PowerMatching City

Launched in 2007 as one of the INTEGRAL project demonstrations (EU FP6-038576), PowerMatching City demonstrates what our energy system could look like in 2030. PowerMatching City consists of real homes in Hoogkerk, a village near Groningen in the Netherlands, outfitted with a variety of Smart Grid appliances. Gas-fueled appliances ensure the integration of gas and electricity on the household level, creating flexibility for peak loads in electricity demand. This market-based Smart Grid implementation allows end-users to trade energy on a local market level.

The twenty two homes are divided into two groups. Twelve are equipped with hybrid heat  pumps with heat buffers; the remaining ten homes have decentralized generation capabilities using micro-CHP. Twenty-four smart appliances and two electric vehicles with demand response capabilities are installed. All houses are connected to PV panels and  have smart meters. To provide additional power to the project, the city has a 2.5 MW wind turbine, whose output is scaled to match the energy demand of the households. Finally, all devices are represented by smart agents that trade energy on local real-time markets via an ICT infrastructure in order to optimize the Smart Grid system.

For more information on PowerMatching City, watch the overview video.

Integrating renewables
Increasingly, and all over the world, renewable generation resources are being built to facilitate the transition to sustainable energy. However, several renewable energy technologies, specifically wind and solar, come with inherent intermittency challenges. Due to these fluctuations in power supply, any grid system served by renewables needs the flexibility to maintain the power balance. Properly implemented, Smart Grid technologies can offer that flexibility.

Consumer acceptance
The Smart Grid offers consumers a number of tangible benefits, including more control over their power use, the ability to live a greener lifestyle and cost savings. However, many consumers have privacy and security concerns about the type and amount of information smart devices capture. Consumers are also apprehensive about controlling their own power usage. Alleviating consumer concerns is critical in both gaining the public approval necessary to facilitate Smart Grid transitions, and in educating consumers about the benefits they stand to reap.

For more information on PowerMatching City, watch the overview video.

Living in the Smart Grid
In order to maximize consumer acceptance, there are a number of comfort, convenience and incentive systems built into PowerMatching City. Each technology automatically generates, stores or uses power based on up-to-date market prices, projected energy production from renewable sources and available stored power. This system maximizes cost savings or profits from locally-generated power, while minimizing consumer inconvenience by enabling them to set specific requirements for when power needs to be available, and for what purpose.

Measuring success
The success of PowerMatching City will be determined by a number of factors. First is the technical success. How well do the technologies work together? Does load-balancing successfully offset the intermittency issues of the renewable energy sources? Can the automated systems accurately predict and use real-time energy prices to lower energy costs? Finally, are there any significant power outages? The second major measurement of success is far more subjective, but equally important. Are the homeowners satisfied with, and accepting of their local Smart Grid? Have the technologies and systems put in place made their lives easier, allowing them to become ‘prosumers’?

Results
To date, PowerMatching City has been a success. The various technologies provide flexibility without impacting the overall comfort of the end-user, and allow interoperability between components, and the ability to grow the system as organically as needed. Measurements from the micro-combined heat and power (micro-CHP) systems, the hybrid heat pumps and the electric vehicle (EV) charging stations all indicate that the system responds quickly to fluctuating demands, and maintains an appropriate fill level for each household over the long term. Just as important, consumer response has been positive. Lifestyle interruptions have been minimal, and what interruptions have occurred have provided a learning opportunity for everyone involved, with upgrades and fixes either implemented or underway. DNV KEMA and its partners have begun phase two of the PowerMatching City project, in which the demonstration will be scaled up. In this phase, challenges surrounding end-user billing and acceptance will be addressed, and the consequences for energy market processes evaluated. PowerMatching City also provides the opportunity for third parties to test their (Smart Grid) technologies in a living lab Smart Grid environment.

For more information on PowerMatching City, watch the overview video.