To maximise flexibility on electricity networks we need to know about two key facilitators:
Without these, operators will struggle with network planning and flexibility procurement. This could increase costs and lead to expensive demand balancing solutions; especially where local authority, industrial and commercial buildings are concerned.
MaxFlex proposes to complement existing work assessing domestic flexibility by creating Energy Flexibility Certificates; for industrial, commercial, and local authority buildings. Adding electricity network capabilities, connection arrangements, and market opportunities should reduce bills and create more efficient electricity networks.
This project takes inspiration from the concept of Energy Performance Certificate and its innovation is to introduce a similar concept focused on provision of Energy Flexibility Certificates (EFC) to I&C properties. The concept introduces metrics and indicators and enables the visualization of flexibility at customer site level to energy networks.
Like the EPC, the EFC provides an intuitive format for I&C customers to understand the value of available and potential flexibility, allowing them to make informed investment decisions, better access revenue from flexibility services and minimise carbon emissions. Similarly, this will enable DSOs to target the most relevant business for additional support on entering flexibility markets.
The concept leverages research from CREDS at the University of Reading. The research specifies a set of relevant flexibility metrics that associate with certificates. These metrics when collated, will provide visualised data and information that can be used to assess the potential flexibility available to networks.
Network operators do not have clear visibility of the flexible technologies used by the I&C estates within their network. Visibility of these, together with a certification of how much demand and generation flexibility they can provide becomes valuable data, enabling the cost savings in the following areas:
During Discovery it will be possible to carry out studies into possible operational efficiencies gained in modelling, planning, speed of service dispatch and measure the benefits that can be achieved.
Revenues – improved access to revenues for users of network services
Because the EFC defines a commercialisation model for the I&Cs, there is opportunity for participation in flexibility markets, which brings revenue for the I&Cs, leading to further market maturity, potential evolution of other innovative products and services, and cross industry collaboration for the participants. Throughout the study, it would be possible to understand baseline consumption and generation for certain commercial archetypes and thus derive the benefits they might receive in terms of revenue or cost savings. Furthermore, by clearly identifying areas for improvement to increase flexibility, cost benefit analysis can be done by individual I&C to determine the best strategy to maximise their overall return on investment and minimise their carbon footprint.
Progress has been made with the EFC framework and its aims to demonstrate the existing and future potential flexibility capacity of properties by gathering and processing cross-vector data and making it accessible to industry actors to enable benefits for customers.
The static certificate provides the energy consumers / flexibility providers with an estimate of the flexibility capability of their property based on its current characteristics and installed technologies and the maximum potential flexibility rating the property can achieve.
The dynamic digital portal will be accessible by DNO / NESO to have an aggregated and individual dashboard of live data to inform decisions on balancing and operating the system and network planning activities.
The key learnings and outcomes from this Discovery Phase are:
£157,334
March 2024 to June 2024
