Resilient Customer Response NIA

Completed

Other Cross-Cutting Technologies or Research(Demographics)
Other Power and Storage Technologies(Electricity transmission and distribution)
Other Cross-Cutting Technologies or Research(Environmental, social and economic impacts)

Applied Research and Development

ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY (Electrical and Electronic Engineering)

Sociological economical and environmental impact of energy (Consumer attitudes and behaviour)

Project Contact
Northern Powergrid

Network Innovation Allowance

Ofgem

01 November 2024

31 December 2025

ENA months

£495,000

Power

Yorkshire & Humberside

Project Contact, Northern Powergrid

Project Contact, Northern Powergrid (Yorkshire) plc

The previous stage of the project explored different solutions that could use BTM assets to provide resilience and identified the solution of using a microgrid as the secondary substation level using a central grid-forming battery to restart the grid, in the event of a power cut, and behind-the-meter assets to provide supply to customers. This stage of the project is exploring the proposed technical solution and business models in further detail.This project will carry out a technical feasibility trial at the University of Strathclydes Power Network Demonstrator Centre (PNDC). This trial will aim to demonstrate that anislandable microgrid with a centralised battery to restart the network and BTM assets to support vulnerable customers in outages is technically capable, attractive and economically beneficial for DNOs. This will include testing a series of simulations, to explore the effects of different variables, including: ? Capacity ? Impact of weather on loads / generation ? Outage duration ? Network characteristics?The project will also explore the customer proposition and business models to support this solution. Focus groups with customers will be carried out to better understand customer views to feed into the design. The project will also map out the customer journey for two groups of customers; vulnerable customers and customers with BTM assets. The project will be carried out over 8 work packages:1. Project management and governance2. Technical trials3. Customer engagement and Customer journey mapping4. Stakeholder committee engagement (engaging with key stakeholders on the design of the solution)5. Business model design6. Network impact and HEM model7. Analysis, reporting and dissemination The project will include both theoretical design and physical technical trials on a laboratory installation to test the engineering practicalities and level of resilience which can be achieved under different scenarios.It will also explore business models and include potential customer responses to potential participation.The learning outcomes of this project include: The technical viability of using a microgrid with a central grid-forming battery and BTM assets, including key challenges with operating the design in a live setting. Consumer demand profiles and consumptions based on outage scenarios, BTM asset performance and grid signal influences. Customer views on resilience and power outages; including:o How vulnerable customers prioritise resilience and their dependence on different electrical loads.o Views of BTM asset owners on participating in an RCR scheme (e.g. what would incentivise their participation (levels of payments, administration requirements or trust in delivery partners).oOptions for the business model to deliver RCR.

This project is following on from the SIF Discovery projectResilient Customer Response. The project is exploring solutions to use behind-the-meter (BTM) assets to deliver resilience to not only the owner of the assets but other local network customers, in particular vulnerable customers.

09/04/25