Ensuring Reliable Communication in Smart Grids
InteGrid: CyberGrid’s ICT solution is the switchboard between flexibility providers and DSO.Vienna, November 27, 2019 – Smart metering sheds light on consumer behaviour, helping energy players to develop strategies on how to engage consumers to become active prosumers. With the increasing volume of flexibilities from distributed renewable energy resources, Austrian energy tech company CyberGrid’s proprietary platform plays an important role in the optimization of distribution grid operation, as demonstrated in project InteGrid.Smart metering is a crucial feature in modern power networks: With smart metering, flexibility providers keep track of energy utilisation through data collection. A growing number of players in the energy field are seeking this service, because smart metering serves the analysis of usage rates: valuable information which can then be monetized on energy markets. Thanks to InteGrid, a project supported by the EU’s Horizon 2020 programme, DSOs can now assume a new role as enablers of cutting-edge energy services, increasing the reliability, efficiency and hosting capacity of distribution grids.These new services include the grid market hub, an IT-platform where several technical/non-technical tools can be provided, such as energy services to be offered to end users, and generation or flexibility services offered to network operators. The grid market hub as a central point of information can tackle challenges concerning secure and reliable information by providing smart metering data to qualified receivers in a short time. In addition, the grid market hub also allows businesses to offer forecasting load services and provide these to other partners, or to the TSO. Here, cyberGRID’s ICT-solution serves as an interface between the flexibility provider and the DSO to easily exchange power.[caption id="attachment_10225" align="aligncenter" width="300"]
Traffic Light Visualization for the Slovenian MV demo area (Image does not fully reflect actual situation due to limited data availability and introduction of some simulated inputs.)[/caption]
“When CyberNoc activates flexibilities, we color them green on the dashboard. Why green?Because they are Green. As should be our future”. Peter Nemcek, CTO at CyberGrid
Another highly valuable tool developed and demonstrated in InteGrid is the traffic light system for DSOs to manage the integration of flexibilities for ancillary service markets. Distribution system operators (DSOs) will introduce temporal limitations on market activities in stressed grid sections, dynamically adapting to the current and forecasted load on the network elements. With the help of the innovations from this project, exploitation of flexibilities from distribution networks can be improved, which will lead to increased liquidity of ancillary service markets.Project demonstrators were successfully installed, and real data was gathered from the field, all of which confirm the usefulness of this project’s innovation. This is interesting from a replicability perspective as thousands of waste water treatment plants across Europe can provide flexibilities. Their integration into VPPs thus represent a cost-friendly source of flexibility.
“Increased feed-in from renewable energy sources necessitates an interconnected planning of the grid with smart technologies. CyberGrid’s IT-platform serves as an interface to seamlessly exchange active power between the flexibility provider and the DSO”, Christoph Gutschi, CyberGrid’s Senior Project Manager clarifies.
Services like forecasting, traffic light systems, or technical VPPs for DSOs developed towards market-readiness in the framework of the InteGrid project are designed to reduce investment costs in infrastructure by applying smart technologies, which proves to be of great interest to grid operators in Europe.In an effort to present these benefits of project InteGrid and particularly its grid market hub, CyberGrid conducted interviews with project partners and DSOs throughout Europe, obtaining insights for EU-wide purposes.
“It is becoming increasingly interesting for DSOs to be data hosts. I do believe that in the near future, when smart metering will have become rolled out completely, online data will become more readily available. This effort will bridge the gap between citizens and technology/solution providers”, Peter Nemcek, CTO at CyberGrid explains.
About us: CyberGrid GmbH & Co KG is a software company founded in Vienna, Austria in 2010. It specializes in the development of virtual power plant and battery solutions. CyberGrid’s digital platform “CyberNoc” is a modular and scalable ICT system that pools flexible resources in a Virtual Power Plant and exploits the flexible capacity for different markets, helps to solve imbalances, and addresses grid stability issues. CyberNoc collects measurement data, calculates baselines for forecasting, and aggregates loads. Other functionalities include bidding, merit order, and support daily trading operations.# # #If you would like to get further information about these topics, please contact Christoph Gutschi, Senior Project Manager at CyberGrid: Email at cg@3.65.169.192.This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and Innovation Programme under the grant agreement no. 731218.
