges are introduced, which may be due to limitations of the modelled asset configuration and/or selected time of use grid fee model.

Notably, in the simulated model of the German energy market in 2030, battery storage is the only modelled energy asset that offers flexibility and responds to the corresponding price signals, providing benefits exclusively to owners of these assets and increasing electricity costs for inflexible consumers when time-variable electricity prices are introduced.

In order to take advantage of dynamic grid fee models, the flexibility in the system must be increased, rewarding those that invest in renewable and especially flexible resources while providing a reasonable level of protection for inflexible consumers.

Recommendations for policymakers

The study concludes with the following recommendations for German and other European policymakers:

■ The EU directive on the regulation of energy communities should be advanced and implemented nationally, strongly considering enabling inter-community trading in addition to intra-community trading to unleash more benefits for citizens and the grid.
■ In line with the EU Digital Energy Action Plan, a framework for testing P2P electricity trading in demonstration projects should be created to demonstrate the benefits of energy communities and to define clear criteria for implementation in Germany.
■ Market platform models should be researched and developed to ensure holistic operation of P2P electricity markets, enabling the operational and regulatory framework to control, protect and settle financial transactions (effectively enlarging the current, more limited scope of community coefficient-based exchange).
■ The rollout of smart metering systems, enabling remote access to high resolution (at least 15 minute) submeter data for energy asset generation and consumption, is a prerequisite for P2P electricity trading as well as other flexibility and energy optimisation services and should be implemented quickly and worldwide.
■ To connect and integrate a broader level of market participants, additional digital technologies such as digital identities and corresponding, decentralised registers for machine identities of energy assets – ideally linked at EU level – are recommended. With the help of digital identities and data exchange concepts such as data spaces, granular time-based proof of electricity origin and distribution can be leveraged to issue and trade fully verifiable guarantees of origin and to enable a rapid transition of market roles (e.g. from self-consumption to ancillary services to trading markets and back to self-consumption). End-to-end digitalisation is an accelerator for implementing and enabling an efficient and secure operation of energy communities.
■ The penetration of flexibly deployable home energy storage systems envisaged for the future is not sufficient for time-variable tariffs to induce a global cost-reducing influence on the electricity price. To effectively reduce electricity prices, flexible operation of heat pumps and EVs is necessary across the board. Further studies could investigate which market share of flexible consumption units, such as heat pumps, should be achieved or how high the degree of flexibility of loads should be for variable electricity tariffs to contribute to a global reduction in electricity costs.

For more information, see the study (in German) and the longer article (in English) by Grid Singularity.

On November 29, ENLIT 2023 featured a panel on “Financing energy communities” inquiring about the fate of these novel energy markets post-public support. Ana Trbovich, cofounder of Grid Singularity and the Energy Web Foundation – both working on leveraging new technologies to accelerate energy transition, participated in the panel, together with Venizelos Efthymiou from the University of Cyprus FOSS Research Centre, Chris Vrettos from RESCoop European Federation of Energy Communities, Stoyan Danov from CIMNE Research Centre and Zia Lennard from R2M Solutions, with moderation by Arjan Haring of Seldon Digital.

Global electricity demand is expected to grow by 50% by 2040. The International Energy Agency (IEA) recently noted that one in five cars sold is now electric, up from one in 25 just three years ago.

The US and Europe have made enormous investments in clean energy as both a bulwark against climate change and a measure to ensure energy security in a volatile geopolitical environment. Wind turbines are rising in the North Sea and off the Atlantic coast.

Solar PV’s installed power capacity is expected to surpass that of coal by 2027, the IEA reports.

If we truly want to decarbonise, we can’t simply generate more renewable energy. All that new energy needs a place to go. Around the world, ageing grids are ill-equipped to handle this growing electricity demand, and most of the world’s electrical grids were not built to handle distributed energy resources (DERs), such as renewables.

To meet this challenge, the grids will need to modernise quickly, adopting new technologies to enable a digitised, bidirectional energy that can adapt in microseconds to the new variables that come with the introduction of renewables.

Governments and businesses must invest in grid modernisation on par with the investment in energy generation. The UN estimates that the world will need to invest $4 trillion a year until 2030 to reach net zero by 2050.

Money, however, won’t be enough. In the past five years, the pandemic, extreme weather and wars in Ukraine and the Middle East have challenged energy security and supply chain stability. To avoid disruption to the energy transition, it is essential to have a secure and resilient energy technology and resource supply chain. That will require governments and industry to rethink the regulatory and resource environment.

For example, the European Commission’s Critical Raw Materials Act, proposed in March, seeks to ensure a critical domestic supply of 34 crucial raw materials, including 16 strategic raw materials, such as lithium, nickel, graphite and aluminum. Notably, it simplified the permit procedure of strategic extracting projects, cutting some of the red tape that can delay projects and inflate costs.

The technologies exist that allow us to integrate renewable energy from multiple sources – solar, wind, water and hydrogen, – without sacrificing reliability. GE has already deployed these technologies in more than 150 countries. We – and our industry partners – can build the grid of the future and electrify the world with the right global investment and commitment.

This corresponds to a coverage of 80% of customers in mainland Portugal.

In total, there are almost 5.6 million smart meters installed and 90% of the equipment is already under remote management, allowing automatic data collection, exempting consumers from sending readings and enabling the issuance of invoices by suppliers, without resorting to estimates or adjustments.

“E-REDES is contributing to greater convenience and efficiency of service to the consumer, as well as the reduction of the environmental footprint,” says José Ferrari Careto, Chairman of the Board of Directors of E-REDES.

Have you read?
Data: the lifeblood of the modern smart grid
Portugal’s EUniversal flexibility demo gets going

“With the current installed fleet of smart meters, it is estimated that CO2 emissions will decrease by more than 2,190t in 2023.”

With the smart meters, consumers can monitor their energy profile and adjust electricity consumption, without E-REDES technicians having to travel to the site to execute work orders or collect readings.

The equipment also makes it possible for customers who want to do so to adhere to self-consumption.

Energy suppliers and service companies also benefit from smart meters in remote management, as they allow customers to access services and price plans adapted to their consumption profiles and needs.

E-REDES reports being on track to achieve the goal of having 100% of smart meters installed in Portuguese homes by the end of 2024.

The smart meter programme forms a key component of E-REDES’s strategy to invest in the development of new solutions to raise the quality of service and promote the active role of customers in the management of their consumption.

It also forms part of the broader smart grid programme to support the energy transition and the meeting of Portugal’s climate targets, including incorporating 47% of energy from renewable sources into gross final energy consumption and reducing greenhouse gas emissions between 45% and 55% compared to 2005 by 2030.

Primary energy consumption also must be reduced by 35% for better energy efficiency.

OpenADR 3.0 is designed to provide secure, fast and reliable two-way information exchange for utilities with simple communications needs such as dynamic pricing and event signals.

With OpenADR 3.0, device and equipment manufacturers should be able to add new functionality more easily into customer products, including smart thermostats, EV charging stations, energy storage and control systems.

“Renewable energy, along with battery storage, is providing a growing share of overall power capacity as we move towards a more sustainable energy future. This means that energy companies are having to manage more decentralised and distributed energy resources, scaling operations while ensuring compatibility and interoperability,” explains Rolf Bienert, Managing & Technical Director for the OpenADR Alliance.

Have you read?
Ford joins OpenADR Alliance as European EV market accelerates
Embedding circularity and sustainability for profitable business models

“OpenADR 3.0 provides simplicity at a time when technology is becoming more complex, making energy management easier and future-proofing energy systems. It offers a new alternative using modern web service designs that are easier to use than older message style exchange formats, while also providing added functionality.”

OpenADR 3.0 is intended to complement rather than replace OpenADR 2.0

In addition to the functionality of OpenADR 2.0, OpenADR 3.0 simplifies messaging, including pricing, offering more dynamic pricing structures, as well as better enabling greenhouse gas signalling, grid code adjustments and capacity management communication such as dynamic operating envelopes.

Bruce Nordman, a researcher at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and a member of the team that created OpenADR 3.0, says that it opens up new possibilities for customers and customer devices.

“It is so easy to implement that it can readily be put into any customer device, even a Wi-Fi light bulb, for receipt of grid signals, and also used for communication between customer devices. OpenADR 3.0 also supports two mechanisms for capacity management between the grid and the customer.”

The OpenADR Alliance reports that several companies are now piloting the OpenADR 3.0 standard.

OpenADR 3.0 testing and certification is available through the Alliance’s certification programme at any of its ten approved test facilities.

“Currently, you have 85GW in the German market contributing to flexibility, and last winter on the coldest day, the system needed 80GW. This translates into the challenge we will have.”

Holger Kreetz shared this observation in a discussion at Enlit Europe about the need to decarbonise power plants while ensuring the flexibility needed to keep the system functioning optimally. The challenge, according to Kreetz, is that a clear strategy for flexible power plants is needed.

However, in Germany, the industry is in limbo waiting for the carbon management strategy to be clarified.
Also, said Kreetz, we need to get flexibility online as soon as possible.

“The need for flexibility with more renewables, its lots of GW needed to be built and even if we had the details on the [flexibility] auction tomorrow, this would mean earliest in 2029 we would have the first assets up and running.”

Kreetz stated that the “German debate is not as rigorous as it has been in recent years,” even though this is clearly the most economical and suitable path to maximise asset value in the existing portfolio.

“To decarbonise [these] thermal assets, flexibility needs will increase rather than decrease…It’s a big challenge for society, OEMs and utilities.”

Have you read?
Enedis chief calls for energy sobriety to meet transition goals
IEA calls for doubling down on energy efficiency action

Uniper’s decarbonisation progress

Uniper, Europe’s largest gas importer, is working to decarbonise its flexible assets while investing in renewable PPAs and growing its hydro portfolio.

This year the company took the first investment decision on a 30MW electrolyser project and signed a long-term offtake agreement with Total for the duration of the asset.

The plan is to convert gas-fired assets to green assets by 2035, and decarbonise UK assets by deploying CCS and shipping the carbon to the North Sea.

In terms of the coal-fired assets, Kreetz said that “if politically allowed, we will close the portfolio by 2029″.

“We tried to close the German assets earlier, but since the war [in Ukraine], there are a number of assets that have been entered back in the market for security of supply.”

Uniper is also in the process of converting to green fuels such as hydrogen. But, he added, running assets on hydrogen for long periods can be costly.

Kreetz made it clear that there is a fine balance between decarbonising flexible assets while continuing to rely on gas for energy security. It’s about maximising the existing assets on the path to net zero, he said.

Originally published on Enlit World

“The grids are the backbone of the energy transition,” said Marianne Laigneau, CEO of Enedis, in the opening keynote at Enlit Europe 2023.

And the IEA in its recent report forecast that the grids – transmission and distribution combined – need to double from their current length over the next two decades with the addition of some 80 million km through expansion and modernisation to keep pace with the required rollout of renewables.

That, Pablo Hevia-Koch, Head of Renewable Integration and Secure Electricity Unit at the IEA pointed out in a press presentation of the report, is equivalent to 2,000 times around the circumference of the Earth.

Have you read?
Enel unveils plan for €18.6bn grid investment
Enedis chief calls for energy sobriety to meet transition goals

But at the current pace of development, it won’t happen: investment in the grids has stagnated and fallen behind renewables and instead the grid is becoming a bottleneck in slowing the pace of new renewable connections.

To achieve the proposed target investment in the grids needs to double to over $600 billion by 2030, in step with that in renewables.

Failure to meet the targets would have impacts on the consumption of fossil fuels and a global temperature increase above 1.5oC with a 40% chance of exceeding 2o, said Hevia-Koch, pointing to a six point ‘call to action’.

These include focusing on updating planning, unlocking investment by improving how grid companies are remunerated, addressing regulatory barriers, securing supply chains, leveraging digitalisation and building a skilled workforce.

Grid energy efficiency

Speaking at the press conference, Frederic Godemel, Executive Vice President for Power Systems and Services at Schneider Electric, highlighted the effect of energy efficiency on the grid, with one unit of electricity on the demand side corresponding to two units of generation and how even a net zero building, such as the company has built needs to be grid connected.

And Gianni Armani, Director, Enel Grids & Innovability, referenced the huge growth in new grid connections in the company’s service areas in Italy, Spain and Latin America, approaching 50,000 a month and 500,000 for the year by the end of 2023 and a projected 5 million by 2030.

“The connections needs to be plug and play for these new customers,” he said, commenting on Enel’s recent announcement of almost €19 billion in grid investments, over half the total, over the next three years.

Supply chains

Among participant’s top issues of discussion were supply chains and skills, with Godemel commenting that some, such as Schneider Electric’s European regional supply chain was “back to normal” after governments’ disruptions due to Covid.

However, some such as that for HV equipment was now reliant on suppliers in the east, particularly China, and he called for a policy on components for the grid of the future, covering all aspects from raw minerals down to electronic microchips.

Armani echoed this, highlighting the loss of a transformer supply chain in Europe and called for a reshaping and reform of supply chains.

Hevia-Koch said projects need to be proposed and supply chains are then needed to deliver on these.

Godemel added that forecasting is necessary to adapt manufacturing capacity, with for example an 18-month lead time to build a factory, and Armani noted Europe’s “clear competitive advantage” with its cost of capital.

“We need stable demand … [ultimately] we need state regulation,” Armani concluded.