Plants set to earn £100,000 per year from Smart Grid 14 January 2011

A new service for major energy users unveiled by npower could provide plants with additional revenue – to the tune of more than £100,000 per year for a medium-sized industrial site.

David Cockshott, director of industrial and commercial markets at npower, says it's all about unlocking hidden flexibility in plants' existing generation and consumption assets.

The firm has joined forces with Flexitricity to bring that company's 'smart grid' system to customers, through the launch of the new SmartSTOR service.

This, it says, will turn 'energy assets', such as standby generators and electricity consuming equipment, into revenue generators.

Flexitricity's smart grid is the first, largest and most advanced such grid system in the UK. It provides STOR (short term operating reserve) to the National Grid, which is a method of obtaining additional power, during times of system stress, from fast-acting generation or demand-reduction.

npower's SmartSTOR service will create revenue because National Grid pays plants to have reserve power available on standby, and makes further payments when this reserve electricity is required.

Signing up to SmartSTOR will also improve the reliability of a company' energy assets, because all those connected to Flexitricity's smart grid are monitored remotely and customers are informed immediately of any on-site concerns.

There are also green benefits, according to npower, which makes the point that plants will be helping the UK meet its carbon emission targets. Using power from their existing energy assets means the National Grid will not have to hold as many power stations in reserve.

And STOR arrangements will also enable the increased use of renewable energy, because it helps balance out fluctuations by responding to variations in wind, wave, tidal and solar generation.

"We are the first energy supplier to offer this type of remotely operated service and it really is win-win for customers, providing them with opportunities to earn extra money and increase asset reliability, while reducing carbon emissions and risk in the national electricity system," comments Cockshott.

"In fact, it's estimated that SmartSTOR will generate up to £15 million gross revenue for our customers and save between 90,000 and 225,000 tonnes of CO2 per annum."

Brian Tinham

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