How to set up an energy exchange system within a local energy community while minimising production and distribution costs?
THE CONTEXT
A French law passed on 27 July 2016 allowed for communities to self-supply electricity starting in 2017, using local energy sources such as photovoltaic panels through local “microgrids”. The underlying idea of this bylaw is to promote “energy communities”, i.e. clusters of stakeholders that are physically connected to the same low-voltage node, that produce power in their own facilities (solar farms, for instance) and that have decided to source more of the power they consume from those facilities. In other words, producers and consumers will be able to give, buy or sell electricity generated within their cluster and thereby lower their energy bills, optimise their investments and/ or fulfil a civic duty.
THE CHALLENGE
The new French law allowing communities to self-supply electricity raised several questions, such as: how to set up an energy sharing system scaled for a local communities, how to connect energy producers and consumers, and how to make these systems available to all. The challenge was to test a real energy exchange between an electricity community. The actual exchange test was performed at the EDF R&D Lab Les Renardières.
THE STARTUP
Linc provides hardware and software solutions to enable real-time energy management in any building. Linc provides actionable insights and analytics to help reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions.
THE PARTNERS
THE SOLUTION
The partners provided the following datasets: consumption points of given devices in a test home and production points from its energy sources. Linc developed a visual interface enabling to test the value proposal of joining a local energy community for an energy consumer, where consumers and producers were able to connect instantly. The back-end technology was supported and data-fed by Linc’s smart meters. This solution could help any decentralised electricity community willing to optimise its energy bill and/or contribute to lower green-gas emissions. This project could become part of corporate offers in the realm of: property development, building development or as a new service deals for energy companies.
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