Photo credit: www.renewableenergyworld.com
Reimagining Energy Management: A Partnership for the Future
Mass electrification is a significant factor contributing to load growth in energy systems today. However, innovative minds are exploring ways in which some of these challenges could serve as potential solutions.
Landis+Gyr and SPAN, two prominent names in energy management, are envisioning a future where utilities can efficiently manage the energy demands of electric vehicles (EVs), heat pumps, and behind-the-meter battery storage systems. Their goal is to enhance grid efficiency and resilience.
During the DISTRIBUTECH (DTECH) conference, these companies revealed a strategic partnership aimed at bringing the SPAN Edge product to market. This intelligent service point is designed to transform homes into significant distribution assets, enabling utilities to integrate behind-the-meter technologies seamlessly. The SPAN Edge aims to help avoid expensive service upgrades while allowing for advanced coordination at the grid edge, offering new, flexible load-shaping benefits beyond what traditional non-wires alternatives (NWAs) provide, according to the companies.
Ryan Harris, chief revenue officer at SPAN, shared insights into the partnership’s implications, stating, “As load growth continues to increase, one of the constraints utilities face is around the optimization of the local distribution system and the infrastructure necessary to support that load growth.” He emphasized that this new intelligent service point can lead to quicker and more economically viable deployment of advanced capabilities.
Amith Kota, chief product and technology officer of Landis+Gyr, addressed the challenges of the second wave of Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) and the necessity for utilities to manage load growth responsibly. He noted that utilities need to find better ways to tackle these challenges, suggesting that fostering demand-side flexibility presents a viable solution.
By looking at the home as a complete load entity, utilities can gain enhanced flexibility, paving the way for a more resilient grid system. However, a critical question arises: can a utility truly depend on distributed energy resources (DERs) in the same manner as traditional energy sources?
According to Harris, dependability is key. “Utilities need assurance that an asset will be available when they need it,” he said. He pointed out that demand response programs have often fallen short in being localized enough to impact the essential distribution layers. The focus of their collaboration is on ensuring that load shapes are reliable, allowing utility planners to incorporate these capabilities into their grid infrastructure and resource planning.
For further insights from Harris and Kota, including their perspectives on how DERs are reshaping demand response and resilience strategies, be sure to check out the video linked in this article.
Source
www.renewableenergyworld.com