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Devising solutions for the grid of tomorrow
from Annual report 2015
by Elia Group
To bolster the energy transition and develop its business model, Elia is already investing in research into innovative solutions to help guarantee security of supply both in Belgium and across Europe as a whole. Elia is thus a pioneer in its three activities: asset management, system operation and market facilitation, i.e. integrating Belgian markets into the wider European context. In addition to the projects with which it is involved alongside partners such as businesses, universities and technology suppliers, the Group is also keen to enhance innovation through its own corporate culture; we want all our staff to be able to suggest and implement innovative ideas. The Group is working alongside Belgian and European partners on projects in three fields.
Promoting innovation in order to manage assets for the future to the highest possible standards. These projects focus on developing DC grids and forward-looking management of assets.
BEST PATHS: UPGRADING THE GRID USING NEW TECHNOLOGIES
Comprising five demonstration projects, Best Paths aims to test and present the benefits of new technologies (DC and AC) using innovative approaches to integration in the electricity system and thereby enabling more renewable energies to be integrated. The Elia Group is in charge of the iRock.eu (Innovative Repowering of Corridors) demonstration focusing on the installation and use of technologies to improve the efficiency of overhead AC lines. Two new technologies are to be installed as part of the Stevin project. Firstly, insulating arms are to be fitted to pylons on an existing 150 kV line, enabling the voltage level to be increased to 380 kV without having to build completely new pylons. Secondly, hightemperature low-sag (HTLS) conductors – which reduce the effects of sag when the temperature on the line is high – will also enable an increase in power on 380 kV lines.
Another demonstration in which Elia is involved is that entailing modelling the behaviour of high-voltage direct-current (HVDC) converters to analyse how converters converting alternating current to direct current behave. This study is proving particularly useful in managing the European grid ahead of construction of the ALEGrO and Nemo interconnections which operate on direct current. The ultimate aim is to assess the effects of a new HVDC system on the existing AC one, and research will also be conducted into a feasibility test on solutions provided by a number of suppliers. System operation: developing and managing the 2.0 electricity system
MORE INFORMATION
http://www.bestpaths-project.eu/
DRONES: MAINTAINING THE GRID IN A SAFER AND MORE EFFICIENT MANNER
Given the huge investment being ploughed into the high-voltage grid for the years ahead, it must be possible to perform operational and maintenance work safely and efficiently. With this in mind, in early 2015 Elia acquired a drone to look into this innovative technology’s possible applications in grid maintenance. Current legislation prohibits the use of drones in Belgian airspace. However, the Civil Aviation Authority (DGTA/DGL) granted Elia a special permit to conduct live tests over an Elia site in Genk. Looking ahead, Elia hopes to be able to obtain a permit to use drones on its entire electricity grid. In addition to detailed inspections using a high-definition camera, drone technology will afford a new means of inspecting lines and pylons quickly and closely without having to interrupt supply and with fewer safety risks. BESTGRID: SPEEDING UP APPROVAL OF INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS
The time required to obtain permits for development projects frequently pushes the final completion date back. In a bid to secure greater public acceptance of projects and facilitate permit procedures, the Renewable Grid Initiative (RGI) association launched the European BestGrid project to test out new forms of collaboration between all stakeholders involved in a given project. Pilot projects were identified in Belgium, Germany and the United Kingdom; they entailed each system operator involved working closely with local NGOs to initiate and test new approaches and working methods. Elia worked with Inter-Environnement Wallonie (IEW) on drafting an action plan vis-à-vis the stakeholders affected by the project to install a high-voltage underground cable (150 kV) between the Braine-l’Alleud and Waterloo substations. We were also involved in a similar initiative with Bond Beter Leefmilieu (BBL) to perform an ex post facto assessment of collaboration with the various stakeholders during the permit process for the Stevin project. The conclusions reported in October 2015 highlight the importance of personal interaction to encourage commitment from all stakeholders and prompt amendments to the best practices put forward by BestGrid based on the specific requirements of the project in question.
MORE INFORMATION
Identifying innovative solutions to address anticipated issues associated with developing and managing the 2.0 electricity system. These projects focus on three areas: developing the national and European grid, managing operational planning and ensuring that the grid continues to run smoothly.
E-HIGHWAY2050: IDENTIFYING VERY-LONG-TERM GRID REQUIREMENTS
The e-Highway2050 project was launched in September 2012 to devise methods and tools for electricity-grid-planning looking ahead to 2050. Its findings were presented in Brussels in early November 2015.
To achieve a genuine pan-European electricity market and to address the challenges posed by the rise in renewable energies, the project identified several areas of the grid which could be improved by 2050. One point identified was the need for new lines and upgrade work, such as, for example, the need to create north-south corridors and to upgrade the connections between the northern and southern regions of Central Europe. The project concluded that adding a further layer to the existing grid was not absolutely necessary and that the proposed new structures could be integrated into the existing system. The project involved other transmission system operators, universities and European associations, and Elia’s role was in drawing up energy-mix scenarios, grid simulations and economic studies and formulating the governance model.
MORE INFORMATION
http://www.e-highway2050.eu/e-highway2050/
GARPUR1: A PROBABILISTIC APPROACH TO GRID DEVELOPMENT
The GARPUR project aims to evaluate a probabilistic approach based on risk management to analyse reliability in terms of the long-term development of the grid, asset maintenance and system management. In this pan-European project Elia provided expertise in drawing up and approving a methodology, focusing primarily on long-term grid development and its impact on system operation.
GRASP2: MANAGING OPERATIONAL-PLANNING RISKS
In view of the challenges to system operation posed by the energy transition, GRASP analyses the feasibility of a new approach centred on managing operational-planning risks a week ahead of the actual operation. Financed by the Brussels Institute for Research and Innovation (Innoviris), Elia and the Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB) are partnering to develop a tool for probabilistic decision-making based on risk and reliability indicators and which could ultimately replace the deterministic safety criteria currently used for short-term system operation.
1 Generally Accepted Reliability Principle with Uncertainty modelling and through probabilistic Risk assessment 2 Grid-Reliability Assessment for Short-term Planning
Identifying innovative ways of maintaining security of supply at an appropriate and affordable level, and achieving a European wholesale market which promotes flexibility through a range of sources and locations.
R2 DOWN WIND: INTEGRATING WIND POWER INTO THE SECONDARY RESERVE
Generation of intermittent renewable energies is mushrooming, and poses a challenge in terms of balancing the electricity system. In the future it is expected that there will be fewer conventional units running during periods with high renewables infeed. However, these units currently provide the majority of Elia’s balancing services and as such it is crucial that new balancing sources are found. The project – conducted by Elia in partnership with Windvision, Eneco and Enercon – sought to demonstrate that wind farms could contribute actively to the secondary reserve in Belgium by lowering their generation level. It presented its findings in late 2015. The results are promising: they illustrate the technical capacity of a wind farm to regulate its generation pattern quickly and with a relatively high degree of accuracy. However, analyses also highlighted some technical problems and market-related issues which will need to be resolved in future, before such a solution could be implemented. Two rounds of tests were conducted with the Estinnes wind farm in partnership with Windvision (operator), Enercon (wind-turbine manufacturer) and Eneco (supplier). Stephan Moelans, CEO of WindVision: “The involvement of wind farms in the reserves market will certainly enhance the position of wind generation in the generation mix and stimulate further innovation.”
MORE INFORMATION
The report’s full conclusions are available at http://www.elia.be/en/about-elia/newsroom/ news/2015/20-10-2015-Pilot-project-for-delivery-ofbalancing-services-by-wind-farms-in-Belgium.
50 %
OF THE ELECTRICITY CONSUMED ON THE DANISH ISLAND OF BORNHOLM IS DERIVED FROM RENEWABLE SOURCES
ECOGRID EU: INVOLVING THE PUBLIC IN OPERATING A SYSTEM FEATURING A HIGH PROPORTION OF RENEWABLE ENERGIES
Elia has been actively involved in this European project, launched in September 2015, to demonstrate how a distribution system with a significant share of renewables can operate efficiently and with direct public involvement. The pilot study was conducted on the Danish island of Bornholm, where over 50% of the electricity consumed is derived from renewable sources.
Thanks to a real-time price signal, 2,000 of the island’s inhabitants were able to adjust their consumption in line with the amount of renewable energy generated. This solution benefits both the system insofar as inhabitants are able to play an active role in balancing the grid, and the inhabitants themselves since they can reduce their electricity bill in an environmentally friendly and sustainable way. The conclusions presented in September 2015 show a clear interest in a real-time price signal such as that used in the pilot project, provided that the equipment is standardised and actions/ operations are automated. It may also be possible to implement this sort of solution for bigger target groups. Elia coordinated a study to look into the possibility of replicating the Ecogrid.eu concept in other European countries, including Belgium. DYMEDAS: INVESTIGATING THE POSSIBILITIES OF FLEXIBLE ELECTRICITY CONSUMPTION IN BELGIUM
Elia and the Université Catholique de Louvain (UCL) joined forces in the context of this doctoral thesis researching the use of electricity demand to provide ancillary services designed to balance supply and demand across the entire electricity system in real time. Given the challenges ahead for the electricity system, it is vital that no stone be left unturned in studying all possible options in terms of ensuring that the electricity system remains stable at all times. First and foremost, the project involves evaluating the opportunities afforded by using small, flexible electrical loads (e.g. water heater, electric vehicle) in ancillary services. The conclusions were presented in early 2016 and will be used to identify flexibility opportunities presented by electricity consumption in Belgium and to assess their impact in terms of the economy and society as a whole.
A spirit of innovation every day
MORE INFORMATION
The project’s full conclusions are available at http://www.eu-ecogrid.net/. Elia has taken several steps to stimulate an entrepreneurial spirit and to provide indirect support for these future projects. Innovation Sharing initiative is an internal programme for technicians to publicise innovative ideas they have come up with locally throughout Belgium, so that all operational staff in the field can benefit from their insight. Elia’s technicians thus have the opportunity to develop their ideas and to contribute on a national level to boosting the company and enhancing its activities.
