It currently has one pilot demand side response project at its Aycliffe wastewater treatment works in County Durham, but it is set to develop three more at new sites in the coming months.
Following a review of these trials, Northumbrian Water climate change manager David Chapman told Utility Week it will go “company-wide thereafter” to all of its 437 sewage treatment works and 35 water treatment works.
He added: “We’re very interested in the idea of demand side management. The dynamic side is interesting to us, not least because of the sums of money involved.”
Northumbrian Water’s goal to develop energy demand side response systems comes after United Utilities revealed it aims to earn up to £5 million by offering National Grid up to 50MW of demand side response by 2020.
A number of other water companies are already offering and looking at developing their demand side response systems.
Anglian Water is currently providing demand side response services to National Grid through the Short Term Operating Reserve (STOR) and the Demand Side Balancing Reserve (DSBR) regimes.
Welsh Water is participating in DSBR this winter and is “looking at other demand response schemes available”, whilst the likes of Wessex Water and Scottish Water are conducting pilots and tests into the feasibility of demand side response.
The shift by water companies comes after National Grid told Utility Week it is preparing to revolutionise how it maintains secure supply by relying on demand-side measures for “well over 50 per cent of the time” by 2030.