Rejlers Embriq is taking part in a two-year EU project concerning advanced management and optimization of the power grid of the future. The project will develop new methods and tools, which grid companies can use to meet the rapidly increasing production of renewable energy, and changes in consumption patterns – and also ensure reliability and stability in the power grid.
Large increase in renewable energy
The rapid increase in the production of energy from renewable sources (solar energy, wind, etc.) is a challenge faced by the entire European power grid. The Swedish transmission operator Svenska Kraftnett has plans to invest SEK 50 billion over 10 years, to create a stable grid which meets future requirements. Similar figures are presented in Norway and the rest of Europe.
Optimizing investments
"Extensive, massive investments can resolve the challenges faced by the distribution networks, but there is a lot of potential out there to optimise these investments," says Espen Kåsin, Software Director at Rejlers Embriq. "This project will show how advanced metering technology can contribute to more relevant basic information, so that the necessary investments are even more focused," says Kåsin.
Pattern Recognition
The EU project has a total of seven partners, led by Swedish Metrum with the technology partner Rejlers Embriq (NO). Expertise is contributed by STRI (SWE) and Eltek (NO), and testing is performed by Glava Energy Center (SWE), while the electricity grids of the energy companies MälarEnergi (SWE) and Enerjisa (Turkey) will give access to full-scale testing of the solutions. The aim of the project is to examine how production from renewable sources and new consumption patterns affect the reliability of the power grid, and how to provide for a further increase in the distribution ratio for renewable energy in the distribution networks. Great emphasis will be given to "Pattern recognition": algorithms which identify consumption patterns, proactive maintenance, power management and power output control. Analysis of these factors will make it possible to predict optimum capacity in grids with particularly high supply reliability.
Next-generation software
"The project start-up date was March 1," says Espen Kåsin at Rejlers Embriq, who believes that this will be a very exciting journey up to the project's conclusion in January 2018. "We will be creating the next-generation software for the grid companies throughout Europe and the rest of the world. Renewable energy sources and new consumption patterns are vital to resolving the environmental challenges faced by the world today, yet this also sets very complex and demanding framework conditions for the energy companies. We must find the solutions which provide a basis for increased stability, capacity, flexibility and supply reliability within these demanding framework conditions," Kåsin concludes.
