SMIGHT

The energy transition presents a grid operator with two problems: first is an overall increase in load, this is thanks to energy which used to be supplied in the form of oil and gas (motor transport and heating) being switched to electricity. The second is a large increase in volatility/dynamism both on the supply and demand side of the equation.

To be able to handle the general increase in load (the first problem), the only thing that grid operators can do is build out and reinforce the grid. This is their ‘core business’ so in principle isn’t a problem for them. However, it is not without its difficulties. The energy transition does not and will not happen evenly across the grid (we can intuitively understand this when we consider how particular demographics are spread out and how certain groups will act in similar ways), therefore the need to reinforce the grid will happen in particular places so the network operator needs to know where and when to intervene and for this they need transparency in their grid.

The increase in variability of supply and demand is a much more difficult challenge for network operators. First there’s the issue of the size of the peaks. The issue being that it is not economically feasible to build out the networks to be able to handle these occasional very high peaks. A good analogy is to think of this in terms of the road network i.e. it doesn’t make sense to build a road network with the capacity to ensure there aren’t any traffic jams on the busiest day of the year as most of the time there’d simply be massive overcapacity, and this has a high cost attached. The generally accepted solution to this problem is so called ‘peak shaving’ which is the idea of getting users to shift their consumption to another time and therefore reduce the peak. To be able to implement this the network operator first needs to know when and where such a peak is going to happen and second, they need a mechanism by which to send signals out to loads to get them to change their behaviour. The solution that is emerging for this is the combination of real-time network monitoring and flexibility markets. The network monitoring enables the identification of the peaks, and the flexibility markets enable the signalling of the requirement to shift loads.

At SMIGHT we offer distribution network operators the tools and capabilities they need to first identify where in their network they need to already reinforce the grid. Then we can help them identify where and when peaks are and will occur. Finally, we also provide the capability to interface with flexibility platforms or other control systems to then send out the signals to shift loads. In essence we help DSOs to maintain control and stay ahead of the energy transition.