Categorized: Flexibility
Collaboration is key to progressing grid flexibility. Do you have insights into the following topics? Research questions you would pose?
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NYSERDA has partnered with utilities and industry innovators through the Smart Grid program, funding an assortment of research studies, demonstration projects, and product development initiatives. Findings from 17 flexibility projects have informed topics for future projects to explore:
- DER Assets: Analysis of current and potential assets deployed at the grid edge, including renewable energy generation and battery energy storage systems, to effectively site and operationalize these to meet demand
- Eliminating Bottlenecks: Adoption and deployment at scale of technology such as AMI to improve data acquisition and communication to prevent disruptions in power flow
- Management Technology Testing to safely scale solutions including DER management systems and supporting innovation such as ADMS and SCADA, leveraging methodology developed through previous studies into testable components for demonstration
- Smart Inverter Functionality: Demonstrate the technical merit of activating smart inverter functions and how to coordinate these with conventional regulation equipment
- Automation: Optimize grid assets and energy efficiency by improving accuracy and avoiding disruptions caused by data errors. Demonstrate accurate and automatic response times to balance supply and demand without manual intervention
As utilities move quickly to address ambitious Climate Act Goals, a major challenge is accommodating the growing number of small, non-dispatchable clean distributed energy resources (DERs) to an electric grid historically responsible for the management of a few large assets, far easier for operators to control.
To safely integrate this growing fleet of DERs, balancing power supply and demand in real time, energy providers recognize the pressing need for solutions related to grid flexibility.
Solutions should be both affordable and reliable, not only for utilities but importantly for customers as well. This is achieved when we identify opportunities to replace the need for pricey transmission upgrades through less capital-intensive solutions; focusing on interoperable solutions such as energy management systems (like DERMS), flexible interconnection technology at the grid-edge, and data communication through advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) can assist operators in safely regulating power flow.