Page 40 - European Energy Innovation - Summer 2015 publication
P. 40
Summer 2015 European Energy Innovation
SMART GRIDS
The next big capacity market reliability it needs to run amidst exclusively on renewable power,
to open up is France, Mermans more complex and variable efficiency and distributed,
said. Starting in 2016, French conditions, compared to building customer-sited energy activities.
grid operator RTE and other energy storage systems or
transmission system operators tapping power plants. DATA TO PROVE OUT DEMAND
(TSOs) will start asking the RESPONSE’S CAPABILITIES FOR
country’s power suppliers (i.e., Back in 2013, REstore was the first REGULATORS
power plant owners) to offer European company to network Advanced demand response
capacity certificates to qualified and control building loads for capabilities could be a natural
parties on an over-the-counter primary reserves markets run fit for this new grid-edge utility
market. by Belgian TSO Elia. Since then, business model, as could
it’s started to apply the same virtual power plants, microgrids
Out of France’s entire 90- to technology to similar programs, and other ways to organize
100-gigawatt wintertime peak like the Firm Frequency Response distributed, demand-side grid
load, about 6 gigawatts of program started by U.K. grid resources as grid assets and
capacity is expected to be operator National Grid early this energy market participants. But
needed to fill in gaps that can’t year, which opens up roughly so far, Germany’s regulatory
be met by the country’s nuclear 1,000 megawatts for qualified structures haven’t moved as
and fossil-fuel-fired generator participants, Mermans said. quickly to create markets to allow
fleet, “and that’s obviously third-party demand response
where demand response can France is the latest market to providers like REstore to play a
compete,” he said. Competitors allow demand-side resources to role in that transition, Mermans
in this market are Actility, Voltalis, participate in primary reserves said.
and Energy Pool, the demand markets, which opens up the
response aggregator majority- opportunity to compete for a “The big question is how the
owned by French grid giant share of about 600 megawatts regulatory landscape will evolve,”
Schneider Electric, which has a of fast-acting grid resources, he he said. “Germany has been
big presence in France’s existing said. That market is “worth several the country that has not been
capacity programs. hundred million euros per year,” very welcoming for demand
according to RTE’s website. response. It’s very simple -- it’s
WIND AND SOLAR POWER all about the fact that you have
CREATE DEMAND FOR Still, that’s only a slice of what four big integrated utilities that
FAST-REACTING BUILDING Mermans estimated is a Western prefer to run their power plants
CONTROLS European-wide primary reserve in a profitable fashion, and
The second opportunity lies in market of some 3,000 megawatts. prefer to shut the market off
primary reserves markets, he said. A lot of that remainder lies in from substitutes that are much
These correspond to frequency Germany, the country at the cheaper.”
regulation or ancillary services epicenter of the continent’s
markets in the U.S., which operate energy market disruptions. At the same time, European
on a minute-by-minute -- or demand response companies
second-by-second -- basis for German utilities like RWE and are working on opening those
generation or load reduction that E.ON are marking multi-billion- markets, he said. One important
can help smooth grid imbalances. dollar annual losses from power player in Germany is Entelios,
plants that can’t generate power a startup that brought the first
In the United States, companies at prices competitive with demand-based capacity to
like Enbala Networks, Powerit government-supported solar and Germany’s secondary reserves
Solutions, Demansys and Viridity wind power. E.ON announced market, and which was bought
Energy are providing this kind in December that it’s planning by EnerNOC last year. Here’s
of fast-acting load control. It’s to split its business into one unit a map from the Smart Energy
a pretty cost-effective way to managing its traditional power Demand Coalition industry
give the grid the flexibility and assets, and another focused group that ranks different
www.europeanenergyinnovation.eu
SMART GRIDS
The next big capacity market reliability it needs to run amidst exclusively on renewable power,
to open up is France, Mermans more complex and variable efficiency and distributed,
said. Starting in 2016, French conditions, compared to building customer-sited energy activities.
grid operator RTE and other energy storage systems or
transmission system operators tapping power plants. DATA TO PROVE OUT DEMAND
(TSOs) will start asking the RESPONSE’S CAPABILITIES FOR
country’s power suppliers (i.e., Back in 2013, REstore was the first REGULATORS
power plant owners) to offer European company to network Advanced demand response
capacity certificates to qualified and control building loads for capabilities could be a natural
parties on an over-the-counter primary reserves markets run fit for this new grid-edge utility
market. by Belgian TSO Elia. Since then, business model, as could
it’s started to apply the same virtual power plants, microgrids
Out of France’s entire 90- to technology to similar programs, and other ways to organize
100-gigawatt wintertime peak like the Firm Frequency Response distributed, demand-side grid
load, about 6 gigawatts of program started by U.K. grid resources as grid assets and
capacity is expected to be operator National Grid early this energy market participants. But
needed to fill in gaps that can’t year, which opens up roughly so far, Germany’s regulatory
be met by the country’s nuclear 1,000 megawatts for qualified structures haven’t moved as
and fossil-fuel-fired generator participants, Mermans said. quickly to create markets to allow
fleet, “and that’s obviously third-party demand response
where demand response can France is the latest market to providers like REstore to play a
compete,” he said. Competitors allow demand-side resources to role in that transition, Mermans
in this market are Actility, Voltalis, participate in primary reserves said.
and Energy Pool, the demand markets, which opens up the
response aggregator majority- opportunity to compete for a “The big question is how the
owned by French grid giant share of about 600 megawatts regulatory landscape will evolve,”
Schneider Electric, which has a of fast-acting grid resources, he he said. “Germany has been
big presence in France’s existing said. That market is “worth several the country that has not been
capacity programs. hundred million euros per year,” very welcoming for demand
according to RTE’s website. response. It’s very simple -- it’s
WIND AND SOLAR POWER all about the fact that you have
CREATE DEMAND FOR Still, that’s only a slice of what four big integrated utilities that
FAST-REACTING BUILDING Mermans estimated is a Western prefer to run their power plants
CONTROLS European-wide primary reserve in a profitable fashion, and
The second opportunity lies in market of some 3,000 megawatts. prefer to shut the market off
primary reserves markets, he said. A lot of that remainder lies in from substitutes that are much
These correspond to frequency Germany, the country at the cheaper.”
regulation or ancillary services epicenter of the continent’s
markets in the U.S., which operate energy market disruptions. At the same time, European
on a minute-by-minute -- or demand response companies
second-by-second -- basis for German utilities like RWE and are working on opening those
generation or load reduction that E.ON are marking multi-billion- markets, he said. One important
can help smooth grid imbalances. dollar annual losses from power player in Germany is Entelios,
plants that can’t generate power a startup that brought the first
In the United States, companies at prices competitive with demand-based capacity to
like Enbala Networks, Powerit government-supported solar and Germany’s secondary reserves
Solutions, Demansys and Viridity wind power. E.ON announced market, and which was bought
Energy are providing this kind in December that it’s planning by EnerNOC last year. Here’s
of fast-acting load control. It’s to split its business into one unit a map from the Smart Energy
a pretty cost-effective way to managing its traditional power Demand Coalition industry
give the grid the flexibility and assets, and another focused group that ranks different
www.europeanenergyinnovation.eu
