Tech firm urges Ofgem to ‘unlock potential’ of peer-to-peer energy matching

Technology firm Open Utility has called for Ofgem to change its distribution network operator (DNO) charging methodology, so it uses peer-to-peer energy matching to determine how much of the grid has been used.

The company teamed up with green energy supplier Good Energy to complete a six-month trial, using online marketplace tool Piclo to match consumers to local generators according to preference, meter data and generator pricing every half hour, and allow business consumers to buy their electricity directly from the generation source.

Following the Decc-funded trial, Open Utility developed a change proposal for Ofgem, so that consumers and generators can be “charged more fairly for using the local distribution grid”.

Generators and consumers, matching on a half-hourly basis, would only pay for the extent of the distribution network that they use.

Untapped potential

Open Utility chief executive and co‐founder James Johnston said: “Open Utility believes peer‐to‐peer local energy matching could unlock billions of pounds of additional revenue for renewable generation technologies in Great Britain and overseas, heralding an age of decentralised and clean electricity.

“And now, following the release of our six‐month trial we are in a perfect position to maximise the benefit from the smart meter rollout to 30 million households and businesses across Wales, Scotland and England by the end of 2020 alongside the recognition by Ofgem that it is in consumers’ interests to be settled against their half‐hourly consumption data.”

Good Energy research and innovation manager Will Vooght said: “For innovative models such as Piclo to be at their most effective, regular access to granular, half-hourly data is a core requirement. Good Energy believes that the most significant untapped potential to break market inertia in the domestic sector lies with the availability of such data.”

Constrained capacity

Capacity on the network is becoming increasingly constrained, and Ofgem has asked renewable generators for feedback on DNOs’ performance on facilitating connections to local electricity networks.

The regulator singled out Western Power Distribution as leading the way in offering flexible connections to facilitate connection in one of the most congested parts of the network, and called on other DNOs to follow its example.

Open Utility said local matching will incentivise the industry to install generators in areas which help the grid the most, as that is where the financial reward will be highest

“Meanwhile, demand-side response aggregators and energy storage providers are encouraged to balance intermittent renewables to maximise their revenue,” it added.

“This leads to lower network congestion, enabling more renewable generators to connect to the grid and avoid unnecessary reinforcement costs. Piclo is aligned with the challenges of Ofgem and DNOs trying to squeeze more capacity out of the grid.”

GRAPH: an example of energy matching

During the week of 8-14 February 2016, a consumer sourced over 39 per cent of its supply from a large hydro generator. The orange pattern from the generator’s graph is replicated in blue on the consumer’s graph. The consumer also matched with a large solar farm during day time. This demonstrates that different technology types can complement each other to balance the electricity portfolios.

Source: Open Utility