Pioneering energy deal agreed for Anesco and WPD

Western Power Distribution (WPD) has signed a demand-side management agreement with battery storage provider Anesco that is believed to be one of the first of its kind in the U.K.

Demand-side management is the term used to describe an agreement between an electricity distribution company and a customer to operate their electricity consumption at a lower capacity at pre-determined times, in return for reduced extra high voltage (EHV) charges.

Simon Yeo, income manager for WPD said: “This approach benefits both Anesco and WPD’s wider customer base in providing long term network security while reducing the need and cost for additional network reinforcement. It also demonstrates the benefits of battery storage in a world of network capacity constraints.”

Mike Ryan, asset management director for Anesco added: “This is a solution which provides value to the customers of both Anesco and WPD and demonstrates yet another way batteries bring benefits to the system. We look forward to other DNOs [distribution network operators] learning from WPD’s leadership in this area. It’s been fantastic to work with Simon and the team at WPD to achieve this first-of-its-kind solution.”

To date, the focus on batteries providing flexibility to the system has been on how that flexibility can earn revenue. However, as this solution demonstrates, it is also possible to provide flexibility to the system in a way which reduces the assets’ operating costs.

The storage market is a rapidly evolving, dynamic environment. Asset owners and operators need to be cognizant not just of their revenue streams – both current and future – but also of their operating costs and the interaction between the two. It is through the successful optimization of both of these areas that batteries can succeed.