Modest progress is reported in the areas of finance and investment, research and innovation and infrastructure, but minimal progress was made in social engagement and demand management.

In this context, progress is assessed against the recommendations of the last report.

Some of the progress recorded includes a wave of new public and private finance commitments and the development of innovative financial instruments improving access to financing and an increase in participation in key public and private sector research and innovation initiatives and improvements in capacity building.

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At the infrastructure level countries have set clear priorities and roadmaps for regional grid initiatives and have advanced bilateral and regional cross-border power exchange initiatives.

At the social engagement level, however, while several social support programmes were announced there is limited visibility into the alignment of development funding by governments and the multilateral development banks.

There also has been minimal progress on agreement among countries on the agreement of higher minimum energy performance standards.

The report, which in addition to the power sector reviews progress in the hydrogen, road transport, steel, buildings, cement and agriculture sectors, points to the “crucial action” needed during this decade to head off the worst effects of climate change.

While the transition to clean energy and sustainable solutions is accelerating across many sectors, global emissions are still increasing and countries’ nationally determined contributions on emissions reductions are not consistent with curbing temperature rise in line with international climate goals.

“Well-targeted international collaboration is a critical enabler at each stage of the Transition,” states the report, commenting that the ‘Breakthrough Agenda’ is designed to strengthen international collaboration across the major greenhouse gas emitting sectors of the global economy.

Overall the report finds insufficient progress in transitions to clean technologies and sustainable solutions over the past year and while current efforts are improving, they are not yet delivering the levels of investment and deployment required to meet international climate goals.

“The energy transition is moving quicker than many people think, but it needs to move faster still,” insists IEA executive director Fatih Birol.

“Our analysis shows that while some sectors are seeing stronger international collaboration, others are falling behind. Building on innovation, attracting investment and scaling up demand for new technologies are the fundamental building blocks for success. By delaying further, we are simply increasing the risks.”

Francesco La Camera, director-general of IRENA, comments that there is urgency to “overcome the systemic barriers across infrastructure, policy, and institutional capabilities”.

“And we must realign the way in which international cooperation works. A well-targeted international cooperation can determine whether we meet our collective promise to secure a climate-safe existence for current and future generations.”

Power sector recommendations

Recommendations for the power sector for the year ahead are:

1. Governments, working with key institutions and funds, should ensure that international support is available at better terms, including grants at early investment stages. Overall provision of resources should be increased, particularly towards technologies that have not achieved commercial maturity.
2. Governments and the development banks should work together to more strongly align development funding with targeted support for local jobs, skills and investment. Civil society, governments and industry should contribute to creating international centres of expertise on the just transition.
3. Governments should work through relevant initiatives to accelerate the identification of suitable demonstration projects, resource them appropriately and ensure high quality knowledge sharing structures are put in place.
4. Governments should work together to reassess the opportunities for cross-border and regional power interconnection and smart grids to support the transition to clean power systems. Countries and investors should support international efforts to identify top regional priorities for interconnections.
5. Countries, in consultation with industry, should collectively agree to higher minimum energy performance standards for high energy consuming appliances, supported by awareness campaigns and incentives, such as energy efficiency retrofit programmes.

The briefing, which was prepared by Beecham Research, indicates that out of 174.7 million LPWAN chipset shipments in 2022, 65.9 million were LoRa, while 22.4 million were NB-IoT, 45.4 million were LTE-M and the balance a combination of others including Sigfox and Wi-SUN.

By 2027, with growth expected of almost 20% per annum, shipments are projected to reach 424.8 million. Of these, 148.4 million are LoRa, 61.8 million NB-IoT, 107.1 million LTE-M and 107.5 million others.

(To give a broadly global picture, these numbers exclude China, which has adopted NB-IoT as the standard for massive IoT applications, whereas elsewhere a mixture of NB-IoT and LTE-M is offered by mobile operators).

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“Choosing the right connectivity technology for a use case is the most important decision an end-user will make,” states Donna Moore, chairwoman and CEO of the LoRa Alliance.

She comments that without the in-house expertise, solutions providers can help find the right-fit technology.

“Solutions providers analyse use cases, provide education on available technologies and allow project managers to envision the full scope of an IoT deployment. System integrators bring those ideas to life by integrating IoT sensor data into a platform that consolidates data from numerous end-user platforms.”

The briefing reviews the key features of LoRa as a long range, low power technology, initially developed for utility application, with the ability to penetrate concrete and steel and provide connectivity underground, but also finding application in smart building and smart city IoT use cases, particularly where low latency is not a key requirement.

As a result approximately 35-40% of all LoRaWAN deployments are estimated in the utility sector but the other sectors are increasing rapidly.

The briefing also reviews IoT use cases in the three sectors, with its use in the utilities sector for smart gas and water metering to improve the control and measurement of these commodities.

Current example projects cited include an over 3 million LoRa water meter digitalisation by Veolia and subsidiary Birdz in France and a Middle East utility harnessing low Earth orbit satellites with LoRaWAN to gain visibility on its approximately two million smart meters.

Smart building trends include an increasing emphasis on safety and comfort, with IoT applications such as HVAC and lighting control and air quality monitoring.

In cities, IoT applications include smart parking and street lighting, water and waste management and environmental sensing.

The Drakenstein Municipality project is an ongoing collaboration with clean tech developer Schneider Electric and system integrator partner, Altek.

Located 30 minutes outside of Cape Town, the Municipality has installed Schneider Electric’s RM AirSeT switchgear with pure air technology and digital connectivity.

Installed in February 2023 at the Dalwes substation, the new technology is free from SF₆ gas (Sulphur hexafluoride) and its associated greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

Shifting away from SF₆

The municipality’s choice to install the switchgear, forms part of their drive for clean growth and electricity distribution.

Vladimir Milovanovic, vice president of power systems for Schneider Electric Anglophone Africa: “Drakenstein Municipality is undoubtedly leading the way in establishing a modern, digitised infrastructure that enables it to remotely monitor equipment like the RM AirSeT switchgear which in turn allows for expanded network visibility, as well as preventative and proactive maintenance and problem solving.”

Added Alderman Conrad Poole, executive mayor of Drakenstein Municipality: “This project comes at a time when South Africa faces immense energy challenges. Being an early adopter of this pioneering technology will enable us to share lessons learnt with our peers.”

Mayor Poole here is referring to rolling blackouts in the country, known as loadshedding, due to the breakdown of TSO Eskom’s generating units.

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Identified by the Kyoto Protocol as one of six GHGs needed to be reduced, SF₆, a regulated fluorinated gas, is typically found in traditional gas-insulated switchgear and is 23,500 times more potent than CO2.

The gas currently has a special exemption for use in electrical distribution across geographies. However, as alternatives become more readily available, countries and territories are considering measures to restrict its use. For example, earlier this year in March, the European Parliament voted to accelerate the phase down of SF₆ and other fluorinated gases (F-gases) on the EU market.

Digital connectivity – SCADA update

Aside from the move to greener distribution, the switchgear is also being touted by the project partners as providing the municipality with heightened digital connectivity.

The municipality, serving a population of 305,281, will gradually replace its current 25-year-old SCADA (supervisory control and data acquisition) monitoring system with Schneider Electric’s ETAP system, which they describe as a model-driven electrical SCADA software solution.

Three of the municipality’s 36 substations are already online in the system. In the 2023/24 financial year, eight more substations will be brought online.

Explaining the system during the launch event was Altek managing director Alvin Naidoo, who stated the necessity of using SCADA: “We once looked at SCADA as a ‘nice to have’ but now it’s a way of life… [Through SCADA] we improve the efficiency of our network, reduce fault finding times and improve response times.”

According to Naidoo, the importance of the system comes in when looking at the use of data for consumption management:

“Based on simulation data, the system has features for load forecasting. We take simulation data, data that’s available in the repositories on the SQL (structured query language) and essentially amalgamate them and create load forecasting potential.”

Additionally, Schneider Electric states that the switchgear includes condition-based maintenance features, feeding data from its sensors to local field tools/apps and analytics tools, which can be hosted in the cloud or on premise, depending on requirements.

It also provides continuous condition monitoring and controls to check the quality of power connections, identify and isolate faults, as well as self-healing capabilities for reduced downtime.

In announcing the project, Enedis stated the importance of security and reliability of the electrical supply, in a context of accelerating electrical uses from the upcoming Olympic games.

In Seine-Saint-Denis, the replacement of one of the transformers at the Bourget source substation will allow Enedis to strengthen the quality of power supply for several decades and anticipate the demographic and economic growth of the region that will test the system’s resiliency.

Arrived by convoy from Saint-Leu-d’Esserrent in Oise, the new transformer can accommodate almost a double amount of electrical power, from 40MVA to 70MVA. 

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The substation is set to become one of the most powerful in the Ile de France region that includes Paris and its surroundings, according to the DSO, and will secure the electricity supply for 52,000 customers.

The replacement of the transformer coincides with the calendar of the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games as part of the event organiser’s goal to connect 100% of the sites to the electricity network, rather than using generators for their power supply.

Similarly, earlier this year, Enedis announced the rollout of electric terminals to connect event sites across France to the grid to minimise carbon footprint of the event.

The company will operate for consumers in the US and Canada, aiming to unlock the potential offered by EVs for the electric power grid.

According to the partners in a press release, ChargeScape’s platform is designed to enable EVs to interact with the electric grid in ways that were not possible with traditional gasoline-powered vehicles.

This includes managed charging and energy-sharing services that can provide financial benefits to EV owners. Specifically, ChargeScape’s platform intends to eliminate the need for individual integrations between automakers and electric utilities.

The platform will also provide utilities access to the energy stored in a large number of EV batteries. EV owners will then have the opportunity to earn financial incentives by charging their vehicles during times that are advantageous for the grid, thanks to flexible scheduling.

In the future, the platform will enable EV owners to contribute to grid stability during peak demand through vehicle-to-grid (V2G) applications.

Vehicle-to-grid communications

ChargeScape is expected to enhance the efficient use of EV batteries by providing energy data to electric utilities and system operators, including aggregated demand response, aligning charging with off-peak hours and promoting the use of renewable energy sources.

According to the partners, the establishment of ChargeScape aligns with the increasing adoption of EVs, which presents challenges to the electric grid due to higher electricity demand for charging.

The platform thus aims to provide energy management services to help support grid resiliency while looking to the future of V2G capabilities that will benefit both EV customers and electric utilities.

Moreover, ChargeScape aims to contribute to decarbonising the grid; the company’s efforts aims to reduce EV customers’ personal carbon footprints by utilising electricity that comes from more readily available renewable energy sources, such as wind or solar.

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“Electric grid reliability and sustainability are the foundation for an EV-powered future,” said Thomas Ruemenapp, vice president of engineering, BMW of North America.

“ChargeScape aims to accelerate the expansion of smart charging and vehicle-to-everything solutions all over the country, while increasing customer benefits, supporting the stability of the grid and helping to maximise renewable energy usage.”

Added Jay Joseph, vice president of sustainability & business development for American Honda Motor: “With automakers accelerating toward the electrified future, we must find solutions like ChargeScape that enable all stakeholders to work together for the good of our customers, society and our industry by enabling greater use of renewable energy for and from mobility.”

The collaboration builds on the Open Vehicle Grid Integration Platform (OVGIP), which provides a unified interface using communication protocols where all the components of the VGI (vehicle-grid integration) system can interact for managed EV charging.

ChargeScape, along with the work done to date with OVGIP, is expected to bring managed charging benefits to a wider range of EV owners. It will also reduce marketing and outreach costs for utilities seeking to connect with EV owners in their service areas.

BMW Group, Ford Motor Company and American Honda have direct, multi-channel communication with their EV customers through the platform, solving a central problem for utilities, they state, who typically do not have an easy way to identify the EV customers in their service territory.

The formation of ChargeScape is contingent on regulatory approvals and is expected to become operational in the near future.

The aim of the app is to enable users to optimise how and when energy is used around their homes, integrating smart devices, such as electric vehicle charge points and solar panels, regardless of their brand.

“There’s a lot of clever technology out there that helps people manage the energy in their homes but, incredibly, there’s nothing in the UK that works with different brands and devices, meaning people can’t currently control all the energy devices across their home in one place,” said Swarm Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer Anthony Piggott.

“We knew we could create something to change this and with [Opencast’s] tech expertise and our knowledge of the energy sector, we have the ability to make something really exciting: one app to control every aspect of energy in the home.”

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Demonstration and testing of the new app are set to take place in a purpose-built energy hub at the Hoults Yard business village in Newcastle, where the two companies are based, with the first iteration planned for launch in autumn 2023.

Growing UK consumer interest in green innovations

The availability of such apps as Swarm’s would appear to be timely, with a new survey from McKinsey & Company of more than 2,000 consumers revealing a soaring demand for green energy innovations to curb high energy prices and reduce household bills.

McKinsey reports that as wholesale prices have started to fall enabling retailers to offer lower prices the incentive to switch suppliers, after record low levels, has increased and a third of consumers are considering switching, while almost half are willing to adopt some form of time-of-use tariffs.

Further, a quarter are also willing to buy additional green products and services from energy retailers such as energy management services, solar panels, electric vehicle chargers and heat pumps.

With this suppliers also have the opportunity to attract more customers and diversify their offerings by curbing costs, simplifying processes and boosting public awareness of new energy products and services, McKinsey indicates.

Kiril Bliznakov, Senior Partner at McKinsey, says the survey findings point to the driving of a more competitive market where low cost and low carbon tariffs, products and services will be the key differentiators of the future.

“The ‘gamification’ of energy services and rising demand for energy-as-a-service offerings will create new opportunities for suppliers to increase long-term customer loyalty and to both decarbonise and cut household bills.”
 

The concept, an approach to managing the vegetation in the spaces beneath power lines – so-called ‘grid corridors’ – has come to be adopted increasingly by system operators but its rollout across Europe remains elusive.

This is according to the Renewables Grid Initiative, which reports engaging with the topic for many years and now taking the next steps to developing and implementing policies to advance it.

Integrated vegetation management is focussed on the ecological health of the grid corridors, while still removing vegetation which could interfere with the system security by touching a line.

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Typically, this involves the selective removal of fast growing trees and invasive species, while promoting low growing native plants and creating new habitats that thrive among these plant communities, as well as exploring new economic opportunities for local stakeholders.

Resultant benefits have been documented for nature, people and the grid operators alike, ranging from improvements in local biodiversity to the engagement of local actors in vegetation management support.

Indeed, a cost-benefit analysis by Elia of an initiative run together with the French TSO RTE and the Ecofirst cooperative consultancy has estimated integrated vegetation management to be up to almost four times less expensive than traditional management over 30 years.

As the first of the next steps, the Renewables Grid Initiative has launched a series of workshops for European TSOs and DSOs to share experiences and discuss pathways forward.

Outcomes from the first of these in June, which focussed largely on the LIFE Elia-RTE project, were the identification of three key priorities of which one is the need for guidance and potentially standardised methodologies to collect and disseminate the benefits of integrated vegetation management.

A second is the harmonisation of regulatory remuneration and financing mechanisms across the EU and the need for guidance on the funding mechanisms available.

Third is support on balancing nature restoration with access to the grid assets for maintenance purposes and the need for bird protection.

These and other activities will now be addressed further in the second of the Initiative’s steps, a new working group of European TSOs and DSOs, which has been formed with the aim of moving towards a coordinated approach to integrated vegetation management in the region.

“Europe will do whatever it takes to keep its competitive edge.”

So said von der Leyen during her 2023 State of the European Union (SOTEU) address, announcing the EVs inquiry as one of two inititiatives to do just that, the other being a support package for the Union’s wind sector.

State of the EU

Referring to the importance of the European Green Deal at the start of her term in 2019, von der Leyen led her State of the Union address with the importance of the energy sector in enhancing Europe’s position as a competitive global player.

“Four years ago, the European Green Deal was our answer to the call of history and this summer, the hottest ever on record, was a stark reminder of that.”

Referencing the extreme wildfires and flooding experienced this year in Greece and Spain, as well as chaotic extreme weather in Bulgaria and other member states, von der Leyen emphasised how, although much has been done towards net zero, “our work is far from over.

“This is the reality of a boiling planet. The European Green Deal was born out of this necessity to protect our planet, but it was also designed as an opportunity to preserve our future prosperity.”

EV inquiry

This initiative, placing Europe again on the map against global energy competition majors such as the US and China, has been in the works through 2023 via tabled policies such as the Net-Zero Industry Act and the Critical Raw Materials Act.

However, although placing Europe on the map as a leading energy player will be key, von der Leyen also cautioned against isolating competitors:

“Our industries and technology companies like competition. They know that global competition is good for business and that it creates and protects jobs here in Europe. But competition is only good as long as it is fair.”

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Hence, the investigation into imported electric vehicles (EVs):

“Take the EV sector. It is a crucial industry for the clean economy with a huge potential in Europe, but global markets are now flooded with cheaper Chinese electric cars; their prices kept artificially low by huge state subsidies.

“This is distorting our market and as we do not accept this distortion from the inside of our market, we do not accept this from the outside.

“I can announce today that the Commission is launching an anti-subsidy investigation into electric vehicles coming from China (…) Europe is open to competition, but not for a race to the bottom.”

This, adds von der Leyen, is part of a strategy to “de-risk, not decouple” trade practices in the EU, a way to boost the Union’s competitiveness while retaining beneficial relations.

According to Reuters reportage, one of many reactions to the announcement of the EVs inquiry was from Sigrid De Vries, head of the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA), who commented on how “China’s apparent advantage and cost-competitive imports are already impacting European auto makers’ domestic market share, with a massive surge in electric vehicle imports in recent years.

“Von der Leyen’s announcement is a positive signal that the European Commission is recognising the increasingly asymmetric situation our industry is faced with, and is giving urgent consideration to distorted competition in our sector.”

Also commenting was Germany’s VDA Automotive Industry Assocation, which cautioned how “damage must be causally quantifiable and the community interest must be taken into account. Possible backlash from China must also be taken into account.

“One thing is clear: an anti-subsidy investigation alone will not help to solve the existing challenges with regard to the competitiveness of the European landscape. Policymakers in Brussels and Berlin must create the framework conditions to ensure that the transformation succeeds.”

The other initiative is focused on the wind sector, which has been “facing a unique mix of challenges and this is why we will put forward a European wind power package, working closely with industry and member states.”

The package, according to von der Leyen, will go towards fast-tracking permitting, improving the Union’s auction systems, boosting skills and supply chains and enabling eased access to finance.

The EGL1 project will see the creation of a 525kV, 2GW HVDC (high voltage direct current) subsea transmission cable from Torness in East Lothian, Scotland to Hawthorn Pit in County Durham, England, enabling the transmission of renewable green energy to power more than two million homes across the UK.

Utilities SP Transmission (SPT) and National Grid Electricity Transmission (NGET) selected the suppliers to provide engineering works and technology for HVDC converter stations, which form the terminals for the HVDC cable and convert the direct current to the alternating current used in the onshore transmission network.

“As the consortium leader, we are delighted to be chosen as a preferred supplier together with our partner MYTILINEOS in the development of a new subsea electricity superhighway, the Eastern Green Link 1 (EGL1) project,” said Philippe Piron, CEO at GE Vernova’s Grid Solutions business.

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This latest milestone for the EGL1 project follows the recent announcement of Prysmian Group being selected as the exclusive preferred bidder for the HVDC cabling contract.

The HVDC cable system is approximately 190km in length with converter stations at either end to connect it into the existing transmission network infrastructure.

HVDC technology provides the most efficient and reliable means of transmitting large amounts of power over long distances subsea, according to NGET.

GE Vernova’s Grid Solutions business will be providing HVDC valves and controls systems, as well as HVDC transformers from their facilities in Staffordshire, UK.

UK minister for nuclear and networks, Andrew Bowie said: “We have a world class renewables sector that help us power Britain from Britain with reliable, clean and affordable energy for families and businesses.

“With investment in renewables rising by 500% since 2010, we must continue to transform our electricity network to ensure we can move power from where it is generated to where it is needed. Projects like this will do just that and help us to grow the economy, reduce bills, achieve net zero and strengthen our energy security.”

Added EGL1’s project director Peter Roper: “This is a critical time for the energy sector as it drives the transition to net zero.

“GE Vernova’s Grid Solutions business and MYTILINEOS as preferred suppliers, are leading specialists in this high technology field and bring considerable expertise in delivering the infrastructure required to meet the UK’s future energy needs and net zero targets.”

The upgrade includes three further subsea links between Scotland and England, of which this joint venture is the first.

Following final approval of regulatory allowances from Ofgem, full contracts for EGL1 are expected to be complete later this year with construction work due to begin in 2024. The project’s targeted operational date is 2029.

Namely, OhmConnect, a residential energy management company, has partnered with LG Electronics to integrate their demand response programme with the ThinkQ App and drive grid-reactive demand response through LG Room Air Conditioners.

The platform makes use of a gamified energy management experience, allowing consumers to earn rewards by automatically optimising usage of their LG air conditioners during periods of peak grid demand.

According to OhmConnect in a press release, the goal of their demand response programme is to enable the creation of grid-connected homes, using integrations with other companies in the fields of renewable energy, energy storage systems, HVAC technology and other smart home technologies to strengthen and modernise energy infrastructure.

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One such integration into the programme, through the LG ThinQ App, users can remotely control the temperature settings of their LG room air conditioners, reducing energy consumption when the electrical grid strains.

“Together with OhmConnect, we are creating an integrated sustainable ecosystem to improve grid reliability and resilience, while helping homeowners save more money on energy bills and reduce their carbon footprint,” said Jae Ahn, Head of the ThinQ Platform business at LG Electronics USA.

“It is alliances – like ours with LG – that really make an outsized impact on enabling millions of residents to take control of their energy use,” added Cisco DeVries, CEO of OhmConnect.

“It’s exciting to partner with one of the world’s leading brands to help stabilise the grid as we march towards a clean energy future.”

LG and OhmConnect have plans to expand and enhance the service later in 2023.

These are a Community Fund Grant programme to support innovative projects aligned with the organisation’s mission and a crowdloan scheme to participate in the parachain slot auction.

The Community Fund Grant programme, which has been initiated by the Energy Web Chain Validators, is aimed to support the development of tools and infrastructure to accelerate the real-world adoption of the EW Chain and related open-source software in support of the global energy transition.

Based on specific requirements applicants must meet, it features a tiered grant system intended to support different types of projects, from small-scale ideas such as building simple components to improve Energy Web’s tech stack to larger ones such as building new solutions or conducting pilots involving energy assets.

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The amounts available range up to €25,000 ($26,850) for smaller projects of not more than four months duration up to >€100,000 ($107,380) for projects up to 1 year in length.

With Energy Web entering the Polkadot environment and developing its next-generation Energy Web X blockchain, the opportunities for innovation are even greater, the organisation says.

“Impact-driven innovation and open-source technologies are deeply rooted in Energy Web’s mission and values. Applicants will be required to tackle tangible challenges and must be willing to share project results in a transparent way.”

Applications are being accepted on a rolling basis and are then subject to review and assessment.

Polkadot crowdloan

The objective of the crowdloan initiative is to support Energy Web to gain a parachain slot for Energy Web X on the Polkadot Relay Chain and thereby enable it to leverage the security and scalability benefits inherent in that infrastructure.

However, due to the limited availability of the parachain slots, a competitive process is in place to allocate them.

To determine which projects get to connect their parachains to the Polkadot Relay Chain, lease periods – known as ‘time slots’ – are auctioned off, with each lease period lasting for 12 weeks.

Projects can bid for up to eight slots at once in a crowdloan, for a total of 96 weeks of lease time.

The crowdloan scheme works with contributors lending their DOT (Polkadot) tokens for the Energy Web X launch via the Polkadot crowdloan mechanism. In the event of not winning an auction, the contributed DOT tokens are immediately returned. Otherwise, if an auction is won, the tokens will be returned at the ending of the lease, 96 weeks after it begins.

To incentivise participation, Energy Web has instituted a rewards programme offering 1$EWT (Energy Web token) for every 1$DOT placed.

Funds raised via the crowdloan are being used in auctions beginning on September 5, 2023 and concluding between September 19 and September 24, 2023.

If awarded a parachain slot, the launch would be targeted for October 23, 2023.

While the full visual design has not yet been made public, ‘New Energies’ is described as a multi-functional system aimed to make the most of the natural elements – sun, light, wind and rain – and combining energy efficiency with an optimal balance between the investments and the economic, environmental and social benefits.

In this way it is intended to be versatile and to meet the need to modernise the electrical infrastructure with a sustainable footprint throughout its lifecycle.

Features include rooftop solar panels, a porous floor that lets in rainwater and prevents the formation of heat islands and a wave fence with a modular grid design that lets in light and wind.

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In addition, plants will be grown all around the substation with the adoption of the Miyawaki method, which involves the dense planting of fast growing smaller native species under taller trees.

The primary goal of the challenge was to create a sustainable modular architecture for primary substations, with a high level of versatility and replicability and optimisation of the space.

A key goal was that the infrastructure needs to blend in with the environment, with an innovative design combining safety with flexibility and with improved visual, functional and spatial impact.

The challenge attracted 36 entries from engineers, academia, designers and architecture and construction companies from 16 countries, and was adjudged by a similarly multi-disciplinary panel.

Other proposals that were awarded special prizes and will be implemented in existing facilities were from the Rome-based architecture practice NEXT Urban Solutions in collaboration with the visual artist Filippo Riniolo, by architects Andrea Bautista and Jessica García Huachez and from the Milan design practice Vittorio Grassi Architects.

Enel states that the primary substation design challenge forms part of a larger process that Enel Grids has set in motion aimed at modernising and redesigning the key elements of the distribution networks.

Earlier redesigns have focussed on the design and structure of meters, street cabinets, secondary substations and power line supports and the next step is on the larger and more complex infrastructure.

The approximately 30 different challenges launched over the last two years have led to hundreds of proposals based on more circular practices “to increase grid automation and digitalisation, deliver state-of-the-art solutions that ensure safety and productivity in field operations and reduce the environmental and economic impact of building new facilities, with a special focus on biodiversity and harmonious integration with the local environment and thereby eliminate the carbon footprint of the grids”, the company states.

The study, The Road to Transportation Decarbonization: Readying the Grid for Electric Fleets, was conducted jointly by the grid operator and the tech major to investigate the significant impact this electrification will have on the grid.

Namely, for the US grid to accommadate the much needed electrificaiton of heavy duty transport such as buses, trucks and vans, the study touts five key findings:

1: Region-specific strategy needed

According to the study, certain regions will experience grid impacts from MHDV electrification in the near future. Specifically, multi-megawatt charging loads from fleet clusters, or even a single depot, will quickly strain grid capacity in these areas.

As large fleets or states establish clear electrification targets or mandates, early adopters of electric MHDVs will place significant demands on the grid.

Utilities and policymakers must anticipate and prepare for these near-term loads and grid impacts, employing strategies tailored to each specific region’s needs.

2: Future-minded strategic investment

The study underscores the importance of coordinated investments in areas with high forecast electrification to minimise long-term costs and expedite electrification.

Namely, data, tools and forecast methods should be used to identify priority investment areas as well as locations requiring minimal, or deferred, infrastructure upgrades; these areas can then be aligned with fleet electrification and utility investment plans.

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3: Updating regulation

The research highlights the necessity for evolving regulatory and planning structures to accommodate MHDV electrification.

According to the research, the majority of the electric load scenarios identified fall outside the scope of typical utility planning and regulatory processes. It is thus crucial to develop anticipatory planning and investment processes and regulatory mechanisms that can adapt to the rapidly evolving needs of electric MHDVs.

4: Grid infrastructure upgrades

According to the study, an optimal grid infrastructure strategy for MHDV electrification will vary by location.

Different infrastructure strategies, states the research, such as electric network reconfiguration, multi-value grid infrastructure upgrades, and non-wires solutions such as storage, can effectively support electric MHDVs depending on the unique circumstances and requirements of each location.

Stakeholders, it states, should thus consider the specific needs of each location when devising an infrastructure strategy, enabling utilities to invest in solutions that not only address immediate demands but also accommodate long-term charging growth.

5: Collaborative efforts

The study emphasizes the necessity for new forms of partnership and cooperation to facilitate the transition to electric MHDVs.

Such collaboration among fleet operators, MHDV manufacturers, utilities, and other stakeholders, states the research, will be crucial to coordinate investments, assess charging needs and overcome barriers to charging deployment.

The study, aimed to investigate the impact of the large-scale integration of hydrogen electrolysers to the grid, points to hydrogen as complementary to electrification for decarbonisation targets rather than a target in itself, with the first applications likely to be for substituting grey hydrogen in present industrial processes.

However, electrolysers will progressively become an additional system element, which implies that it should be planned and operated synergically with the rest of the energy system.

The report identifies four key issues, i.e. the relationship between supply and demand, the use cases and their impact on the grids, flexibility and the impact on system planning.

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As a new system component, the recognition of green hydrogen requires an ad-hoc scheme, valid across jurisdictions, for the infeed electricity encompassing the additionality principle, in order to avoid double counting and greenwashing as well as cannibalisation of other decarbonisation processes.

In addition, there needs to be both geographical and time correlation to ensure the utilised renewable energies are not impaired by grid congestion.

At the grid operation level, in order to better exploit the variability of renewable energies, the flexible operation of the power system requires to decouple as much as possible the profiles of green hydrogen production from hydrogen consumption.

This means having enough storage elements both in the power system and in the hydrogen system.

With this, the hydrogen system also can provide long-term flexibility, through storage of excess renewables in gas reservoirs, as well as adequacy support.

Short-term flexibility services also are possible via demand response and balancing from electrolysers.

In terms of planning hydrogen projects should be designed and assessed starting from the end use case, volumes and costs, not from the supply side, which must follow the needs of the end user.

From the energy system point of view, the deployment pace of electrolysers should match the increase of the large amount of additional renewables volumes required for producing green hydrogen, in order not to cannibalise other decarbonisation processes.

Other infrastructure, such as pipelines and storage facilities, also need to be coordinated with grid developments as well as end user needs.

The report also notes ‘hydrogen valleys’ as a promising configuration for starting the development of comprehensive use cases.

In conclusion, the report highlights the need for a ‘one system’ view, noting that the viability of hydrogen projects is both case and country-dependent.

Win-win solutions matching business needs with system requirements must be found in order to maximise the benefits for all stakeholders.

For a smooth but fast transition phase, repurposing the gas grid, also through initial blending, is suggested as a viable and smart option to enable a gradual phase-out of natural gas and set-up of a hydrogen market.

The project EDGE (Energy from Distributed Resources for the Management of the E-Distribuzione Network) aims to test and establish the most appropriate solution for the procurement of local ancillary services and related remuneration in Italy.

The project will initially cover areas in four provinces, Cuneo and Venice in the north of Italy and Benevento and Foggia in the south.

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“We are incredibly excited to launch this new market alongside E-Distribuzione, which is setting a new, leading standard for what can be achieved through DSO flexibility markets,” says James Johnston, CEO and co-founder of Piclo.

“This unparalleled development across Europe marks a new era for these markets including short-term flexibility services, greater integrations and end-to-end automation and ultimately improved network decarbonisation and resilience. We can’t wait to get going.”

The EDGE project is focussed on providing active power regulation services, in order to comply with network constraints in both normal operating conditions and reconfigurations caused by failures or scheduled works.

Potential resources that can participate include production and consumption units, battery storage units and electric vehicle charging systems with delivery from both residential and non-residential users.

Piclo Flex as an independent marketplace will provide the end-to-end solution to acquire and dispatch the flexibility services to E-Distribuzione’s networks.

For Piclo the project marks a further step in the growing use of the platform around the world by network operators, including four DNOs and the TSO in the UK as well as others in Ireland, Portugal, Lithuania and New York state in the US.

As of 2022, Piclo Flex had 55,000 registered flexible assets representing 16.6GW of flex capacity, with flexibility contracts awarded totalling £58 million (US$73 million) and 1.1GW+ of flexible capacity procured.

E-Distribuzione is part of the Enel Group and is the largest DSO in Italy.

The EDGE project was initiated in response to the EU’s Clean Energy Package and the growing need for flexibility in Italy, with the government’s plan to add at least 70GW of renewable energy capacity by 2030 to cover 30% of the gross energy consumption.

In announcing his position on the board, Chameleon Technology cites his decades of experience in an advisory capacity to help bolster the company’s ambitions in helping UK consumers reduce their climate impact by developing connected, clean and cost-effective home energy solutions.

Mike Woodhall, CEO and co-founder of Chameleon Technology, states, “Howard’s experience will be invaluable as an advisor to the board.

“His passion for the future of the UK’s electrical network, not to mention his participation in many government panels and task forces, means he has a wealth of knowledge and insight to share with us as we accelerate our growth. We look forward to him working closely with the senior team.”

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Dr Porter adds, “I am delighted to join the Chameleon Technology team to assist in their future development and expansion. My experience in consumer-focused technology will integrate well with the existing expertise of the organisation.”

Dr Porter worked as CEO of BEAMA for 25 years, helping the association to expand its expertise into a greater range of energy-related technologies.

Over this time he has held a number of UK and European senior roles including chair of the ORGALIM board in Brussels and the EURIS group of associations through the BREXIT negotiations.

He has also created a number of senior advisory groups including the BEAMA Senior Sector Council. Dr Porter has also played a crucial role in helping the creation of the UK and European smart metering systems and assisted the industry during the COVID pandemic.

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Dr Porter will continue in an advisory role to the BEAMA Board and will represent BEAMA and the UK electrotechnical industry as a member of the IEC market strategy board.

The new company was announced at the Africa Climate Summit in Nairobi and is the result of a multi-year development partnership between Virunga Power (a Gridworks investee company) and the Government of Burundi.

Over a seven-year period, Weza Power will aim to connect 9 million people and will provide electricity to residential and business customers across peri-urban and rural Burundi, which has one of Africa’s lowest electrification rates.

According to Gridworks, only 12% of the country’s 12 million people currently have access to electricity, with that number falling to 2% in rural areas.

Most new household customers burn kerosene and charcoal for energy, while businesses have to rely on expensive and polluting diesel generators.

Financing

Gridworks, which is owned by British International Investment, the UK government’s development finance institution, became a controlling shareholder of Virunga Power in March 2023 following a $50 million investment.

Virunga Power is developing the Weza Power project and will provide the initial equity investment.

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Other financing partners providing development and construction capital include the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP) and the US government’s Power Africa initiative.

The project will be the first new private-sector electricity distribution company operating at a national level in sub-Saharan Africa for a decade.

Partners in the public-private partnership (PPP) for the company will embark on an interim agreement to mobilise an initial, two-year $60 million investment into the utility. This initial phase is expected to result in approximately 300,000 Burundians gaining access to grid electricity.

Infrastructure build out

The project will then aim to raise around $1.4 billion over seven years to build a distribution infrastructure network connecting two-thirds of the East African country.

It will do this without the Government of Burundi needing to raise additional loans from its own balance sheet, meaning it is able to focus on other national priorities.

The new utility company will be connected to Burundi’s existing transmission network operated by REGIDESO, the state-owned utility company that will continue to generate power from clean, run-of-river hydropower, and supply distribution-level power to the country’s main urban areas.

The financing for the grid expansion and the creation of a new utility operator in Burundi will come from a blend of private and public funding, including commercial equity and debt, climate-based and other concessional funding, multilateral donor support and private grants.

Commenting on the announcement was Virunga Power CEO Brian Kelly, who called the project “an important milestone for Burundi and a catalyst for accelerating electrification more broadly in sub-Saharan Africa.

“The expansion of power distribution networks to reach unconnected populations with affordable grid power can be achieved by blending public, multilateral, and private sources of capital when paired with efficient private-sector led operations.

“While this is a common approach in developing and developed markets globally, Africa has lacked a locally-based model to follow, and Burundi’s willingness to take leadership with this approach is impressive and commendable.”

Virunga Power is a developer, investor and operator of renewable power generation and distribution networks in East and Southern Africa with a distributed portfolio of assets spanning five countries, including hydropower plants in development, construction and operations, as well as electricity distribution networks.

In the distribution segment, other than Weza Power, the company is investing in the expansion of a licensed utility it owns and operates in the Northwestern Province of Zambia, seeking to replicate this model with its partners in Malawi.

The Lithuanian TSO delivered an autotransformer to the country, which they state will provide electricity to hundreds of thousands of consumers.

The total market value of the equipment is about €3.6 million ($3.9 million), which consists of the autotransformer and other power grid equipment shipped earlier this year.

According to Litgrid, the 330/110/10kv autotransformer will be crucial for the Ukraine grid system as it is the main and most expensive device of the transmission grid substation.

Other 330kV and 110kV voltage transmission network devices, including disconnectors, switches, surge arresters, current and voltage measuring transformers and isolators reached Ukraine earlier this year in April.

The equipment will help ensure the supply of electricity, as Russia targets Ukraine’s energy grid.

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Lithuanian Energy Minister Dainius Kreivys commented on the aid package: “As Russia is purposefully destroying Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, we aim to help rebuild and strengthen Ukraine’s electricity transmission network.

“The second very powerful and necessary autotransformer sent to Ukraine from Lithuania will supply electricity to hundreds of thousands of residents. Lithuania’s support to Ukraine’s electricity, gas and heating sectors already exceeds €11 million ($11.8 million), and we will not stop supporting Ukraine in the future.”

A 200 megavolt-ampere autotransformer is very valuable for the Ukrainian electrical energy system: both Lithuania and Ukraine use the same voltage levels, and producing a new one of the same specifications would cost more than €2.5 million ($2.7 million) and would take about two years.

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The autotransformer ready for transport weighs almost 200 tonnes, is three meters wide, five meters high and ten meters long.

“After the arrival of the most important device for the electricity substation – the autotransformer – we can say that the entire second support package has reached the transmission system operator Ukrenegro,” stated Litgrid CEO Rokas Masiulis.

“An autotransformer and other grid equipment will help rebuild the war-damaged infrastructure. While modernising our country’s substations, we set aside various devices suitable for use in reserve. We will continue to support Ukrainians with them to make electricity supply as reliable and safe as possible.”

Other equipment from the EPSO-G group companies Litgrid and Amber Grid, intended for the restoration of electricity and gas transmission grids, arrived in November last year.

Support for Ukrainian energy infrastructure companies is collected and transported with the help of the Embassy of the Republic of Lithuania in Ukraine, and the Ministries of Energy and Transportation.

The transport services of the aid sent by Litgrid to Ukraine are financed by the European Union.

With grid connection lead times a key issue in accelerating the scale up of renewables, top factors identified include the pre-occupied capacity of the grid although not yet physically congested, permitting, materials shortages and poor qualification of plant connection technical project designers and errors in the projects.

This comes with the majority of survey respondents stating that connection times do not match the expectations of customers or government, although just over half say they do match the expectation of their DSO.

The grids in Europe, as they are elsewhere, are being challenged with the rapid scale up of renewables. Further the pressure is expected to increase with the increased demand of electrification.

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This is projected to require a five-fold upswing in intermittent generation by 2050.

With the two main technical challenges of network inadequacy and instability, it is the time for grid operators and policymakers to rethink current planning, connection and operation processes as well as to take responsibility for coordinating among energy system stakeholders to construct a future-proof 21st century power grid, states E.DSO in the report, which was prepared in collaboration with McKinsey.

Based on measures taken by DSOs and other input to address these issues, the report sets out recommendations to support the connection of more renewables to the existing grids and to minimise their connection lead times.

Number one is to reduce the permitting times, mainly through automation and digitalisation.

There should be transparent, and ideally EU-harmonised, rules for congestion management to facilitate the use of non-firm connections and transparent rules for handling connection queues, improving information to the client and minimizing the possibility of litigation. .

On technical skills, improvement should be supported, for instance by setting up an online or ‘in person’ training to certify the skills and knowledge necessary to carry out grid connection processes and education programmes should be promoted.

For grid management and planning the use of non-firm connections should be evaluated and reactive power management should be introduced.

Renewables advanced functionalities recommended include the implementation of droop control and digitalisation of the renewable connection.

In addition, smart grid control and ADMS should be leveraged to achieve integrated and real-time observability and control for the entire distribution network and smart inverter functions used at LV level to facilitate grid management and, in turn, possibly enable additional DERs connection.

Catherine Vandenborre, currently the group’s chief financial officer, will take over on Peeters’ departure, which is set for 30 October 2023.

In the coming weeks, he will continue to oversee the daily management of the company.

In a statement, Peeters said Elia Group is “on the right track to succeed in the energy transition”.

“I would like to thank the board of directors, public authorities and all our stakeholders for the opportunities they have given me and the trust they have placed in me during my time at Elia Group.”

He added that “after eight intense years with Elia Group, it is time for a change and time for me to embrace a new challenge”.

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Peeters will move on to be CEO of the Belgian Post Group (bpostgroup). He said: “The time is ripe for a new phase in my career and with bpostgroup I will be able to lead in a sector that deeply interests me and that is undergoing major transitions in a rapidly evolving international context.

Vandenborre was previously a member of the Executive Committee of European energy exchange APX-ENDEX. She has been Elia Group CFO since 2014 and in her new position will oversee two TSOs – Elia in Belgium and 50Hertz in Germany.

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One Energy’s digital substation, intended to power its “Megawatt Hub,” was built as proof of concept for the company’s new, fully digital station architecture.

One Energy’s Megawatt Hubs provide high-volume power connections for industries that require significant loads of power for their operations, such as electric truck charging, digital currency mining, and indoor farming. A typical factory might use between five and ten MW of power. The Findlay Megawatt Hub is a 30MW site that is expandable to 150MW and includes the first fully digital, plug-and-play, transmission-voltage substation in the United States, said the company.

“It is time we completely rethink how substations are designed so that the industry stops making the same mistakes they have been for the last 50 years,” One Energy CEO Jereme Kent said.

“Traditional substations are not secure; they can fail during inevitable severe weather conditions, lack basic condition monitoring, and rely on thousands of small wires to send status and control signals back to the control building. This is why we’ve designed our fully digital substations at One Energy to be secure, digital, resilient, embrace real-time condition monitoring, and survive every conceivable weather event.”

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To build a fully digital substation, One Energy elected to use Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories’ TiDL system, marking the first time a substation is connected entirely by fiber optics using the TiDL system in the United States, according to the company.

One Energy said it preferred the simplicity of physical security that comes with TiDL’s point-to-point fiber communication. This is why the TiDL system was chosen over the IEC 61850-style digital architecture that is gaining traction in Europe.

The TiDL merging unit can be factory installed, tested, and commissioned in all major equipment, making field wiring as simple as connecting a fiber optic cable.

The substation’s 30 MVA transformer, built by Hitachi Energy, includes the Coresense M10 real-time dissolved gas analyser and condition monitoring system.

The system can detect an anomaly in the transformer and, through the control system, automatically send alerts via text to system operators.

The Coresense M10 performs a full dissolved gas analysis on the transformer every 10 minutes, compared to most substation transformers that only test oil once a year.

The high-voltage circuit breakers were also supplied by Hitachi Energy and feature a full condition monitoring package as well. Early and real-time communication and condition monitoring identify smaller issues before they potentially advance into larger issues.

Measures were also taken to increase the substation’s safety and resilience.

To provide physical security for the site, it is surrounded by permanent walls that are all modular and made of solid concrete.

To reduce risks related to animal interference and blowing debris, which are common and are major sources of fault for traditional substations, it was designed to allow for no exposed live parts on the medium voltage buswork.

To prevent what traditionally causes substation fires, it includes environmentally friendly oils and passive and automatic fire suppression systems, the company said.

Originally published on Power Grid.

Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Estonia, Spain, Norway, Luxembourg, Latvia, Italy, France, Malta, Slovenia and the Netherlands have reached the 80% penetration rate.

A further four countries, Portugal, Austria, Great Britain and Ireland, are progressing their rollouts, with three of them targeting 80% by 2024.

However, six countries, Belgium, Croatia, Poland, Slovakia, Lithuania and Hungary, have barely started theirs, while five, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czechia, Germany and Greece, have very few or no smart meters.

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These are among the findings in the 2023 retail market study – based on 2022 data – from the Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators (ACER) and the Council of European Energy Regulators (CEER).

The report, which is focussed largely on the energy crisis and the increases in energy prices in 2022 with recommendations based on the lessons from that, regrets that the 11 countries have barely started the smart metering process.

Their non-availability is a key barrier to consumers receiving regular and accurate metering data in a timely manner. Without that, they are unable to take advantage of the opportunities to respond to real-time price signals.

Moreover, for innovative market players, the lack of smart meter rollout can be a barrier to market entry and thus to competition. As new suppliers enter the market and offer real-time billing, consumers may respond by switching to other suppliers.

As far as switching – a key measure of consumer engagement – goes, for both electricity and gas the rates decreased in over half of member states in 2022 compared to previous years, although increasing in others. Possible reasons for these lower switching rates are related to pricing and the emergency measures taken during the energy crisis.

The other measure of consumer engagement reviewed in the report is energy communities. At this stage, the impact of energy communities is relatively small in terms of the number of initiatives, people involved and citizen-owned renewable capacity, but the interest of citizens in getting involved seems to have increased during the energy crisis.

In order to facilitate their development a clear and workable definition of energy communities and an enabling framework with the transposition of European rules in national legislations are needed.

Retail market structure

The report notes the heightened risk of the energy crisis triggered an uptick in the number of retail suppliers exiting the retail electricity market, reaching 62 due to financial problems in the residential market in 2021, up from eight in the previous year. However, the number dropped again to 23 in 2022, almost half of them in Spain.

Nevertheless, new suppliers have continued to enter the market with the number relatively high in countries where many suppliers exiting the market.

Similar patterns have been observed for supplier exits in the gas retail market.

From a supplier perspective, a key lesson learned from the energy crisis was to keep open lines of communication with all customers.

In response to increased prices, consumer complaints increased in 2022, primarily related – where data is available – to invoicing/billing and debt-collection and by almost half and double respectively compared to 2021.

While some energy companies’ customer services struggled to cope with the unexpectedly high volume of contacts, others found that engaging with their customers created opportunities to help consumers through the energy crisis, to the benefit of both the customer and the supplier.

Engaging with customers will therefore be key to the energy transition, the report states. Smart metering is one of the tools to facilitate this communication. Offering dynamic price contracts, in addition to hybrid or fixed price contracts, is another way of encouraging consumer participation from the demand side of the market.

Other findings in the report include the increasing share of electric vehicles in national new car registrations, although markedly different in different countries with the highest increases in Norway, Sweden and Denmark but the lowest in Cyprus, Slovakia and Czechia.

Another is the almost 40% increase in heat pump sales in 2022 compared with 2021, with consumers encouraged by the high energy prices.

The use of heat pumps will contribute to achieving the national and EU climate targets especially in the building sector. To meet these commitments, heat pump sales are expected to continue to grow.

Aiming to bring together industry leaders to raise awareness about the grids’ crucial role in the energy transition and develop input for EU-level policy discussions, the immense investment needed to reinforce the grid stood out as a key topic.

“Let’s make no mistake: investments in the grid will be needed,” said Damian Cortinas, chairman of the board of ENTSO-E, the European Network of Transmission System Operators for Electricity.

“Even if we (fully leverage) digitalisation and coordination with and between TSOs; even then we will need massive investments to connect new generation, for the solidarity between regions and countries of Europe and, in particular, for the sharing of flexibilities we will need for tomorrow.”

The grids forum is the latest initiative coming from European Associations to spotlight the state of the grid and the initiative needed to get it ready for a net-zero scenario.

Earlier this week, Eurelectric reported the need to prioritise grid expansion to meet Fit or 55 and REPowerEU goals, and the European distribution system operator (DSO) association E.DSO set out key pledges for the future grid with a call for investment to be high on the EU’s future agenda.

Investment first

According to Simson, one of the keynote speakers during the forum, although there are several key topics to tackle in readying the power grid, “the first one is investment.

“Europe needs to invest €584 billion ($624.6 billion) by 2030 to modernise and expand its grids. This is huge. But we can get there.”

Referencing an announcement from the European Investment Bank (EIB) back in July of additional financing of 50% (€15 billion ($16 billion)) to the REPowerEU Plan, Simson pointed out how there has been initiative to fast track financing.

“The proposed new electricity market reform will also make a difference. We expect it to change the remuneration mechanism for grid projects and boost anticipatory investments.”

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Regulation and interconnection

The second key issue to address, adds Simson, is that of regulatory barriers. Namely, the potential offered by breaking them down and fast tracking procedures.

Third was that of the importance of cross-border interconnection, as highlighted by the energy crisis.

Stated Simson: “Europe stands to gain much if we revitalise regional cooperation and make progress on cross-border interconnections.

“ENTSO-E’s latest 10-year network development plan 2022 shows how Europe needs to invest €6 billion ($6.4 billion) per year to 2040 on cross-border infrastructure; the 15% interconnection target is not just a benchmark – it is the best way to bolster our security of supply and competitiveness.”

Digitalisation and industrialisation

As the fourth point, Simson emphasized that we need to have more efficient grids by digitalising our energy system and investing in smart grids.

“With increasing shares of solar and wind, it’s becoming more important to match demand and supply. This requires real time data and pricing, allowing consumers, business and smart energy appliances to respond to the system’s needs.”

The fifth and final point that Simson highlighted is that of industrial and commercial opportunities for the grid.

“We all read the reports of project delayed or suspended because waiting times for components go beyond 2030, or because of rising costs.

“But let’s not forget that the three largest cable manufacturers in the world are based here in Europe. If we are to boost out industrial capacity, expand the pool of skilled labour, improve supply chain, all of this would turn into jobs , growth and opportunities.”

Simson here referred to the Net Zero Industry Act, one of many tabled back in March 2023 that aim to drive Europe’s prowess within the energy transition by, among other points, boosting European supply chains and upskilling the workforce.

Further conclusions to each of the discussed topics will be released in the coming weeks.

This is according to findings from data and analytics company GlobalData, which projects a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 3.54% for the market from now to 2027.

According to the company’s report Switchgears for Power Transmission, Market Size, Share and Trends Analysis by Technology, Installed Capacity, Generation, Key Players and Forecast, 2022–2027, while the market has been seen growth across regions, market drivers are context-specific.

For example, states the report, within the growing economies of the Asia-Pacific and Middle East (EMEA) regions, the market’s growth is being propelled by the increasing demand for electricity, with capacity addition in the generation and transmission sectors.

On the other hand, in the Americas and Europe, the report finds the replacement of ageing grid infrastructure, the shift to renewable energy, grid reliability issues, improved policy and investment decisions, as well as technology innovations as key factors.

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EMEA

Overall, states GlobalData, the EMEA region was found to be the leader in the market in 2022, with a share of 44.60% and a forecast to grow to 48.24% by 2027, higher than the growth expected in all other regions.

According to GlobalData, the high voltage (HV) switchgear market in the EMEA region was estimated to be $11.16 billion in 2022 and is projected to reach $14.63 billion, registering a CAGR of 5.03% over 2023-27.

An additional driver, states the research, was an observed economic boom for Middle Eastern countries, leading to an increased demand for power.

Commenting on the report’s findings was GlobalData senior power analyst Bhavana Sri Pullagura, who stated how “the growing demand for electricity is giving rise to the need for new power plants, particularly those modes of generation that have minimal impact on the environment.”

With this, stated Pullagura, countries have started looking towards eliminating barriers to deployment of renewable technologies and gas-based generation.

“The falling capital cost and low gas prices also resulted in increased development of renewables and gas power plants. This contributed to the growth of the switchgear market, which is expected to continue as countries seek to increase the share of renewables and gas in their generation mix.”

Asia-Pacific

According to the report, in 2022, Asia-Pacific’s market value stood at $10.77 billion, accounting for a share of 43.05% in the global HV switchgear market. The HV switchgear market in the Americas is expected to reach $3.11 billion by 2027, as the grid requires upgrades to replace aging assets and to accommodate the increasing sources of renewable energy.

China, one of the fastest-growing economies with the largest fleet of transmission substations, topped the report’s global HV switchgear market in 2022 with a value of $7.73 billion, accounting for a 30.0% share. The country is expected to continue its leadership during the forecast period, reaching $9.19 billion in 2027.

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Bhavana Sri added: “The need to build transmission infrastructure to deliver power from renewable sources in remote regions, the increasing domestic demand for electricity, large-scale renewable energy deployment, the projected growth in the gross domestic product and rural electrification initiatives are some of the major factors aiding the growth of its HV switchgear market in China.

“The country is the world leader in ultra-high-voltage transmission, having made considerable investments in the development of transmission systems of voltage level of 765kv and above.”

The other major countries in the Asia-Pacific gas-insulated switchgear market, states GlobalData’s research, include India and Japan. India ranks third after China and the US in the global HV switchgear market, with a value of $1.15 billion in 2022 and a share of 4.60%.

“GlobalData believes that policies established to address environmental challenges and capitalise on market opportunities offered by technologies would notably impact the switchgear market by the end of the forecast period,” states Bhavana Sri.

The integration, believed to be a first for quantum-based cyber protection in smart meters, sees quantum computing-hardened encryption keys integrated into all Honeywell’s smart meters for gas, water and electricity.

This enhanced security is aimed to set a new benchmark for protection against data breaches and to help ensure the uninterrupted operation of the utilities infrastructure.

“By integrating Quantinuum’s encryption technology into our smart meters, we’re advancing data security for our customers and shaping the dialogue on how the utility industries should approach cybersecurity in the quantum era,” says Hamed Heyhat, President of Smart Energy and Thermal Solutions at Honeywell.

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“This integration underscores the necessity for continuous innovation to stay ahead of the evolving threat landscape. It is a level of protection that is imperative in our increasingly digital and interconnected world.”

Quantinuum’s Quantum Origin generates keys through quantum computing-enhanced randomness – a feature of the quantum world – which makes them unpredictable and thereby able to significantly enhance the data security.

Specifically a quantum cryptographic seed is generated on a quantum computer, which is then verified for strength and the keys are generated.

Tony Uttley, President and COO of Quantinuum, comments that robust cybersecurity requires a multifaceted approach, taking advantage of the latest technologies.

“Our work with Honeywell demonstrates the importance of using the power of today’s quantum computers to create a more resilient cyber infrastructure to better protect customers.”

Quantum Origin is designed for both devices and infrastructure, with keys generated directly into devices or on demand via the cloud.

The smart meter products with Quantum Origin from Honeywell are available now to customers in North America and Europe.

In a new study on the region’s electricity market design, Eurelectric states that with around 70% of the planned new renewable capacity being connected to the distribution grids, these require reinforcement and expansion.

But for efficient and timely connection, the way the grids are developed needs to change from an essentially reactive approach to a ‘build-for-the-future’ approach that includes inter alia anticipatory investments.

“Getting our electricity networks fit for net zero should be a top priority in the coming years, both at EU and national level,” says Kristian Ruby, Secretary General of Eurelectric.

“This requires a new mindset among regulators and legislators. One that anticipates Europe’s capacity needs to integrate more renewable projects, and one that accommodates unprecedented electrification of transport, buildings and industry to match the speed and scale needed for Europe’s energy transition.”

The REPowerEU plan anticipates around 50 to 60 million heat pumps, 65 to 70 million electric vehicles (EVs) and over 600GW of additional renewable capacity by 2030.

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A scarcity of grid capacity translates into longer waits for connections, more congested areas and higher costs for network users.

In its earlier ‘Decarbonisation Speedways’ study, Eurelectric found that the EU currently invests €23 billion (US$25 billion) per year in grid infrastructure. However, the investment in distribution grids should reach no less than €38 billion per year until 2030 and up to €100 billion per year until 2050 to deliver on the decarbonisation’s agenda.

Eurelectric proposes in its report that the distribution networks should be planned at least 5 years ahead, with the option of reaching 10 years and with a 2050 horizon projection.

Further regulators must be flexible on DSO investment instruments, removing regulatory obstacles and adopting output-based remuneration taking into account both capex and opex.

EU policies and funds also must promote investments in the physical dimensioning of the grids. In this connection, dynamic line rating is one of the basic means to expand capacity.

Likewise, significant digitalisation efforts are needed and should be incentivised for grid management and forecasting and flexibility should be promoted, with local production and consumption stimulated.

A key for infrastructure development is permitting and Eurelectric urges for a “dedicated and permanently simplified procedure” for grid development, including a possible ‘one-stop-shop’ concept for a single permit for a generation project and the associated grid expansion.

Underlying much of these actions is the need for accurate information and Eurelectric calls for “robust data-sharing mechanisms” among the various players.

Through the agreement between the clean tech major and the British water holdings company, the EnergyIP MDM X platform will connect the meter points, aiming to enhance the Group’s ability to detect and reduce household water leaks.

The water utility is undergoing a major rollout of smart meters, which report data back to the cloud on an hourly basis.

Siemens’ Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) solution will allow the utility, which services 4.5 million people in the North East of England and in the South East as Essex & Suffolk Water, to analyse the data from the water meters to identify household consumption anomalies and alert customers of potential leaks on their properties.

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Siemens collaborated with NWG’s team to design, develop, test and launch the meter data management SaaS, which is powered by the technology company’s EnergyIP software.

According to Siemens, it represents the largest solution of its kind implemented by the company for the water industry in Europe, as well as its largest deployment of grid software to date.

Gary Adams, head of smart transformation at NWG, said: “The EnergyIP MDM implementation is a critical cornerstone in our smart metering journey, allowing us to effectively manage the large volumes of metering data we will receive and to drive efficient operational activity for both our customers and our wider business providing access to granular smart data at the click of a button.”

The system will ultimately help NWG to meet UK water regulator Ofwat’s targets for reducing leakages and per capita consumption.

EnergyIP MDM X for Water is part of Siemens Xcelerator, the company’s digital business platform.

Backed by Innovate UK, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, and government teams in India, and delivered by Energy Systems Catapult in partnership with the Indian Institute for Science (IISc), ITES will support small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to test, fund and fast-track their innovations to market that help decarbonise transport in India and the UK.

ITES will offer a ‘soft-landing’ for the SMEs, helping to safely develop, test and export solutions that help decarbonise transport. The collaboration will also help SMEs tackle scalability with go-to-market support and access to potential clients, funders and investment.

This first cohort of 20 UK-based SMEs includes teams in the fields of intelligent electricity system services, battery management, charging systems, energy storage, fleet optimisation, hydrogen and rail.

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The different working areas and their respective SMEs include:

Intelligent electricity system Services

• Flock Energy, which uses machine learning to transform energy usage in factories and help them digitalise their operations. The company has developed proprietary algorithms that optimise energy consumption, improving efficiency and productivity.
  
• Terranow, which uses the potential of generative AI to unlock optimal efficiency in the generation and use of energy through focused solutions for forecasting, control and coordination.

Battery recycling and management

• Aceleron Energy, which develops advanced lithium batteries, aiming to accelerate the global shift to cleaner, more renewable energy and to drive sustainable battery technology.
  
• Faraday Battery Limited, which manufactures battery-packs up to 1MW scale for electric vehicles, including tractors, vans, buses and trucks. vehicle, it significantly reduces the lifecycle cost of the electric bus/truck.
  
• Nexmu, which focuses primarily on electric mobility and energy storage. The Nexmu team has integrated its battery management system and related capabilities in the electric powertrain into a single cloud-based platform.

Charging systems

• char.gy, which manufactures amd operatres charging infrastructure, funding, installing, operating and maintaining EV charge points for private landlords and local authorities for their residents who do not have off-street parking.
  
• Entrust Microgrid, chich specialises in smart microgrid systems that maximise user benefits from embedded solar PV, energy storage system, EV charger and other smart energy appliances, and provide the grid with flexibility.
  
• Petalite, which is a second-generation EV charging company that aims to solve the challenges impeding the roll-out of EV charging infrastructure.
  
• [ui!]uk urban integrated ltd, which is an IT consultancy advising local authorities, cities and metropolitan regions in their strategic planning and in the implementation and operation of smart city infrastructures and e-mobility solutions, such as charge point management systems and mobility service provider apps.
  
• Vertical Solar, which is a renewables developer aiming to bring to market new products that remove the traditional constraints associated with solar deployments.
  
• Voltempo, which develops ultra-high power EV charging hubs for heavy vehicle fleets and public service stations.

Energy storage and delivery

• Energineering LTD, which is a consultancy in the realm of industrial energy efficiency and project development. The last five years have seen the team concentrate on developing innovative energy storage solutions, including its patented MECHAPRES system, which uses a combination of reversible heat pumping and Composite Phase Change Material, latent thermal storage to support the needs of decentralised microgrids and DC EV Charging stations.
  
• LiNa Energy, which is developing and commercialising low-cost, solid-state sodium batteries as a safer, more sustainable alternative to lithium-ion. LiNa’s innovation is based on a novel sodium-metal-chloride planar cell, which they state unlocks the high power/energy density potential of established sodium battery chemistry.
  
• PowerUp, which provides an Energy as a Service model, replacing fossil fuel generators with battery PowerStations, using AI algorithms to predict battery behaviours and facilitate just-in-time swapping with renewable energy-charged replacements.

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Fleet optimisation

• Flexible Power Systems, which aims to address the increased complexity, risks and cost arising from EV adoption.
  
  The company’s platform provides automated EV fleet and charger management for van, bus, truck or mixed fleets that integrates data from across the business for a view of fleet operations. Part of what this enables, states the company, is the management of power constraints to avoid expensive grid upgrades.

Rail

• Riding Sunbeams, which decarbonises rail traction networks through the development and connection of unsubsidised, direct-wire renewable energy supply.
  
  Riding Sunbeams is now working to develop and demonstrate the required technology to connect solar power and line-side energy storage to feed the Alternating-Current (AC), overhead line railways that make up most of the world’s electrified rail networks.

Hydrogen

• AqSorption, which builds renewable energy systems, concentrating on biogas and combined heat and power plants. Following a series of enhancements to its gasification technology, AqSorption has successfully adapted to move into production of hydrogen.
  
  
• Innervated Vehicle Engineering (IVe), which transforms diesel vans into hydrogen fuel cell vans, offering an alternative to diesel.
  
  
• JET Engineering Services, which works with and on behalf of customers to deliver solutions to technical engineering problems. Following a recent contract award to deliver a hydrogen production system on the subcontinent, and changing priorities in global markets, the company took a strategic decision to redirect its efforts into the green hydrogen sector, and has embarked on a programme to develop a range of projects and products to support this.
  
  
• Logan Energy, which specialises in the delivery of integrated engineering solutions incorporating hydrogen technologies for production through to refuelling.
  
  The team offers a full turnkey service, from project inception & feasibility, design development, manufacturing, installation, and operation and maintenance.
  
  Logan Energy has designed, built, and installed hydrogen production and refuelling stations, and are currently constructing further stations for buses, vans, passenger vehicles, and heavy-duty vehicles.

The 20 SMEs will have access to a range of acceleration support – from start-up mentoring and incubation services, to market research and real-world pilots with Indian businesses that help prove new products on the ground.

Paul Jordan, business leader for innovator support & international at Energy Systems Catapult, commented: “It’s a real pleasure to announce such a strong cohort of SMEs to join us at the start of this major innovation initiative between the UK and India.

“They represent some of the highest-priority innovations needed to tackle transport decarbonisation – from cutting-edge hydrogen, rail, and fleet solutions, to battery storage and management, and other technologies and services that can enable an electric vehicle-ready infrastructure.

“By helping these UK innovators to collaborate, commercialise and trial their solutions in the world’s fifth biggest economy, we hope to both turbocharge decarbonisation efforts and help unleash the economic potential that innovation offers.”

The Innovating for Transport and Energy Systems initiative was launched in May this year.

This was the key message from the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) Director-General Francesco La Camera to mark an agreement signed with the African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD) in support of Africa’s energy goals.

The agreement was signed on Monday, 4 September on the margins of Africa Climate Week in Nairobi.

IRENA said the agreement is geared toward assisting the continent “in their efforts to achieve the African Union’s Agenda 2063 and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 7 to ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all.”

“Acknowledging that 80% of the global population without access to electricity resides in Sub-Saharan Africa, it is evident that the existing energy infrastructure cannot adequately meet the continent’s needs,” said La Camera.

But this would require the creation of a more equitable energy system, he said.

AUDA-NEPAD CEO Nardos Bekele-Thomas underscored the findings of the Continental Power Systems Masterplan (CMP), designed to provide a strategic roadmap for connecting Africa’s five power pools.

The CMP emphasises the critical need for immediate and proactive measures in Africa’s electricity sector.

“The current business as usual trajectory falls significantly short of achieving universal electricity access by 2040, necessitating a substantial increase in investments to elevate the continent’s installed capacity from 266GW to approximately 1,218GW,” said Bekele-Thomas.

“To realise this ambitious target, an estimated $1.29 trillion in cumulative investments will be essential, potentially culminating in the establishment of a robust continental electricity market valued at $136 billion by 2040. It is imperative to take urgent and strategic actions to accomplish these transformative goals.”

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Planning towards an integrated electricity network in Africa

IRENA said the continued investments in cross-border transmission infrastructure and a deepening of electricity trade will allow African countries to accelerate their energy expansion and transition.

This could be achieved by sourcing electricity from a wide range of competitive, clean energy resources and by anchoring on the continent’s five power pools to create Africa’s Single Electricity Market.

Since 2021, IRENA, in partnership with other organisations, has supported AUDA-NEPAD and African stakeholders in developing the CMP through modelling activities and a series of capacity-building activities related to energy planning in the region. 

The CMP aims to establish a long-term, continent-wide planning process for power generation and transmission that involves all five African power pools. It maps out how to best to utilise the vast renewable energy resources across the continent, supporting national power strategies that consider cross-border interconnections as a vital component.

The next phase of CMP will include a special focus on strengthening the planning processes and accelerating the preparation of a bankable pipeline of priority projects at both the regional and country levels. 

“This brings an opportunity for African countries to align their energy planning processes to a pan-Africa vision and accelerate the realisation of Agenda 2063,” said IRENA.

“Through this new partnership, IRENA and AUDA-NEPAD will work to enhance the capabilities of African countries and regional organisations through knowledge-based capacity building services, support implementation of the renewable energy projects in the Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa (PIDA PAP II) and facilitate access for project developers to IRENA’s Climate Investment Platform and Energy Transition Accelerator Financing (ETAF) platform.”

Originally published by Yunus Kemp on ESI Africa.

The retrofit, which encompasses electricity, gas and water meters, is aimed to enable remote meter reading in the diverse environments around the capital Jakarta.

There the meters are in locations including inside private apartments, residential areas, industrial water utilities and shopping malls, which has resulted in meter reading being both challenging and expensive.

Chen Deyu, CEO at Sindcon, says ST Microelectronics’ STM32WLE5 LoRaWAN wireless microcontroller was selected “for its high integration benefits to our customers and because it enhances performance, size, security and power consumption.”

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The STM32WLE5 wireless MCU is a sub-GHz wireless microcontroller featuring an Arm Cortex-M4 core operating at 48MHz.

The MCU contains 256kb of Flash memory, 64kb of SRAM, LoRa modulation, and AES 256-bit encryption.

With the STM32WLE5, Sindcon’s retrofitted meters contain an advanced battery management system that can support accurate remote readings for up to 10 years.

The project is Sindcon’s first deployment in Indonesia using the STM32WLE5CC wireless MCU and is expected to be completed by the end of 2023.

Sindcon is involved in several LoRaWAN smart meter installations in Indonesia.

Over the past five years, the company has installed more than 1,000 LoRaWAN smart gas meters for restaurants and other commercial customers in more than 20 shopping malls in the country.

A recently reported new customer is Indonesia KFC, which has adopted Sindcon’s gas meter technology.

In another project, Sindcon has partnered with IoT solution provider IoT Kreasi Indonesia on prepaid gas metering in Jakarta for the country’s state-owned gas transmission and distribution company PGN Group – believed to be a first in Southeast Asia.

In the first phase, some 2,000 LoRaWAN prepaid gas meters have been deployed in collaboration with Chint, whose G1.6 model gas meter has been re-engineered to offer prepayment and LoRaWAN wireless data transmission.

Sindcon also has partnered with IoT Kreasi Indonesia on Semtech LoRa and LoRaWAN based smart electricity and water meter deployments in multi-tenant residential buildings.