Open Energi has unveiled a new platform that uses artificial intelligence and machine learning to optimise the use of distributed energy assets in real time.
The smart energy firm says the launch marks “a significant step towards a self-balancing grid that can integrate renewable generation efficiently at scale”.
The company claims its Dynamic Demand 2.0 platform will help businesses to “radically” reduce their energy bills by connecting, aggregating and optimising assets such as industrial equipment, battery storage systems, electric vehicles (EV) and on-site generation.
It says the platform will enable users to stack value from balancing services, energy trading, the capacity market, peak price management, constraint management and operational energy efficiencies.
“It is now possible to measure and monitor machine behaviour at such a granular level that we can identify invisible flexibility in the way we consume power,” explained Open Energi commercial director David Hill.
“Many industrial processes – such as pumping, heating and cooling – have inherent energy storage, and when you combine these with on-site generation, battery storage and EV charging it is possible to take sites off-grid for periods of the day with no impact on business operations.
“This is incredibly empowering for consumers, but identifying which asset to switch or dispatch and in which order to reduce costs and carbon is a very complex and dynamic problem to solve. This is where Dynamic Demand 2.0 comes in.”
Building materials supplier Aggregate Industries is expected to be the first existing customer to be connected.
The company’s head of sustainability Donna Hunt said: “Dynamic Demand 2.0 offers us greater control and visibility of our energy demand, helping us to save energy, cut costs and play a more active role in creating a sustainable energy future.
“The more businesses and industries that collectively manage their demand in this way, the more impactful we can be.”
Open Energi has entered talks with a number of battery storage and EV-charging companies about licensing the platform’s software for use in their products.