Issue 3
Springing into action
Developments in the Local Energy Market (LEM) are moving at a swift pace, with a few big announcements this month and a couple more Cornish businesses almost ready to press go.
As you may have seen in the news recently, we are trialling blockchain technology in the LEM with global leaders LO3 Energy. We’ve also partnered up with Goran Strbac at Imperial College to help us with market design and modelling. And if that wasn’t exciting enough, following a great event with industry participants the marketplace platform’s live trials start in June. If you want to see our vision for Local Energy Markets, take a look at this visualisation on our LEM webpage.
In addition, 11 businesses have had free energy monitoring equipment installed, with site surveys to take place for a further 20. The businesses are already reaping the benefits with significant energy cost savings.
Transforming energy markets
Hot off the press, the LEM has just announced that it will be using blockchain technology as part of the trial. This news is not purely about blockchain, it is also about the benefits the technology could create for participants.
Blockchain technology provides a secure platform for consumers to buy and sell from each other, giving them greater control. Blockchain groups buy and sell transactions together into blocks that are linked in code. These transactions are permanent and unalterable.
Delivered in partnership with blockchain pioneers LO3 Energy, the trial will test a range of energy transactions including peer to peer trading across our business and residential participants.
LEM Programme Director, Matt Hastings said: “This is a great opportunity for us to take blockchain technology into homes and businesses as part of the LEM. It will allow our participants to get first hand experience of a technology which could significantly disrupt the energy sector, potentially enabling cheaper bills and more local sourcing of energy.”
To infinity and beyond!
Centrica’s Neil Bailey (left) and Kevin Wilkes from Goonhilly Earth Station
We are delighted that one of the first Cornish businesses to receive Centrica’s Panoramic Power energy monitoring equipment is the iconic Goonilly Earth Station.
As one of the most recognised names in the space industry, Goonhilly is famous around the world for being one of three earth stations involved in the first trans-Atlantic TV transmission in 1962 and to have beamed back images of the 1969 moon landing.
165 sensors have been installed, which are already saving money as staff have been monitoring anomalies in site energy consumption and taking action by turning equipment off or down.
Other sites that have received the energy monitoring equipment include: Cornwall Natural Spring Water, Deltor Communications Ltd, Leyonne Energy Ltd, Teagle Machinery and Tregerles Farm.
The LEM team has also been out and about, attending a variety of events promoting our grants for the energy monitoring equipment, including the Cornwall Business Fair at Truro School. Contact us on Cornwall@centrica.com if you are a Cornish business and want to see a demonstration of how the sensors work, and to discuss installing them at your site.
One of the key issues we are seeking to resolve is how to improve the procurement of flexibility services across transmission and distribution networks. National Grid is considering this issue as a part of its work on the Future Role of the System Operator and will be working with us to trial various scenarios.
These trials will be rolled out in the second half of 2018, and will provide valuable learnings on how local businesses can offer their various assets to both local and national markets, and how the network can be better managed.
The LEM is excited to be working with Imperial College London. Led by the renowned Professor Goran Strbac, Imperial College’s expertise in whole-energy system modelling and power market design will add real value to the LEM’s market design work and learning, complementing the policy expertise of our other academic partner - the University of Exeter.
Professor Strbac and his team are widely published on power systems economics, and have provided key evidence regarding cost effective energy system decarbonisation to the Committee on Climate Change and the National Infrastructure Commission.
Sam Wevers, LEM Research and Strategy Manager said: “Examining how local, flexible energy systems can benefit consumers is key to Centrica’s LEM programme, and with Imperial College’s expertise, we are best-placed to provide important learnings and evidence to government, Ofgem, and industry.”
Professor Goran Strbac said: “Imperial College is delighted to be working in partnership with Centrica on the Cornwall LEM. We will be using our expertise to not only assist in considering optimal local market design, but also to assess the GB Plc benefits of rolling out the LEM concept including generators, consumers, transmission and distribution system operators.”
All systems are go!
The LEM Platform continues in its Beta testing phase with our partners and stakeholders. Initial feedback has been very positive and we are aiming for the launch of the first flexibility trials at the beginning of June.
Ahead of the launch, we held an event for industry participants to share how they can get involved. We are also hosting a media roundtable to give journalists a sneak peek of the platform.
Event for Industry participants, which included aggregators, DNOs and energy companies
In parallel, we are preparing for a second set of trials, currently scheduled for winter this year. This will provide the capability for distribution and transmission network operators to jointly procure flexibility services.
LEM Platform Project Manager, Stuart Fowler said: “We believe that this is where we can really start to share key learnings with the industry about how more flexible energy services can be procured in the future. We are committed to making the platform open to all market participants so that the industry can gain invaluable insights for the energy transition.”
The Cornwall Local Energy Market is part-funded by European Regional Development Funds under the European Structural and Investment Funds Programme 2014-2020.
