The aim of this project is to develop an in-depth understanding of the potential for the provision of a range of flexibility services from different demand sectors (e.g. buildings, industries, and transport) and their values to the whole energy system and consumers.
Demand-side flexibility: Requirements, Potentials and Values
Photo by Michael Fousert on Unsplash
Themes
Project overview
Key Objectives
- To understand flexibility needs of future low carbon power system in Great Britain.
- To assess flexibility potential of different demand sectors by identifying what is technically feasible, commercially viable, and practically available.
- To investigate the role of demand-side flexibility in cost reduction and resilience enhancement of low carbon power system.
Methods and Approaches
A variety of approaches such as systematic literature review (to understand flexibility needs of the power system), Physics-based simulation and data-driven modelling (to assess flexibility potentials of demand sectors), and large-scale optimisation (to investigate the role of demand-side flexibility in the power system) are used in this project.
Key Findings
- A report, “Overview of Flexibility Services in the GB Power System”, summarising the core technical and commercial aspects of flexibility services in GB, has been published.
- A model developed to estimate half-hourly electricity consumption of residential heat pumps in different local authority, providing insights into their flexibility potential.
Next Steps/Future Work
A software tool is being developed to quantify the technically available flexibility in the electrified residential heating sector. This tool will enable the analysis of various scenarios, including heat pump adoption rates, weather conditions, and other key factors.
