Energy storage can be summed up as 'the capture of energy produced at one time for use at a later point in time'. As energy can come in multiple forms so too can storage devices; an everyday example is the hot water cylinder that allows heat to be stored for later use.
Due to the significant increasein renewable generation connected to our network, electricity storage has received a lot of attention in recent years. As well as helping to reduce a customer's exposure to high power prices, electricity storage potentially reduces network constraints that can be caused when there is too much demand or generation for the network to cope with. SSEN is working with stakeholders, such as not-for-profit consultancy firms like Regen, to better understand the next generation of energy storage devices, and how we can facilitate their use.
In this short video with Ray Arrell from Regen, he discusses the flexibility value that electricity storage can provide to smooth out the peaks and troughs created by variable generation such as wind and solar power. Ray also explains that the co-location of storage with generation or high demand may help to reduce potential network upgrade costs, which in turn saves our customers money and possible disruption to their power supplies.
Electricity storage looks set to play a more important role in the emerging energy system and as a neutral market facilitator that actively supports competition, SSEN must consider a wider range of technologies and services that can provide similar flexibility. The utilisation of new 'non- wire solutions' such as storage and demand-side-response, as part of network operations, is requiring SSEN to transition from a DNO to a DSO. In contrast to a DNO, as a DSO SSEN will increasingly manage distribution networks in real-time to optimise network capacity. SSEN's recent publication Supporting a Smarter Electricity System further explains why the DSO transition is in our customers' interests and what the priorities are as part of it.