Solving Solar Stability With VPPs

Renewable energy sources are integral to achieving sustainable energy, but their intermittent nature presents a formidable hurdle. This inherent variability in energy production threatens to strain the grid and significantly affect its stability and reliability. Effectively managing these issues requires new approaches to grid management, such as utilizing complementary energy storage sources like batteries and pumped hydro storage. 

Solnet Group has introduced virtual power plant (VPP) services tailored to enhance grid stability for solar energy. This initiative could tackle solar’s challenge of ensuring smooth grid operations while meeting power demands.

Solar panels in the rain. Image used courtesy of Adobe Stock

Renewables Challenges

The power grid has experienced a shift from reliance on centralized fossil fuel plants to incorporating renewable energy sources. For example, the European Union's REPowerEU Plan targets a 45% share of total energy generation from renewables by 2030, a significant increase from the 27% goal set in 2014. 

Yet, despite this increased push for renewables, integrating solar and wind power still presents challenges, notably in managing intermittency. Maintaining stability in the power grid is essential for uninterrupted consumer supply. Imbalances in supply and demand can cause congestion, voltage, or frequency instability. Congestion arises when transmission lines cannot transport electricity, resulting in controlled power outages. Rising intermittent generation levels change the flow in power transmission lines, especially in areas with a high concentration of intermittent energy sources.

To this end, distributed energy resources (DER) can help meet power demands by decentralizing energy production, reducing strain on centralized grids, and providing localized generation closer to consumption points. Rather than the larger grid pulling power from intermittent sources in one centralized location, energy resources are more broadly dispersed. Additionally, a distributed energy solution decreased transmission losses associated with long-distance energy delivery.  

Solnet’s Virtual Power Plant Approach

Solnet Group has introduced VPP services for solar companies.

A virtual power plant is a distributed energy resources network coordinated through advanced software to function as a single entity for grid management and energy optimization. Solnet’s specific solution facilitates creating a collective VPP pool, enabling commercial and solar utilities to contribute to grid stability and profitability. Specifically, Solnet Group's platform enables commercial and solar utilities to join a collective pool of VPPs, facilitating participation in balancing markets, enhancing grid stability, and generating extra revenue.  

Virtual power plant working with distributed energy resources. Image used courtesy of the Department of Energy

Through advanced control algorithms, Solent’s platform allows DERs to adjust output dynamically to match grid conditions and facilitate frequency and voltage stability. By democratizing access to grid balancing opportunities, Solnet Manager empowers smaller-scale installations to address the challenges previously monopolized by larger players. With meticulous control over various solar utilities and energy storage units, Solnet Manager optimizes renewable capacity utilization to offer auxiliary services. 

According to Solent, this initiative can greatly improve the solar PV and energy storage markets by streamlining the integration of variable-size utilities into balance market participation.

The Way Forward

With Business Finland's support and a planned launch in Finland in 2024, Solnet Manager hopes to impact the solar energy landscape. In the future, Solnet plans to expand the program to include the Netherlands, Germany, and, eventually, the rest of Europe.